Cursor

Name: Cursor
Author: Anysphere

by Anysphere4.8

Cursor is a VS Code fork built around AI rather than bolted onto it. Tab completion, Composer for multi-file edits and @codebase for repository-wide search are the three things that make it feel different from an extension — and because it is a fork, your existing extensions, settings and keybindings come with you.

Commercial use OK
Free tier
Enterprise contract

Try Cursor on the official site$20/mo

Pricing: $20/mo
Free tier: Free tier
Vendor: Anysphere
Commercial use: Permitted
Japanese UI: Not confirmed
Enterprise contract: Available

What it is good for

Individual developers and small teams optimising for raw implementation speed
Multi-file refactors that need project-wide context
Teams already living in VS Code who want deeper AI integration
Work where privacy mode (no training on your code) is a requirement

Strengths and trade-offs

Strengths

Composer handles coordinated edits across many files
@codebase puts the whole repository in context
Existing VS Code extensions, settings and keybindings carry over
Pro at $20/mo includes switching between current frontier models

Trade-offs

VS Code fork only — no JetBrains or Visual Studio
Monthly caps on premium model requests; heavy use means buying credits
Being a fork, it trails upstream VS Code releases slightly

Editors' review

VS Code fork, AI-native — the fastest path from intent to working code

Cursor, from Anysphere, is a VS Code fork that adds three things on top of the editor you already know: Tab completion, Composer for editing several files in one instruction, and @codebase for searching across the repository. The combination is what makes it feel AI-driven rather than AI-assisted.

Pro is $20/mo and lets you switch between current Claude Sonnet and GPT-5 class models. Because it is a fork rather than a new editor, extensions, settings and keybindings transfer, so the migration cost is unusually low. Privacy Mode, which keeps your code out of training, is standard.

The limits are structural. It only exists as a VS Code fork, so JetBrains and Visual Studio shops are out, and premium model requests are capped per month — sustained use tends to mean topping up credits.

Verdict

For solo developers and startups chasing implementation speed, this is the first choice today. If your team is standardised on JetBrains, use Copilot instead.

Compiled from official documentation and public sources, with our own editorial judgement. We do not publish figures we cannot source.