Reason
Last tested:
Reason is autonomous cloud coding agent for GitHub that opens pull requests; its new Reason Network lets your coding agents talk to each other (category: Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud)). VibeToolRank agent test score: 8.6/10 (tested 2026-10-18, 3 runs, cloud free plan), #10 of 15 tested Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud) tools. Pricing: Free plan (no included agent quota; bring your own model key or buy credits); Pro $20/mo with a 7-day trial; Max $200/mo (seen in the app, 2026-10-17). Free tier: Partly: the Free plan includes no agent runs (our API check showed the quota exhausted at zero usage); you can bring your own model API key. Reason Network is free..
Key facts
Verdict: 3/3 runs fixed our seeded cart bug (4/4 tests pass) in 20-36s of agent time with a free OpenRouter model, $0.
Positioned for: developers who want a cloud agent to work GitHub issues and coordinate with other coding agents. (vendor positioning, not tested)
- VibeToolRank score
- 8.6/10
- Rank
- #10 of 15 tested Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud)
- Category
- Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud)
- Last tested
- 2026-10-18
- Runs
- 3 runs
- Outcome score
- 8/10
- Edition tested
- Reason Agent 1.10 (cloud API), Free plan, scratch sessions with our OpenRouter key on the free model cohere/north-mini-code:free
- Free plan, as measured
- About 84-126K input and 2-4K output tokens per bugfix run, $0 on a free OpenRouter model (12 OpenRouter free requests for 3 runs)
- Free plan
- Partly: the Free plan includes no agent runs (our API check showed the quota exhausted at zero usage); you can bring your own model API key. Reason Network is free.
- Price
- Free plan (no included agent quota; bring your own model key or buy credits); Pro $20/mo with a 7-day trial; Max $200/mo (seen in the app, 2026-10-17)
- Pricing checked
- 2026-10-17
- Sources
- reasonmachines.com · reasonmachines.com/llms.txt · reasonmachines.com/network · test log in our repo
Pricing and free tier
Current official pricing (checked ): Free plan (no included agent quota; bring your own model key or buy credits); Pro $20/mo with a 7-day trial; Max $200/mo (seen in the app, 2026-10-17)
Is Reason free? Partly: the Free plan includes no agent runs (our API check showed the quota exhausted at zero usage); you can bring your own model API key. Reason Network is free.
The Free plan has no included agent quota and no cloud computer (tools fail with 'Credits exhausted: cloud machine not started'). With your own model key the agent can still answer; OpenRouter ':free' models cost $0 but are limited to 50 requests a day on a free OpenRouter account.
unverified · unknown method. Official plan limits can change; re-check the vendor page before paying. Figures from our tests are recorded observations, not a current-capacity promise.
What we measured in our test (2026-10-18, 3 runs): About 84-126K input and 2-4K output tokens per bugfix run, $0 on a free OpenRouter model (12 OpenRouter free requests for 3 runs) Reason free tier: how far you get
Agent test verdict
Edition tested Reason Agent 1.10 (cloud API), Free plan, scratch sessions with our OpenRouter key on the free model cohere/north-mini-code:free. Results may differ for the hosted product.
Tested 2026-10-18 · 3 runs · rubric v0.1 (provisional thresholds). 3/3 runs fixed our seeded cart bug (4/4 tests pass) in 20-36s of agent time with a free OpenRouter model, $0. On the Free plan the agent's cloud computer doesn't start, so it can't run tests or edit a repo itself; it returned the fixed file and we applied it.
| Dimension | Score /10 |
|---|---|
| Outcome (40%) | 8 |
| Speed (15%) | 10 |
| Cost (15%) | 10 |
| Developer experience (15%) | 6 |
| Reliability (15%) | 10 |
| Overall | 8.6 |
How we tested
- Reason Agent 1.10 via its API on the Free plan, with our OpenRouter key and the free model cohere/north-mini-code:free pinned (no fallback), $0, tested 18 Oct 2026.
- Task T3: fix a seeded bug in a small cart.js repo so all 4 tests pass, without touching the test file. The files were pasted into a scratch session (no GitHub access).
- 3 runs: all 3 returned a correct cart.js (4/4 tests pass on our machine), agent time 20.2-35.5s; the test file was never changed.
Pros, cons and who it's for
Pros
- Fixed the seeded bug correctly in 3 of 3 runs, in 20-36 seconds
- Lets you bring your own model key and pin a free OpenRouter model, so our test cost $0
- The API reports outcome, cost and token usage for every session
Cons
- On the Free plan the cloud computer won't start, so the agent can't run tests, edit a repo or open a PR
- The agent kept retrying tools on the missing machine, using 84-126k input tokens for a 7-line fix
- The session's result field is truncated; the full answer is only in the events log
Who it's for: Developers who want a cloud agent to work GitHub issues and coordinate with Claude Code, Codex and teammates' agents.
Free-tier limits: The Free plan has no included agent quota and no cloud computer (tools fail with 'Credits exhausted: cloud machine not started'). With your own model key the agent can still answer; OpenRouter ':free' models cost $0 but are limited to 50 requests a day on a free OpenRouter account.
FAQ
Can Reason run for free?
Partly. In our 18 Oct 2026 test the Free plan ran the agent on our own OpenRouter key with a free model at $0, but its cloud computer didn't start, so it couldn't run commands or open a PR.
Did Reason fix the bug?
Yes, in 3 of 3 runs it returned a cart.js that applies the discount as a percentage before tax, and all 4 tests passed when we applied it.
How do I use a free model with Reason?
Connect an OpenRouter key under Models (we used the API), then start a session with a model id like byok:openrouter:cohere/north-mini-code:free and model rollover turned off.
How did Reason score in VibeToolRank's test?
8.6/10 overall (outcome 8, speed 10, cost 10, developer experience 6, reliability 10), 3 runs on 2026-10-18. 3/3 runs fixed our seeded cart bug (4/4 tests pass) in 20-36s of agent time with a free OpenRouter model, $0.
Who is Reason best for?
We haven't tested Reason yet. Reason positions itself for developers who want a cloud agent to work GitHub issues and coordinate with other coding agents (vendor positioning, not our test result).
How much does Reason cost?
Free plan (no included agent quota; bring your own model key or buy credits); Pro $20/mo with a 7-day trial; Max $200/mo (seen in the app, 2026-10-17) (from the official pricing page, checked 2026-10-17).
Related
Comparisons
Other Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud)
- Aider — 9.3/10
- Claude Code — 9.3/10
- Cline — 9.2/10
- GitHub Copilot CLI — 9.2/10
- OpenCode — 9.2/10
- Memdoor — 9.1/10
- OpenHands — 9.1/10
- Zerg Client — 9.1/10
- Amp — 9/10
- Alysis Code — 8.4/10
- Harness (Autonomous) — 8.4/10
- Jules — 8/10
- OpenAI Codex — 7.4/10
- Gemini CLI — 6.1/10
- Agent Manager — not yet tested
- Conducted — not yet tested
- Crewplane — not yet tested
- Devin — not yet tested
- Mirror (Reflection) — not yet tested
- Parallax (Conifer) — not yet tested
- psi — not yet tested
- Roomote (formerly Roo Code) — not yet tested
- Ski — not yet tested
- Wonder — not yet tested
Best Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud) · Best free Coding Agents (CLI & Cloud) · All tools · How we test
Sources
Scores come from our own tests and are never for sale; sponsored placements are always labelled. Some links are affiliate links (currently Railway). Disclosure