Cursor vs GitHub Copilot
Development
Cursor is an AI-powered code editor designed to enhance developer productivity through autonomous agents, codebase indexing, and advanced autocomplete.
Development
GitHub Copilot works alongside you directly in your editor, suggesting whole lines or entire functions for you.
At a glance
| Cursor | GitHub Copilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Freemium | Freemium |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Starting price | $8/month | $10/month |
| Category | Development | Development |
| Best for | Writing and refactoring code with an AI agent | Autocompleting code while typing in the IDE |
Prices come from each official site and can change. Check the official pricing pages before subscribing.
Key features
Cursor
- AI code editor with an in-editor coding agent
- Chat about and edit your codebase
- Cloud agents and automations (Premium and higher)
- AI code reviews via Bugbot (Premium and higher)
- Code hosting via Origin (Premium and higher)
- Third-party models at API list price, plus included Grok usage
- Privacy mode that keeps code out of model training
GitHub Copilot
- AI code suggestions inside your editor
- Copilot Chat for questions about code
- Choice of AI models on paid plans
- Access to third-party agents (Claude Code and Codex) on Pro
- Monthly usage credits: $15 on Pro, $70 on Pro+, $200 on Max
- Works in VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Xcode, Neovim, Eclipse, and Zed
Pros
Cursor
- Free tier with limited agent and chat requests
- Agent, chat, and code review in one editor
- Privacy mode guarantees code data is not used for training
- Usage allowance refreshes weekly instead of monthly
GitHub Copilot
- Free plan available, and verified students get a Student plan
- Works in many editors and IDEs, not just one editor
- Built into GitHub for repository-aware workflows
- Pro is relatively inexpensive at $10/month
Cons
Cursor
- The $8 Plus plan includes only Grok models
- Third-party models (non-Grok) are billed separately at API list price
- Cloud agents and code reviews require Premium ($30/month) or higher
- Plans are now bundled with X/Grok subscription features, which may not suit every user
GitHub Copilot
- Premium models such as Opus require Pro+ ($39/month) or higher
- Usage is limited by monthly credits on each paid plan
- Suggestions can be incorrect or insecure and need code review
- Most useful for teams already on GitHub
Which one should you choose?
Choose Cursor if you need
- Writing and refactoring code with an AI agent
- Asking questions about an unfamiliar codebase
- Running background coding tasks with cloud agents
- Automated AI review of pull requests
Choose GitHub Copilot if you need
- Autocompleting code while typing in the IDE
- Explaining, refactoring, and debugging code via chat
- Delegating coding tasks to AI agents from GitHub
- Speeding up boilerplate and test writing
Cursor vs GitHub Copilot: FAQ
Is Cursor better than GitHub Copilot?
Neither is better for everyone. Cursor: Cursor is an AI-powered code editor designed to enhance developer productivity through autonomous agents, codebase indexing, and advanced autocomplete. GitHub Copilot: GitHub Copilot works alongside you directly in your editor, suggesting whole lines or entire functions for you. Pick Cursor for writing and refactoring code with an AI agent, and GitHub Copilot for autocompleting code while typing in the IDE.
Which is cheaper, Cursor or GitHub Copilot?
Cursor's paid plans start at $8/month, compared with $10/month for GitHub Copilot, based on each official pricing page at the last update. Limits differ between plans, so compare what each tier includes.
Do Cursor and GitHub Copilot have free plans?
Yes, both offer free access with usage limits. Paid plans raise those limits and add features.