Cursor vs OpenAI Codex (2026)
Pricing, features and who each one is for, checked against both vendors' pricing pages in November 2026.
Quick verdict: These solve different jobs: Cursor is a ai code editor, OpenAI Codex is a coding agent (cloud, cli, ide). Many developers use one of each. Cursor is cheaper to start (from $8/mo). Pick Cursor for professional developers, teams. Pick OpenAI Codex for professional developers, AI coding agents for the terminal, teams.
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Side by side
| Cursor | OpenAI Codex | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | AI code editor | Coding agent (cloud, CLI, IDE) |
| Made by | Anysphere | OpenAI |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Starts at | From $8/mo | From $20/mo |
| Plans | Plus $8/mo (Grok models only), Premium $30/mo, Super $100/mo, Ultra $200/mo, Teams from $30/user/mo | Included in ChatGPT Plus $20/mo, Pro $100/mo, Business $20/user/mo (2+ seats, annual) |
| Open source | No | No |
| Runs in | Desktop IDE, CLI, Cloud, Mobile | Cloud, CLI, IDE extension, ChatGPT app |
Cursor strengths
- Mature agent workflow inside a familiar VS Code fork
- Cloud agents, automations and AI code review on Premium+
- Usage allowance refreshes weekly
OpenAI Codex strengths
- Included with ChatGPT plans you may already pay for
- Parallel cloud agents that keep running when you close your laptop
- Automatic PR review
Cursor drawbacks
- Third-party models (Claude, GPT) cost extra at API list price
- Plus tier is limited to Grok models
- Subscription bundled with X/Grok features many devs won't use
OpenAI Codex drawbacks
- Usage caps on Plus are aimed at focused sessions
- Best experience assumes a ChatGPT account and GitHub repos
Read the full reviews: Cursor · OpenAI Codex