GitHub Copilot vs Windsurf
Read from each vendor’s own pages last night, so it does not go stale the way a written comparison does.
Before you read on · Acquired since 14 July 2025
Windsurf was acquired by Cognition and is no longer independent.
Acquired by Cognition in 2025 after the Google deal took the founding team; roughly $82M ARR at acquisition. Every "Cursor vs Windsurf" page written before the acquisition describes a company that no longer exists independently.
IDE
GitHub Copilot
The incumbent inline-completion and chat assistant, bundled into VS Code and the JetBrains IDEs.
Free, then $10 / mo
IDE
Windsurf
Agent-first IDE, formerly Codeium. Now a Cognition property alongside Devin.
Not published as tiers
| Compared on | GitHub Copilot | Windsurf |
|---|---|---|
| Asserted — what each vendor publishes about itself | ||
| Category | IDE | IDE |
| Vendor | GitHub (Microsoft) | Cognition |
| Status | Active | Acquired |
| How it charges | Subscription | Subscription |
| Entry price | Free, then $10 / mo | Not published as tiers |
| Plans |
| Cognition publishes no pricing page for Windsurf, so there are no tiers to compare. |
| Default model | None — you choose | None — you choose |
| Your own key | No — bundled only | No — bundled only |
| Source | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Measured — counted on the last nightly run | ||
| Stars | not measured | not measured |
| Maintenance | not measured | not measured |
| Days since last push | not measured | not measured |
| Top model in it | not measured | not measured |
| Its volume | not measured | not measured |
What has changed on either of them
2 entries| What changed | Kind | Was, and is now | Confidence | Occurred |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub Copilot changed the quota wording on its pricing pageGithub Copilot | Quota change | limits 1,000 credits, 2,000 completions, 2000 completionslimits 1,000 credits, 2,000 completions, 2.9x+ included usage, 2000 completions, 4x+ included usage, unlimited code completion and next edit, unlimited max plan unlimited copilot, unlimited pro, unlimited with every paid plan | low | |
| Windsurf acquired by CognitionWindsurf | Acquisition | Acquired · acquired by Cognition | high |
