comparison · hands-on

Pane vs Maestri

TL;DR

Maestri and Pane both run any CLI agent in a real terminal, on Windows, inside WSL, macOS and Linux. Maestri puts every agent on an infinite canvas next to notes, sketches and live web pages, and lets you wire agents together so they delegate and review. Pane puts each agent in its own pane and worktree, laid out in tabs and splits, with a Changes panel, git shortcuts and an orchestrator chat. Maestri is closed source, free for one workspace and $18 once for more; Pane is open source and free. Pick Maestri if you think visually; pick Pane if you want open source, unlimited projects and a worktree per task by default.

or
Download*
Windows SmartScreen warningDirect downloads can show a SmartScreen warning while Pane is unsigned. Pane is fully open source, so you can audit the code and build from source yourself.1. Click More info2. Click Run anyway3. Continue the installerThe PowerShell install downloads the official release directly and avoids most browser download friction.npm global install
Paste that in PowerShell.Linux

which one should you pick?

pick maestri if

  • → you think visually and want agents, notes and previews on one board
  • → you want to draw a line between two agents to make them talk
  • → you drive iOS simulators, Android devices or a browser from agents
  • → you're on a Mac and want its native app

pick pane if

  • → you want open source and a public issue tracker
  • → you want unlimited projects without paying
  • → you'd rather have tabs and splits than arrange a canvas
  • → you want a worktree for every task by default

at a glance

yespartly, or with a catchno

pane11 yes · 2 partly · 0 nomaestri7 yes · 5 partly · 1 no
basics
what it isdesktop app: real terminals for agents, in tabs and splitsdesktop app: agent terminals on an infinite canvas
made byDcouplea solo developer
licenseAGPL-3.0, open sourceproprietary
pricefree, unlimited projectsfree for 1 workspace; Pro $18 once
platforms
Windowsyes (x64 and ARM64)Windows 11 x64, unsigned; a separate Electron build
repos inside WSLyes: agents, terminals and git run in the distroyes, a first-class environment
macOSyes, Apple Silicon and Intelyes, native Swift app, Apple Silicon
Linuxyes (AppImage, .deb)yes (AppImage, .deb)
agents
agentsany CLIany CLI
agents that run agentsSessions and the runpane CLIwire agents together; roles
everyday work
layouttabs and split tab groupsa canvas you arrange by hand
worktree per taskyes, on by defaultper floor; several agents can share one
review and gitChanges panel, commit, push, mergediff in a file-tree node, commit sheet
browser and devicesbuilt-in browserbrowser portals, Android devices, iOS Simulator (Mac)
remote and teams
phoneiOS and Android app coming soon; browser app via Remote Pane todayMaestri Remote: iOS TestFlight beta, Android closed beta
safety and setup
analyticson by default; one switch in Settingsnone
account needednono

basics

what it is

pane

desktop app: real terminals for agents, in tabs and splits

maestri

desktop app: agent terminals on an infinite canvas

made by

pane

Dcouple

maestri

a solo developer

license

pane

AGPL-3.0, open source

maestri

proprietary

price

pane

free, unlimited projects

maestri

free for 1 workspace; Pro $18 once

platforms

Windows

pane

yes (x64 and ARM64)

maestri

Windows 11 x64, unsigned; a separate Electron build

repos inside WSL

pane

yes: agents, terminals and git run in the distro

maestri

yes, a first-class environment

macOS

pane

yes, Apple Silicon and Intel

maestri

yes, native Swift app, Apple Silicon

Linux

pane

yes (AppImage, .deb)

maestri

yes (AppImage, .deb)

agents

agents

pane

any CLI

maestri

any CLI

agents that run agents

pane

Sessions and the runpane CLI

maestri

wire agents together; roles

everyday work

layout

pane

tabs and split tab groups

maestri

a canvas you arrange by hand

worktree per task

pane

yes, on by default

maestri

per floor; several agents can share one

review and git

pane

Changes panel, commit, push, merge

maestri

diff in a file-tree node, commit sheet

browser and devices

pane

built-in browser

maestri

browser portals, Android devices, iOS Simulator (Mac)

remote and teams

phone

pane

iOS and Android app coming soon; browser app via Remote Pane today

maestri

Maestri Remote: iOS TestFlight beta, Android closed beta

safety and setup

analytics

pane

on by default; one switch in Settings

maestri

none

account needed

pane

no

maestri

no

Facts checked on October 3 and 4, 2026: Maestri 0.49.3 (Mac) and 0.20.2 (Windows and Linux), and Pane v2.4.157. Rechecked against Maestri's site, docs and releases on November 5, 2026: Maestri v0.59.1 (Mac).

what it's like to use

We gave both apps the same small job in a test repo: add a --version flag to a CLI, then review the change. Here's what you see. Green notes work well, blue ones are nice touches, amber ones are confusing, and red ones are missing or broken.

1.agents at work

Pane

Pane: the agent's real terminalPane runs the agent's own terminal UI, exactly as it looks anywhere else, with several panes going at once.Pane 2.4.155, three panes running Claude Code

Maestri

Maestri: terminal cards on a canvasEach agent is a terminal card you place on the canvas. Everything is visible at once, and you arrange it yourself.Maestri 0.20.2 for Windows, three agents on the canvas, October 4, 2026

2.reviewing the change

Pane

Pane: Changes panel and diff tabsPane lists every touched file with its line counts. Click one and its diff opens as a tab next to the agent.Pane 2.4.155, after the agent finished

Maestri

Maestri: a diff inside a file-tree cardDrop a file tree on the canvas and it shows uncommitted changes as a diff, beside the agents.Maestri 0.20.2, after the agent finished

the real difference: canvas or panes

Maestri gives you a board to arrange. Pane gives you a pane per task, laid out for you.

Maestri's canvas is its big idea: agent terminals, sticky notes, sketches, file trees and live web pages all sit on one zoomable board, and you draw connections between agents so they can ask each other questions or hand off work. It's great for seeing everything at once, and some people find it the most natural way to think about several agents.

Pane organises work by task: each pane is a worktree and branch with its own tabs for the agent, terminals, diffs and a browser, and you split tabs side by side when you want to watch several. Its orchestrator, Sessions, starts and steers agents in other panes without depending on which window has focus.

licence and price

Maestri is closed source with a paid second workspace. Pane is open source and free.

Maestri is proprietary, with bugs reported by email or Discord, and its free tier is one workspace; Pro is $18 once for up to two devices, with no refunds. It collects no telemetry. Pane is AGPL-3.0 with a public issue tracker, and everything is free; its analytics are on by default with one switch in Settings to turn them off.

windows, wsl and macs

Maestri's Mac app is native and ahead. On Windows and Linux, it's a newer Electron build.

Maestri's Mac app is native Swift, at version 0.49 in October; its Windows and Linux builds are Electron over a Swift core, at 0.20 then, without some Mac features. Its WSL support is genuinely first class, with a distro picker and the distro's git. In our test the Windows installer was unsigned and the first launch showed no window.

Pane is the same app on every OS: native x64 and ARM64 on Windows, WSL repos with agents and git inside the distro, signed builds for Intel and Apple Silicon Macs, and Linux packages for x64 and ARM64.

our verdict

Maestri is one of the most original agent tools, and if a canvas suits how you think, it's worth $18. If you want open source, unlimited projects, a worktree per task by default and the same app on every OS, Pane is the better fit.

how we checked

On October 3 and 4, 2026 we ran Maestri's Windows build 0.20.2 with real Claude Code and Codex agents, on Windows and in a WSL2 (Ubuntu 24.04) workspace, and inspected the Mac app 0.49.3. Pane 2.4.155 ran on the same Windows 11 PC.

Facts about each product come from its own docs, changelog and terms, and Pane's source code, checked on the same dates.

What we ran
  • → Pane 2.4.155 on Windows 11, native and WSL2 (Ubuntu 24.04) repos
  • → Maestri 0.20.2 for Windows on the same PC, on Windows and in WSL
  • → The same small task in both
Who wrote this
We make Pane, so we have a stake in this. We tried to be fair: Maestri's strengths are listed as plainly as Pane's, every claim was checked against the product itself or its docs and source, and the screenshots are unedited captures from our own runs.
Corrections
If anything here is wrong or out of date, tell us and we'll fix it and update the date at the top. Open an issue on GitHub
Sources

frequently asked questions

more comparisons

Pane vs OrcaPane vs PaseoPane vs Herdr
See also: desktop agent managers · agent orchestration
or
Download*
Windows SmartScreen warningDirect downloads can show a SmartScreen warning while Pane is unsigned. Pane is fully open source, so you can audit the code and build from source yourself.1. Click More info2. Click Run anyway3. Continue the installerThe PowerShell install downloads the official release directly and avoids most browser download friction.npm global install
Paste that in PowerShell.Linux

By Parsa Khazaeepoul, co-founder of Pane. .