Highwind vs Conductor
Project workspace vs parallel agents on worktrees
Quick summary
Conductor is a Mac app for running Claude Code, Codex and other agents in parallel, each in its own git worktree, with a diff viewer, checkpoints and a pull request flow. It needs GitHub and at least one agent provider. Conductor Cloud and an iPhone app are part of its Pro plan.
Highwind is built around a project’s running parts: its dev servers, the agents working on it and the page in a browser pane. It supervises servers, starts them in order and restores everything when it opens. It has no worktree or diff features.
Choose Conductor to run several agents on separate branches and review their diffs. Choose Highwind to run your project’s servers and agents together in one window.
Who should choose Highwind, and who should choose Conductor?
Choose Highwind if
- You want dev servers supervised, restarted on crash and started in order.
- You want a browser pane with DevTools that agents can use.
- You want servers, agents and browser tabs back after you quit.
- You don’t want the app to need GitHub or an account.
- You want an iOS simulator or Android device in a pane your agent can use.
Choose Conductor if
- You want each agent on its own git worktree with checkpoints and diff review.
- You want a pull request flow built in.
- You want cloud workspaces and a phone app.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Highwind | Conductor |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A Mac app for dev servers, CLI agents, browsers and phone simulators, grouped by project | A Mac app for parallel agents on git worktrees |
| Runs your dev servers | Each service has a command, a folder and a port | Setup and run scripts per workspace |
| Restarts a server when it crashes | Per service, up to 3 attempts, 2 seconds apart | Not documented |
| Starts the services a server needs first | Starts each required service and waits until its port accepts connections | Not documented |
| CLI agents from several vendors | Claude Code, Codex, Gemini, OpenCode, Copilot and pi, plus any CLI added with a JSON file | Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode and Cursor |
| Agent conversations resume after a restart | Each agent pane resumes its own session at launch | Not documented |
| Servers run again after you quit or reboot | Services that were running start again at the next launch, agents resume and browser tabs reopen. Launch at login is optional | Not documented |
| Built-in browser with DevTools | WebKit pane with the Chrome DevTools frontend beside the page | Experimental in-app browser |
| Agents can use the built-in browser | 21 browser tools over MCP, with an approval policy per action | Not documented |
| Phone simulator or emulator in a pane | iOS simulator, Android emulator or Android phone in a pane. No physical iPhones. Needs Xcode tools or the Android SDK installed | iOS simulator preview in the browser, mentioned only in a changelog fix |
| Agents can use the simulator or emulator | 13 device tools over MCP: tap, swipe, type, screenshot, UI tree, logs and crash reports | Not documented |
| MCP server that controls the app | More than 70 tools for services, logs, views, tasks, the browser and devices. Off until you turn it on | API, MCP and CLI for cloud workspaces only |
| Shell commands as buttons | Per project, run in their own pane | Setup and run scripts, plus actions |
| Split panes | Views with split panes, layout presets and floating windows | Not documented |
| Task board | Kanban board per workspace that agents can read and update | Not documented |
| Git worktrees and diff review | No worktree management or diff view | Worktrees, diff viewer, checkpoints and PRs |
| Code editor | Plain text editor and sidebar, no syntax highlighting | Not documented |
| Configuration as plain files | Plain files in a .highwind folder | .conductor/settings.toml |
| Built with | Native Swift | Desktop app, closed source |
| No account needed | No account | Needs GitHub; a Conductor account for cloud and the phone app |
| Platforms | macOS 14 and later | macOS |
| Price | Free during the public beta | Free, Pro $50 a month adds cloud and the phone app, Teams $60 per user |
“Not documented” means we found no mention of it in Conductor’s documentation.
Different jobs
Conductor is about running several agents at once on separate branches and merging the best result. Highwind is about keeping one or more projects running: their servers, the agents on them and the page you are testing. The two can be used together.
Where Conductor is ahead
Conductor’s worktrees, checkpoints, diff viewer and pull request flow are its core, and it now has cloud workspaces and an iPhone app. Highwind has none of them.
Frequently asked questions
Is Highwind a Conductor alternative?
Only partly. Both run Claude Code and Codex on a Mac. Conductor focuses on worktrees, diffs and cloud workspaces. Highwind focuses on dev servers, the browser, phone simulators and starting everything again at launch.
Does Highwind need a GitHub account?
No. Highwind needs no account of any kind.
Try Highwind
A native Mac app for your dev servers, CLI agents and browser panes. Requires macOS 14 or later.
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Last reviewed November 2, 2026. Product features and prices change; tell us on the contact page if something here is out of date.