--- title: "planning-with-files vs agent-toolkit" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/othmanadi-planning-with-files-vs-softaworks-agent-toolkit" tools: ["othmanadi-planning-with-files", "softaworks-agent-toolkit"] --- # planning-with-files vs agent-toolkit *GraphCanon updated Aug 19, 2026* ## Verdict Pick planning-with-files if a tool designed for providing persistent file-based planning in long-running AI coding tasks; pick agent-toolkit if extends AI coding agent capabilities with Python skills for development and professional workflows. [planning-with-files](https://www.skills.sh/othmanadi/planning-with-files/planning-with-files) reports 26k GitHub stars, 2.2k forks, and 9 open issues, last pushed Aug 19, 2026. [agent-toolkit](https://github.com/softaworks/agent-toolkit) has 2.3k stars, 217 forks, and 17 open issues, last pushed Mar 5, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [planning-with-files's repository](https://github.com/OthmanAdi/planning-with-files) and [agent-toolkit's repository](https://github.com/softaworks/agent-toolkit). | | [planning-with-files](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files.md) | [agent-toolkit](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Persistent file-based planning for AI coding agents | A curated collection of skills for AI coding agents | | Stars | 26,250 | 2,307 | | Forks | 2,199 | 217 | | Open issues | 9 | 17 | | Language | Shell | Python | | Adopt for | A tool designed for providing persistent file-based planning in long-running AI coding tasks. | Extends AI coding agent capabilities with Python skills for development and professional workflows | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | MIT | MIT | | Categories | AI Agents, Developer Tools | AI Agents, Developer Tools | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [planning-with-files](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files.md) | [agent-toolkit](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Very active (96%) | Slowing (36%) | | Days since push | 0d | 159d | | Open issues (now) | 9 | 17 | | Stars delta | +691 (30d) | Unknown | | Open issues delta | +4 (30d) | Unknown | | Owner type | User | Organization | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit/trust.md) | ## Shared compatibility - **Node.js**: [planning-with-files](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files.md) - Node.js runtime; [agent-toolkit](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit.md) - Node.js runtime ## Decision facts: planning-with-files - **Pricing:** freemium - Freely available under MIT License; community-supported. - **Adopt for:** A tool designed for providing persistent file-based planning in long-running AI coding tasks. ## Decision facts: agent-toolkit - **Adopt for:** Extends AI coding agent capabilities with Python skills for development and professional workflows ## Choose when ### Choose planning-with-files if… - planning-with-files is primarily Shell; agent-toolkit is Python. - Pricing: Freely available under MIT License; community-supported.. - Tags unique to planning-with-files: ai-agents, codex, multi-agent-systems, planning. - - When your coding agent needs to retain plans across sessions without context loss. ### Choose agent-toolkit if… - agent-toolkit is primarily Python; planning-with-files is Shell. - Tags unique to agent-toolkit: ai, automation, claude, development. - For enhancing specific tasks like documentation, planning, and workflow management ## When NOT to use planning-with-files - - When you do not need persistent storage for plans, such as short tasks where context is unlikely to be lost. - - For projects that strictly prohibit the use of external file storage for tracking progress due to security concerns. - - If your workflow heavily relies on in-memory planning strategies that are more suitable than disk-based solutions. ## When NOT to use agent-toolkit - If you seek support for languages other than Python - When working with non-Python based coding agents that require specialized skills not covered by this toolkit - In cases where custom, from-scratch development is preferred over using pre-packaged scripts ## Common questions ### What is the difference between planning-with-files and agent-toolkit? planning-with-files: Persistent file-based planning for AI coding agents. agent-toolkit: A curated collection of skills for AI coding agents. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose planning-with-files over agent-toolkit? Choose planning-with-files over agent-toolkit when planning-with-files is primarily Shell; agent-toolkit is Python; Pricing: Freely available under MIT License; community-supported.; Tags unique to planning-with-files: ai-agents, codex, multi-agent-systems, planning; - When your coding agent needs to retain plans across sessions without context loss. ### When should I choose agent-toolkit over planning-with-files? Choose agent-toolkit over planning-with-files when agent-toolkit is primarily Python; planning-with-files is Shell; Tags unique to agent-toolkit: ai, automation, claude, development; For enhancing specific tasks like documentation, planning, and workflow management. ### When should I avoid planning-with-files? - When you do not need persistent storage for plans, such as short tasks where context is unlikely to be lost. - For projects that strictly prohibit the use of external file storage for tracking progress due to security concerns. - If your workflow heavily relies on in-memory planning strategies that are more suitable than disk-based solutions. ### When should I avoid agent-toolkit? If you seek support for languages other than Python When working with non-Python based coding agents that require specialized skills not covered by this toolkit In cases where custom, from-scratch development is preferred over using pre-packaged scripts ### Is planning-with-files or agent-toolkit more popular on GitHub? planning-with-files has more GitHub stars (26,250 vs 2,307). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are planning-with-files and agent-toolkit open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (planning-with-files: MIT, agent-toolkit: MIT). ### Where can I find alternatives to planning-with-files or agent-toolkit? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [planning-with-files alternatives](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files/alternatives) and [agent-toolkit alternatives](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit/alternatives) ([planning-with-files markdown twin](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files/alternatives.md), [agent-toolkit markdown twin](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/othmanadi-planning-with-files-vs-softaworks-agent-toolkit.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, planning-with-files or agent-toolkit? planning-with-files: Very active. agent-toolkit: Slowing. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for planning-with-files and agent-toolkit? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [planning-with-files trust report](/tools/othmanadi-planning-with-files/trust); [agent-toolkit trust report](/tools/softaworks-agent-toolkit/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=othmanadi-planning-with-files`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=othmanadi-planning-with-files) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_