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Should you switch from VSCode to Cursor?
My experience using VSCode (GitHub Copilot) and Cursor (Claude 3.5 Sonnet) as a Data Scientist.
Introduction
As developers, we’re constantly searching for tools to enhance our productivity and make coding more enjoyable. I have been using Visual Studio Code (VSCode) for over six years, it has been the go-to integrated development environment (IDE) for almost all the developers I have worked with.
In 2023, Cursor (designed by the Anysphere research lab) raised $8M from OpenAI and $11M in total funding as they delivered the message:
In the next few years, we’d like to build a code editor that is more helpful, delightful, and fun than the world has ever seen.
In 2024, many developers began testing or fully transitioning to using Cursor as their primary IDE of choice.
The purpose of this article is to give you a first-person perspective on my experience using Cursor and how I compare it to VSCode. Specifically, I will be discussing how each IDE performs for Data Science when using their respective AI assistance capabilities.
What is Cursor?
Originally forked from Microsoft’s VSCode GitHub repository, the Anysphere team took advantage of its open-source codebase and decided it would be a great foundation for developing Cursor.
Cursor represents a bridge between current development practices and the future of collaborative human-AI programming. Cursor’s mission is to develop an IDE heavily integrated with artificial intelligence (AI) capable of being an order of magnitude more effective than any one programmer.
By preserving VSCode’s familiar interface and comprehensive extension ecosystem, Cursor lowers developers’ adoption barriers, making the transition to an AI-powered IDE feel like a natural, seamless upgrade rather than a disruptive technological change.
My Previous VSCode Experience
I have been using VSCode for over 6 years and was a beta tester for GitHub Copilot which I have been paying for…
