# Open Code Review review

> Open Code Review is an AI code review CLI that combines deterministic pipelines with an LLM agent to produce line-level review comments on Git changes.

Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026. Canonical page: https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/alibaba-open-code-review/

## TL;DR

Open Code Review is a code review CLI that started as Alibaba Group's internal AI code review assistant. It suits teams that want structured, line-level review comments from an LLM they configure. It uses deterministic engineering for file selection, bundling and rule matching, and an agent for dynamic context retrieval. The README describes this as favoring precision over recall.

## Open Code Review at a glance

- **Category:** [Coding agents](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/categories/coding-agents/)
- **Maintained by:** Alibaba (organization, [@alibaba](https://github.com/alibaba) on GitHub)
- **License:** Apache 2.0
- **Language:** Go, JavaScript, TypeScript
- **Repository:** [github.com/alibaba/open-code-review](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review)
- **Website:** [open-codereview.ai](https://open-codereview.ai)
- **npm package:** [@alibaba-group/open-code-review](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@alibaba-group/open-code-review) 1.13.2
- **Latest release:** [v1.13.2](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review/releases/tag/v1.13.2) on GitHub, Oct 20, 2026
- **First published:** May 18, 2026

## What Open Code Review does

- Open Code Review reads Git diffs and generates structured review comments with line-level precision using a configurable LLM.
- Open Code Review's agent can read full files, search the codebase and inspect other changed files for context.
- Open Code Review reviews entire files with `ocr scan` for auditing unfamiliar codebases or directories without a meaningful diff.
- Open Code Review includes a built-in multi-language ruleset covering NPE, thread-safety, XSS and SQL injection.
- Open Code Review bundles related files into sub-agents with isolated context, which supports concurrent review of large changesets.
- Open Code Review offers a delegation mode where your AI coding agent performs the review using its own LLM.
- Open Code Review provides a Session Viewer to browse and replay review sessions and mark comments as fixed or ignored.

### How it works

Open Code Review runs as the `ocr` command in a Git repository. It connects to an OpenAI- or Anthropic-compatible model endpoint that you configure. It also integrates with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Kimi Code and OpenCode through plugins. It runs in CI through GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, GitFlic CI and Gerrit. It can be extended with MCP servers and supports OpenTelemetry.

## How to install Open Code Review

**With npm**

```
npm install -g @alibaba-group/open-code-review
```

### Requirements

- Git 2.41 or newer
- Node.js 14 or newer for the npm package
- A configured LLM provider and API key, unless you use delegation mode

### First steps

1. Run `ocr config provider` to select a built-in provider or add a custom one, including API key entry.
2. Run `ocr config model` to pick a model for the active provider. The setup then tests connectivity automatically.
3. Run `ocr review` in your project to review all staged, unstaged and untracked changes.
4. Run `ocr review --format json --output result.json` to save results to a file, which the README recommends for AI host agents.

## Who Open Code Review is for

- Teams wanting automated pull request review in CI with GitHub Actions, GitLab CI or Gerrit
- Developers using Claude Code, Codex, Cursor or OpenCode who want review commands inside their agent
- Reviewers who prefer fewer false alarms over catching every possible issue
- Developers auditing unfamiliar codebases with full-file scans

### Limitations

- Open Code Review has lower recall than general-purpose agents in its own benchmark, a deliberate trade-off favoring precision.
- Open Code Review requires an LLM configuration before reviewing, unless you use delegation mode.
- Open Code Review depends on Git 2.41 or newer for diffs, code search and repository operations.

## Usage data (the week of Oct 25–31, 2026)

- Board rank: #156 overall, #57 in Coding agents, momentum score 51
- Downloads that week: 167.8k (−0% vs 4-week average)
- New GitHub stars per week (last 12 weeks): Aug 9: 841; Aug 16: 637; Aug 23: 487; Aug 30: 348; Sep 6: 844; Sep 13: 15k; Sep 20: 3.8k; Sep 27: 2k; Oct 4: 2.4k; Oct 11: 1.7k; Oct 18: 733; Oct 25: 1k

## Open Code Review alternatives

| Rank | Tool | Stars | Downloads/wk |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | [Cindy](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/makecindy-cindy/) | 8.8k | – |
| #2 | [OpenMausBot](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/milind-soni-openmausbot/) | 9.6k | – |
| #3 | [Orca](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/stablyai-orca/) | 111.7k | – |
| #4 | [OpenBot](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/copilotkit-openbot/) | 9.1k | – |
| #5 | [Agent Reach](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/panniantong-agent-reach/) | 107.2k | – |
| #6 | [Skill Recorder](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/microsoft-skill-recorder/) | 5.6k | – |

## Open Code Review FAQ

### Is Open Code Review free and open source?

Yes. Open Code Review's source code is on GitHub (alibaba/open-code-review) under the Apache 2.0 license, so you can use it for free.

### How do I install Open Code Review?

Run `npm install -g @alibaba-group/open-code-review`. It needs Node.js >=14.

### Is Open Code Review still maintained?

Yes. The alibaba/open-code-review repository was last updated on Oct 20, 2026, and the latest release, v1.13.2 on GitHub, came out on Oct 20, 2026.

### How popular is Open Code Review?

Open Code Review has 49.2k GitHub stars as of Nov 1, 2026. It gained 1k new stars in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, against a 12-week average of 2.5k a week. Its main package had about 167.8k downloads that week, −0% against its own 4-week average. That made it #57 among AI coding agents on the Devtoolwatch Board.

### What are the best alternatives to Open Code Review?

Other AI coding agents on the Devtoolwatch Board in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, by momentum: Cindy (#1), OpenMausBot (#2), Orca (#3), OpenBot (#4), Agent Reach (#5). The alternatives table above has their numbers.

### Which LLMs does Open Code Review work with?

Open Code Review works with OpenAI- and Anthropic-compatible endpoints. You can select a built-in provider or add a custom one with `ocr config provider`. Release notes also mention OpenRouter model overrides and ChatGPT plan reviews.

### Can Open Code Review run without its own API key?

Yes. In delegation mode, your coding agent runs the review using its own LLM. Open Code Review handles file selection and rule resolution, and no OCR API key is required.

### How do I review a branch with Open Code Review?

Use `ocr review --from main --to feature-branch`. This reviews the feature branch's changes since it diverged from main. You can also review a single commit with `ocr review --commit abc123`.

### Can Open Code Review resume an interrupted review?

Yes. Run `ocr session list` to find the session. Then pass `--resume <session-id>` to `ocr review` or `ocr scan`.

### How is Open Code Review different from using a general-purpose agent for review?

Open Code Review uses deterministic logic for file selection, bundling, rule matching and comment positioning. It uses the agent only for dynamic decisions and context retrieval. The README says this design addresses incomplete coverage, position drift and unstable quality.

## Sources

1. [alibaba/open-code-review on GitHub](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review)
2. [Open Code Review README](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review/blob/main/README.md)
3. [@alibaba-group/open-code-review on npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@alibaba-group/open-code-review)
4. [Open Code Review website](https://open-codereview.ai)
5. [Release v1.13.2 (Oct 20, 2026)](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review/releases/tag/v1.13.2)
6. [Release v1.13.1 (Oct 17, 2026)](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review/releases/tag/v1.13.1)
7. [Release v1.13.0 (Oct 13, 2026)](https://github.com/alibaba/open-code-review/releases/tag/v1.13.0)
8. [Hacker News: Open Code Review – An AI-powered code review CLI tool](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48406358)
9. [Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/)