Aider AI Pair Programming

Professional Aider configuration for AI-assisted development with OpenRouter model routing, automated git workflows, and integrated linting/testing.

What This Skill Does

Sets up Aider with:

Configuration

Create `.aider.conf.yml` in your project root with the following settings:

```yaml

Privacy & Updates

analytics-disable: true

check-update: false

Interface

vim: true

dark-mode: true

env-file: na # ignore .env files

Conventions

read: [.aider.conventions]

Model Aliases (OpenRouter)

alias:

- gemini:openrouter/google/gemini-2.5-pro-preview

- deepseek:openrouter/deepseek/deepseek-r1-0528:free

- claude:openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4

- devstral:openrouter/mistralai/devstral-small:free

Default editor model (fast, free)

editor-model: devstral

Git Integration

git: true

gitignore: false

auto-commits: true

attribute-commit-message-author: true

Quality Assurance

auto-lint: true

lint-cmd: make lint

auto-test: true

test-cmd: make test

```

Prerequisites

1. **Makefile Targets**: Ensure your project has `make lint` and `make test` targets defined

2. **OpenRouter API Key**: Set `OPENROUTER_API_KEY` environment variable

3. **Conventions File** (optional): Create `.aider.conventions` for project-specific coding standards

Usage

Switch Models During Session

```bash

Use Gemini for complex reasoning

/model gemini

Use DeepSeek for deep analysis (free tier)

/model deepseek

Use Claude for high-quality code generation

/model claude

Use Devstral for quick edits (default editor model)

/model devstral

```

Git Workflow

Aider will automatically:

Quality Gates

Before finalizing changes, Aider will:

1. Run `make lint` and fix issues

2. Run `make test` to verify functionality

3. Only commit if both pass

Customization

Add More Models

Add to the `alias` section in `.aider.conf.yml`:

```yaml

alias:

- mymodel:openrouter/provider/model-name

```

Change Linting/Testing Commands

Update in `.aider.conf.yml`:

```yaml

lint-cmd: npm run lint

test-cmd: npm test

```

Project Conventions

Create `.aider.conventions` to define coding standards:

```

```

Important Notes