AI Coding Tools Compared: Bolt.new vs. Windsurf vs. Cursor

In today's fast-paced software development landscape, Artificial Intelligence (AI) coding tools are becoming increasingly popular. It's getting tougher to pick the tool you actually need, because there are so many choices. This article puts the three, Bolt.new, Windsurf, and Cursor AI coding tools to the test. These tools are designed to streamline the coding process, automate repetitive tasks, and enhance overall productivity. Which tool is the best for your coding needs?

Bolt.new: AI-Powered Full-Stack Web App Development

Bolt.new is a new AI Tool to build full-stack web apps.

It allows you to Prompt run, edit, and deploy using StackBlitz.

Bolt.new was really the first kind of agentic AI app put out, where an AI agent goes and builds out most the app for you. Unlike traditional coding environments, Bolt.new operates on the web, providing a beginner-friendly experience.

It aims to simplify the process of full-stack web app development. Its streamlined approach makes it particularly appealing to no-code developers.

WinSurf: AI-Assisted Code Generation

Windsurf stands out with its unique Cascade AI mode.

While it offers powerful assistance during the initial phases, Windsurf doesn’t provide direct links to documentation. It has a very powerful AI agent that is able to think on a high level, and can install the most modern frameworks with no issues. It is best for large codebase projects.

Cursor: Empowering Developers with AI

Cursor, is built on top of VS Code

. It allows developers to harness the power of AI to enhance their existing workflows. But, is expensive. Even with its limitations, cursor makes you feel like you are working with a human being, because it has the abilities of an agent. It just can’t link to documentation that well.

Crafting the Prompt

To conduct a fair and objective assessment, a specific prompt was designed to be used consistently across all three platforms.

The goal was to see the result in the same conditions for the fairest ranking.

The prompt stated: I want to build an AI content coach chatbot app that uses the ChatGPT API. The backend should be Supabase. All our chat logs should be stored in the database. This should be using NextJS. Make the app look pretty.

This prompt was chosen to reflect the need for something interesting, that goes above and beyond a To Do list.

Putting Bolt.new to the Test

Unfortunately, the AI found it difficult to install the packages.

While the app itself was building good parts, there were clear breaks in the technology. The technology ran for 22 minutes with 11 prompts and 9 errors. At that stage, it could not fully connect or generate an app for that user. It could easily help build a prototype, but failed to be much better than a base zero. Not the tool to build full applications.

Windsurf's Try

Windsurf, on the other HAND, proved a good choice.

After several iterations with the AI, the Next.js, Supabase chatbot was successfully created. Windsurf was able to produce a very functioning prototype on the platform. It ran for 26 minutes with 10 prompts and 11 errors. While it did make errors, the AI did provide a clean, working application. It did cost money, however.

Cursor's Run

Next, cursor was brought to the plate. Surprisingly enough, cursor worked without issues, and prompted all requests flawlessly.

For most people in a low complexity project, it may work better because it does not hallucinate, or make up code. It built it quickly, and was just able to get all the right things for building it out, within the correct time. Cursor built a functional, and working platform.

Break It Down

When prompting AI, you can make the app easier to build if you have a very small request for the task. That is the easiest way to make a functioning prompt.

If you make the prompt small enough you will be able to have the best result.

Pricing Table

Navigating the pricing landscape of AI coding tools is crucial for making informed decisions. Here is a comprehensive look at the pricing structure:

Core Features

Knowing which features make up an AI platform may be the make or break you need for coding your apps. Each has distinct features for different situations.

• The AI needs to be agentic and able to install the frameworks needed.
• It needs to implement code effectively, without creating an error loop.
• Have high ease of use to help reduce the amount of mistakes.

Use Cases

If you're looking to build out a prototype, there's nothing better than Bolt.new because it's free.

For high functionality in a lower code base, use cursor. If you have a large, enterprise application with modern frameworks, Winsurf may work better.