Cursor
AI coding agents in a desktop editor, the terminal, the cloud and Slack
1/4Cursor is a coding tool built around AI agents that plan work, edit across a codebase and run terminal commands, rather than only completing lines as you type. The same agents run in several places: in the desktop app, on isolated cloud machines you can hand a task off to, from the terminal through Cursor CLI, inside Slack, and from an iPhone app for reviewing work away from the desk. It reviews pull requests with Bugbot, runs scheduled and triggered agents through Automations, and is extended with MCP servers, skills, hooks and custom rules, with team plans adding shared context, usage analytics, SSO and a marketplace for internal rules and plugins.
- Agents that plan and edit across a codebase, and run terminal commands
- Cloud agents run on isolated machines, handed off from the desktop app
- Cursor CLI for running agents from the terminal
- Bugbot does agentic code review on pull requests
- Automations run agents on a schedule or from a trigger
- MCP servers, skills, hooks and custom rules
- iPhone app for managing agents and reviewing PRs away from the desk
- Access to frontier models, with usage-based billing beyond plan limits
Based on what people have said
Every answer links back to the mentions it came fromWhat are the main complaints regarding Cursor's performance?
Several users report that the editor is slow, resource-heavy, and consumes significant RAM, with some noting it can make their computer run loudly. Others have experienced bugs, memory leaks, and issues with the agent window opening unexpectedly. Some users also find the startup time to be slow.
5 mentions · Hacker News · Hacker News · r/cursor · r/ClaudeCode · Hacker News · Aug 2026
How does Cursor's pricing and usage compare to using models directly?
Opinions are divided. Some users find Cursor's subscription to be a cost-effective way to access multiple models, particularly praising the generous usage limits for Grok and Composer. Conversely, many others argue that Cursor is expensive and acts as a middleman, claiming that direct subscriptions to providers like Claude or Codex offer better value and higher usage limits for the same cost.
12 mentions · r/cursor · r/cursor · r/cursor · r/ClaudeCode · Hacker News · Hacker News · and 4 more · Aug 2026 – Sep 2026
Why do some developers prefer Cursor over other AI coding tools?
Users often highlight Cursor's integrated UX, noting that features like autocomplete, agent modes, and cloud agents work smoothly together within the editor. Many appreciate its ability to understand an entire codebase and provide context-aware assistance, which some feel makes it feel more like a pair-programmer than a simple chat interface.
6 mentions · r/CursorAI · r/ArtificialInteligence · r/codex · r/cursor · r/AI_Agents · Aug 2026 – Sep 2026
What concerns do users have regarding Cursor's ownership and privacy?
A significant number of users have expressed distrust or dissatisfaction following the company's acquisition by SpaceX, with some citing concerns about the influence of Elon Musk. Privacy-related concerns have also been raised, with some users worried about their code being used for training data or feeling that the platform is overly aggressive in seeking control over their codebases.
14 mentions · Hacker News · r/cursor · r/cursor · r/LocalLLaMA · Hacker News · r/AI_Agents · and 8 more · Aug 2026
How does Cursor compare to using Claude Code or other terminal-based agents?
Some developers prefer Cursor for its IDE-integrated workflow, finding it more intuitive for visual tasks and file navigation. Others prefer terminal-based tools like Claude Code, arguing they are more flexible, better for bulk work or remote-machine jobs, and avoid the overhead of an editor-based session.
8 mentions · r/ClaudeAI · r/AI_Agents · r/ClaudeCode · Aug 2026
These summarise counts and dates only. Read the quotes themselves under what people are saying.
What people are saying about Cursor
38% positive“We used cursor before”
“cursor is just a bandaid on broken SaaS APIs. We need agents replacing those dashboards entirely instead of copying text between them”
“I have cancelled cursor after it was bought but I preferred it because I felt I had more of an idea of what was going on and it felt more responsive for small changes.”
“Honestly it's the tab completion and how it grabs context from multiple files at once. codex feels like it only really gets one file at a time, and claude's smarter when you need real reasoning but it's not built into the editor the same way. if cursor ever falls behind on that autocomplete stuff i'd switch in a second, i'm not attached to it.”
“Cursor is horrible with limits. Even if you use grok models exclusively, the limits are going to be lower than what Claude gave.”
“I moved from cursor to it and it’s great! You can also use your codex plan inside it.”
“cursor pro is way too expensive for students.”
“Unless you plan to edit code manually, there's no need for Cursor. Going directly to Codex or Claude is cheaper.”
“I have it linked to GitHub and use it as the orchestration layer to all the development agents in Cursor. I use High when needed, but what I don’t do is use ChatGPT “Work” over “Chat” - that’s when it drinks the usage, in “Work”.”
“I seriously doubt it's because their vscode fork is good or bad.”
“for a long time cursor was ahead of most if not all. it's why i used it for the past year and a half. now everything has caught up and i think the only remaining truly unique benefits are super low cost grok and the ios app?”
“Since you already have codex, choose something which is better integrated with the IDE. IMO cursor would be a better choice”
“ChatGPT Sol Max for reviews and Plans + Cursor”
“It's a great correct tool to work with files and local company knowledge. And if you prefer an IDE, it'll just run in VSCode or cursor”
“Yes, Cursor is expensive as you have to pay direct API rates. Grok 4.6(which is better than Luna) and Composer are cheap in Cursor and have a large pool.”
“Auto works well for generic web/soft dev, but for gamedev, specifically when it comes to visual placement of 2D components in a 2D UI, it kinda sucks.”
“Hi, I already use Codex and I’m thinking about adding either Claude Code or Cursor’s $20 plan.”
“Cursor pricing for Luna is multiples higher than pricing from openai.”
“It’s been a while since I used a ChatGPT sub but I easily hit the limit within the 5hr window. That’s never happened for me on Cursor (with first party models)”
“Should I get the $60 or $200 cursor subscription? I used the cc $100 and it worked well for me - rarely hit the weekly limit.”
“Don't MCPs help with using Cursor and skills to partially at least some of those tedious tasks?”
“It's not just cursor...”
“btw fuck cursor grok”
“Wait till you got a vps running a 6 agents at once with access to cursor 😂”
“Cursor is great for throughput and background tasks, but the real cost shows up after the MVP: reviewing architecture, adding tests, checking security, and untangling generated code. For anything users depend on, I’d keep an explicit review and hardening pass rather than treating “it runs” as shipped.”