WindsurfVS
Zed
Read from each vendor’s own pages last night, so it does not go stale the way a written comparison does.
- WINDSURF
- Not published as tiers
- ZED
- Free, then $10 / mo
- CHANGES ON EITHER
- 3
- CAVEATS
- 1
WINDSURFACQUIRED SINCE 14 JULY 2025Windsurf was acquired by Cognition and is no longer independent. Acquired by Cognition in 2025 after the Google deal took the founding team; $82M ARR at acquisition. Every "Cursor vs Windsurf" page written before the acquisition describes a company that no longer exists independently.
On the prices each vendor publishes about itself, Windsurf starts at Not published as tiers and Zed at Free, then $10 / mo. Before that decides anything: Windsurf was acquired by Cognition and is no longer independent. (since 14 July 2025) Zed takes your own API key; the other bundles model usage, so its headline price is closer to the whole bill. Zed is open source under GPL-3.0; the other is proprietary. Every figure on this page was read from the two vendors' own pages in last night's run rather than written down once, which is the only reason it is still the current answer. ToolDrift sells neither and takes no referral fee on either.
| COMPARED ON | WINDSURF | ZED |
|---|---|---|
| ASSERTED · WHAT EACH VENDOR PUBLISHES ABOUT ITSELF | ||
| Category | IDE | IDE |
| Vendor | Cognition | Zed Industries |
| Status | Acquired | Active |
| How it charges | Subscription | Hybrid |
| Entry price | Not published as tiers | Free, then $10 / mo |
| Default model | None, you choose | None, you choose |
| Your own key | No, bundled only | Yes |
| Source | Proprietary | Open source · GPL-3.0 |
| Plans | Cognition publishes no pricing page for Windsurf, so there are no tiers to compare. | Personal · FreePro · $10 / moBusiness · $30 / mo per seat, per month |
| MEASURED · COUNTED ON THE LAST NIGHTLY RUN | ||
| Stars | not measured | 90.8K |
| Maintenance | not measured | 94/100 |
| Days since last push | not measured | 0 |
| Top model in it | not measured | not measured |
| Its volume | not measured | not measured |
Is Windsurf or Zed cheaper?
On the cheapest option each vendor publishes: Windsurf is Not published as tiers and Zed is Free, then $10 / mo. Treat both as an allowance rather than a bill, every tool in this category meters model usage on top of the plan, and which one costs more in practice depends on the models you drive and how hard. The tier prices are the part that can be checked from outside, so they are the part this page prints.
Can I use my own API key with Windsurf or Zed?
Windsurf: no, model usage is bundled. Zed: yes. It is the row that decides whether the subscription price is most of what you pay or a fraction of it: a tool that takes your own key charges for the software, and one that does not is reselling inference with a margin you cannot see.
Are Windsurf and Zed still maintained?
Acquired and Active as of last night's read. Windsurf publishes no repository this site tracks, so there is no push date to read; Zed's repository was last pushed 0 days ago and it scores 94/100 on maintenance. One caution: Windsurf was acquired by Cognition and is no longer independent. (since 14 July 2025) This is the question a written comparison cannot answer, because it was true on the day it was published and nobody went back.