Roam Code
Free open-source local code-graph MCP server giving AI agents structural awareness before they edit.
A sharp, needed tool: it gives AI agents a local structural map before they edit, slashing turns and tokens. The free CLI is worth using today with any MCP-aware editor. Paid tiers are early-access, so start with a PR Replay audit to see if the risk facts justify the cost.
Verified 5d ago · liveness 72/100 · cite: rightaichoice.com/tools/roam-code
- Engineering teams running AI coding agents (Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, Gemini) in real repos—get structural facts
- Platform teams wanting structural pre-merge gates for AI-generated code—catch blast radius, clones, and algorithmic
- Compliance-conscious orgs needing tamper-evident audit trails for AI-assisted changes—in-toto v1 attestations and SARIF
- Solo developers seeking local codebase intelligence without cloud dependencies—runs entirely on your machine, no upload
- Teams wanting a semantic code reviewer—Roam adds structural context but does not replace semantic tools like CodeRabbit
- Users needing hosted inference or cloud-based code analysis—the CLI is local-first; hosted Review is not built yet
- Non-technical stakeholders who cannot use CLI or MCP integrations—interface is command-line and editor-integration only
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Skip Roam if you need a semantic code reviewer (Roam is structural only), or if your team relies on hosted cloud analysis and can't use a local CLI/MCP setup.
PR Replay audits are one-shot engagements: Team $2,500 for last 30 PRs, Deep $6,000 for last 90, and 50% of the fee credits toward Roam Review within 60 days.
Roam's free CLI is unique: a local, Apache-2.0 engine with 275 commands and 244 MCP tools at $0/mo. Paid tiers target mid-size teams: Roam Review Starter at $99/mo compares to CodeRabbit's per-seat pricing but offers flat-rate caps. PR Replay audits ($2,500–$6,000) suit larger orgs wanting one-time deep analysis. Cheaper than enterprise semantic reviewers, but hosted options aren't live yet.
In short
Roam Code — Free open-source local code-graph MCP server giving AI agents structural awareness before they edit. Best for Engineering teams running AI coding agents (Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, Gemini) in real repos—get structural facts, Platform teams wanting structural pre-merge gates for AI-generated code—catch blast radius, clones, and algorithmic, Compliance-conscious orgs needing tamper-evident audit trails for AI-assisted changes—in-toto v1 attestations and SARIF. Free to start; paid plans from $19/mo.
What's new in Roam Code
Checked 5 days agoAcross the latest 5 updates: 5 feature updates.
Added roam ask 'is <feature> wired?' and 'blast radius of renaming <field>' recipes
New recipes compose reachability-from-entry and CRUD detection to answer 'is this feature wired?' and field-trace for pre-rename recon in one call.
roam rules-suggest first-class command
Promotes review-suggestion from pr-replay; runs roam postmortem over rules to suggest starter .roam/rules.yml bodies.
roam blame-reviewers advisory command
Ranks suggested reviewers by lines_added per author across changed non-test files via git blame.
roam cycles shadow-artifact labeling
Cycle findings now carry shadow_artifact flag to identify phantom cycles from destructured-consumer name collisions.
roam compile --checklist emits checklist block
Emits roam-compile-checklist-v1 composing required_checks, verification contract, and first command into a checkbox-shaped artifact.
Viability Score
How well maintained and how widely used is Roam Code? Built from what the vendor actually publishes (docs, changelog, tutorials, integrations, pricing), whether the site is live, and how much real users discuss it. How we calculate this
Last calculated: August 2026
How we score →Key Features
- 28-language code graph with 6 cross-language bridges
- 244 MCP tools for AI agent structural queries
- Task compiler pre-executes probes before agent's first token (~90 ms warm)
- Blast-radius check with production traffic weighting
- AST-level clone detection with identifier-rename confidence
- Algorithmic risk review (O(n²), N+1, regex-in-loop, JSON-parse-in-loop)
- Pre-change gates with BLOCK/REVIEW verdicts
- Tamper-evident audit trail (in-toto v1) with HMAC-linked receipts
- SARIF export for GitHub Code Scanning
- Local execution with zero network egress and no API keys
- 275 CLI commands for exploration, health, security
- MCP runtime security with egress redaction (v13.3)
- 4-mode MCP policy enforcement (read_only, safe_edit, migration, autonomous_pr)
- PR Replay audit for retrospective analysis on up to 90 PRs
- Governance evidence pack for SOC 2 / ISO 42001 mapping
About Roam Code
Roam Code is a free, open-source (Apache 2.0) local code-graph and MCP server that gives AI coding agents structural awareness of a repository before they edit. It compiles a repo into a SQLite graph supporting 28 languages with six cross-language bridges, enabling agents to ask structured questions about callers, clones, layers, tests, and hot paths—the layer semantic reviewers miss. Recent additions like roam ask 'is <feature> wired?' and 'blast radius of renaming <field>' give agents pre-rename recon in a single call. The tool ships a task compiler that classifies prompts into 23 intent procedures deterministically (zero model calls), pre-executes matching probes, and hands answers to the agent before its first token—in about 90 ms warm. In Claude Code head-to-head tests (June 2026, 41 cells), this cut agent turns by 83%, input tokens by 80%, and cost by 63% while fixing all bug-fixing tasks. Replayed on 723 real prompts, 91% of envelopes shipped pre-executed answers. Roam catches three classes of structural consequences: blast-radius issues (e.g., a DELETE without LIMIT that flags a production danger), unchanged clones (AST-level detection with identifier-rename confidence), and runtime-hot paths (blast radius weighted by production traffic). It offers pre-change gates with BLOCK/REVIEW verdicts, plus algorithmic risk checks for O(n²), N+1, regex-in-loop, and more. It runs entirely locally with zero network egress and no API keys. For compliance, Roam emits tamper-evident audit trails (in-toto v1) and supports SARIF export for GitHub Code Scanning. The 275 CLI commands include new ones like roam rules-suggest, roam blame-reviewers, roam cycles shadow-artifact labeling, and roam compile --checklist. Paid tiers include PR Replay audits (Team $2,500, Deep $6,000) and planned Roam Review subscriptions from $99/mo that will post verdicts on every PR via a GitHub App. Unlike semantic reviewers like CodeRabbit or Greptile, Roam focuses purely on structural impact.
Behind the Verdict
Roam Code fills a real gap in the AI coding stack. Today's agents are great at generating plausible code but often unaware of the structural consequences—what else a rename breaks, which clones are left stale, whether a change hits a hot path. Roam gives them a local map: a SQLite code graph that supports 28 languages and six cross-language bridges. This is genuinely different from semantic reviewers like CodeRabbit or Greptile, which read what code does; Roam reads what it touches. The strongest part is the task compiler. It classifies prompts into 23 deterministic intent procedures, pre-executes the relevant probes, and hands the agent answers before its first token. In a June 2026 Claude Code benchmark (41 cells), it cut agent turns by 83%, input tokens by 80%, and cost by 63% while fixing all bug-fixing tasks. That's the kind of efficiency engineers actually feel. But there are caveats. The hosted Roam Review GitHub App and Roam Cloud are planned, not yet built. You can only access them through early-access or design-partner pilots. The paid path today is a PR Replay audit—$2,500 for the last 30 PRs, $6,000 for 90—which is a one-shot engagement, not a subscription. If you want a recurring safety net, you'll have to wait or join early access. Another limitation: Roam is CLI-and-MCP-only. If you're not comfortable with a terminal or you want a dashboard, it's not there yet. The CLI is comprehensive (275 commands), but it's a lot of surface for non-technical stakeholders. Where does Roam fit best? Teams running Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, or Gemini on real repos—they get the most from pre-edit structural facts. Compliance-conscious orgs will appreciate the in-toto v1 audit trails and SARIF export. Open-source maintainers get the CLI free forever. Where it doesn't fit? If you want a semantic code reviewer, Roam doesn't replace that. If you need hosted inference or a cloud dashboard, you'll have to wait. If you're a solo dev who just wants a quick lint, the CLI might be overkill. Bottom line: try the free CLI today. It works with any MCP-aware editor. Commission a PR Replay audit only if you need the evidence or want to evaluate before subscribing. Roam is early but its core idea is sound, and the free tier gives you real value now.
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Real-world workflow fit
Concrete scenarios for the personas Roam Code actually fits — and what changes day-one when you adopt it.
Before starting a refactor that renames a widely-used field, install the CLI, index the repo, and run 'roam ask' with the blast-radius recipe to see all consumers and FE<->BE links.
Outcome: The agent gets a pre-rename recon report in one call, avoiding missed callers and API breaks, cutting edit turns and tokens.
Wire roam compile+verify into CI, and run 'roam critique' on every PR to catch blast-radius issues, unchanged clones, and algorithmic risks.
Outcome: AI-generated PRs that pass tests but would break production are blocked with BLOCK verdicts, reducing incidents.
Use the CLI to generate signed in-toto v1 audit trails and SARIF exports for each merge, mapping to SOC 2 / ISO 42001 controls.
Outcome: Tamper-evident evidence for audits, without uploading code, satisfying compliance requirements.
Use Cases
- Catch accidental destructive changes (e.g., DELETE without LIMIT) before merging AI-generated code.
- Identify forgotten clone updates when an agent fixes a pattern in only one location.
- Review runtime-hot paths for structural changes that could impact production traffic.
- Generate tamper-evident audit evidence for AI-assisted code changes to meet compliance requirements.
- Run algorithmic risk review on diffs to detect O(n²) loops, N+1 queries, or other performance antipatterns.
- Use 'roam ask' to get a blast-radius report before renaming a field or symbol.
- Verify a feature is fully wired end-to-end with 'roam ask is-feature-wired'.
- Get suggested reviewers for a diff with 'roam blame-reviewers' based on git blame lines.
Limitations
- Roam Code is a free, open-source CLI and MCP server that runs locally with zero network egress by default, so your code never leaves your machine.
- The hosted Roam Review GitHub App and Roam Cloud are planned but not yet generally available—they are only accessible via early access or design-partner pilots, and PR Replay is a paid audit request.
- Self-hosted deployment is limited to a scoped pilot when hosted options are policy-blocked.
- The tool supports 28 languages and provides 244 MCP tools for AI coding agents.
as of 2026-08-19
Verification history
We have re-verified Roam Code 6 times since . Each pass re-reads the vendor's own pages and re-checks every listed field against that evidence; passes where nothing had changed are marked as such.
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
Free to cite with attribution — this page re-verifies continuously.
12-month cost
Project the real annual outlay, including the implied monthly cost when only an annual tier is published.
Vendor list price only. Add-on usage, seat overages, and contract minimums are surfaced under Hidden costs & gotchas.
Plans compared
For each published Roam Code tier: who it actually fits, and what it adds vs. the previous tier. Cross-reference the cost calculator above for projected annual outlay.
Free CLI
$0/mo
Ideal for
Solo developers and open-source maintainers who want local code-graph intelligence with zero cost and no cloud dependency.
What this tier adds
Free entry point: 275 CLI commands, 244 MCP tools, 28 languages, local running, in-toto audit trails, SARIF export, pre-change gates.
PR Replay Team
$2,500 one-shot
Ideal for
Engineering teams wanting a one-time deep audit of their last 30 PRs to understand structural risks before committing to a subscription.
What this tier adds
One-shot audit of last 30 PRs with written report; 50% credit toward future Roam Review.
PR Replay Deep
$6,000 one-shot
Ideal for
Engineering teams needing a more thorough audit of up to 90 PRs, including blast-radius and runtime analysis.
What this tier adds
Deeper analysis: covers 90 PRs instead of 30, with additional blast-radius and runtime analysis.
Roam Review Starter (planned)
$99/mo
Ideal for
Small teams (5 or fewer active PR authors) wanting continuous structural review on up to 3 repos at a flat rate.
What this tier adds
Planned hosted GitHub App posting verdicts on every PR; includes 100 reviews/mo.
Roam Review Team (planned)
$299/mo
Ideal for
Mid-size teams (up to 30 active PR authors) needing broader repo coverage and higher review volume.
What this tier adds
Expands to 20 repos and 900 reviews/mo, with SSO/SAML on Business+ tier.
Roam Review Business (planned)
$799/mo
Ideal for
Larger organizations (up to 100 active PR authors) requiring custom rules, audit logs, and business-hours support.
What this tier adds
Supports 100 repos and 3,000 reviews/mo, adding SSO/SAML, custom rules, and audit logs.
Roam Review Scale (planned)
$1,499/mo (annual negotiated)
Ideal for
Large enterprises needing annual negotiated pricing, 250 repos, and 24/7 support with a named contact.
What this tier adds
Scales to 250 repos and 8,000 reviews/mo, with custom overage quotes and 24/7 support.
Roam Cloud Team (planned)
$19/repo/mo
Ideal for
Teams wanting a dashboard with metrics over time—health, debt, and danger-zone trends—at $19/repo/mo.
What this tier adds
Adds a hosted dashboard layer behind Review; 10 repos included at $99/mo, 30-day money back.
Where the pricing makes sense
The company stage and team size where Roam Code's pricing actually pencils out — and where peers do it cheaper.
Roam's free CLI is unique: a local, Apache-2.0 engine with 275 commands and 244 MCP tools at $0/mo. Paid tiers target mid-size teams: Roam Review Starter at $99/mo compares to CodeRabbit's per-seat pricing but offers flat-rate caps. PR Replay audits ($2,500–$6,000) suit larger orgs wanting one-time deep analysis. Cheaper than enterprise semantic reviewers, but hosted options aren't live yet.
Setup time & first value
How long it actually takes to get something useful out of Roam Code — broken out by persona, not the marketing-page minute.
For a solo developer: install via pip and index a repo in minutes (100k LOC indexes in seconds); first structural question in about 5 minutes. For a team: allow 10 minutes per engineer for CLI + MCP setup using integration tutorials. For CI gates: add a day to configure the gate in your pipeline. Hosted Review setup requires early access—not instant.
Switching to or from Roam Code
How to bring data in from common predecessors and how to get it back out — written for the switcher, not the buyer.
- →From CodeRabbit/Greptile: Roam adds structural context but doesn't replace semantic review. Install the CLI and run it alongside your existing semantic tool to get both layers.
- →From grep and manual caller-tracing: replace grep-based 'who calls this?' with 'roam search-semantic' and 'roam impact' to get answers instantly.
- ↗To CodeRabbit or Greptile: for semantic review, Roam's structural focus frees you to adopt a semantic reviewer; data is local, no lock-in to migrate out.
Integrations
Resources & Guides
- Documentationroam-code.com
Docs · Roam Code
Full product docs from roam-code.com
- Quickstartroam-code.com
Getting Started · Roam Code
Get up and running fast from roam-code.com
- Documentationroam-code.com
Command Reference · Roam Code
Full product docs from roam-code.com
- Documentationroam-code.com
Architecture · Roam Code
Full product docs from roam-code.com
- Documentationroam-code.com
Agent Contract · Roam Code
Full product docs from roam-code.com
- Documentationroam-code.com
Troubleshooting · Roam Code
Full product docs from roam-code.com
Tutorials & Learning
Tools that pair well with Roam Code
Common stack mates teams adopt alongside Roam Code, with the specific reason each pairing earns its keep.
Featured Head-to-Head Comparisons
Roam Code vs Spider Cloud
Spider Cloud is for AI agents that need fresh web data; Roam Code is for AI coding agents that need local code structure. They are complementary rather than competing. Choose Spider Cloud if your bottleneck is external data retrieval; choose Roam Code if your bottleneck is codebase understanding and safe AI edits. Both are freemium and actively developed.
Roam Code vs Voyage Ai
Pick Voyage AI if you need high-fidelity embeddings/rerankers for domain-specific RAG (finance, legal) and have budget for enterprise pricing. Pick Roam Code if you run AI coding agents on real repos and need structural pre-merge gates, blast-radius analysis, and tamper-evident audit trails — all free locally with no data egress. They solve orthogonal problems; your choice depends on whether your bottleneck is retrieval accuracy or code-change safety.
Roam Code vs Temporal Ai
If you need durable execution for AI agents or multi-step workflows that survive crashes and retries, Temporal AI is the clear winner. If your pain point is AI-generated code breaking your repo – structural bugs, clone inconsistencies, or blast radius surprises – Roam Code gives you local, zero-egress pre-merge gates that semantic reviewers miss. Choose based on where your risk lies: runtime reliability or code integrity.
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