The best GitHub Copilot alternatives in 2026, ranked for builders
GitHub Copilot is still the default AI assistant for a lot of developers: it plugs into almost every editor, it's built into GitHub, and Pro is $10/mo. But since June 1, 2026 every chat and agent request draws from a monthly allowance of GitHub AI Credits, and the strongest models (Claude Opus, GPT-6 Sol, Gemini 4 Argon) need Pro+ at $39/mo. If you're shopping around, here are eight real alternatives, from AI-first editors to coding agents and open-source tools, with who each is for and what it costs today. Every price was checked on the vendor's own site on Oct 19, 2026.
Facts and prices checked Oct 19, 2026 · no paid placements
Short answer: Cursor is the closest swap if you want an AI-first editor: free to start, Plus $8/mo (Grok models only), and Claude or GPT from Premium at $30/mo. For the strongest agent, Claude Code comes with Claude Pro ($20/mo, or $17/mo billed annually). If you already pay for ChatGPT, Codex is included from Plus at $20/mo. Google Antigravity and Cline are free to start. Copilot itself is Free, Pro $10/mo, Pro+ $39/mo, Max $100/mo, Business $19 and Enterprise $39 per user/mo.
GitHub Copilot vs the alternatives at a glance (checked Oct 19, 2026)
| Tool | What it is | Free plan | Paid plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub Copilot | Assistant for VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Xcode, Neovim, Eclipse, Zed and more, plus github.com, Copilot CLI, the Copilot app and a cloud agent | Yes: 2,000 completions a month plus limited chat and agent use (auto model selection only) | Pro $10/mo (1,500 AI credits); Pro+ $39 (7,000); Max $100 (20,000); Business $19/user (1,900 pooled); Enterprise $39/user (3,900) |
| Cursor | AI-first editor on the VS Code codebase, plus cloud agents and a CLI | Yes: limited agent and chat requests | Plus $8/mo (Grok models only); Premium $30/mo (third-party models at API list price); Super $100; Ultra $200; Teams from $30/user/mo |
| Claude Code | Anthropic's agent for the terminal, VS Code and its forks, JetBrains and the Claude desktop app | No (not on Claude Free) | Claude Pro $20/mo ($17/mo billed annually); Max $100 or $200/mo; Team seats from $20/seat/mo billed annually; or API usage |
| OpenAI Codex | Coding agent in the ChatGPT desktop app, CLI, IDE extension and cloud | Yes: GPT-6 Luna in the desktop app (subject to rollout) | Go $8/mo; Plus $20/mo; Pro $100, $200 or $500/mo; Business $20/user/mo billed annually ($25 monthly) |
| Google Antigravity | Agent-first app, IDE, CLI and editor extensions | Yes: Individual $0 with basic weekly rate limits | Google AI Pro $19.99/mo; Ultra from $99.99/mo; Gemini Enterprise from $30/seat/mo |
| Devin Desktop (Windsurf) | AI-first editor (a VS Code fork) with Cognition's Devin agents | Yes: a light agent quota on limited models, unlimited Tab and inline edits | Pro $20/mo; Max $200/mo; Teams $80/mo plus $40 per full seat; Enterprise custom |
| JetBrains AI | AI completion, chat and coding agents inside JetBrains IDEs | Yes: AI Free with unlimited completion and 3 AI credits every 30 days | AI Pro $10/mo or $100/yr; AI Ultimate $30/mo or $300/yr |
| Cline | Open-source agent for VS Code and the terminal | Yes: free for individuals, you pay for inference | No subscription needed; optional ClinePass $9.99/mo for open-weight models; Enterprise custom |
| Zed | Fast open-source editor written in Rust (not a VS Code fork) | Yes: Personal $0 with your own keys or external agents | Pro $10/mo (14-day free trial, $5 of tokens); Business $30/seat/mo |
Prices in USD per month, excluding tax. Usage-based costs (extra AI credits, API tokens, model overages) are on top. 1 GitHub AI credit = $0.01; 1 JetBrains AI credit = $1. Kiro, OpenCode and Aider are covered under Also considered below.
Why builders look for GitHub Copilot alternatives
Copilot's pricing changed shape this year. Since June 1, 2026, chat, agent mode, Copilot CLI, the cloud agent and third-party agents bill in GitHub AI Credits (1 credit = $0.01), priced by the model and the tokens each request uses. Paid plans include base credits that match the price plus a flex allotment GitHub says may change over time: 1,500 a month on Pro, 7,000 on Pro+ and 20,000 on Max. Credits reset at 00:00 UTC on the 1st and don't roll over; after that you set a budget and pay $0.01 per credit, upgrade, or wait. Code completions and next edit suggestions stay unlimited on paid plans. Pro ($10/mo) includes Claude Sonnet and Haiku, GPT-6 Luna, Gemini 3.8 Flash and Grok, but Claude Opus and Fable, GPT-6 Sol and Gemini 4 Argon need Pro+ ($39/mo) or Max. Copilot Free gives 2,000 completions a month and a credit allowance GitHub doesn't put a number on. And GitHub may use Free, Pro and Pro+ interactions to train its models unless you opt out (it says it doesn't train on Business or Enterprise data). None of that makes Copilot a bad deal, especially if you live on GitHub, but it's a good moment to compare.
The alternatives, ranked
- 01
CursorBest if you want an AI-first editor instead of a plugin: Cursor is built on the VS Code codebase, so extensions, keybindings and habits come along, and it adds its own agent, cloud agents and automations, Bugbot code reviews and a CLI. Free is $0 with limited agent and chat requests. Plus is $8/mo but only includes Grok models. Third-party models like Claude and GPT need Premium ($30/mo, 4x Plus usage), where they're billed separately at API list price; Super is $100/mo and Ultra $200/mo, and usage refreshes weekly. Teams starts at $30/user/mo with SAML/OIDC SSO.
- 02
Claude CodeBest agent for big, multi-file changes: Claude Code runs in the terminal, in VS Code and its forks, in JetBrains IDEs through a dedicated plugin, and in the Claude desktop app. It isn't on Claude's Free plan. It comes with Claude Pro ($20/mo, or $17/mo billed annually), Max 5x ($100/mo) and Max 20x ($200/mo), every Team seat (Standard $20/seat/mo billed annually or $25 monthly; Premium $100 or $125, for teams of 2 to 150) and Enterprise ($20/seat/mo billed annually, 20-seat minimum, plus usage at API rates), or a Claude Console account billed at API rates. It only runs Anthropic's models, and Claude chat and Claude Code share one usage limit.
- 03
OpenAI CodexBest if you already pay for ChatGPT: OpenAI's Codex comes with ChatGPT. Free ($0) and Go ($8/mo) get GPT-6 Luna at Standard speed in the desktop app (subject to rollout). Plus ($20/mo) adds Codex on the web, in the CLI, in the IDE extension and on iOS, plus automatic code review on GitHub. Pro is $100, $200 or $500/mo; Business is $20/user/mo billed annually ($25 monthly, 2+ users). The IDE extension installs in VS Code, Cursor and Windsurf, and Xcode and JetBrains IDEs have their own integrations. You can also run the open-source CLI on an API key at API rates.
- 04
Google AntigravityBest free agentic IDE: Google Antigravity is an agent-first platform with an app, an IDE, editor extensions, a CLI and an SDK. The Individual plan is $0 with a variety of agent models, unlimited Tab completions and command requests, and basic weekly rate limits. Google AI Pro ($19.99/mo in the US) raises the limits, adds a flexible AI credit pool and unlocks Gemini 4 Argon in Antigravity; Ultra starts at $99.99/mo. Companies on Google Cloud can buy it through Gemini Enterprise (Standard and Plus from $30/seat/mo) or a pay-as-you-go plan with no seat fee.
- 05
Windsurf (Devin Desktop)Best like-for-like editor with its own agents: Windsurf is now Devin Desktop, a VS Code fork from Cognition with Devin Local and Devin Cloud agents. Free is $0 with a light agent quota on limited models and unlimited Tab and inline edits. Pro is $20/mo with frontier models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and others within daily and weekly quotas, free use of Cognition's SWE-2 model, Devin Cloud and extra usage at API pricing. Max is $200/mo. Teams is $80/mo plus $40 per full seat, up to 200 users.
- 06
JetBrains AIBest if you work in JetBrains IDEs and want it built in: JetBrains AI covers code completion, AI chat and coding agents (JetBrains' Junie plus Claude Agent, Codex and Gemini). AI Free gives unlimited AI completion and 3 AI credits every 30 days (not in IntelliJ IDEA without an Ultimate subscription, PyCharm without Pro, or Android Studio). AI Pro is $10/mo or $100/yr with 10 credits, and AI Ultimate $30/mo or $300/yr with 35. One credit is $1 of usage at public API rates, and there's a free 30-day AI Pro trial. You can also sign in with an existing Cursor, Codex or GitHub Copilot account to use those agents in JetBrains through the Agent Client Protocol.
- 07
ClineBest open-source agent, and the cheapest way to pay only for tokens: Cline runs in VS Code and the terminal, edits files across your project, runs commands, uses MCP servers and asks for approval along the way. It's free for individual developers: you pay only for inference, with your own API key (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, OpenRouter, AWS Bedrock and many more) or through the Cline provider at cost. An optional ClinePass ($9.99/mo) covers open-weight models with a quota. Enterprise (custom pricing) adds SSO, an SLA, centralized billing and the JetBrains extension.
- 08
ZedBest if you want a fast editor that isn't a VS Code fork: Zed is open source and written in Rust. Personal is $0 forever, with unlimited use when you bring your own API keys or run external agents like Claude Agent and Codex CLI, and GitHub Copilot is one of the providers Zed supports, so you can bring your Copilot plan along. Pro is $10/mo with a 14-day free trial, unlimited edit predictions and $5 of tokens, then API list price +10%. Business is $30/seat/mo with org-wide AI policies and no seat minimum.
How to choose
Want an AI-first editor and don't mind leaving the VS Code extension model? Cursor (free to start, Plus $8/mo, Claude and GPT from Premium at $30/mo plus API costs). Want the strongest agent for large refactors and you're fine paying $20/mo? Claude Code with Claude Pro. Already pay for ChatGPT Plus? Codex is included, in the CLI, the IDE extension and the cloud. Want a free agentic IDE? Google Antigravity's Individual plan. Live in IntelliJ, PyCharm or WebStorm? JetBrains AI, or Claude Code's JetBrains plugin. Want open source and to pay only for tokens? Cline. Want a fast native editor? Zed. Happy with Copilot but running out of credits? Pro+ ($39/mo for 7,000 credits) may be cheaper than switching, and auto model selection takes 10% off model costs on paid plans.
Keep your Copilot plan, change the tool
You don't have to cancel Copilot to try a different editor. GitHub lists VS Code, Visual Studio, Xcode, JetBrains IDEs, Neovim, Eclipse, Raycast, SQL Server Management Studio and Zed as supported environments, and Copilot CLI and the Copilot app come with every plan, Free included. Zed lists GitHub Copilot as a model provider, JetBrains IDEs can run the Copilot agent through the Agent Client Protocol, and OpenCode can log in with a GitHub Copilot account. Going the other way, Claude Code and Codex both install as extensions in VS Code, so you can keep Copilot's completions and add a second agent. If you cancel a paid Copilot plan, it stays active until the end of the billing cycle; if your company assigns you a Business or Enterprise seat, GitHub cancels your personal plan and refunds the unused part.
Prices like these change every week.
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Also considered
Kiro is a spec-driven AI IDE built on Code OSS, with Kiro CLI and ACP support. Its free tier has 50 credits a month, then Pro $20 (1,000 credits), Pro+ $40 (2,000), Pro Max $100 (5,000) and Power $200 (10,000) per user/mo. OpenCode is an open-source (MIT) agent for the terminal, a desktop app and IDEs, with free models included or 75+ providers, and you can log in with a GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro account; its optional Go plan is $10/mo for open models. Aider is a free, open-source (Apache-2.0) terminal pair programmer on your own key, but its latest release is v0.86.2 (Feb 12, 2026) and the last commit to its repo was May 22, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to GitHub Copilot?
It depends on what you want to change. Cursor is the best AI-first editor (free to start, Plus $8/mo, Claude and GPT from Premium at $30/mo). Claude Code is the strongest agent, from $20/mo with Claude Pro. Codex is included with ChatGPT Plus ($20/mo). Google Antigravity and Cline are free to start, JetBrains AI is the built-in option for JetBrains IDEs, and Zed is the pick for a fast non-VS Code editor.
Is there a free alternative to GitHub Copilot?
Yes. Cursor Free, Google Antigravity's Individual plan (basic weekly rate limits), Codex on ChatGPT Free (subject to rollout), Devin Desktop Free, JetBrains AI Free (unlimited completion, 3 credits every 30 days), Zed Personal and Kiro's free tier (50 credits a month) all cost $0. Cline, OpenCode and Aider are free and open source, but you pay your model provider for tokens unless you use free or local models. Copilot Free itself gives 2,000 completions a month plus limited chat and agent use.
Is Cursor better than GitHub Copilot?
Cursor is a full AI-first editor; Copilot is an assistant that plugs into the editor you already use and into GitHub. On price, Cursor Plus ($8/mo) is cheaper than Copilot Pro ($10/mo) but only includes Grok models, while Copilot Pro includes Claude Sonnet, GPT and Gemini Flash models within 1,500 AI credits. For Claude or GPT in Cursor you need Premium ($30/mo) and pay API list price for that usage. Copilot Pro+ ($39/mo) adds Claude Opus and GPT-6 Sol with 7,000 credits.
Is Claude Code better than GitHub Copilot?
They're built differently. Claude Code is an agent that plans and makes multi-file changes from the terminal or your IDE, on Anthropic's models only, from $20/mo with Claude Pro (no free plan). Copilot is cheaper to start (Free, or Pro at $10/mo), covers completions as well as agents, and lets you pick models from several labs, but Claude Opus needs Pro+ at $39/mo. Many developers keep Copilot for completions and add Claude Code for bigger tasks.
What's the best GitHub Copilot alternative for JetBrains IDEs?
JetBrains AI, because it's built in: AI Free has unlimited completion, AI Pro is $10/mo ($100/yr) with 10 credits and agents like Junie, Claude Agent and Codex, and there's a free 30-day AI Pro trial. Claude Code also has a JetBrains plugin, Codex works in JetBrains AI Chat, and Cline's JetBrains extension comes with its Enterprise plan.
Why do Copilot requests cost AI credits now?
Since June 1, 2026, GitHub bills Copilot chat, agent mode, Copilot CLI, the cloud agent and third-party agents in GitHub AI Credits, priced by model and tokens and converted at 1 credit = $0.01. Paid plans include a monthly allowance (1,500 on Pro, 7,000 on Pro+, 20,000 on Max) that resets on the 1st and doesn't roll over. Code completions don't use credits and are unlimited on paid plans.
Can I use GitHub Copilot in Zed or JetBrains?
Yes. GitHub lists JetBrains IDEs and Zed among Copilot's supported environments, Zed lists GitHub Copilot as a model provider, and JetBrains IDEs can also run the Copilot agent through the Agent Client Protocol. So you can switch editors without giving up your Copilot plan.
Facts and prices checked on vendor pages on Oct 19, 2026: GitHub Copilot plans, Copilot plans (docs), Usage-based billing for individuals, GitHub changelog: Copilot, Cursor pricing, Claude pricing, Claude help: Claude Code with Pro or Max, Claude Code in JetBrains IDEs, Claude Code in VS Code and forks, Codex pricing, Codex IDE extension, Codex on GitHub, Google Antigravity pricing, Google AI plans, Devin pricing (windsurf.com/pricing redirects here), Introducing Devin Desktop (Jun 2, 2026), JetBrains AI plans and pricing, Cline pricing, ClinePass, Zed pricing, Zed external agents, Kiro pricing, OpenCode, OpenCode Go, Aider on GitHub. Plans and limits change often, so confirm before you buy.