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Windsurf vs Cursor: Which AI Code Editor in 2026?
Short answer: Pick Cursor if you want AI-driven coding assistants; pick Windsurf if you want IDE with built-in multi-agent command center. Cursor has a free plan, paid from $20/month; Windsurf has a free plan, paid from $20/month.
Which to pick
Pick Cursor if you want…
- AI-driven coding assistants
- AI-enhanced code editing
- Integrations with GitHub or JetBrains IDEs (on Cursor's list, not Windsurf's)
Pick Windsurf if you want…
- IDE with built-in multi-agent command center
- Integrations with Notion, Sentry or Stripe (on Windsurf's list, not Cursor's)
Written by the DevHunt team · updated Nov 7, 2026
The short answer
Cursor and Windsurf are both AI-first code editors, but they have moved in different directions. Cursor is an editor plus its own agent, cloud agents and Bugbot code review, now tied to SpaceX and Grok. Windsurf has been renamed Devin Desktop by Cognition and is becoming a command center for many agents, local and in the cloud, with frontier models from several labs included in its quota. Pick Cursor for a polished single-agent editor with strong code review. Pick Windsurf if you want Claude, GPT and Gemini included for $20 and want to run Devin and other agents side by side. Facts are as of November 2026.
Cursor vs Windsurf at a glance
| Cursor | Windsurf (Devin Desktop) | |
|---|---|---|
| Made by | Anysphere (now part of SpaceX, per its Aug 14, 2026 post) | Cognition |
| What it is | AI code editor, agent, CLI, cloud agents, web and mobile | AI IDE and agent command center; JetBrains plugin still offered |
| Free plan | Limited agent and chat requests | Light agent quota, limited models, unlimited inline edits and Tab |
| Paid from | Plus $8/mo (introductory, Grok only); Premium $30/mo | Pro $20/mo |
| Top individual plan | Super $100/mo, Ultra $200/mo | Max $200/mo |
| Teams | From $30/user/mo | $80/mo per team plus $40/mo per full dev seat, up to 200 users |
| Models | Grok included; Claude, GPT, Gemini, Composer at API list price on Premium and up | OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, SpaceXAI and open models on Pro, plus Cognition's SWE-2 free |
| Quotas | Weekly pool shared with Grok, as multiples of Plus | Refresh daily and weekly; extra usage at API pricing |
| Cloud agents | Premium and up | Devin Cloud on Pro, with hand-off between local and cloud |
| Code review | Bugbot (Premium and up) | Not a headline feature |
| Open source | No | No |
Sources: Cursor pricing, Cursor homepage, Devin pricing, Devin Desktop.
The differences that matter
Model costs. On Cursor, the plan fee buys a usage pool for Grok models; Claude, GPT and other third-party models are billed separately at API list price, and only from Premium ($30). On Windsurf Pro ($20), frontier models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and SpaceXAI are part of the quota, and extra usage after it runs out is billed at API pricing. If your favorite model is Claude or GPT, Windsurf is cheaper to start; if Grok works for you, Cursor Plus at $8 is the cheapest paid AI editor here.
One agent or many. Cursor's agent is Cursor's agent, with cloud agents that "use their own computers" to build and test features in parallel. Devin Desktop is built around managing several agents from one place, through the Agent Client Protocol, and handing a session from your laptop to Devin Cloud and back with the same context. Its Fusion feature pairs an expensive lead model with a cheaper sidekick model to save quota.
Completions. Both have next-edit completions: Cursor's Tab and Devin Desktop's Supercomplete. Windsurf's free plan includes unlimited Tab, which makes it a good free autocomplete editor even if you never use the agent.
Code review and team features. Cursor's Bugbot reviews pull requests in GitHub and is part of Premium and Teams. Cursor Teams also adds a team marketplace, usage analytics and SSO. Devin's Teams plan has a flat $80 base plus $40 per seat, which is cheaper than Cursor for small teams that need several seats.
Momentum. Search interest in "windsurf vs cursor" fell sharply over the past year, and both products changed owners and names in 2026. Expect both to keep changing; check the pricing pages before you commit a team.
Which to pick
- You want the cheapest paid AI editor: Cursor Plus at $8, if Grok models are enough.
- You want Claude or GPT included in a $20 plan: Windsurf Pro.
- You want AI code review on every PR: Cursor Premium with Bugbot.
- You want to run Devin and other agents side by side: Windsurf (Devin Desktop).
- You use JetBrains IDEs: Windsurf still has a JetBrains plugin; also look at GitHub Copilot and Claude Code, which both support JetBrains.
More options in the AI coding agents comparison.
Side by side
- What it is
- Cursor:Cursor is an AI-powered code editor that lets agents turn ideas into code across desktop, CLI, and integrations.
- Windsurf:Windsurf (now Devin Desktop) is an AI-native IDE that lets you manage local and cloud coding agents from a single interface.
- Best for
- Cursor:AI-driven coding assistants
- Windsurf:IDE with built-in multi-agent command center
- Who it’s for
- Cursor:Developers and teams who want AI assistance for coding, debugging and automation.
- Windsurf:Developers and teams who want AI agents integrated directly into their editor.
- Pricing
- Cursor:Freemium
- Windsurf:Freemium
- Starting price
- Cursor:$20/month (Individual)
- Windsurf:$20/month (Pro)
- Free plan or trial
- Cursor:Free plan (Hobby)
- Windsurf:Free plan (Free)
- Plans
- Cursor:Hobby Free · Individual $20 / mo. per month · Teams $40 / user / mo. per month
- Windsurf:Free $0 · Pro $20 per month · Max $200 per month · Teams $80 per month
- Works with
- Cursor:Slack, GitHub, Linear, JetBrains IDEs, Vercel
- Windsurf:Slack, Linear, Notion, Sentry, Stripe, Vercel, Datadog, rust-analyzer
Cursor features
- Agentic coding. AI agents can generate, edit, and test code based on high-level prompts.
- Multi-surface support. Works in a desktop IDE, terminal CLI, Slack, GitHub, Linear and more.
- Cloud agents. Launch fleets of autonomous agents that run in parallel on cloud resources.
- Mission Control UI. Grid view of open windows for quick navigation and window management.
- Team rules & privacy. Define team conventions, enable privacy mode to prevent data training.
- Model selection. Choose from OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, SpaceXAI and Cursor models per task.
Windsurf features
- Agent Command Center. Manage fleets of local and cloud agents, delegate tasks, and review diffs without leaving the editor.
- Full IDE Experience. Syntax highlighting, autocomplete, debugging tools and tab-completion built into the same window.
- Spaces for Shared Context. Share Git worktrees and context across all agents to keep work coordinated.
- Fast Context Retrieval. Find exact files and lines an agent needs in milliseconds.
- Unlimited Model Access. Free access to SWE-2 and optional frontier models from OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, etc.
- Extensible Integrations. Supports Slack, Linear, Notion, Sentry, Stripe, Vercel, Datadog, and many language servers (e.g., rust-analyzer, clangd).
- Tab-Complete AI. Supercomplete predicts next thoughts and code edits, offering unlimited tab completions.
- Enterprise Controls. SAML/OIDC SSO, VPC deployment, admin dashboards and dedicated account management for large teams.
Cursor vs Windsurf FAQ
Is Windsurf the same as Devin Desktop?+
Yes. windsurf.com now redirects to devin.ai/desktop, and Cognition describes Devin Desktop as building on the IDE foundation of Windsurf, adding a command center for local and cloud agents. The Windsurf plugin for JetBrains IDEs is still available.
Is Cursor better than Windsurf?+
It depends on which agents you want. Cursor has its own agent, cloud agents and Bugbot code review, with Grok models included and other labs billed at API price. Windsurf (Devin Desktop) focuses on running many agents in one place, including Cognition's Devin and SWE models and other agents through the Agent Client Protocol, with frontier models included in the $20 Pro quota.
Which is cheaper, Windsurf or Cursor?+
Cursor Plus is $8 a month (introductory) but includes Grok models only. For Claude, GPT and Gemini models, Windsurf Pro at $20 a month includes them in its quota, while Cursor needs Premium at $30 plus separate per-token billing for third-party models. Both bill extra usage at API prices once you pass your allowance.
Does Windsurf have a free plan?+
Yes. As of November 2026 the free plan includes a light agent quota, limited model choice, unlimited inline edits and unlimited Tab completions.
Who owns Cursor and Windsurf?+
Cursor is made by Anysphere, which says it is now part of SpaceX (post dated August 14, 2026). Windsurf is owned by Cognition, the company behind the Devin agent, and is now sold as Devin Desktop.
What is the difference between Cursor and Windsurf?+
Cursor is a standalone AI code editor, while Windsurf adds multi-agent management and a full IDE command center.
Should I use Cursor or Windsurf?+
Pick Cursor if you want AI-driven coding assistants, AI-enhanced code editing or integrations with GitHub or JetBrains IDEs (on Cursor's list, not Windsurf's). Pick Windsurf if you want IDE with built-in multi-agent command center or integrations with Notion, Sentry or Stripe (on Windsurf's list, not Cursor's).
Is Cursor or Windsurf free?+
Cursor has a free plan (Hobby); paid plans start at $20/month (Individual). Windsurf has a free plan; paid plans start at $20/month (Pro).
Which is cheaper, Cursor or Windsurf?+
They start at the same price: Cursor's Individual plan ($20/month) and Windsurf's Pro plan ($20/month) cost the same.
Do Cursor and Windsurf integrate with the same tools?+
Partly. Both list Slack, Linear and Vercel. Cursor also lists GitHub and JetBrains IDEs; Windsurf also lists Notion, Sentry, Stripe, Datadog and 3 more.
On DevHunt
Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.