Codeium vs Windsurf
Which one should you choose? Here's how they compare.
| Feature | Codeium | Windsurf |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | ★ 4 | ★ 4.2 |
| Pricing | Free | $15/mo |
| Type | free | freemium |
| Company | Exafunction | Codeium |
| Founded | 2021 | 2024 |
Codeium Features
- •Code completion
- •Chat
- •70+ languages
- •IDE support
Windsurf Features
- •AI chat
- •Code completion
- •Multi-file editing
- •Terminal integration
Codeium Pros
- ✓Completely free
- ✓Wide IDE support
- ✓Good quality
Codeium Cons
- ✗Less powerful than Copilot
- ✗Smaller community
- ✗Newer product
Windsurf Pros
- ✓Free tier generous
- ✓Fast performance
- ✓Good AI integration
Windsurf Cons
- ✗New product
- ✗Smaller community
- ✗VS Code learning curve
The Verdict
Codeium and Windsurf are two of the most popular tools in the coding category, but they take different approaches to solving the same problems. Codeium, developed by Exafunction (founded 2021), is described as "free ai code completion and chat tool for developers.". Meanwhile, Windsurf by Codeium (founded 2024) "ai-native code editor by codeium with deep ai integration.". In terms of overall user satisfaction, Windsurf edges ahead with a rating of 4.2/5.0, compared to Codeium's 4/5.0 — a difference of 0.2 points. Windsurf's strongest advantages include free tier generous, fast performance, while Codeium is praised for completely free. On the pricing front, Codeium offers a free model at Free, making it the more budget-friendly option for teams watching their spend. Neither tool is perfect: Codeium's main drawbacks include less powerful than copilot, smaller community, while Windsurf users typically cite new product as its biggest limitation. However, Codeium has an edge in code completion, which might be the tiebreaker if that's important to you. In terms of target audience, Codeium is particularly popular among students and indie developers, while Windsurf tends to attract developers and ai enthusiasts. Our verdict: Windsurf holds a slight edge, but the gap is narrow enough that both tools are worth trying. Start with the free tier of each and see which fits your workflow better.
- • You need completely free
- • You need wide ide support
- • You need free tier generous
- • You need fast performance