Cursor vs GitHub Copilot
Both changed their pricing in 2026. Cursor now sells Plus, Premium, Super and Ultra tiers with a weekly usage pool for its own models, and bills third-party models at API list price. Copilot moved to monthly AI Credits and still has a $10 entry plan with unlimited completions.
Disclosure: PickedTech is reader-supported. Some links on this page are affiliate links, and we may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. This never affects which products we recommend or how we rank them. How we make money.
How this page was made: this is a research-based comparison built from official pricing pages, product documentation and vendor announcements. We haven’t tested these tools ourselves or run hands-on benchmarks for this page, and we don’t invent scores. Our methodology.
Quick answer
Choose Cursor (from $8/mo) if you want an agent-first editor and cloud agents, you mainly use Cursor’s own models or you want AI code reviews built in. Choose GitHub Copilot (from $10/mo) if you want the cheapest paid plan, you use JetBrains, Visual Studio, Xcode or another IDE or you want published, predictable usage allowances.
Last updated Pricing checked Nov 2026
Check Cursor pricing (opens in a new tab)Check GitHub Copilot pricing (opens in a new tab)
Key facts at a glance
| Cursor | GitHub Copilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry paid plan | Plus, $8/month (Grok models only) | Pro, $10/month |
| Mid-tier plan | Premium, $30/month | Pro+, $39/month |
| Usage limits | Weekly pool, stated as multiples of Plus; absolute size not published | Monthly AI Credits (1 credit = $0.01), published per plan |
| Third-party models | Billed at API list price from prepaid credit (Premium and up) | Included in the credit allowance |
| Code completions | Not itemized on the pricing page | Unlimited on paid plans |
Pick GitHub Copilot if you want the cheapest paid plan ($10/month Pro), unlimited completions on every paid plan, published monthly credit allowances, and support across VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Xcode, Eclipse, Neovim and more. Pick Cursor if you want Cursor’s own editor and agents, cloud agents and automations, and Bugbot code reviews. Premium is $30/month, and Cursor’s own models come from a weekly pool, but third-party models like Claude, GPT and Gemini cost extra at API list price.
Cursor vs GitHub Copilot: side-by-side
| Cursor | GitHub Copilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry paid plan | Plus, $8/month (Grok models only) | Pro, $10/month |
| Mid-tier plan | Premium, $30/month | Pro+, $39/month |
| Usage limits | Weekly pool, stated as multiples of Plus; absolute size not published | Monthly AI Credits (1 credit = $0.01), published per plan |
| Third-party models | Billed at API list price from prepaid credit (Premium and up) | Included in the credit allowance |
| Code completions | Not itemized on the pricing page | Unlimited on paid plans |
| Where it runs | Cursor’s own editor, CLI and cloud agents | VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Xcode, Eclipse, Neovim, Zed and more |
| Team seats | $30, $100 or $200/user/month | $19 or $39/seat/month |
How much do they cost?
Cursor plans
| Option | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Limited AI usage |
| Plus | $8/month | Cursor’s Grok models only |
| Premium | $30/month | 4x Plus usage; third-party models billed separately |
| Super | $100/month | 15x Plus usage |
| Ultra | $200/month | 50x Plus usage |
| Teams | From $30/user/month | Premium, Super or Ultra seats |
GitHub Copilot plans
| Option | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Limited; auto model selection only |
| Pro | $10/month | 1,500 total monthly AI credits |
| Pro+ | $39/month | 7,000 total monthly AI credits |
| Max | $100/month | 20,000 total monthly AI credits |
| Business | $19/seat/month | 1,900 credits per user |
| Enterprise | $39/seat/month | 3,900 credits per user |
What are the pros and cons?
Cursor: pros
- Cloud agents, automations and Bugbot code reviews on Premium and up
- Weekly pool for Cursor models refreshes every week
- Team seats can mix tiers
Cursor: cons
- Third-party models cost extra at API list price
- Absolute usage limits aren’t published (PlanLimits)
- Plus doesn’t include third-party models
GitHub Copilot: pros
- Cheapest paid plan at $10/month
- Unlimited completions and next edit suggestions on paid plans
- Works in most major IDEs
- Published monthly credit allowances
GitHub Copilot: cons
- Usage beyond the monthly allowance needs a paid budget, and GitHub says flex allotments may change
- Free and Student plans get auto model selection only
- Not available for GitHub Enterprise Server
Which should you choose: Cursor or GitHub Copilot?
PlanLimits’ side-by-side (checked November 2, 2026) shows the trade-off: Copilot Pro+ costs $39/month for 7,000 published monthly AI credits, while Cursor Premium costs $30/month for a weekly pool of Cursor models whose absolute size isn’t published, with third-party models billed separately. If you mostly want completions and chat in your existing IDE, Copilot is the cheaper, more predictable choice. If you want Cursor’s agent-first editor and cloud agents, Cursor Premium is the plan to look at.
Choose Cursor if…
- You want an agent-first editor and cloud agents
- You mainly use Cursor’s own models
- You want AI code reviews built in
Choose GitHub Copilot if…
- You want the cheapest paid plan
- You use JetBrains, Visual Studio, Xcode or another IDE
- You want published, predictable usage allowances
Cursor’s 2026 plans
Cursor’s pricing page lists Free, Plus ($8), Premium ($30), Super ($100) and Ultra ($200) plans, and Teams from $30 per user per month. Cursor’s team docs say each paid seat includes a weekly pool for Cursor models (Grok 4.7, 4.6, 4.5 and Composer 2.5), while third-party models are billed at public list API prices plus the Cursor Token Rate from a prepaid balance. PlanLimits notes that legacy plans continue for existing customers.
Copilot’s AI Credits
GitHub’s docs list Copilot Free, Pro ($10), Pro+ ($39), Max ($100), Business ($19 per seat) and Enterprise ($39 per seat). Each plan includes GitHub AI Credits. Pro gets 1,500 total a month, Pro+ 7,000 and Max 20,000, counting base credits and flex allotment. GitHub says code completions and next edit suggestions don’t use credits and remain unlimited on paid plans.
Editors and IDEs
GitHub says Copilot works in Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs, Xcode, Vim, Neovim, Zed and Eclipse, with agent mode in VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Eclipse and Xcode. Cursor is its own editor, with a CLI, cloud agents and automations.
Who should skip this
Skip both if you want a terminal-first agent rather than an IDE plugin or fork; see Claude Code vs Cursor and GitHub Copilot vs Claude Code. Skip Cursor if you need Claude or GPT usage included in the sticker price, since Cursor bills third-party models separately. Skip Copilot if you want a full agent-first editor with cloud agents and Bugbot in one product. For a wider shortlist, see the best AI coding assistants and Cursor vs Windsurf.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cursor cheaper than Copilot?
Are code completions unlimited?
Does Cursor still have a Pro plan?
Who should skip Cursor vs GitHub Copilot?
Sources
Pricing and plan details were checked on the official pages below as of Nov 2026. Vendors change prices, credits and plan names often, and some show regional pricing at checkout, so confirm on the vendor’s site before you buy.
- Cursor: Pricing (cursor.com)
- Cursor Docs: Teams pricing (cursor.com)
- GitHub Docs: Plans for GitHub Copilot (docs.github.com)
- GitHub: Copilot plans (github.com)
- PlanLimits: GitHub Copilot Pro+ vs Cursor Premium limits (checked November 2, 2026) (planlimits.app)
Related
The Best AI Coding Assistants in 2026
Zapier picks Cursor for complex, multi-file work and calls GitHub Copilot the best value in paid AI coding tools ($10/month for Pro). Claude Code is its pick for large codebases.
comparisonCursor vs Windsurf (now Devin Desktop)
Windsurf is now Devin Desktop. Cognition renamed it on June 2, 2026, made a Kanban-style Agent Command Center the default view and replaced Cascade with Devin Local. Here’s how it compares with Cursor’s 2026 plans.
comparisonGitHub Copilot vs Claude Code
Copilot is an editor assistant that bills chat and agent work in monthly AI credits. Claude Code is an agent on a flat Claude plan with 5-hour and weekly limits. Many developers use both.
comparisonClaude Code vs Cursor
Claude Code is a terminal-first agent tied to Claude plans. Cursor is an AI-native editor with its own $8–$200 individual tiers.
comparisonClaude Code vs OpenAI Codex
Both agents come bundled with a $20 chat subscription. The bigger difference is how they work: Claude Code runs on your machine and asks before sensitive actions, while Codex was built to run tasks in isolated cloud sandboxes.
alternativesThe Best Cursor Alternatives
Cursor Premium is $30/month. Depending on whether you want cheap completions, frontier models in-quota, or a terminal coding agent, you may not need it.