The Open Source Vibe Stack: Coding for Free

The "Vibe Coding" movement is often associated with expensive subscriptions (Cursor, v0, etc.). But the open-source community has built an incredible parallel stack that costs $0 and respects your privacy.

Here is the ultimate Open Source Vibe Stack for 2025.

The Editor: Zed (or VS Code)

Zed is the new standard for performance. It's open-source, written in Rust, and blazing fast. It has built-in AI chat that works with any provider.

• Alternative: VS Code (the open-source build, VSCodium) is still the king of extensions.

The Brain: Ollama

Ollama is the engine. It lets you run powerful LLMs like Llama 3, Mistral, and DeepSeek locally on your machine. No API keys, no monthly bills, no data leaving your laptop.

The Agent: Aider

Aider is the best CLI agent, period. And it's open source. Connect it to your local Ollama instance, and you have a fully autonomous coding partner that lives in your terminal.

• Workflow:
  1. Open your project in Zed.
  2. Open the terminal.
  3. Type aider --model ollama/llama3.
  4. Ask it to "Refactor this file" or "Add a test case."

The Orchestrator: Goose

Goose is an extensible agent that connects to the Model Context Protocol (MCP). It can automate tasks beyond just code—like managing your local database or interacting with the browser.

Why This Stack Matters

1. Privacy: Your code never leaves your machine.
2. Cost: $0/month.
3. Resilience: You aren't dependent on a startup that might get acquired or shut down.
4. Control: You can tweak every part of the stack.

Vibe coding isn't about buying tools; it's about mastering them. The Open Source stack is the ultimate mastery.