Compare
Cursor vs Windsurf
A · DEV TOOLS
Cursor
An IDE that codes alongside you — not autocomplete, a genuine pair programmer that knows your entire codebase cold.
77
AIght score
B · DEV TOOLS
Windsurf
That project-level memory is a lifesaver; it remembers that weird fix I did three days ago so I don't have to.
75
AIght score
Five-axis score
AxisCursorWindsurfΔ A−B
Utility93.086.0▲ 7.0
Privacy65.065.0· 0.0
Speed88.084.0▲ 4.0
Cost68.070.0▼ 2.0
Transparency70.068.0▲ 2.0
Pricing
Cursor
- Free tier
- Cursor Hobby gives 2,000 completions and 50 slow premium model requests per month. Enough to evaluate it seriously.
- Cliff
- 50 fast premium requests disappears in 2–3 days of real coding. After that you're on slower model access for the rest of the month.
- Paid monthly
- Cursor Pro at $20/month for 500 fast premium requests and unlimited slow completions. The jump is noticeable immediately.
Windsurf
- Free tier
- Windsurf free tier includes access to Cascade with limited credits per month. Enough for light daily use.
- Cliff
- Credits deplete quickly on complex multi-file refactors. Cascade's deep context is exactly what burns credits fastest.
- Paid monthly
- Windsurf Pro at $15/month for higher credit limits and priority access to the latest Cascade models.
AIght’s take
Cursor
If you write code professionally, this is the call. The agent mode is the first one I trust to refactor across files without breaking my head. Pricier than feels fair but I've cancelled and come back twice.
Windsurf
Genuinely competitive with Cursor — the cascade mode is excellent and the pricing is friendlier. Worth a week-long trial before you commit to either one.
Try a different pair