OpenCode vs Zed | agentconfig.ing

OpenCode vs ZedComparisonUpdated 2026-03-16

SUMMARY

OpenCode (CLI) uses markdown configuration while Zed (Editor) 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	OpenCode	Zed	Notes
Config format	markdown	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	Editor
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	OpenCode	Zed
Project instructions	AGENTS.md	Rules Library
Settings / configuration	opencode.json	.zed/settings.json

SIDE-BY-SIDE CODE SAMPLES

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

Zed

.rules

markdown

# Project Rules

## Stack
- TypeScript 5.x with strict mode
- React 19 with Server Components
- Tailwind CSS v4
- Drizzle ORM with PostgreSQL

## Code Style
- Prefer named exports over default exports
- Use "use client" directive only when interactivity is required
- Colocate tests in __tests__ directories next to source files
- Use Zod for all runtime validation

## Architecture
- App Router with nested layouts in app/
- Server actions in app/actions/
- Database schema in db/schema.ts
- Shared utilities in lib/

## Commands
- Dev server: pnpm dev
- Type check: pnpm typecheck
- Test: pnpm test
- Lint: pnpm lint

KEY DIFFERENCES

1. Subdirectory scoping

OpenCode: Supported. Zed: Not supported.

2. IDE integration

OpenCode: CLI. Zed: Editor.

WHICH SHOULD I USE?

Recommendation

Choose based on your IDE/CLI preference. If you use OpenCode, configure AGENTS.md. If you use Zed, configure .rules. 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