Verdict
Kiro suits teams, especially AWS shops, that want a spec-first agent across IDE, CLI and cloud with enterprise governance built in 3,15. The catch is metering and data use: work is billed in credits that vary by task and model, and personal plans share content for service improvement unless you opt out 1,6.
Good fit if you are
- AWS-centric teams that want IAM Identity Center sign-in, AWS billing and central model and MCP governance
- Teams that want structured, spec-first development with reviewable requirements, designs and task plans
- Regulated organisations that need HIPAA eligibility or AWS GovCloud (US)
Look elsewhere if you are
- Developers who want flat pricing without credits and per-model multipliers
- Teams that need cloud agent sessions hosted outside US East
- Solo developers who expect no content collection by default on a personal plan
Pros and cons
What we like
- Spec-driven workflow turns a prompt into requirements, a design and sequenced tasks, then checks them with automated reasoning and property-based tests 2.
- One agent across a Code OSS-based IDE, a CLI with headless CI mode, browser-based Kiro Web and ACP editors such as JetBrains and Zed 2,8,12,13,24.
- Autonomous mode plans the work, hands steps to sub-agents in a sandbox, opens pull requests and answers review comments 9,10.
- Public credit pricing from $20 for 1,000 credits, a $0.04 overage and published per-model multipliers 1,2.
- Strong admin controls: approved model lists, MCP allow-lists, web tool toggles, prompt logging and CloudTrail 15,16.
What to watch
- A credit has no fixed size: simple prompts use less than one, spec tasks more, and Claude Opus 5 costs 2.2x and Claude Fable 5.1 6x the Auto rate 1,2.
- Personal plans signed in with GitHub, Google or AWS Builder ID share content for service improvement, including model training, unless you opt out 4,6.
- Kiro Web runs only in US East (N. Virginia), needs Pro or higher, and some admin settings such as MCP configuration and customer managed keys do not apply to it 8,15.
- Supervised mode is a review step, not a sandbox: locally the agent can reach files, environment variables and AWS credentials 5.
- Kiro's compliance page lists ISO 27001 and HIPAA eligibility but names no SOC 2 report 7.
Key facts
| Made by | Amazon Web Services |
|---|---|
| Pricing | $20/month for 1,000 credits; extra credits $0.04 each |
| Cost per developer | $20 a month (Kiro Pro, 1,000 credits a month, billed monthly; extra credits $0.04 each) |
| Also requires | Kiro Web and CLI API keys need Pro or higher; plans for teams are sold per user for up to 500 users, larger organisations go through sales |
| Where it runs | IDE, Terminal, Cloud (background), Web app, GitHub, Slack |
| AI models | Auto routing plus Claude models (Opus 5.5, Sonnet 5.5, Opus 5, Haiku 4.5 and a Fable 5.1 enterprise preview), OpenAI GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra and Luna, and open-weight models such as DeepSeek 3.2, GLM-5 and Qwen3 Coder Next 2 |
| Works with | JetBrains, Zed, GitHub, GitLab, Figma, Postman, Terraform, Datadog, Slack |
| Security reports | ISO 27001, HIPAA eligible |
| Free trial | Perpetual free tier with 50 credits a month; $20 credit on the first paid upgrade via social login or Builder ID |
What Kiro is
Kiro is the agentic development environment from Amazon Web Services. AWS introduced it in July 2025 as an IDE forked from Code OSS, the base of VS Code 24. It now spans the desktop IDE, a CLI, the browser-based Kiro Web, and Kiro Crew, an open-source persistent agent that also works from Slack, Teams and other chat tools 2,8,14. Kiro CLI replaced the Amazon Q Developer CLI in November 2025 18, and in June 2026 AWS previewed an iOS app for managing cloud sessions 23.
Kiro's signature is spec-driven development. It turns a prompt into requirements, a technical design and sequenced tasks, checks the requirements for contradictions with automated reasoning, and validates behaviour with property-based tests 2. Because AWS builds it, Kiro plugs into IAM Identity Center, AWS billing, CloudTrail and GovCloud 1,16,17.
What it can do
You work in one of three modes: a default chat mode, spec mode, or autonomous mode where the agent owns the outcome 8. Steering files carry team conventions, hooks run tasks on events, and Powers and MCP servers add tools such as Figma, Postman, Terraform and Datadog 2,3,18,23. Locally, Autopilot applies changes as it goes, while Supervised mode pauses after each turn so you can accept or reject diffs by hunk; every command needs approval unless it matches your trusted-command list, and you can roll back to a checkpoint 5.
In Kiro Web, each task runs in an isolated sandbox that clones your repository and includes a headless Chrome browser for UI checks 10. Autonomous mode plans the work, hands steps to specialised sub-agents and opens pull requests or merge requests; reviewers comment, or type /kiro all or /kiro fix, and the agent pushes updates 9. You can also assign work by labelling a GitHub issue kiro 11. In CI, the CLI runs headless with an API key and pre-approved tools 12.
- Actions. The agent creates, edits and deletes files across the codebase and runs commands under a trusted-command policy 5. In Kiro Web's autonomous mode it plans the task, delegates steps to sub-agents in an isolated sandbox with a headless browser, and opens pull requests or merge requests 9,10.
- Setup. Install the IDE or the CLI with one curl command, then sign in with GitHub, Google, AWS Builder ID or IAM Identity Center 2,18. Kiro Web needs a GitHub or GitLab connection, and organisation owners choose which repositories the Kiro Agent app can reach 8,11.
- Reviewing its changes. In supervised mode you accept or reject each diff hunk before it persists, and Kiro Web delivers work as pull requests that it never merges itself 5,8.
- Analytics. Subscribers see credit usage updated at least every five minutes, and admins get a usage dashboard, per-user activity reports, prompt logs and CloudTrail events 1,16.
Pricing
Kiro bills in credits. Free gives 50 a month; Pro costs $20 for 1,000, Pro+ $40 for 2,000, Pro Max $100 for 5,000 and Power $200 for 10,000, all per user 1. Extra credits cost $0.04, sold in packs that expire after 12 months; monthly allowances do not roll over 1. The catch is that a credit has no fixed size. Simple prompts use under one credit, spec tasks more, and the model multiplies the cost: Auto is the 1.0x baseline, Claude Sonnet 1.3x, Claude Opus 5.5 2.0x, GPT-5.6 Sol 4.4x and Claude Fable 5.1 6.0x 1,2. A month that would use 1,000 credits on Auto costs 1,300 on Sonnet, so a Pro user pays $20 + 300 × $0.04 = $32. Enterprise is billed through AWS, with optional month-end overages at $0.04 per credit, and GovCloud prices run about 20% higher 1.
| Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Kiro Free | $01 | 50 credits a month, open-weight models and Claude Sonnet 4.5, with rate limits |
| Kiro Pro | $20 per user/month1 | 1,000 credits a month, premium models, add-on credits at $0.04 |
| Kiro Pro+ | $40 per user/month1 | 2,000 credits a month, premium models, add-on credits at $0.04 |
| Kiro Pro Max | $100 per user/month1 | 5,000 credits a month, premium models, add-on credits at $0.04 |
| Kiro Power | $200 per user/month1 | 10,000 credits a month, premium models, add-on credits at $0.04 |
| Add-on credits | $0.04 per credit1 | Packs from $5 (125 credits) to $100; expire 12 months after purchase |
| Kiro for enterprise | Quote only1 | Billed through AWS; centralized billing, SSO, usage analytics, security controls; optional overages at $0.04 per credit billed at month end |
Security and data
Kiro sits inside AWS's ISO/IEC 27001:2022 scope, and the IDE and CLI are HIPAA eligible; reports are available through AWS Artifact 7. Its compliance page names no SOC 2 report 7. Data is encrypted in transit with TLS 1.2+ and at rest with AWS KMS, and enterprise admins can bring customer managed keys 6. Personal-plan content is stored in US East (N. Virginia); enterprise profiles live in US East, Frankfurt or GovCloud 6,17. Users who sign in through IAM Identity Center or an external identity provider are excluded from service improvement, but Free and personal-plan users who sign in with GitHub, Google or Builder ID share content, which may be used for model training, unless they opt out 4,6. There is no zero-retention option: Free tier inputs can be held up to 60 days and some models keep traffic up to 30 days for abuse checks 6. Paid plans include IP indemnity for Kiro's output 3.
- Zero data retention. No zero-data-retention option; Free tier inputs can be kept up to 60 days and some models retain traffic up to 30 days for abuse detection 6
- Data residency. Individual plans store content in US East (N. Virginia); enterprise profiles in US East, Europe (Frankfurt) or AWS GovCloud (US) 6,17
- Training on your data. Content from users who sign in through IAM Identity Center or an external identity provider is not used; Free and personal-plan content may be used for service improvement, including model training, unless you opt out 4,6
- AI models. Anthropic, OpenAI and open-weight models from DeepSeek, MiniMax, GLM and Qwen, served through Amazon Bedrock 1,6
What customers say
Kiro scores 4.7 from 356 ratings on Gartner Peer Insights in the Enterprise AI Coding Agents market 21 and 4.6 from five reviews on G2 22. One critical Gartner review cites GUI rendering problems 21. Rehrig Pacific, a maker of pallets and totes, publishes the most detailed case study, built around spec-driven development across its 35-person development team 19. AWS also cites an internal Amazon Bedrock rewrite 20, and lists developers at SmugMug, Siemens, FINRA, Rackspace and Iress among its users 3. Kiro's early pricing drew a backlash in August 2025, which AWS put down to a metering bug 24.
| Platform | Rating | Reviews | Seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gartner Peer Insights (Kiro (Enterprise AI Coding Agents))21 | 4.7 / 5 | 356 | 8 October 2026 |
| G2 (Kiro)22 | 4.6 / 5 | 5 | 8 October 2026 |
What Amazon Web Services claims (not independently verified):
- Rehrig Pacific: work expected to take about three years delivered in seven weeks with a single developer 19
- Rehrig Pacific: 30 developers delivered eight production-ready outcomes in 48 hours 19
- AWS team rewrote a portion of Amazon Bedrock with six engineers in 76 days, a project scoped for 30 people 3,20
- Head of Engineering quote: 35% uplift in productivity 3
Concerns raised by others:
How we scored it
| Criterion | Why | Score |
|---|---|---|
| What it can do 30% of the total | Kiro plans, edits, runs commands and tests locally in the IDE and CLI, and in Kiro Web's autonomous mode works in a cloud sandbox, opens pull requests and extends through MCP and Powers 5,8,9,10. | 5/5 |
| Pricing 20% of the total | Every self-serve plan, credit allowance and the $0.04 overage are public, but a credit has no fixed size per task and enterprise deals go through AWS sales 1. | 4/5 |
| Control 20% of the total | Autopilot and supervised modes, a trusted-command allow-list, protected paths, checkpoints, a sandboxed PR-only cloud agent, and org-level model and MCP policies with prompt logs and CloudTrail 5,8,10,15,16. | 5/5 |
| Security and data 15% of the total | ISO 27001 within AWS scope, HIPAA eligibility and a no-training rule for identity-center users are documented 4,7, but no SOC 2 report is named, there is no zero-retention option, and personal plans can feed training unless you opt out 6. | 3/5 |
| Customer evidence 15% of the total | Kiro holds 4.7 from 356 ratings on Gartner Peer Insights in the Enterprise AI Coding Agents market 21, and Rehrig Pacific is a named customer with a published case study 19. | 5/5 |
| Total | Weighted sum of the 5 levels, out of 10. | 9.0 |
Sources
- Pricing - Kiro
- Kiro: Move beyond AI coding to agentic engineering
- Enterprise - Kiro
- Kiro FAQs
- Privacy and security
- Data protection
- Compliance validation for Kiro
- Kiro Web
- Autonomous mode
- Sandbox
- GitHub (Kiro Web)
- Headless mode
- Agent Client Protocol (ACP)
- Kiro Crew quick start
- Governance
- Monitoring and tracking
- Supported regions
- Upgrading from Amazon Q Developer CLI
- Rehrig compressed software development from three years to seven weeks
- Case studies
- Kiro Reviews & Ratings 2026
- Kiro Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features
- AWS hypes continuous agentic DevOps, puts Kiro in your pocket
- AWS pricing for Kiro dev tool 'a wallet-wrecking tragedy'