When to reach for which
The honest answer first: there is no rule that says "always use this one." Anyone who tells you one CLI is simply better than the other is selling something. Here's how to actually decide.
Default to the one you have open
For most work, either tool does the job fine. If you're already in a session and it's going well, keep going. Switching tools mid-task for no reason just costs you momentum. The best CLI for a task is often just the one already running.
Switch when you have a reason
Real reasons to reach for the other tool:
- One is stuck. A tool has tried the same fix three times and it's not working. Hand the exact problem to the other CLI. A fresh model with different training often sees what the first one missed. This is the single most useful reason to know both.
- You want a second opinion. Before you trust an important change, ask the other tool to review it. Agreement is reassurance. Disagreement is a flag worth checking.
- One is down or slow. Outages happen. Whichever tool is working right now is the better tool right now.
- Cost or access. Your plan on one service might give you more room than the other. Use what your accounts make cheap.
How to actually get good at choosing
You can't decide between two tools you've only used once. The way you build real judgment is boring and reliable: use both, on real work, over a few weeks. Pay attention to which one you reach for and why. After a month you'll have an opinion that's yours, built from your own tasks, not from a blog post. That opinion is worth more than any rule this lesson could hand you.
For now, the move is simple: get Codex installed, run it once, and have both tools ready. The choosing gets easy once both are real to you.
When to reach for which
The honest answer first: there is no rule that says "always use this one." Anyone who tells you one CLI is simply better than the other is selling something. Here's how to actually decide.
Default to the one you have open
For most work, either tool does the job fine. If you're already in a session and it's going well, keep going. Switching tools mid-task for no reason just costs you momentum. The best CLI for a task is often just the one already running.
Switch when you have a reason
Real reasons to reach for the other tool:
- One is stuck. A tool has tried the same fix three times and it's not working. Hand the exact problem to the other CLI. A fresh model with different training often sees what the first one missed. This is the single most useful reason to know both.
- You want a second opinion. Before you trust an important change, ask the other tool to review it. Agreement is reassurance. Disagreement is a flag worth checking.
- One is down or slow. Outages happen. Whichever tool is working right now is the better tool right now.
- Cost or access. Your plan on one service might give you more room than the other. Use what your accounts make cheap.
How to actually get good at choosing
You can't decide between two tools you've only used once. The way you build real judgment is boring and reliable: use both, on real work, over a few weeks. Pay attention to which one you reach for and why. After a month you'll have an opinion that's yours, built from your own tasks, not from a blog post. That opinion is worth more than any rule this lesson could hand you.
For now, the move is simple: get Codex installed, run it once, and have both tools ready. The choosing gets easy once both are real to you.