ARTICLE 06 · WORKFLOW · agentlist.io · 2026-10-07 · 5 min read # Coding agents: editor, terminal, or cloud? Choose where the work should run, how you will steer it, and what you need back for review. The interface is where you steer an agent. The execution environment is where it reads files, runs commands, and makes changes. Keep those questions separate: a terminal agent can call a hosted model, and an editor can send a task to a remote environment. “Local interface” does not establish where every part of the system runs or where data goes. ## Use an editor when feedback changes the task An editor workflow suits work where you expect to inspect and redirect the result frequently: adjusting an interface, understanding unfamiliar code, or finding the right boundary for a refactor. Put the relevant files and the result within easy reach. Ask for a bounded change, review it, then decide the next step. For example, [Cursor Agent](https://cursor.com/docs/agent/overview) supports editing and command execution alongside the code. This establishes the available workflow, not its success rate on your project. Try a change that needs both a diff review and a visible check. Include the time you spend correcting it. ## Use a terminal when commands are your main evidence A terminal workflow is a candidate for a test failure, a command-line tool, or a change whose acceptance check already exists as a script. Record the starting branch and working-tree state. Give the agent the project’s actual check command and a concrete failure to investigate. [Claude Code](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/overview) and [Gemini CLI](https://geminicli.com/docs/) both document terminal coding workflows. Compare them using the same inputs. A successful command is evidence only for what it checked: unit tests alone do not establish that a release installed correctly or that a page works in a browser. ## Use a cloud run when the task can survive a handoff A remote task needs an environment it can reproduce without the uncommitted files or undocumented services on your laptop. Establish that dependencies install, relevant checks run, and required services are reachable. Specify what the agent must return: a patch, command results, and a reviewable demonstration where relevant. [Cursor’s cloud-agent documentation](https://cursor.com/docs/cloud-agent), for example, describes repository branches and configured execution environments. The question for your trial is whether that environment can run your acceptance checks. A patch with an unavailable test dependency is still waiting for verification. ## Ask four questions before choosing 1. **How often will I redirect the work?** Frequent visual or code feedback favors an easy local review loop. 2. **Can the environment be recreated?** Resolve machine-specific dependencies before an unattended remote trial. 3. **Which access does this task need?** Check repository, network, account, and credential boundaries for the selected surface. 4. **What will prove completion?** Name the artifact and acceptance check. Mark unavailable checks as “not verified.” ## Try one task in two environments Take a small bug with a known reproduction. Start each candidate from the same commit and brief. Record preparation time, active review time, elapsed time, and acceptance. If remote setup takes longer but can be reused, keep that cost separate and test another representative task before deciding. Use the [trial scorecard](https://www.agentlist.io/articles/coding-agent-trial-scorecard) to make the comparison explicit. You may end up with two workflows for different work. Choose based on repeated accepted results and the attention those results require. Product references checked October 7, 2026. Workflow recommendations are editorial guidance, not measured product rankings. ## Put your chosen workflow to work. The fieldbook’s coding chapter walks through a bounded change, permissions, verification, and review. Keep its checklist beside your next task. [Get the coding workflow checklist](https://www.agentlist.io/ebook?from=coding-agent-editor-terminal-or-cloud) --- Source: [Coding agents: editor, terminal, or cloud? | agentlist.io](https://www.agentlist.io/articles/coding-agent-editor-terminal-or-cloud). This is the public page rendered as Markdown; interactive controls require the website.