--- title: "Helicon vs VS Code Muse Code extensions" url: https://helicon.sh/compare/vs-code-extension description: "A standalone Muse Code desktop app compared with running the muse CLI inside VS Code: where an editor panel wins, where a separate session home wins, and how to run both." updated: 2026-09-19 site: Helicon --- # Helicon vs a VS Code extension for Muse Code VS Code extensions put Muse Code in a panel next to the file you are editing, which is the right place for a quick change. Helicon is a separate window whose job is the session list: every project, every thread, resume, diffs, approvals and cost in one place, independent of which editor you happen to have open. ## At a glance | | Helicon | VS Code extensions | | --- | --- | --- | | Lives in | Its own window, or a browser tab | The VS Code sidebar | | Scope | All projects on the machine at once | The open workspace | | Editor lock in | None, works beside any editor | VS Code and forks | | Session list | Grouped by directory, all history | Usually per window | | Diffs | Inline in the thread plus a file viewer | Native editor diff | | Cost view | Per thread, day and model | Not typically included | | Remote machines | Same UI against a remote daemon | Via Remote SSH or dev containers | | Billing | Your Muse Code subscription | Your Muse Code subscription | _Helicon compared with a VS Code Muse extension._ ## What each one is Several community extensions bring the muse CLI into VS Code. They give you a chat panel inside the editor, which means the agent's output is a click away from the file tree you already have open, and applying an edit lands in the editor's own diff view. For a single repository and a single task that is hard to beat. Helicon takes the other position. It is a standalone app whose primary object is the session, not the file. The sidebar lists every project on the machine, each with its threads, and the thing you resume is a conversation rather than a folder. That difference matters most when you are running work in four repos and want one place to see which ones are waiting on you. ## Where they actually differ ### One workspace versus every workspace An editor extension is scoped to the window it lives in. Helicon indexes projects across your machine, including isolated git worktrees, and shows them in one sidebar with their sessions underneath. ### The editor keeps working Helicon does not care which editor you use. Neovim, Zed, JetBrains, Xcode or VS Code: the thread lives in its own window and the file viewer beside it opens whatever path the agent mentions. ### Cost is surfaced Helicon shows what threads would have cost at published API rates, by day, model and thread. This is a meter reading on your existing subscription, not a bill, and it is not something editor panels usually show. ### Approvals are a queue, not a toast Approval requests are listed and stay listed until you act. onRequest, promptUnmatched and denyUnmatched are mapped one to one and never bypassed. ### Windows is a first class target Helicon ships a signed Windows installer with auto update, runs Muse Code natively on Windows, and falls back to Muse Code inside WSL2 with path translation both ways when native is not installed. ## Choose a VS Code Muse extension if - Your work is one repo at a time and the file tree is the thing you care about. - You want edits to land in the editor's own diff and staging flow. - You already live in VS Code and do not want another window. ## Choose Helicon if - You want a session home that outlives any single editor window. - You triage several threads across repos and worktrees. - You want cost, approvals and full history in one surface. - You are on Windows and want an installer, not setup. ## Can you use both? They compose cleanly. Keep the extension for inline work in the repo you are editing, and open Helicon when you want to see everything at once or resume something from last week. Both talk to the same muse CLI and the same subscription, so there is no second bill and no second login. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is Helicon the only GUI for Muse Code? No. VS Code extensions exist, editor integrations over ACP exist, and there are other open source wrappers. Helicon is the standalone desktop and web option with a signed Windows installer and a cross project session list. ### Can I run Helicon and a VS Code extension at the same time? Yes. Both drive the same muse CLI. Sessions started in either are visible to the daemon, so Helicon can list and resume work an extension started in that workspace. ### Do I need a second subscription? No. Helicon uses your existing Muse Code subscription through your own `muse login`. It stores no credentials and adds no billing of its own. ## Related - [The muse terminal](https://helicon.sh/compare/muse-code-terminal): How a Muse Code GUI differs from the muse CLI terminal interface: session history, inline diffs, approvals and cost, side by side with what the TUI already does well. - [Zed with ACP](https://helicon.sh/compare/zed-acp): Running Muse Code inside Zed through an Agent Client Protocol bridge, compared with a standalone Muse Code desktop app. Editor native versus session native. - [JetBrains IDEs](https://helicon.sh/compare/jetbrains-acp): Muse Code inside IntelliJ, PyCharm, GoLand or WebStorm through an Agent Client Protocol plugin, compared with a standalone Muse Code desktop app. - [Claude Code desktop](https://helicon.sh/compare/claude-code-desktop): Two desktop apps for two different coding agents. What Helicon borrows from the Claude Code desktop experience, and what changes because the agent underneath is Muse Code. - [Codex app](https://helicon.sh/compare/codex-app): How a Muse Code desktop client compares with OpenAI's Codex app: same category, different agent, different billing, different openness. - [Cursor](https://helicon.sh/compare/cursor): Cursor is an AI editor with its own models and billing. Helicon is a window over the Muse Code CLI on your existing subscription. What each one is actually for. --- Helicon is a free, MIT licensed, unofficial community client for Meta's Muse Code CLI. Not made, sponsored or endorsed by Meta. Source: https://helicon.sh/. Machine readable index: https://helicon.sh/llms.txt