Cursor

What is Cursor?

Cursor is an AI-first code editor built by Anysphere, a San Francisco-based company founded by four MIT students in 2022. Built as a fork of Visual Studio Code, Cursor inherits the entire VS Code ecosystem — extensions, keybindings, themes, settings — while adding deeply integrated AI capabilities that go far beyond what any plugin can achieve.

With a $29.3 billion valuation as of November 2025 and over 360,000 paying customers, Cursor has become the defining product in the AI-native IDE category. It is the fastest SaaS company to scale from $1M to $500M in annual recurring revenue.

Key Features in Detail

Composer. Cursor’s proprietary coding model, introduced in Cursor 2.0 (October 2025). Composer is purpose-built for software engineering and runs roughly 4x faster than models of comparable intelligence, with most conversational turns completing in under 30 seconds. It powers an agent-centric interface where agents, plans, and runs are first-class objects in the sidebar.

Agent Mode. The core daily workflow. Agent mode reads your codebase, proposes multi-file edits, executes terminal commands, runs tests, and iterates on its own output. When something breaks, it detects the error and attempts to fix it automatically. It can build features from scratch, refactor entire modules, write test suites, and migrate codebases — all from a single prompt.

Background Agents. Introduced in Cursor 1.0, background agents run in a remote environment provisioned by Cursor. The agent clones your GitHub repository, works on a separate branch, and pushes changes as a pull request — all while you continue working on other tasks. Assign a task and come back to a finished implementation.

Multi-Agent Parallel Execution. Run up to 8 agents simultaneously, each operating in isolated copies of your codebase via git worktrees or remote machines. This is a genuine productivity multiplier for large refactoring tasks, feature branches, or parallel experiments.

Multi-Model Support. Choose from Claude Opus 4.6, Claude Sonnet 4.6, GPT-5, Gemini 3 Pro, Grok 4, DeepSeek, and Cursor’s own Composer models. Switch models per conversation based on the task — Claude for nuanced reasoning, GPT-5 for raw speed, Gemini for Google ecosystem work.

Cursor Tab. Predictive autocomplete that goes beyond single-line suggestions. Unlike traditional code completion, Cursor Tab can modify, add, or delete multiple lines around your cursor. It uses a custom model that tracks your code history, recent edits, and linter errors to produce context-aware predictions on every keystroke.

Codebase Indexing. Cursor uses retrieval-augmented generation with semantic search to index your entire codebase. Natural-language queries fetch relevant code based on meaning, not just keywords. Exclude files via .cursorignore (works like .gitignore).

@ Mentions. Pull in specific context with @file, @folder, @code, @web (live web search), @git (git history and diffs), and @docs (indexed documentation). This gives the AI precise context for every interaction.

BugBot. Automated PR code reviewer that catches issues before merge. It provides “Fix in Cursor” prompts that jump you directly to problematic code. An excellent safety net for team code reviews.

MCP Support. Connect external tools and data sources through Model Context Protocol servers via .cursor/mcp.json. Extend Cursor’s capabilities to databases, APIs, documentation systems, and custom tooling.

Pricing Plans

Hobby (Free) — 2-week Pro trial, 2,000 code completions, 50 slow premium requests. Enough to evaluate the core experience.

Pro ($20/month) — Unlimited Tab completions, 500 fast premium requests, $20 monthly credit pool for premium models. The sweet spot for most developers.

Pro+ ($60/month) — Everything in Pro with 3x usage credits ($60 credit pool). For developers who use AI heavily throughout the day.

Ultra ($200/month) — Everything in Pro with 20x usage credits and priority access to new features. For power users who want maximum AI throughput.

Teams ($40/user/month) — Everything in Pro plus centralized billing, admin dashboard, usage stats, SAML/OIDC SSO, and organization-wide privacy mode.

Enterprise (Custom) — Everything in Teams plus SCIM provisioning, audit logs, pooled credits, and dedicated support.

Important note: Cursor uses credit-based billing. Each AI model consumes credits at different rates — using Claude Opus or GPT-5 extensively will deplete credits faster than using lighter models.

Who is Cursor Best For?

AI-forward developers who want the most powerful AI coding experience available. If you want to write prompts as much as you write code, Cursor is built for you.

Full-stack developers working on complex, multi-file projects. Agent mode and Composer excel at understanding cross-file dependencies and making coordinated changes.

Solo developers and freelancers who need to move fast. Background agents and parallel execution let one developer do the work of a small team.

Teams transitioning to AI-assisted development. The VS Code compatibility means zero learning curve for the editor itself, and the Teams plan provides admin controls for managing AI usage across the organization.

Cursor vs Alternatives

vs GitHub Copilot — Copilot has broader IDE support (VS Code, JetBrains, Neovim, Xcode) and deeper GitHub integration. Cursor offers a more powerful agent experience with multi-agent parallel execution and its own Composer model. Choose Copilot for GitHub-centric workflows, Cursor for the most advanced AI coding experience.

vs Windsurf (Codeium) — Windsurf is more affordable ($10-15/month) and lighter weight. Cursor has deeper multi-file agent capabilities, richer model selection, and better enterprise features. Choose Windsurf for budget-conscious solo development, Cursor for maximum AI capability.

vs Claude Code — Claude Code is a terminal-first coding agent with exceptional reasoning. Cursor is a full GUI editor. Many developers use both — Claude Code for complex analysis and terminal workflows, Cursor for visual development. They complement rather than compete.

For developers ready to put AI at the center of their coding workflow, Cursor is the most capable tool available.