Goose vs OpenCode | agentconfig.ing

Goose vs OpenCodeComparisonUpdated 2026-03-16

SUMMARY

Goose (CLI) uses text configuration while OpenCode (CLI) uses markdown. They differ on 2 of 11 compared features. Both tools provide AI-assisted development but take different approaches to project configuration.

FEATURE COMPARISON

Feature	Goose	OpenCode	Notes
Config format	text	markdown
Hierarchy support	✓	✓	Whether config files can be placed at multiple directory levels
Global config	✓	✓	User-wide configuration outside any project
Project config	✓	✓
Subdirectory scoping	✗	✓	Config files in subdirectories that apply only to that subtree
File inclusion / imports	✗	✗	Ability to include or reference other files from config
Ignore file	✗	✗
IDE integration	CLI	CLI
Schema / structure	Free-form (Markdown)	Free-form (Markdown)	Whether config uses structured schema or free-form content
Git committed	✓	✓	Whether primary config files are intended to be version-controlled
Encoding	UTF-8	UTF-8

FILE MAPPING

Purpose	Goose	OpenCode
Settings / configuration	config.yaml	opencode.json
Project instructions	.goosehints	AGENTS.md
Project instructions	AGENTS.md	CLAUDE.md

SIDE-BY-SIDE CODE SAMPLES

Goose

.goosehints

text

This is a Ruby on Rails 7.2 application with Hotwire/Turbo.

Database: PostgreSQL 16
Ruby version: 3.3.x
Node: 22.x (for asset pipeline)

Key commands:
- bin/rails server — start dev server
- bin/rails test — run test suite
- bin/rails db:migrate — run migrations

Conventions:
- Use ViewComponents for reusable UI
- Stimulus controllers for JS behavior
- System tests with Capybara + Playwright
- RuboCop for linting (run: bundle exec rubocop)

OpenCode

AGENTS.md

markdown

# Project Instructions

## Overview
This is a TypeScript monorepo using pnpm workspaces.

## Code Style
- Use strict TypeScript with no implicit any
- Prefer functional components with hooks
- All exports should be named (no default exports)

## Architecture
- /packages/core — shared business logic
- /packages/ui — React component library
- /apps/web — Next.js frontend

## Build & Test
Run tests with: pnpm test
Build all packages: pnpm build
All PRs must have >80% coverage on changed files.

## Conventions
- Use conventional commits (feat:, fix:, chore:)
- Prefer composition over inheritance
- See @docs/api-guidelines.md for API design patterns

KEY DIFFERENCES

1. Config format

Goose: text. OpenCode: markdown.

2. Subdirectory scoping

Goose: Not supported. OpenCode: Supported.

WHICH SHOULD I USE?

Recommendation

Choose based on your IDE/CLI preference. If you use Goose, configure config.yaml. If you use OpenCode, configure AGENTS.md. Many projects include config files for multiple tools so each team member can use their preferred editor.

PORTABILITY TIP

sync-instructions.sh

bash

# Maintain a single source of truth:
cp AI-INSTRUCTIONS.md CLAUDE.md
cp AI-INSTRUCTIONS.md .cursorrules
cp AI-INSTRUCTIONS.md AGENTS.md