Cursor vs Claude Code vs Codex: pricing & usage limits
Three of the most popular AI coding tools side by side, from each vendor's official pages, checked 2026-10-19.
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| Cursor | Claude Code | OpenAI Codex | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | AI IDE | CLI agent | CLI/cloud agent |
| Plans & prices | Free$0 Plus$8 Premium$30 Super$100 Ultra$200 Teams$30+ per user/mo | Free$0 Pro$20 ($17/mo annual) Max 5x$100 Max 20x$200 Team (Premium seat)$100/seat (annual), $125 monthly | Free$0 Go$8 Plus$20 Pro$100 / $200 / $500 Business$20/user (annual, 2+ users), $25 monthly |
| Limits by plan | Free Limited agent and chat requests Plus Shared weekly usage pool (Cursor+Grok); only Grok models Premium 4x Plus usage; third-party models billed at API list price Super 15x Plus usage Ultra 50x Plus usage Teams 4-50x Plus usage by seat tier | Free Claude Code not included Pro 5-hour session + weekly limits, shared with Claude chat Max 5x 5x Pro usage; includes $100/mo API credits for the Claude Platform Max 20x 20x Pro usage; includes $200/mo API credits for the Claude Platform Team (Premium seat) 5x Standard-seat usage; includes Claude Code; teams of 2-150 | Free GPT-6 Luna, desktop app, subject to rollout Go Lightweight tasks, GPT-6 Luna Plus Est. 15-160 messages/5h on GPT-6.1 Sol (local + cloud share allowance); weekly limits may apply Pro No 5-hour limit currently; Ultrafast on $500 Business Codex across desktop and mobile; same per-5h message estimates as Plus |
| Limit reset | Weekly (legacy plans: monthly) | Rolling 5 hours + weekly | 5 hours + weekly |
| Check usage | Current plans: open Usage at grok.com/dashboard (your editor settings show the same remaining usage). Legacy plans: the Spending tab in your dashboard. | Run /status inside Claude Code to see your remaining allocation. | The Codex usage dashboard shows current limits. During a Codex CLI session, run /status. |
| Checked | Checked 2026-10-19 | Checked 2026-10-19 | Checked 2026-10-19 |
Verdict
Pick Cursor if
you want a full AI editor, a cheap $8 entry, and a weekly pool for Cursor/Grok models.
Pick Claude Code if
you want Claude models in the terminal or IDE, bundled with the Claude apps, and can work within 5-hour and weekly limits.
Pick Codex if
you already pay for ChatGPT, want an $8 Go tier, or want Pro tiers with no five-hour limit.
FAQ
Which is cheapest: Cursor, Claude Code or Codex?
Cheapest paid entry as of 2026-10-19: Cursor Plus $8, Codex Go $8, Claude Pro $20 ($17/mo annual). Cursor and Codex also have free plans; Claude Code isn't included in Claude's Free plan.
How do the usage limits differ?
Cursor uses a weekly usage pool. Claude Code has five-hour session and weekly limits shared with Claude. Codex has five-hour windows plus possible weekly limits on Plus, and Pro currently has no five-hour limit.
Which models does each use?
Cursor's included pool covers Cursor models (Grok 4.7/4.6/4.5, Composer 2.5), with third-party models at API list price. Claude Code uses Claude models. Codex Plus uses GPT-6.1 Sol and GPT-6 Luna.
Guides: Claude Code usage limits · How to check Codex limits · Cursor vs Claude Code · Claude Code vs Codex
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