GitHub Copilot alternatives
The best alternatives to GitHub Copilot are Cursor, Windsurf (Devin Desktop) and Claude Code. Each one fits a different need, summarised below with its starting price and free plan.
Updated on
Comparison table
| Tool | Starting price | Free plan | Best for | Price checked | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cursor | $8/month (Plus) | Yes | Developers who want an AI-first editor with many usage tiers | Official site | |
| Windsurf (Devin Desktop) | $20/month (Pro) | Yes | Developers who want simple flat tiers and unlimited Tab completions on the free plan | Official site | |
| Claude Code | $20/month (Claude Pro) | No | Developers who prefer an agent in the terminal that works with their existing editor and CLI tools | Official site | |
| GitHub Copilot | $10/month (Pro) | Yes | Developers who want the cheapest paid plan with unlimited inline suggestions | Official site |
When to pick each alternative
Cursor
Use it if you want a dedicated AI code editor with an agent built in and you are comfortable with usage-based tiers; start on Free or Plus, and move to Premium when you need cloud agents, automations or AI code review.
Windsurf (Devin Desktop)
Use it if you want an AI IDE with three clear individual plans (Free, $20 Pro, $200 Max) and a free tier with unlimited Tab completions; note that the product is now called Devin Desktop.
Claude Code
Use it if you want an agent that works from your terminal alongside the editor and tools you already use, and you are happy to pay for a Claude subscription of $20/month or more.
Why look beyond GitHub Copilot?
- Chat and agent usage on Free is limited
- Agent and chat usage on paid plans is metered through AI credits
- Business and Enterprise prices are not listed on the plans page
- Three paid individual tiers can be hard to choose between
Back to GitHub Copilot pricing and details
Sources
Every price and plan detail on this page comes from these official pages.
- Cursor: https://cursor.com/pricing (checked )
- Windsurf (Devin Desktop): https://devin.ai/pricing (checked )
- Windsurf (Devin Desktop): https://devin.ai/desktop (checked )
- Claude Code: https://claude.com/pricing (checked )
- Claude Code: https://claude.com/product/claude-code (checked )
- GitHub Copilot: https://github.com/features/copilot/plans (checked )