Quick Verdict
Cursor leads on SWE-bench (91.2% vs -)
Pricing
| Cursor | GitHub Copilot CLI | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $20-200/mo | $10-39/mo (Copilot subscription) |
| Open source | No ❌ | No ❌ |
| Best for | Daily interactive coding | GitHub-native terminal agent with PR/issue integration |
Performance & Benchmarks
Cursor scores 91.2% and GitHub Copilot CLI scores - on SWE-bench. Here’s what that actually means for daily use.
Cursor is built for daily interactive coding. It’s a commercial product with $20-200/mo pricing. SWE-bench: 91.2%
GitHub Copilot CLI is built for github-native terminal agent with pr/issue integration. It’s a commercial product with $10-39/mo (Copilot subscription) pricing.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Cursor | GitHub Copilot CLI |
|---|
Pros & Cons
Cursor
Pros:
- Best editor experience
- Fast inline editing
- Composer for multi-file
Cons:
- Closed source
- VS Code fork lock-in
GitHub Copilot CLI
Pros:
- Deep GitHub integration
- Multi-model (Claude Sonnet 4.5, GPT-5)
- MCP server built-in
Cons:
- Requires Copilot subscription
- GitHub ecosystem dependent
Verdict
Cursor leads on SWE-bench (91.2% vs -)
Cursor is recommended for: Everyday interactive development and quick edits GitHub Copilot CLI is recommended for: Developers in GitHub ecosystem wanting terminal agent
For a full overview of all 15 agents, see the Complete Guide to AI Coding Agents.