← all tools

AI Coding Assistants, Compared

The space moves weekly and every "best of" list is out of date or sponsored. This is a neutral, current table: sort by price, filter for a free tier, and see the type, models and whether each runs an autonomous agent.

ad
Sorted by price, lowest first. Tap a column heading to re-rank.
Price/mo ▲ToolFree tierTypeModelsAgentBest for

Indicative individual-plan pricing as last reviewed 11 July 2026. This space changes fast and several tools moved to usage-based billing in 2026, confirm current plans and limits before subscribing.

How to choose. Match the type to how you work. An IDE assistant (Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf) lives in your editor for autocomplete and inline edits. A terminal agent (Claude Code, Codex, Aider) runs from the command line and can autonomously make big multi-file changes. The common 2026 setup is one of each. Free tiers and open-source tools (Continue, Aider, Zed) let you try before you pay, you just supply an API key.
ad
Best AI coding assistant?

No single winner. Copilot is cheapest and everywhere; Cursor/Windsurf lead the AI-first editors; Claude Code/Codex lead the terminal agents. Many pair an IDE assistant with a terminal agent. Sort and filter above for your workflow.

Which are free?

Copilot, Windsurf, Amazon Q, Cody, Tabnine and JetBrains AI have free tiers; Continue, Aider and Zed are open-source (pay only for API usage). Filter for "Has free tier".

IDE assistant vs terminal agent?

IDE assistants help as you type in your editor; terminal agents run from the command line and can autonomously plan and edit across many files. The best 2026 workflow usually pairs both.