HB Code and T3 Code
T3 Code is an open-source app by T3 Tools that controls the coding agents on your machine from a desktop, web, and phone app. HB Code is a desktop app for Mac and Windows by helpful bits GmbH. It runs Claude Code and Codex on your own computer, and its iPhone and Android apps open the same sessions.
The main difference
T3 Code is open source under the MIT License, and its README says that it sells you nothing. HB Code isn't open source, and a phone needs HB Code Pro after a 10-day connected preview.
T3 Code controls the agents that are set up on your computer, and its README lists Codex, Claude, Cursor, Grok Build, OpenCode, and Antigravity. HB Code runs two agents, Claude Code and Codex, and includes a runtime for each in the app.
Both apps run the agent on your computer and show the session on a phone.
Side by side
| Topic | HB Code | T3 Code |
|---|---|---|
| License and source | HB CodeNot open source. The source isn't public. | T3 CodeOpen source under the MIT License. The repository is public. |
| Price | HB CodeThe desktop app needs no payment. A phone gets a 10-day connected preview and then needs HB Code Pro from the App Store or Google Play. | T3 CodeIts README answers the question "Wait, what are you selling me?" with "Nothing." |
| Desktop | HB CodemacOS 12 or later on Apple silicon, and Windows 10 version 1809 or later on x64. No Linux app. | T3 CodemacOS, Windows, and Linux, with a .deb package for Debian and Ubuntu. |
| Phone and web | HB CodeiPhone with iOS 18 or later and Android 8.0 or later. No web app. | T3 CodeiOS and Android apps, and a web app. |
| Coding agents | HB CodeClaude Code and Codex. | T3 CodeCodex, Claude, Cursor, Grok Build, OpenCode, and Antigravity, as its README lists them. The install guide also names Pi and Muse Code. |
| Agent sign-in and billing | HB CodeClaude Code is the unchanged executable of Anthropic's Claude Agent SDK. Codex is HB Code's own build of OpenAI's open-source Codex app-server. Both run on your own Claude and ChatGPT sign-in, and HB Code includes neither plan. | T3 CodeIt controls the agents that are set up on your computer and works with your own subscriptions. Codex can also use a ChatGPT plan sign-in in T3 Code. |
| Account with the maker | HB CodeNone for work on the desktop. Remote access and the phone apps need an HB Code account. | T3 CodeT3 Connect, its optional service for remote access, needs a sign-in on the host and on the other device. |
| Where the agent works | HB CodeIn your project folders on your own computer. HB Code creates no worktrees and lists the ones that the repository has. No cloud. | T3 CodeOn your computer. A thread can get a new git worktree. A remote Linux machine or Apple silicon Mac can also be the host. |
| How the phone reaches the desktop | HB CodeThrough HB Code's relay server over TLS. The connection isn't end-to-end encrypted. The server passes the content and doesn't store it. | T3 CodeOver LAN, Tailscale, a public URL, SSH, or T3 Connect, a service of the maker. The maker states encrypted transport for the network services that it operates. |
| Accounts and usage limits | HB CodeSeveral Claude accounts and ChatGPT subscriptions. Settings › Agents lists each one with its limit windows, and the phone apps show the same windows. | T3 CodeSeveral ChatGPT accounts and several Claude accounts. Usage → Limits shows how much is left per window, pooled over the accounts, and phone widgets show the remaining Codex and Claude quotas. |
| Usage analytics in the app | HB CodeNo analytics or crash-report SDK in the desktop app or the phone apps. The desktop app sends one daily usage signal, with a random ID not linked to your account, only if you allow it. With remote access on, the server keeps device status data. | T3 CodeOn by default. The server sends product usage events to PostHog, without prompts, responses, or file contents. An environment variable turns it off. |
T3 Code: when it fits better
- You want an open-source app under the MIT License that you can fork.
- You use Cursor, Grok Build, OpenCode, or Antigravity next to Claude Code and Codex.
- You work on Linux, or you want a web app.
- You want a new git worktree for a thread, or a remote machine as the host.
HB Code: when it fits better
- You want the agent to make speech audio or a short explainer video of its work. Both need your own Gemini API key.
- You want the agent to work in your own Chrome through the Browser Bridge extension.
- You want a desktop app and phone apps with no analytics or crash-report SDK.
Sources
- t3.codes
- t3.codes/privacy-policy
- t3.codes/security-policy
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/README.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/LICENSE
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/install.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/remote-access.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/thread-sidebar.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/providers-codex.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/providers-claude.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/usage.md
- github.com/pingdotgg/t3code/blob/main/docs/user/telemetry.md
We read these pages on October 9, 2026. Prices and features can change after that date. If a statement on this page is wrong or out of date, tell us and we'll correct it. Write to support