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Head-to-head · Nov 2025 – Nov 2026

Windsurf vs Cline: where developers land.

71 opinions. No direct preference recorded yet. Approval is 58% vs 73%.

71 opinions63 developersNov 2025 – Nov 2026Methodology
Windsurf
58%
36 opinions · 35 developers
90 days: –
VS
Cline
73%
35 opinions · 28 developers
90 days: –
Our call

If you want UX, choose Windsurf. If you want cost & pricing, choose Cline. The direct preference is not clear yet; use the decision cards below.

Choose Windsurf if you…

  • Want a full AI IDE instead of an editor extension
  • Value free unlimited tab completion and frequent free model access
  • Use JetBrains and want Cascade as a plugin there

Choose Cline if you…

  • Want to bring your own model or provider
  • Care about cost control and usage limits
  • Want an open-source VS Code extension you can customize
Where each wins

UX for Windsurf. Cost & pricing for Cline.

Net sentiment per topic: praise minus complaints, as a share of mentions. Positive means more praise than complaints. Hover a dot for the raw counts.

WindsurfCline
TopicMore complaints ← → More praiseNet
UX 6 / 4 mentions
+33 / +50
Cost & pricing 7 / 7 mentions
+14 / +71
Reliability 3 / 8 mentions
−100 / −25
−100−500+50+100

Net sentiment = praise minus complaints, as a share of each tool's mentions. The dot lanes are only for readability; position is the score.

View data table
TopicWindsurfClineMentions
UX+33+506 / 4
Cost & pricing+14+717 / 7
Reliability-100-253 / 8
Why developers switched

The same decision, from both sides.

Paraphrased from comments where a developer named a preference or described a switch. Each links to the original.

Picked Windsurf 0 developers

No explicit switches recorded.

Picked Cline 0 developers

No explicit switches recorded.

Side by side

The numbers.

MetricWindsurfCline
Approval58%73%
Last 90 days––
Opinions3635
Developers3528
First-hand opinions3130
Direct picks00
TypeAI IDEIDE extension
Made byCognitionOpen source
WebsiteVisit ↗Visit ↗
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Methodology

How to read this comparison.

Approval is the positive share of opinions that took a side, with the rank based on the lower bound of a 90% confidence interval. Direct picks count comments where a developer explicitly preferred one tool or described switching. Small samples are noisier; check the opinion counts.

Read the full method →