Cursor vs GitHub Copilot

A dedicated AI editor versus the AI layer that plugs into the editor you already use.

Side by side

	Cursor	GitHub Copilot
Starting price	Free; paid from $8/mo	Free; paid from $10/mo
Plans	Free: $0 · Plus: $8/mo · Premium: $30/mo · Super: $100/mo · Ultra: $200/mo · Teams: $30, $100 or $200 per seat/mo	Free: $0 · Pro: $10/mo · Pro+: $39/mo · Max: $100/mo · Business / Enterprise: See GitHub
Type	AI code editors, Cloud agents, Terminal agents	IDE extensions, Cloud agents, Terminal agents
Open source	No	No
Vendor	Cursor (SpaceXSI)	GitHub (Microsoft)

Pick Cursor if…

You're happy to switch editors for a deeper agent experience
You want Grok and X benefits bundled

Full Cursor breakdown →

Pick GitHub Copilot if…

You need JetBrains, Xcode, Visual Studio, Neovim or Eclipse
You want PR-native agents and reviews inside GitHub
You want a $10/mo paid tier with unlimited completions

Full GitHub Copilot breakdown →

Cursor limits

Third-party models (Claude, GPT, Gemini) are not in the included pool; on Premium and above they are billed at API list price from prepaid credit, and Plus/Free can't use them
Usage pool is shared with Grok and refreshes weekly, so heavy Grok chat use reduces coding headroom
Existing subscribers on legacy plans (Pro $20, Pro+ $60, Ultra $200) can keep them, which makes plan comparisons confusing

GitHub Copilot limits

Chat, agents, review and CLI draw down AI credits; frontier models burn them faster
Flex allotments "may change over time" per GitHub
Free, Pro and Pro+ interaction data may be used for model training unless you opt out

FAQ

Which is cheaper, Cursor or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor: Free; paid from $8/mo. GitHub Copilot: Free; paid from $10/mo. See the plan table for full pricing, verified 2026-10-17.

Should I choose Cursor or GitHub Copilot?

Choose Cursor if: You're happy to switch editors for a deeper agent experience; You want Grok and X benefits bundled. Choose GitHub Copilot if: You need JetBrains, Xcode, Visual Studio, Neovim or Eclipse; You want PR-native agents and reviews inside GitHub; You want a $10/mo paid tier with unlimited completions.

Sources

Verified 2026-10-17.