Side-by-side comparison · Coding & Dev Tools
Cursor vs GitHub Copilot vs OpenRouter
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 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.
Pick it if: Business owners and developers adding AI to a product, and anyone who wants to try lots of models cheaply from one account.
Overview
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | 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. | One account and one API key for hundreds of AI models, paid for at the makers' prices. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $8/mo | $10/mo | Model prices plus a 5.5% fee on credit top-ups |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | No | No | Yes |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 3.9 | 4.0Winner | 3.7 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 4.5 | 4.0 | 4.5 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 3.0 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.5 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes | No |
| Desktop app | Yes | Yes | No |
| 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 | No | No | No |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Makes images | No | No | Yes |
| Makes video | No | No | – |
| Writes code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | Yes | – |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | Yes | – |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 12/ 17 | 12/ 17 | 10/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free Free Trying the editor and a few agent runs. | Free Free Trying autocomplete and light chat. | Free Free Trying models and light hobby use. |
Plus $8/mo Light users who are happy with Grok models only. | ProOur pick $10/mo Individual developers on GitHub. | Pay as you goOur pick Model prices plus a 5.5% fee on credit top-ups Most businesses and developers building with AI. | |
PremiumOur pick $30/mo Most developers, especially if you want Claude alongside Grok. | Pro+ $39/mo Developers who run agent tasks every day. | Business Model prices plus an 8% fee on credit top-ups Companies that need data kept in the EU or US. | |
Super or Ultra $100/mo or $200/mo Heavy daily agent users. | Max $100/mo Heavy agent-driven work. | Enterprise Custom Large teams with volume commitments. | |
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 | 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. | Start free to test, then top up $10 to $20 of credit on Pay as you go. That alone lifts the free-model limit to 1,000 requests a day. Only look at Business if you have a legal reason to keep data in a region. |
Key features
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | OpenRouter |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, Cursor, GitHub Copilot or OpenRouter?
GitHub Copilot scores highest overall in our ratings (Cursor 3.9/5, GitHub Copilot 4.0/5 and OpenRouter 3.7/5). 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. OpenRouter is best for Adding AI to your app without five vendor accounts and trying new models cheaply on launch day.
Which is cheaper, Cursor, GitHub Copilot or OpenRouter?
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. OpenRouter: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at Model prices plus a 5.5% fee on credit top-ups.
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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