Side-by-side comparison · Coding & Dev Tools
Cline vs Cursor vs GitHub Copilot
Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.
Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.
At a glance
Pick it if: Developers and technical founders who want a capable coding agent inside their editor and want to choose, and pay for, their own AI model.
Pick it if: Developers and curious beginners who want AI help but still want a visual editor.
Pick it if: Teams and developers whose code lives on GitHub and who want AI in the tools they already use.
Overview
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | A free, open-source coding agent for VS Code and the terminal that works with any model. | A code editor with AI built in, for people who want to watch every change happen. | GitHub's AI helper: it finishes your code, reviews pull requests and takes on whole tasks. |
| Pricing model | Free | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $9.99/mo | $8/mo | $10/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | Yes | No | No |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.0 | 3.9 | 4.0 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 4.5 | 3.0 | 4.5 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | No | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop app | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Browser extension | No | No | – |
| API access | Yes | – | – |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Connects to other apps | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | Yes | No | No |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Makes images | No | No | No |
| Makes video | No | No | No |
| Writes code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | – | Yes | Yes |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 12/ 17 | 12/ 17 | 12/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Open SourceOur pick Free Anyone with their own API key or happy to buy credits. | Free Free Trying the editor and a few agent runs. | Free Free Trying autocomplete and light chat. |
ClinePass $9.99/mo People who want cheap daily coding with open models. | Plus $8/mo Light users who are happy with Grok models only. | ProOur pick $10/mo Individual developers on GitHub. | |
Enterprise Custom Companies rolling it out to a team. | PremiumOur pick $30/mo Most developers, especially if you want Claude alongside Grok. | Pro+ $39/mo Developers who run agent tasks every day. | |
Super or Ultra $100/mo or $200/mo Heavy daily agent users. | Max $100/mo Heavy agent-driven work. | ||
Legacy Pro $20/mo Existing subscribers only. New customers can't buy it. | Business and Enterprise See website Companies that need admin controls and policy management. | ||
Teams From $30/user/mo Companies that need admin controls and SSO. | |||
| Which plan to pick | Install the free version and connect a model you already pay for. If you want to code most days without watching an API bill, add ClinePass at $9.99 a month for the open models, and keep a Claude or GPT key for the hard jobs. Enterprise only matters once a company needs JetBrains or central controls. | If you are on the old $20 Pro plan and it covers what you use, stay put; switching is permanent. New customers should skip Plus unless they are happy with Grok. Premium is the realistic starting point if you want Claude, and budget for the extra usage billing on top of the $30. Large companies can ask about a custom Enterprise plan. | Pro is the sweet spot for an individual: cheap, unlimited autocomplete and enough credits for a few agent tasks a week. Only move to Pro+ if you find yourself buying extra credits every month. |
Key features
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | Cline | Cursor | GitHub Copilot |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, Cline, Cursor or GitHub Copilot?
They tie on our overall rating (Cline 4.0/5, Cursor 3.9/5 and GitHub Copilot 4.0/5). Cline is best for AI coding inside VS Code with any model and cheap coding with open models through ClinePass. Cursor is best for editing with AI autocomplete and learning by watching changes happen. GitHub Copilot is best for autocomplete as you type and Handing GitHub issues to an agent.
Which is cheaper, Cline, Cursor or GitHub Copilot?
Cline: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $9.99/mo. Cursor: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $8/mo. GitHub Copilot: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $10/mo.
How we compare
Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.
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