Windsurf vs GitHub Copilot pricing: which is cheaper for your team?
GitHub Copilot's cheapest paid tier (Pro) lists at $10/seat/month, which beats the other on entry pricing. Mid-tier and enterprise math can flip the answer — use the per-tier table below to see the real cost for your team size at each tier.
Calculate the cost for your team
Windsurf pricing tiers
| Tier | Monthly | Annual (eq) | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | seat/month | Free tier with limited allowance, all major model providers. |
| Pro | $20 | $20 | seat/month | Standard usage allowance for individual developers. |
| Max | $200 | $200 | seat/month | Heavy usage cap, Tab previews, deploys, SWE-1.5 access. |
| Teams | $40 | $40 | seat/month | Standard allowance per seat, centralized billing, admin. |
GitHub Copilot pricing tiers
| Tier | Monthly | Annual (eq) | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | seat/month | 50 agent/chat requests, 2K completions/month, multi-model. |
| Pro | $10 | $10 | seat/month | Unlimited agent/chat, 300 premium requests/month. |
| Pro+ | $39 | $39 | seat/month | Claude Opus access, 1,500 premium requests/month. |
Feature by feature
The non-pricing differences that drive the real decision.
| Capability | Windsurf | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|
| Billing model | seat/month | seat/month |
| Pricing model | Per-seat AI IDE subscription | Per-seat AI coding subscription |
| Cheapest paid tier | Pro at $20/seat/month | Pro at $10/seat/month |
| Mid-tier benchmark | Max at $200/seat/month | Pro+ at $39/seat/month |
| Total paid tiers published | 3 | 2 |
| Last verified | 2026-05-17 | 2026-05-17 |
Best for…
Hand-picked use cases mapped to the winner.
| Use case | Winner |
|---|---|
| Lowest entry price (10-person team) | GitHub Copilot Pro |
| Most pricing tiers (room to grow) | Windsurf (3 tiers) |
| Predictable per-seat billing | Either (both per-seat) |
| Most recently verified pricing | Windsurf |
Choose Windsurf when
- Formerly Codeium, now Windsurf AI IDE.
- Entry tier (Pro) at $20/seat/month is your budget ceiling.
- Enterprise unlocks SSO controls, volume discounts, admin analytics, priority support and custom contract terms.
Choose GitHub Copilot when
- GitHub's AI coding assistant with Free, Pro and Pro+ tiers.
- Entry tier (Pro) at $10/seat/month is your budget ceiling.
- Business and Enterprise tiers add policy controls, audit logs, IP indemnification and admin features at higher per-seat rates via GitHub sales.
Switching considerations
Watch the hidden fees on both sides. Windsurf: Usage allowance throttles agentic workflows on Pro tier. GitHub Copilot: Premium requests beyond cap billed as metered overage. Always confirm with the vendor before purchase.
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper for a 10-person team, Windsurf or GitHub Copilot?
At entry tier and 10 seats on annual billing: Windsurf Pro comes to $200/mo; GitHub Copilot Pro comes to $100/mo. GitHub Copilot is the cheaper entry-tier choice at this team size.
Does Windsurf have more pricing tiers than GitHub Copilot?
Windsurf publishes more paid tiers (3 vs 2). More tiers usually means more granular ways to grow without re-platforming.
Which pricing was verified more recently?
Windsurf's pricing was last verified 2026-05-17; GitHub Copilot's on 2026-05-17. Both pages link to the vendor's official pricing source so you can re-check before committing.