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Compare 7 of the best AI coding tools for 2025
Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot are rapidly changing how developers write code. Compare leading options' features and pricing to choose the right tool.
AI-assisted coding isn't new -- anyone writing code in an IDE over the past decade has likely encountered autocompletes driven by machine learning algorithms. But the popularization of generative AI has heightened both the capabilities and visibility of AI coding tools.
The global market for AI coding tools exceeded $4 billion in 2023 and is expected to triple by 2028. But it's a broad category, encompassing everything from narrowly tailored command-line programs to generalist AI chatbots that also happen to have strong coding abilities. In between those endpoints is a range of purpose-built AI coding assistants designed to be integrated across teams or enterprises.
Thanks to extensive training data that includes code repositories like GitHub, large language models (LLMs) and other generative AI systems can write new code and analyze existing code files. These capabilities enable today's AI coding tools to generate programs from scratch and make sophisticated edits -- though the ability to use that code without human oversight and refinement is still a long way off.
For this article, TechTarget Editorial selected AI coding tools based on popularity among developers and insights from analyst and market research reports. Details about products are drawn from vendor informational materials, user comments on Reddit and developer forums, and industry research.
This unranked list is presented in alphabetical order.
A word of caution
LLMs create new content based on the patterns and relationships they infer from their training data. An LLM that encounters extensive data on a given topic during training will later produce more relevant, high-quality responses to related prompts.
AI coding tools therefore tend to perform best with common languages that are well represented in public repositories and, by extension, LLM training data. An LLM is likelier to produce workable, efficient code in Python than Clojure, for example.
Importantly, LLMs are designed to respond to any prompt, even when their training data is insufficient. This can lead to hallucinations, where the model generates superficially coherent but incorrect responses. This might mean producing syntactically correct but nonfunctional code -- calling a method that doesn't exist, for example. To get a real productivity boost from AI-assisted coding, developers need to understand the language they're using well enough to catch hallucinations and AI-created bugs.
1. Aider
Aider is an AI coding tool pitched as an "LLM pair programmer." It runs in the terminal, letting developers generate, edit and debug code from the command line.
Pricing
Aider is free and open source. However, users need an API key to access models like GPT-4o or Claude 3.5 Sonnet, which introduces usage costs. To avoid those costs, users can connect Aider to a free model like Meta's Llama-3-70B, but keep in mind that less advanced models might yield lower-quality code suggestions.
Features
Aider operates as an interactive chat in the terminal, where users can generate new code or debug and modify existing files. Users can work on multiple files simultaneously, making the tool well suited for more complex projects.
Although Aider is compatible with a wide range of LLMs, the tool's developers recommend using it with GPT-4o and Claude 3.5 Sonnet. Aider is also closely integrated with Git, which means it functions best when used to write or edit code stored in Git repositories.
Simple setup and low costs make Aider an appealing option for individual developers looking for a simple coding assistant. But management could get complicated for larger teams and enterprises.
2. ChatGPT
ChatGPT, a generative AI chatbot built by OpenAI, is popular among developers for creating, editing and analyzing code. But the tool is versatile, designed for general use and not just programming.
Pricing
OpenAI offers a free version of ChatGPT as well as three paid tiers:
- Plus, priced at $20 per user, per month.
- Team, priced at $30 per user, per month (or $25 per user, per month when billed annually).
- Enterprise, with a custom pricing model that requires customers to contact sales.
OpenAI hasn't publicly revealed pricing information for ChatGPT Enterprise. Comments from Reddit users suggest current prices range from $50 to $70 per user, per month, with a 12-month contract and a minimum of 100 to 150 seats.
Features
Users can generate code from scratch and refine code through conversational, natural-language feedback -- for example, explaining how a function works line by line or suggesting performance improvements for an uploaded code file.
The ChatGPT web interface offers several models, including the o1 reasoning model, and more are available through OpenAI's APIs. The web version of ChatGPT also supports Python execution within chats -- referred to as "Code Interpreter" or "Advanced Data Analysis" -- which is useful for tasks such as data analysis and visualization.
ChatGPT Plus includes access to the latest models, higher message limits, unlimited file handling, custom GPT creation and a feature called Canvas, which lets users more easily track and visualize changes to code. The Team plan further raises message caps and adds workspace-specific GPTs, an admin console and data exclusion from model training by default. Enterprise users gain larger context windows, faster processing, domain verification, analytics and dedicated support.
ChatGPT's versatility makes it a good fit for organizations that want a generative AI tool for a variety of job functions, not just technical users. But it might be overkill for individual developers or small teams looking for a simple coding assistant, and individual Free or Plus users will need to manually opt out if they don't want their data used for model retraining.
3. Claude
Claude is a generative AI chatbot developed by Anthropic, an AI startup known for its focus on safety and AI alignment. Like ChatGPT, Claude is a general-purpose tool capable of many tasks beyond coding.
Pricing
Claude is available in a free version and three paid tiers:
- Pro, priced at $20 per user, per month.
- Team, priced at $25 per person, per month. An annual subscription is required, with a minimum of five users.
- Enterprise, with a custom pricing model that requires customers to contact sales.
Anthropic hasn't publicly confirmed Claude Enterprise prices, but Reddit discussions suggest rates somewhat similar to ChatGPT Enterprise: $60 to $70 per user, per month, with a 12-month contract and a minimum headcount of around 70 seats.
Features
Similar to ChatGPT, Claude lets users write code from scratch and iterate on that code via natural-language conversations. Users can also upload code files for Claude to interpret and discuss.
Claude's Free tier provides basic, rate-limited access, while the Pro tier offers higher usage limits, priority bandwidth and access to more advanced models such as Claude 3 Opus. Team plans add business-oriented features such as centralized billing and admin controls. Enterprise plans expand customization, management and security features, including a larger context window, single sign-on (SSO), role-based access and permissions, and data source integrations.
Claude also offers two features likely to stand out to technical users:
- Projects. This feature, available on paid plans, lets users group conversations with Claude into a centralized location called a Project. Users collaborating on Projects can share chats with other team members, upload files to store as reference material, and set custom instructions to define Claude's tone and context.
- Artifacts. Available to all Claude users, Artifacts are effectively digital files that users can create while chatting with Claude, appearing as a window alongside Claude chats to visualize work products such as UI prototypes. Artifacts can be published publicly or, for Team users, shared in a private workspace.
By default, Anthropic doesn't train models on user data.
4. Continue
Continue is a dedicated AI coding assistant that works as an extension for the popular integrated development environments (IDEs) Visual Studio Code and JetBrains.
Pricing
Continue is free and open source. But, as with Aider, actual costs will depend on which LLM is used; OpenAI and Anthropic models, for instance, will incur usage fees, whereas free LLMs like Meta's and Mistral's avoid those costs.
Features
Continue is essentially designed to add AI features to a developer's workflow in their existing IDE. The built-in chatbot can answer questions about files and assist in writing new code, while AI-enabled autocomplete provides inline code suggestions.
Developers can also select existing blocks of code to analyze and edit using AI, making it easier to adjust code without starting from scratch. And users can set up shortcuts for frequently used actions to speed up repetitive tasks and store favorite prompts.
5. Cursor
Cursor is an AI code editor whose main features include natural-language code generation, AI autocomplete and a chatbot that can draw on a user's codebase as context.
Pricing
In addition to a free plan, which includes a two-week Pro trial, Cursor offers two paid tiers:
- Pro, priced at $20 per user, per month.
- Business, priced at $40 per user, per month.
Both paid plans offer a 20% discount for annual subscriptions.
Features
Cursor users can generate new code using prompts or edit code with AI autocompletes and multiline code suggestions. The Cursor chatbot can access the user's codebase, reference specific files, interpret images included in queries and search the internet for additional information.
Free users get 2,000 completions per month and 50 slow requests to what Cursor calls "premium" models; at publication time, these include GPT-4, GPT-4o and Claude 3.5 Sonnet. Pro users get unlimited completions and slow requests, as well as 500 "fast" requests -- meaning Cursor prioritizes them over other requests -- and 10 daily uses of OpenAI's reasoning model o1-mini. The Business plan includes additional management and security features such as centralized billing and an admin dashboard with usage data.
Cursor users can also activate a privacy mode, where code is stored locally and won't be used for model training; otherwise, Cursor can collect usage and telemetry data, such as prompts and code snippets. Although any user can enable privacy mode, the Business plan adds the option to enforce it as organizational policy.
6. GitHub Copilot
GitHub Copilot, developed by Microsoft subsidiary GitHub in partnership with OpenAI, is an AI coding assistant that integrates with Visual Studio Code and several other IDEs.
Pricing
GitHub Copilot is available in three tiers:
- Individual, priced at $10 per user, per month. It's free for verified students, teachers and open source maintainers.
- Business, priced at $19 per user, per month.
- Enterprise, priced at $39 per user, per month. This tier also requires a GitHub Enterprise Cloud subscription.
GitHub suggests contacting sales for Business and Enterprise tiers; discounts could be available depending on headcount.
Features
All users have access to Copilot Chat, which lets developers discuss code with a generative AI chatbot, as well as real-time code autocompletions and suggestions. The tool can also automatically create descriptions for GitHub pull requests. It integrates with a wide range of third-party extensions and IDEs and is one of few AI coding tools with a mobile app.
Business and Enterprise plans offer additional management tools, such as usage analytics, as well as enhanced security and privacy. The latter includes the option to exclude organizational data from model training, intellectual property indemnification for AI-generated code and SAML SSO authentication.
The GitHub Copilot website also advertises several customization features for the Enterprise tier, including custom fine-tuned models and the ability to attach enterprise knowledge bases as context. But take these with a grain of salt, as they're either yet to be released or currently waitlisted.
7. Tabnine
Tabnine is an AI coding assistant that integrates with major IDEs, offering code completions, a chat interface and enterprise model customization.
Pricing
In addition to a free plan, Tabnine offers two paid tiers:
- Pro, priced at $12 per user, per month, with a 90-day free trial.
- Enterprise, priced at $39 per user, per month, with a required one-year contract.
Features
Although Tabnine's core feature is code completions, users can also interact with an AI chatbot that offers several different models. Tabnine is compatible with all major IDEs, making it a versatile option for teams or developers who work in multiple languages or use a variety of tools.
Tabnine's code suggestions are drawn exclusively from a permissively licensed codebase to ensure compliance with licensing requirements. Paid plans also offer contextual awareness of an organization's codebase, admin tools, Jira integration and AI agents to assist with task automation.
Tabnine Enterprise offers additional security and compliance features, including SSO and IP indemnification, and customization options, such as fine-tuning models on a specific codebase -- useful for enterprises with complex or unusual software architectures. Enterprises can also choose to deploy Tabnine privately via SaaS, on premises or in a virtual private cloud. Tabnine's team also offers training on AI-assisted coding for organizations on its Enterprise plan.
Editor's note: This article was originally written by Will Kelly in January 2024. Lev Craig wrote a significantly updated and expanded version in November 2024 to include additional tools and reflect product updates since initial publication.
Lev Craig covers AI and machine learning as the site editor for TechTarget Editorial's Enterprise AI site. Craig graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor's degree in English and has previously written about enterprise IT, software development and cybersecurity.
