Run Kilo CLI on Your Phone (iPhone + Android)

Kilo CLI runs on macOS, Linux, and Windows, with no iPhone or Android build. So to run kilo from a phone you put it on a real Linux machine and reach it. The fastest way: install Cosyra for iOS or Cosyra for Android, run npm install -g @kilocode/cli in the container, sign in, and start kilo in a repo. One useful thing to know first: Kilo CLI is built on OpenCode, one of the four agents we already pre-install, so the runtime is familiar. Here is each path.

This guide was written by the Cosyra team. We checked every moving part against primary sources on 2026-07-02: the Kilo CLI page, the Kilo CLI docs, the pricing page, and the Kilo-Org/kilocode repo (license and latest release via the GitHub API). Versions, prices, and dates below carry that date. We also set the CLI up in a fresh Cosyra container to confirm the npm install and launch flow described in the steps.

What is Kilo CLI?

Kilo Code is a free, open-source agentic coding platform, and Kilo CLI is its command-line client. The same agent also ships as a VS Code extension, a JetBrains plugin, and a hosted Cloud offering, and one Kilo account works across all four surfaces. The CLI installs as the kilo command and, like every other coding CLI, it expects a real shell — which is exactly why the phone is the wrong place to run the process directly.

• Repo: Kilo-Org/kilocode, a TypeScript monorepo, MIT-licensed, around 25,300 stars, latest release v7.3.54 (2026-06-23) per the GitHub API on 2026-07-02.
• Platforms: macOS, Linux, and Windows, distributed through npm (@kilocode/cli) plus curl, Homebrew, and the Arch AUR. No native mobile app.
• Lineage: the Kilo extension started as a fork of Roo Code; the CLI is built on OpenCode. Two different lineages — worth keeping straight.
• Auth: sign in with a Kilo account, or add your own provider keys (BYOK). It is not BYOK-only — it also has a first-party hosted-inference path through the Kilo Gateway and Kilo Pass.

Here is an opinion Kilo's own positioning would push back on: for coding from a phone, the CLI is the surface that matters, not the editor extension. Kilo leads with its VS Code install base, and that is fair on a laptop. But on a train with a phone in your hand, a TUI-first CLI running in a cloud shell is the thing that actually works, and the extension is dead weight. The good news is the CLI is built on OpenCode, which we already run, so it slots into a workflow we know well.

How can you run Kilo CLI from a phone?

Three ways, in order of how well they work without a desktop: a cloud Ubuntu container where kilo actually runs (Cosyra), SSH or Codespaces to your own Linux box, and Termux on Android (which we can't promise works).

1. Cosyra: npm install Kilo CLI in a cloud container

Cosyra is a native iOS and Android terminal connected to a persistent Ubuntu 24.04 x86_64 container. Node.js is already installed, so npm install -g @kilocode/cli works and kilo executes in the container, so nothing of yours has to stay awake. We ship four agent CLIs pre-installed (Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Gemini), and Kilo is a one-command add on top — which is honest to say plainly: we do not pre-install Kilo, you add it yourself.

• Works when: you want kilo running on demand from either platform with no home machine to maintain.
• Breaks when: you have no internet — the container is in the cloud, so there is no offline mode.
• Cost: 1 hour free on signup, no credit card; a 10-hour, 7-day trial; then $29.99/month or $300/year. See pricing. Your Kilo inference (BYOK, Gateway, or Pass) is separate.

2. SSH or Codespaces to your own Linux box

Install kilo on a Linux machine you own (a home server, a VPS, or a GitHub Codespace) and reach it from a phone SSH client. The CLI runs for real, but you keep that box awake and manage the connection, which is the babysitting a cloud container removes.

3. Termux on Android: why we won't promise it

Here is the honest version, because guessing here is how bad advice spreads. Kilo CLI is built on OpenCode, and OpenCode's launcher has historically misdetected Termux as a plain Linux environment, with the common fix being to run inside a proot-distro Debian chroot. It is plausible Kilo inherits those exact issues. But we have not run @kilocode/cli in Termux on a device, so we will not tell you it works or that it fails.

If you want to stay on-device, the credible route is a proot glibc distro inside Termux, the same pattern we walk through for a full Debian userland in running a Linux container on Android. Simpler and more reliable: a cloud x86_64 container, where the standard npm install just works.

How do you run Kilo CLI on iPhone or Android with Cosyra?

Four steps: install the app, install kilo, sign in, and run it in a repo.

Step 1: Install Cosyra and sign in

Download from the App Store or Google Play. You land in a persistent Ubuntu 24.04 x86_64 container with Node.js already installed, which is what the npm install of Kilo CLI needs.

Step 2: Install Kilo CLI

Kilo is not one of the four agents we pre-install, but because the container ships Node.js it is a one-command add. Install it globally, then confirm the binary:

Step 3: Sign in (Kilo account or BYOK)

Kilo CLI gives you two auth paths. Sign in with a Kilo account to route inference through the Kilo Gateway or Kilo Pass, or add your own provider API key so you pay Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google directly. If you already keep provider keys for the four pre-installed agents, BYOK is the least new setup.

Step 4: Clone a repo and start Kilo

Kilo proposes edits and runs commands the same TUI-first way OpenCode does, so if you have used OpenCode on a phone this will feel identical. Because the container is persistent, you can start a change on the couch, close the app, and pick the same session back up on an iPad at your desk.

What are the real limits of running Kilo CLI on a phone?

• No offline mode. The container is in the cloud; no internet, no terminal. A local Termux install would run offline if it worked, which is the honest trade-off.
• Two things to keep track of. Kilo has its own account and billing layer on top of whatever container you run it in. That is fine, but it is a second login to manage next to your Cosyra account.
• You add it yourself. Kilo is not pre-installed; the four agents we ship are Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, and Gemini. Adding Kilo is one npm command, but it is a step.
• Phone keyboards slow long prompts. Voice dictation and a Bluetooth keyboard help a lot. We think the phone keyboard is fine for agent-driven coding, where you write intent, not boilerplate — most people who disagree haven't tried it for a full session.

Cosyra vs SSH vs Termux for Kilo CLI

Cosyra runs kilo for real with nothing left awake; SSH or Codespaces works if you already keep a Linux box on; Termux on Android is unverified. The table lines them up, checked 2026-07-02.

Prefer one of the agents that is pre-installed? See Claude Code on phone, Codex CLI on phone, Gemini CLI on phone, and OpenCode on phone (the CLI Kilo is built on), or the pillar on AI coding agents on mobile. Weighing the hosted-container trade-off against Kilo's free desktop software? See Cosyra vs Kilo Code.

Frequently asked questions