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The best AI code editors for builders in 2026

Editors and IDE assistants where AI is part of the core loop: completions, chat, and multi-file agents.

Last reviewed Oct 2026 · no paid placements

01
Cursor
Our default. VS Code fork with agents, background agents and model choice.
💳 Free tier; paid plans from ~$8/mo (Plus) up to $200/mo (Ultra); Teams available (approx.)
Tool page Visit site ↗
02
Windsurf (Devin Desktop)
Formerly Windsurf: VS Code-based IDE with the Devin Local agent and multi-agent command center.
💳 Free tier; Pro ~$20/mo; Max ~$200/mo; Teams available (approx.)
Tool page Visit site ↗
03
GitHub Copilot
Works inside VS Code, JetBrains and more, plus agents on GitHub.
💳 Free plan; Pro ~$15/mo; Pro+ ~$70/mo; Business / Enterprise (approx.)
Tool page Visit site ↗
04
Continue
Open-source (Apache-2.0) assistant for VS Code and JetBrains; bring your own models.
💳 Free / open source; BYO model keys (approx.)
Tool page Visit site ↗

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