What is Kiro?
Kiro is an agentic coding IDE from Amazon Web Services that turns prompts into specifications, designs and task lists, then implements them with AI agents. AWS launched Kiro in July 2025 and now offers it as an IDE, a CLI, a web app and a mobile app. It supports several model families including Claude, GPT, DeepSeek and Qwen, with an Auto mode that picks a model based on task complexity, latency and cost.
Kiro's main difference from other AI editors is spec-driven development. Instead of jumping straight to code, it writes requirements, an architecture design and a sequenced set of tasks that you can review, which keeps decisions documented on larger projects. Agent hooks run automated actions on events such as saving a file, and property-based testing helps catch edge cases that unit tests miss. Teams use it to build features from a written brief, refactor across large codebases, run parallel agents on separate tasks and connect to GitHub, GitLab, Figma and Terraform workflows.
Main Features
- Convert a prompt into requirements, a design document and an ordered task list before coding.
- Implement tasks with AI agents, including several agents running in parallel.
- Trigger agent hooks automatically on events such as file saves.
- Generate property-based tests to catch edge cases.
- Choose between Claude, GPT, DeepSeek and Qwen models or let Auto mode decide.
- Work from the IDE, the command line, the web or a mobile app.
- Connect to GitHub, GitLab, Figma, Terraform and CI/CD pipelines.
How to Get Started with Kiro
- Download Kiro from kiro.dev for macOS, Windows or Linux.
- Sign in with GitHub, Google or an AWS Builder ID to get the free credits.
- Open an existing repository or start a new project folder.
- Describe a feature and let Kiro generate the spec, then review and approve the tasks.
- Run the tasks with the agent and review the diffs before committing.
Kiro Pricing
Kiro Free includes 50 credits per month with access to open-weight models and Claude Sonnet 4.5. Kiro Pro costs $20 per user per month for 1,000 credits, Pro+ is $40 for 2,000 credits, Pro Max is $100 for 5,000 credits and Power is $200 for 10,000 credits. Extra credits cost $0.04 each and Enterprise pricing is custom.
Who Should Use It?
- Software engineers who want documented specs before AI writes code.
- Teams already building on AWS who prefer an AWS-backed tool.
- Tech leads managing larger refactors across big codebases.
- Startups shipping features quickly from written product briefs.
- Developers comparing AI IDEs who want a free tier to test.
Kiro Alternatives
- Cursor AI: The most popular AI code editor, faster for quick inline edits.
- Windsurf By Codeium: A similar agentic IDE with a different pricing model.
- Claude Code: Terminal-first agent for developers who prefer the command line.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Kiro free?
Yes, Kiro has a free plan with 50 credits per month. Paid plans start at $20 per user per month for Kiro Pro with 1,000 credits.
What is spec-driven development in Kiro?
Spec-driven development means Kiro writes requirements, a design and a task list from your prompt before writing code. You review the spec, then the agent implements each task.
Kiro vs Cursor: which is better?
Kiro is better if you want structured specs and documented decisions on larger features, while Cursor is quicker for inline edits and small changes. Both offer free tiers, so many developers try each on a real task.
Which AI models does Kiro use?
Kiro supports Claude, GPT, DeepSeek and Qwen models. An Auto mode can choose a model based on task complexity, quality, latency and cost.