Features Intermediate

Explore Kilocode's full feature set: enhanced diff views, smart context selection, automatic model routing, the cost dashboard, the checkpoint system, MCP support, browser automation, terminal integration, and image understanding.

Enhanced Diff Views

When Kilocode proposes code changes, the enhanced diff view makes reviewing them faster and more reliable:

• Side-by-side view: See the original and modified code side by side with full syntax highlighting
• Inline annotations: Kilocode adds brief explanations of why each change was made
• Collapse unchanged sections: Focus on the actual changes without scrolling through unmodified code
• One-click actions: Accept all changes, reject all, or accept/reject individual hunks
• Change summary: A quick summary at the top showing lines added, removed, and files affected

// Kilocode enhanced diff output:
// src/utils/auth.ts | +8 lines | -2 lines

  function validateToken(token: string) {
-   return jwt.verify(token, SECRET);
+   try {
+     const decoded = jwt.verify(token, SECRET);
+     if (decoded.exp < Date.now() / 1000) {
+       throw new TokenExpiredError('Token has expired');
+     }
+     return decoded;
+   } catch (error) {
+     throw new AuthenticationError('Invalid token');
+   }
  }

Smart Context Selection

Kilocode uses intelligent algorithms to determine which files and code sections are most relevant to your task:

• Dependency analysis: Automatically includes files that import or are imported by the target files
• Type inference: Includes type definitions and interfaces that are relevant to the code being modified
• Test association: When editing code, automatically includes associated test files
• Recency weighting: Recently modified files get higher priority in context selection
• Token budgeting: Stays within the model's context window by prioritizing the most relevant content

This smarter context selection means Kilocode uses fewer tokens (saving money) while producing more accurate results (because it has better context).

Model Routing

Model routing is one of Kilocode's standout features. When enabled, it automatically selects the best model for each subtask:

Cost Dashboard

Kilocode includes a built-in cost dashboard accessible from the settings panel. It provides:

• Real-time cost per task: See the running cost as Kilocode works, broken down by input and output tokens
• Historical spending: View spending over time - by day, week, or month
• Per-model breakdown: See how much you're spending on each model
• Budget alerts: Set daily, weekly, or monthly budgets and receive warnings when approaching limits
• Task cost ranking: See which tasks were most expensive to identify optimization opportunities

Checkpoint System

Kilocode's enhanced checkpoint system provides more control over versioning during tasks:

• Automatic checkpoints: Created before every file modification
• Named checkpoints: Manually create named checkpoints at important milestones
• Comparison view: Compare any two checkpoints to see what changed between them
• One-click restore: Instantly revert all files to any previous checkpoint
• Checkpoint timeline: Visual timeline showing all checkpoints in the current task

MCP Support

Kilocode supports the Model Context Protocol (MCP) for extending its capabilities with external tools:

• Database access: Query databases directly during development
• API integration: Call external APIs as part of a task
• Custom tools: Build and connect your own MCP servers
• Community servers: Use pre-built MCP servers for popular services

You: Check the database schema for the users table
     and add a "last_login" timestamp column.

Kilocode: I'll use the database MCP server to inspect
          the schema, then create a migration.
          [MCP: query database schema] Approve | Reject
          [Create migration file]      Approve | Reject
          [Run migration command]      Approve | Reject

Browser Automation

Like Cline, Kilocode includes a built-in headless browser for testing and web interaction:

• Navigate to URLs and take screenshots
• Fill forms and click buttons
• Read page content and console logs
• Monitor network requests
• Test responsive layouts at different viewport sizes

Terminal Integration

Kilocode integrates with VS Code's terminal to run commands, with enhanced features:

• Command preview: See the exact command before it runs
• Output parsing: Kilocode reads and interprets command output automatically
• Error detection: Automatically detects errors in output and offers to fix them
• Long-running commands: Handles background processes like dev servers gracefully

Image Understanding

Drag and drop images into the Kilocode chat for visual analysis:

• Design implementation: Drop a mockup and ask Kilocode to build the UI
• Error screenshots: Share screenshots of errors for faster debugging
• Diagram analysis: Drop architecture diagrams to guide implementation
• Visual comparison: Compare screenshots to verify UI changes