AI coding assistants 2025

An interactive overview of the leading tools, their functions and areas of application.

Discover the tools

Welcome to the interactive tool directory. Use the filters to explore the landscape of AI assistants according to your needs.

Market positioning in comparison

This diagram visualizes the positioning of the most important AI assistants.

Conclusion and recommendations

Choosing the right AI assistant depends heavily on your requirements.

For beginners & all-rounders

GitHub Copilot: Best all-round solution with broad support.
Windsurfing: Cost-effective alternative with modern features.
Amazon CodeWhisperer: Free for individuals and ideal for getting started in the world of AWS.

For professional teams

Cursor: For intensive, AI-supported development with multi-model support.
Tabnine: For companies with the highest data protection requirements and a need for self-hosting.
JetBrains AI: Perfect for teams that are already deeply rooted in the JetBrains ecosystem.

For specialists & innovators

Cline / Roo Code: For developers looking for autonomous open source agents with full control.
Devin AI: For companies that want to fully automate clearly defined tasks.
bold.new / lovable: For founders and designers who want to create prototypes quickly without code.

GitHub Copilot

The best-known AI assistant, seamlessly integrated into common IDEs and trained on billions of lines of code.

Developed by GitHub and OpenAI, Copilot is based on the OpenAI Codex and supports over 70 programming languages. It is the de facto standard for AI-supported code completion and generation.

Seamless integration in VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains
Supports over 70 programming languages
Stable monthly costs of 10$ without surprises
Broad community support and regular updates
New agent modes available in VS Code

Data protection concerns due to training on public repositories
Potential license problems with generated code
Quality varies depending on the programming language
Subscription-based, no free full version

General software development
Code completion and generation
Rapid prototyping and MVP development

Cursor AI IDE

An AI-centric code editor based on VS Code, optimized for demanding development workflows.

Cursor is more than a plugin; it's a complete development environment designed from the ground up for working with AI. It provides deep contextual understanding across the entire codebase.

Intelligent tab completion with multi-line prediction
Codebase-aware AI with project context
Chat-based programming directly in the editor
Multi-file editing and refactoring support

Higher costs (20$ per month) with limited "fast" requests
Can be expensive if limits are exceeded (up to 44$)
Some functions can overload the UI
Command+K overwrites the terminal clearing

Professional development workflows
Multi-file refactoring and complex code changes
Teams that require intensive AI support

Tabnine

A "privacy-first" AI assistant characterized by self-hosting options and the guarantee not to use user code for training.

Tabnine is the first choice for companies with strict compliance and data protection requirements. It enables the creation of individual AI models that are trained on the company's own codebase without sensitive data leaving the company. The award-winning Code Review Agent automates quality checks.

Strong data protection with self-hosting option (on-premise/VPC)
No data training on user code (guaranteed)
Trains individual AI models on your own codebase
Code Review Agent automates quality checks
Supports over 25 programming languages

Can be resource-intensive (local models)
Best features only in the Enterprise plans
Free version very limited
Setup less intuitive

Companies with strict data protection requirements
Teams with sensitive or proprietary codebases
Enterprise development with high compliance requirements

Cline

An autonomous open-source coding agent for VS Code that executes complex, multi-stage tasks directly in the local environment.

Cline is not a simple autocompleter, but a real agent that understands the entire codebase, creates a plan and executes it autonomously. It can use the terminal, search the web and create or edit files. Open source with its own API keys for maximum control.

Complete project exploration and file creation
Terminal integration with direct command execution
Browser automation for testing and debugging
Model Context Protocol (MCP) for extensibility
Free of charge (plus API costs)

Manual approvals can put the brakes on
Still relatively new with instabilities
VS code-centered
Own API keys required, variable costs

Autonomous software development with control
End-to-end testing and debugging
Rapid prototyping of complex applications

Roo Code

An AI-driven, autonomous open-source coding agent that simulates the workflow of a junior developer with customizable modes.

Roo Code follows a cycle of planning, coding, executing and debugging. Strengths are specialized modes (Code, Architect, Debug). Supports OpenAI-compatible APIs as well as browser and terminal automation.

Several specialized modes
Flexible API support
Browser and terminal integration
Cost control via auto-approval & tracking
Active open source community

More complex setup
API costs may rise
Less common, support varies

Multi-modal development
Specific workflow requirements
Projects with high customizability

Windsurfing

A direct cursor competitor, available as a budget-friendly IDE and as a powerful VS Code plugin.

Windsurf (formerly Codeium) offers IDE and plugin. "Cascade" enables intelligent multi-file editing; the aim is cursor-like functionality at a lower price.

Unlimited completions in the plugin (Free)
"Cascade" for multi-file editing
Approx. 50% cheaper than cursor
Familiar VS code interface
Supports >70 languages

Free: limited Cascade functions
Context management weaker than cursor
Relatively new
Unclear "Model Flow Action Credits"

Budget-conscious developers
Cost-effective cursor alternative
Prototyping

JetBrains AI (Junie)

JetBrains' native AI coding agent, deeply integrated with IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, WebStorm and more.

Junie is natively embedded in the JetBrains ecosystem, deeply understands project context, can perform multi-level tasks and supports leading models.

Seamless integration into JetBrains IDEs
Autonomous multi-step tasks
Supports current top models
Free level available
Structured, spec-based development

Limited to JetBrains IDEs
Beta status with crashes
Quota consumption also paid
Less community feedback

Teams in the JetBrains stack
Java, Python, Go, JavaScript
Existing JetBrains infrastructure

Aider AI

Open source CLI tool for AI-supported pair programming directly in the terminal, works with local Git repos.

Aider keeps hands on the keyboard and eyes in the terminal. Executes multi-file changes via chat and commits automatically with generated messages.

Completely open source
Works natively with Git repositories
Multi-file editing
Automatic commit messages
Supports Claude, GPT & local models

CLI is less accessible for beginners
Terminal know-how required
No native IDE integration
API setup required

Terminal-savvy developers
Refactoring across multiple files
Teams with full tooling control requirements

Amazon CodeWhisperer

Amazon's AI assistant, optimized for AWS services, offers code completion and security scans free of charge for individuals.

First choice in the AWS ecosystem as part of Amazon Q Developer. Provides good suggestions for AWS APIs/services such as Lambda/S3 and integrates security checks.

Excellent AWS integration
Free of charge for individual users
Supports 15 languages
Integrated security scanning
Enterprise features available

Focus on AWS
General code skills lower
Limited IDE support outside Amazon
Lower acceptance of proposals

AWS cloud development
Serverless with Lambda
Teams with Amazon stack

CodeWP

Specialized AI tool for WordPress development, generates PHP, JS, CSS and SQL for plugins & themes.

Tailored to WordPress, understands ecosystem incl. WooCommerce and ACF, generates suitable code.

WordPress specialization
Supports WooCommerce, Elementor, ACF
24/7 AI chat for WP problems
Community code sharing

Limited to WP projects
WP knowledge required
Pro features for a fee

WP plugin development
Custom Themes
WooCommerce Stores

Android Studio Bot

Google's native AI assistant for Android development, deeply integrated into Android Studio.

Helps with code generation, API declarations and unit tests - directly in Android Studio.

Native Android Studio integration
Specialized in Android
Free of charge in Canary
Code explanation & documentation
Unit test generation

Android development only
Beta restrictions
Limited to Android Studio
Occasional errors

Android app development
Mobile UI components
Android-specific APIs

bold.new

AI-driven web app builder that creates functional applications with frontend and backend from text prompts.

Shortens the path from idea to app: generates code, sets up DB and deploys with a click. Ideal for rapid prototyping and MVPs.

Full stack of text prompts
Fast scaffolding
One-click deployment
Beginner-friendly chat interface

Optimized for simple projects
Limited direct code editing
Limits for complex requirements

Rapid prototyping
MVP creation
Non-code teams

lovable

"Text-to-app" platform, with backend integrations - apps without programming knowledge.

Integrates Supabase (DB/Auth) and Stripe (payments), among others; "multiplayer coding" enables real-time collaboration.

Full stack without code
Supabase & Stripe integrated
Real-time collaboration
Ideal for "vibe coders"

Vendor lock-in
Less flexible than classic dev
Costs for scaling unclear

Functional prototypes
Simple internal tools
Business ideas without a tech team

Devin AI

Agent-based development environment for clearly defined, fully automatable tasks.

Focused on end-to-end automation of repeatable, well-specified tasks in software projects.

Strong automation
Consistent execution of repeatable tasks
Good suitability for clearly defined pipelines

Less flexible with open tasks
Dependence on clear specifications
Integration varies depending on the stack

Standardized maintenance tasks
Batch fixes & migrations
Automated reports/checks

Complete list of AI programming assistants 2025: market overview & comparison

Software development in 2025 is undergoing a historic upheaval. AI-supported programming assistants have evolved from simple code compilers to autonomous agents that can control entire development processes.

While GitHub Copilot maintains its market leadership with new agent modes, scores Cursor and Windsurfing with multi-model strategies and a deep understanding of projects. On the other hand, open source agents such as Cline and RooCode which offer maximum transparency and full control over API keys.

A whole new playing field is opened up by tools such as Devin AIthat processes complete tickets as an "autonomous software engineer", or Bolt.new and Lovablewhich are democratizing the market for non-developers with text-to-app builders.

Why this is important

From autocomplete to automation: Developers delegate entire task packages to AI.
Multi-model flexibility: Tools are no longer tied to a single LLM, but allow freedom of choice.
Domain specialization: From enterprise workflows and data protection focus to no-code app builders.
Team enablement: Instead of just supporting individual developers, AI assistants optimize entire workflows.

This makes it clear that the The right AI programming assistant 2025 is no longer just a question of features, but depends on team size, budget, data protection requirements and workflows.

The most important tools 2025 at a glance

GitHub Copilot - Industry standard, now with agent mode
Cursor IDE - Multi-model, "Max Mode" with 1 million tokens Context
Windsurfing - Modern alternative with "Cascade" editing
JetBrains AI Assistant (Junie) - natively in IntelliJ, PyCharm & Co., also with local models
Tabnine - Data protection focus, self-hosting & code review agent
Cline - Open source agent with terminal and browser integration
Roo Code - Junior dev workflow, modularly expandable
Devin AI - autonomous AI software engineer for backlog tasks
Bolt.new - Text-to-app builder for fast prototyping
Lovable - Full-stack platform with Supabase & Stripe integration

FAQs on AI programming assistants 2025

1 What are AI programming assistants?

AI programming assistants are tools that use machine learning and LLMs (Large Language Models) to support developers with code creation, debugging and, increasingly, complete workflows.

2. which AI assistant will be the market leader in 2025?

GitHub Copilot remains the standard, but has evolved into a platform for entire development processes with agent functions.

3. what distinguishes Cursor from Copilot?

Cursor is a separate IDE with a multi-model strategy and extended context (up to 1 million tokens), while Copilot is primarily integrated into existing IDEs as a plug-in.

4 Who is Devin AI suitable for?

Devin is ideal for companies that want to automate repetitive tickets or backlog tasks. It works autonomously, but requires human monitoring.

5 What role do open source agents such as Cline and Roo Code play?

They offer maximum transparency, run with their own API keys and are particularly interesting for security-conscious teams or developers who want full control.

6 What makes Tabnine special?

Tabnine positions itself as a "privacy-first" assistant with self-hosting options and an award-winning code review agent.

7 How do Bolt.new and Lovable help?

They democratize software development by creating complete web apps with backend, database and payment integration from text prompts - even for non-programmers.

8 What are the advantages of multi-model systems?

They allow the best model (e.g. GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet, Gemini 2.0) to be selected depending on the task and make teams independent of a single provider.

9. can these tools be used in compliance with GDPR?

Many providers such as Tabnine or JetBrains AI offer on-premise or local model options that enable full data control and GDPR compliance.

10. which tool is the best for my team?

This depends on the use case, budget and infrastructure:

Individual developer → GitHub Copilot, Windsurf
Power user → Cursor IDE
Data protection-critical companies → Tabnine
Teams with automation needs → Devin
Founder & Designer → Bolt.new, Lovable