Gemini Code Assist vs Windsurf: Side-by-Side Comparison 2026

Gemini Code Assist vs Windsurf comparison 2026. Side-by-side features, pricing & capabilities.

Gemini Code Assist is an editor extension from Google — google's ai coding assistant. Windsurf is an AI IDE from Cognition — the agentic ai ide.

Gemini Code Assist

Google's AI-powered coding assistant built on Gemini. Provides code completions, chat, code transformations, and full codebase awareness in VS Code and JetBrains IDEs.

  • ✓ Code completions
  • ✓ AI chat
  • ✓ Code transformations
  • ✓ Codebase awareness
  • ✓ Pull request summaries

Free / $19/mo · 6 plans

Windsurf

AI-first IDE with Cascade — an agentic assistant that understands your codebase and makes multi-file changes. Now owned by Cognition (makers of Devin). Also available as Windsurf Plugin for VS Code and JetBrains.

  • ✓ Cascade agentic AI
  • ✓ Code completions
  • ✓ Multi-file editing
  • ✓ Terminal integration
  • ✓ Codebase search

Free / $20/mo · 5 plans

Feature Gemini Code Assist Windsurf
Category ExtensionAI IDE
Starting Price Free Free
Model Family GeminiMulti-model
Agentic Mode — ✓
Multi-File Editing — ✓
Terminal Commands — ✓
Open Source NoNo

Pricing verified Feb 25, 2026. Gemini Code Assist pricing | Windsurf pricing

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Key Differences

  • Category: Gemini Code Assist is an editor extension; Windsurf is an AI IDE.
  • Starting price: Gemini Code Assist starts at $19/mo; Windsurf starts at $20/mo.
  • Model family: Gemini Code Assist uses Gemini; Windsurf uses Multi-model.
  • Agentic mode: Windsurf supports agentic mode; Gemini Code Assist does not.
  • Bring your own key: Windsurf supports BYOK; Gemini Code Assist does not.
  • Platforms: Gemini Code Assist runs on Desktop, Web; Windsurf runs on Linux, Windows, macOS.
  • Provider: Gemini Code Assist is built by Google; Windsurf is built by Cognition.
  • Capabilities: Windsurf has multi-file editing; Windsurf has terminal commands.

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Gemini Code Assist if you want deep integration with Google Cloud services and infrastructure. Choose Windsurf if you want an agentic IDE with autonomous multi-step changes. Read our full reviews to see which fits your workflow.

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