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Claude Code vs GitHub Copilot
Copilot is the cheaper, lighter add-on to the editor you already use; Claude Code is the stronger pick for long agentic tasks driven from the terminal. Many developers use both.
At a glance
| Fact | Claude Code | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|
| Made by | Anthropic | GitHub |
| What it is | Anthropic's agentic coding tool for the terminal and IDE. | GitHub's AI pair programmer and coding agent. |
| Price | Paid from $17/month | Free plan, paid from $10/user/month |
| Runs on | macOS, Windows, Linux, Web, CLI, Slack, iOS, Android | macOS, Windows, Web, CLI |
| Open source | No | No |
| Models | Opus, Sonnet, Haiku | Haiku 4.5, GPT-5 mini, Claude by Anthropic, OpenAI Codex |
| Last verified | October 14, 2026 | October 14, 2026 |
| Official site | claude.com/product/claude-code | github.com/features/copilot |
Where they differ
- Price: Copilot has a free tier and Pro at $10/user/month; Claude Code needs a paid Claude plan from $17/month.
- Where it runs: Copilot in VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Neovim and Xcode; Claude Code in the terminal with VS Code and JetBrains extensions.
- Models: Copilot lets you choose from several, including Claude; Claude Code runs Anthropic's own.
Which to pick
Choose Claude Code if you want an agent that searches and edits across a codebase from the terminal.
Choose GitHub Copilot if you want completions and agent mode in your current editor at a lower price.
Keep looking
- Claude Code listing
- GitHub Copilot listing
- Claude Code alternatives
- GitHub Copilot alternatives
- Aider vs Claude Code
- Claude Code vs Claude Cowork
- Claude Code vs Cline
- Claude Code vs Codex
Facts from each maker's official pages, last verified October 14, 2026. How we verify.