Streaming adoption by coding agent, April 2026
Streaming adoption by coding agent, April 2026
Percentage of API calls using streaming responses.
Do coding agents stream their API responses? In April 2026, most agents stream nearly 100% of calls. Aider is the major outlier at 22% streaming, preferring batch completions. Claude Code streams 93% of calls. Aider also has the highest reasoning token intensity at 82%, suggesting it relies on reasoning models in non-streaming mode.
Why it mattersStreaming affects both user experience and infrastructure cost. Streaming responses allow coding agents to show partial output in real time, improving perceived latency. Aider takes a different approach: it sends batch requests to reasoning models, waits for the full response, then applies code changes. This architectural choice explains its lower streaming rate and higher reasoning intensity.
Key findings
- 01Cline, Forge, Zed, and OpenCode: 100% streaming. No batch completions at all.
- 02Claude Code: 93% streaming. The 7% non-streaming calls may be health checks or metadata requests.
- 03Aider: 22% streaming, 82% reasoning intensity. The only agent that primarily uses batch mode with reasoning models.
- 04Zed: 100% streaming with 40% reasoning intensity. Highest reasoning use among fully-streaming agents.
- 05Forge: 100% streaming but only 0.6% reasoning intensity. Minimal use of reasoning models.
Data
| Agent | Streaming(percent) | Reasoning intensity(percent) | Cache hit rate(percent) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cline | 100.00% | 12.07% | 61.36% |
| Forge | 100.00% | 0.62% | 63.93% |
| Zed | 100.00% | 39.83% | 80.05% |
| OpenCode | 100.00% | 21.00% | 88.98% |
| Kilo Code | 99.92% | 13.87% | 45.49% |
| Roo Code | 99.87% | 8.07% | 73.63% |
| Claude Code | 93.47% | 2.17% | 91.91% |
| Aider | 22.23% | 81.55% | 84.02% |