Brandwave

Claude Code vs Cursor:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Claude Code had more branded searches than Cursor among AI coding agents worldwide. Claude Code had about 3.1 million branded searches, while Cursor had 616,000. Claude Code made up 43.3% of all AI coding agent searches we track, and Cursor accounted for 8.5%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about AI coding agents, both Claude Code and Cursor appeared in all five answers. Claude Code was mentioned before Cursor in three out of five answers.

Among AI coding agents worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Claude Code, about 5 searches for every 1 for Cursor

Claude Code 3.1M searchesCursor 616K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Both are mentioned in every answer we collected.

Claude Code in 5 of 5Cursor in 5 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Claude Code, named ahead of Cursor in 3 of 5 answers

Claude Code first in 3Cursor first in 2

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Top AI coding agents in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, both Claude Code and Cursor showed up in all five answers. Claude Code was listed before Cursor in three of them.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. Claude Code1st
  2. Cursor2nd
  3. OpenAI Codex3rd
  4. GitHub Copilot4th
  5. Replit5th
  6. Devin5th
  7. Windsurf–

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • Claude Code5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • OpenAI Codex5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Cursor5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • GitHub Copilot4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Replit1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Devin1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
  • Windsurf0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about AI coding agents

5 answers

Not named in any answer:

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 20, 2026.

Is Claude Code or Cursor more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Claude Code and Cursor by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all seven AI coding agents we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Claude Code and Cursor among AI coding agents worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for Claude Code, Cursor. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthClaude CodeReplitOpenAI CodexCursorGitHub CopilotDevinWindsurf
Oct 202525.3%25.6%8%18%17.3%2.7%3.2%
Nov 202528.4%23.2%6.6%19.7%15.8%2.8%3.4%
Dec 202531.7%27%5.4%15.7%14.8%2.7%2.7%
Jan 202651.2%20.1%4.2%11.8%9.4%1.7%1.7%
Feb 202650.5%16.3%11.5%9.6%9.2%1.4%1.5%
Mar 202656.8%14.8%7%8.7%10%1.4%1.3%
Apr 202655.1%14.3%8%8.2%11.6%1.6%1.2%
May 202648.8%15.7%14.5%7.7%10.2%1.9%1.2%
Jun 202649.2%15.7%11%10.9%9.1%2.5%1.6%
Jul 202646.6%18.4%14.7%9.1%7.1%2.9%1.3%
Aug 202643.4%21%13.2%10.2%7.9%3.3%1.1%
Sep 202643.3%21.1%13.7%8.5%8.1%4%1.2%

How has the Claude Code and Cursor comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings
  • Claude Code was ahead of Cursor in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Claude Code’s share of searches among AI coding agents worldwide moved from 25.3% to 43.3%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.2M to 3.1M.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Cursor’s share of searches among AI coding agents worldwide moved from 18% to 8.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 864K to 616K.

How did search popularity change for AI coding agents worldwide in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, Cursor lost share of searches among AI coding agents worldwide, from 10.2% to 8.5%.

  2. Claude Code’s share of searches among AI coding agents worldwide has lost ground for 3 months in a row, from 49.2% to 43.3% in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

43 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Claude Code’s and Cursor’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

Claude Code

22 branded search terms

  • anthropic claude code
  • Claude Code
  • claude code agents
  • claude code ai
  • claude code anthropic
  • claude code app
  • claude code cli
  • claude code desktop
  • claude code docs
  • claude code extension
  • claude code github
  • claude code mac
  • claude code mcp
  • claude code plugins
  • claude code skills
  • claude code vscode
  • claude code web
  • claude code windows
  • claude codes
  • claude coding
  • claude-code
  • claudecode

Cursor

21 branded search terms

  • anysphere cursor
  • cursor agent
  • cursor agents
  • cursor ai
  • cursor ai agent
  • cursor ai app
  • cursor ai coding
  • cursor ai editor
  • cursor ai ide
  • cursor ai pro
  • cursor app
  • cursor bugbot
  • cursor cli
  • cursor code
  • cursor coding
  • cursor composer
  • cursor ide
  • cursor pro
  • cursor sh
  • cursor vscode
  • cursor.sh

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among AI coding agents

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