---
title: "Muse Code in VS Code and Cursor: the Helicon extension"
url: https://helicon.sh/install/vscode
description: "A Muse Code side panel inside your editor: threads as tabs, readable approvals, the files each thread changed. Uses your own muse login. Free and open source."
updated: 2026-09-28
site: Helicon
---

# Helicon for VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf and Antigravity

Install Helicon from the VS Code Marketplace in VS Code, or from Open VSX in Cursor, Windsurf and Antigravity, then click the Helicon icon in the activity bar. It opens a side panel for the folder you have open and drives the muse CLI you already use, with your own login and subscription and no API key.

## Install it

| Editor | Where to get it |
| --- | --- |
| VS Code | [VS Code Marketplace](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=harjjotsinghh.helicon), or search "Helicon" in the Extensions view |
| Cursor, Windsurf, Antigravity, VSCodium | [Open VSX](https://open-vsx.org/extension/harjjotsinghh/helicon), or search "Helicon" in the Extensions view |

You need the muse CLI installed and signed in once with `muse login`. The extension uses that login; it never asks for an API key.

## What the panel gives you

- The threads you have open in this folder, as tabs across the top.
- History: every earlier thread in the folder, searchable and grouped by day.
- Approvals you can read before a command or an edit runs.
- The files each thread changed, with line counts, one click from opening in the editor.
- Your editor's theme and font, so it looks like part of the editor.

Drag the panel to the right-hand side bar if you prefer it there. For every project at once, run Helicon: Open Full Helicon in Editor to get the whole app in an editor tab.

## How it works

The extension runs Helicon's local server on your editor's own Node runtime, bound to 127.0.0.1, and shows the Helicon interface in the side panel. The server runs `muse serve` and talks to it over MSP, so Muse Code stays the agent: the same models, tools and approval rules. The extension is about 1 MB and has no telemetry.

> Helicon needs an editor built on Node 22 or newer: VS Code 1.101 or later, and current Cursor, Windsurf and Antigravity releases.

## Use Muse Code in VS Code or Cursor with Helicon

1. **Install and sign in to the muse CLI** Helicon uses your existing login.
   ```sh
   muse login
   ```
2. **Install the Helicon extension** From the VS Code Marketplace, or Open VSX for Cursor, Windsurf and Antigravity.
3. **Open your project folder** The panel works on the folder you have open.
4. **Click the Helicon icon** Start a thread from the composer at the bottom of the panel.

## Frequently asked questions

### Does it work in Cursor?

Yes. Cursor installs extensions from Open VSX; search for Helicon in its Extensions view.

### Do I need the desktop app too?

No. The extension carries its own copy of Helicon. You can use both; they keep separate lists of projects.

### Does it replace Cursor's own agent?

No. It is a panel for Muse Code, running next to whatever else your editor has.

## Related

- [Windows](https://helicon.sh/install/windows): A signed Windows installer for a Muse Code desktop app, with auto update. Runs Muse Code natively on Windows, or inside WSL2 with path translation both ways.
- [macOS](https://helicon.sh/install/macos): One universal DMG for Apple Silicon and Intel, with auto update. Install the muse CLI, sign in, drag Helicon to Applications, and open it the first time with right click.
- [Muse Code over SSH](https://helicon.sh/guides/muse-code-over-ssh): Point Helicon at a folder on a remote machine and Muse Code runs there over ssh, while you keep threads, approvals and diffs in a desktop app on your laptop.

---

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