# MAO vs Orca: which should you use to run coding agents in parallel?

Orca is a free, MIT-licensed desktop app from Stably AI that runs each coding agent in its own Git worktree, with a browser, diff review, SSH and a phone companion. MAO is a paid native canvas where agents run as real terminals you wire together. Choose Orca for a free agent IDE; choose MAO for a visible, connected team.

Orca is a free, open-source desktop app from Stably AI for running coding agents in parallel, where every task gets its own Git worktree, agent terminal and browser, with diff review, GitHub and Linear, SSH and a phone companion in the same app. MAO is a desktop-native canvas where Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI and other agents run as real terminal nodes that you connect so they hand work to each other. Choose Orca if you want a free, MIT-licensed agent IDE with mobile access; choose MAO if you want to see every agent on one canvas and wire them into a team.

## What is Orca?

**Orca is an open-source "agent development environment": a desktop IDE that runs many CLI coding agents side by side, one Git worktree per task.**

This is the Orca at onorca.dev, from the stablyai/orca repository on GitHub, not the GNOME screen reader of the same name. Its docs describe it as a desktop IDE where every task gets its own git worktree, its own agent terminal and its own browser tab. Orca is not a model: you bring the agent subscriptions you already have.

The rest of what its official pages describe:

- **Agents.** Orca works with any CLI agent and ships a preconfigured list that includes Claude Code, Codex, Gemini, Grok, Cursor CLI, GitHub Copilot, OpenCode, Antigravity and Pi. Agents launch with their permission-bypass flag by default, which you can change per agent.
- **Review and ship.** A diff viewer, comments on diff lines sent back to the agent, commit and push, pull requests and checks, and GitHub, Linear, Jira and GitLab links on each worktree.
- **Browser and design.** A Chromium browser per worktree that agents can drive from the Orca CLI, and Design Mode, which sends a clicked element's HTML, CSS and a cropped screenshot to the agent.
- **Remote and mobile.** SSH worktrees, Remote Orca Servers (beta) that keep agents running on another machine, and a companion app for iOS and Android (beta) to watch and reply to agents.
- **Experimental.** A structured Chat UI, multi-agent orchestration, and per-workspace cloud VMs or Docker environments.
- **Licence and price.** MIT, free and open source, on macOS, Windows and Linux.

## How do MAO and Orca differ?

**Both give each agent its own Git worktree. They differ in how you see the agents, how agents pass work along, which devices they can test, and in licence and price.**

|  | MAO | Orca |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Platforms | macOS (Apple silicon and Intel), Windows x86_64, Linux x86_64 (Wayland and X11) | macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows, Linux (AppImage, .deb, .rpm); companion app for iOS and Android |
| Agents supported | Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Grok, OpenCode, Antigravity, plus any shell or custom command | Any CLI agent, with a preconfigured list that includes Claude Code, Codex, Gemini, Grok, Cursor CLI, OpenCode and Antigravity |
| How an agent runs | A real terminal node on a canvas, with an optional chat view | An agent CLI in a terminal tab in its worktree, with an experimental structured Chat UI for some agents |
| Isolation per agent | Layers: each layer is a Git worktree on its own branch with its own canvas | A Git worktree per task; experimental per-workspace cloud VMs or Docker environments from a recipe |
| Agents handing work to each other | Yes: wire two agents on the canvas, then `mao ask` or `mao send` a task and collect its result by task ID | Experimental: orchestration runs, tasks and supervised workers that report back with `worker_done` through the Orca CLI |
| Built-in browser or device testing | A Chromium browser portal a connected agent can drive, an Android device portal, and an iOS Simulator portal on macOS | A Chromium browser per worktree that agents drive with the Orca CLI, Design Mode, iOS Simulator control with `orca emulator`, and Computer Use (beta) for desktop apps |
| Remote machines | A workspace on a Linux server over SSH, or inside WSL on Windows; needs a licence | SSH worktrees, Remote Orca Servers (beta, including headless `orca serve`) and the phone companion |
| Source | Closed source; sold as a licence | Open source, MIT |
| Price | One-time purchase: US$20 in most countries, lower in some regions; 7-day free trial | Free |

## When does Orca fit better?

**When you want a free, open-source agent IDE with review, design and mobile tools built in.**

- **You want open source or no cost.** Orca is MIT-licensed and free. MAO is a paid licence after a 7-day trial.
- **You want to check on agents from your phone.** Orca's iOS and Android companion shows agent status and scrollback, lets you reply, and sends a notification when an agent finishes. MAO has no mobile app.
- **You do a lot of UI work.** Design Mode sends the element you click, with its HTML, CSS and a screenshot, straight into the agent's prompt.
- **Your work starts in GitHub, Linear, Jira or GitLab.** Orca opens a worktree from an issue or pull request and shows the link on its card. MAO's docs describe no issue-tracker integration.
- **You review through pull requests.** Orca commits, pushes, opens pull requests and lets you send comments on diff lines back to the agent. MAO's Git views cover diffs, staging and history, but its docs do not describe creating pull requests.
- **You want remote machines without paying.** SSH worktrees and Remote Orca Servers are part of the free app; MAO's remote workspaces need a licence.
- **You want an agent to operate other desktop apps.** Orca's Computer Use (beta) lets an agent read and click native apps through accessibility trees.

## When does MAO fit better?

**When you want to see and direct several agents at once, and have them pass work between them on the canvas.**

- **Hand-offs you can see.** In MAO you draw a connection between two agents, and one can send the other a task with `mao ask` and get the result back by task ID. A connection grants access only to the node at its other end. Orca's orchestration is experimental and driven from its CLI.
- **Everything on one canvas.** Agents, notes, project files, browser and device portals sit side by side on a pannable, zoomable canvas instead of in tabs and panes.
- **Android testing.** A connected agent can click, swipe, type and screenshot an Android emulator or attached device in a MAO device portal. Orca's docs describe iOS Simulator control, not Android.
- **Roles and accounts per agent.** Each terminal node can have its own provider account, model and reusable Markdown role.
- **No telemetry by default.** MAO sends no telemetry unless you opt in. Orca's README says it collects anonymous usage data, with a way to opt out.
- **A native app.** MAO is written in Rust and renders its canvas on the GPU with GPUI. Orca's install docs describe it as an Electron-based app.
- **Windows with WSL.** MAO opens a workspace inside a WSL distribution with no SSH setup.

## How do I compare them on a real task?

**Run the same two-part task in both and see which one you can follow and finish faster.**

1. Pick a task with two parts that touch different files, such as an API change and its tests.
2. In Orca, create two worktrees with one agent each. In MAO, create two layers and put one agent on each.
3. Make one part depend on the other. In MAO, wire the agents and let one ask the other for its result; in Orca, try its experimental orchestration or carry the result across yourself.
4. If the change has a UI, let an agent check it in each app's browser.
5. Review each diff and bring the work back: a pull request from Orca, **Land…** into Ground from MAO.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is MAO an alternative to Orca?

Yes. Both run several coding agents in parallel, each in its own Git worktree. Orca is a free, MIT-licensed agent IDE with a phone companion; MAO is a paid native canvas where agents are real terminals you connect so they hand tasks to each other.

### Is Orca open source?

Yes. Orca is free and open source under the MIT licence, and its code is on GitHub at stablyai/orca.

### Does Orca support Claude Code and Codex?

Yes. Both are preconfigured in Orca, along with Gemini, Grok, Cursor CLI, OpenCode and many others, and Orca also runs any other CLI agent in a terminal. You use your own subscription for each agent.

### Can Orca agents hand work to each other?

Yes, as an experimental feature. Orca's orchestration, enabled under its experimental settings, lets a coordinator create tasks and start supervised workers that report back through the Orca CLI. In MAO, you wire agents on the canvas and send tasks with `mao ask` or `mao send`.

### Is this the same Orca as the GNOME screen reader?

No. This Orca is the agent IDE at onorca.dev from Stably AI. Its Linux command is named `orca-ide` so it does not conflict with the GNOME Orca screen reader, and its Homebrew cask is `stablyai/orca/orca`.

## Sources

- [Orca website](https://www.onorca.dev/): parallel agents in worktrees, the agent list, the phone companion, Design Mode, SSH worktrees, the FAQ on price and licence, and the Stably AI copyright.
- [Orca README](https://github.com/stablyai/orca): features, supported agents, desktop and mobile installs, the Homebrew cask name, anonymous usage data with opt-out, and the MIT licence.
- [Orca licence](https://github.com/stablyai/orca/blob/main/LICENSE): MIT License.
- [What is Orca?](https://www.onorca.dev/docs) and [Worktrees](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/model/worktrees): one worktree, agent terminal and browser per task, and bring-your-own subscriptions.
- [Install](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/install): macOS, Windows and Linux builds, Electron, and the `orca-ide` Linux command.
- [Supported agents](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/agents/supported) and [Agents & sessions](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/model/agents-sessions): the preconfigured agents, any CLI agent, terminal sessions and permission-bypass defaults.
- [Chat UI](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/agents/native-chat): the experimental structured chat.
- [Orchestration](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/cli/orchestration): experimental runs, tasks, supervised workers and `worker_done`.
- [Per-worktree browser](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/browser/overview), [Orca CLI overview](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/cli/overview) and [Computer use](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/cli/computer-use): browser automation, `orca emulator` for the iOS Simulator, and desktop app control.
- [Ways to run Orca](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/ways-to-run), [SSH worktrees](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/ssh) and [Remote Orca Servers](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/remote-servers): SSH, remote servers, `orca serve` and experimental cloud VMs.
- [Mobile companion](https://www.onorca.dev/docs/mobile): the iOS and Android app.
- [Run a shell or agent](https://trymao.dev/docs/terminals-agents/terminal-and-agent-nodes) and [Configure agent launch presets](https://trymao.dev/docs/agent-presets-accounts-roles/agent-presets): MAO's terminal nodes, provider presets and custom commands.
- [Create a worktree layer](https://trymao.dev/docs/layers-git-worktrees/create-layer) and [Land a layer into Ground](https://trymao.dev/docs/layers-git-worktrees/land-layer): MAO's layers as Git worktrees, and landing them.
- [Connect agents, notes, and portals](https://trymao.dev/docs/connections-orchestration-mao-cli/node-connections) and [Send a task and collect its result](https://trymao.dev/docs/connections-orchestration-mao-cli/task-delivery): wires between agents, `mao ask`, `mao send` and task IDs.
- [Let an agent drive an authorized browser](https://trymao.dev/docs/portals-browser-android-ios/browser-portal-cli), [Control an Android device portal](https://trymao.dev/docs/portals-browser-android-ios/android-device-portal) and [View an iOS Simulator portal](https://trymao.dev/docs/portals-browser-android-ios/ios-simulator-portal): MAO's portals.
- [Remote workspaces](https://trymao.dev/remote-workspaces): SSH, WSL and the licence requirement.
- [MAO for agents (llms.txt)](https://trymao.dev/llms.txt): supported agents, platforms, price, telemetry and the free trial.

Checked on 2026-10-28.

Source: https://trymao.dev/mao-vs-orca