Claude Code vs Cursor:Which is searched more?
In September 2026, Claude Code had more branded searches than Cursor among AI coding assistants worldwide. Claude Code had about 3.1 million branded searches, while Cursor had 616,000. Claude Code made up 43.7% of all AI coding assistant searches we track, and Cursor accounted for 8.6%. These are worldwide searches for English-language branded terms.
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Is Claude Code or Cursor more popular in search?
Compare the ai coding assistants people choose between. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.
Share of searches by month for Claude Code, Cursor. The figures are in the table below the chart.
View monthly share of searches table
| Month | Claude Code | Replit | OpenAI Codex | Cursor | GitHub Copilot | Bolt | Lovable | Windsurf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 24.9% | 25.2% | 7.9% | 17.7% | 17.1% | 2.3% | 1.9% | 3.1% |
| Nov 2025 | 28% | 22.9% | 6.5% | 19.5% | 15.6% | 2% | 2% | 3.4% |
| Dec 2025 | 31.4% | 26.8% | 5.3% | 15.6% | 14.7% | 1.6% | 2% | 2.7% |
| Jan 2026 | 50.9% | 19.9% | 4.1% | 11.7% | 9.3% | 0.97% | 1.4% | 1.6% |
| Feb 2026 | 50.2% | 16.2% | 11.5% | 9.6% | 9.1% | 0.79% | 1.2% | 1.5% |
| Mar 2026 | 56.8% | 14.8% | 7% | 8.7% | 10% | 0.59% | 0.88% | 1.3% |
| Apr 2026 | 55% | 14.3% | 8% | 8.1% | 11.6% | 0.57% | 1.3% | 1.2% |
| May 2026 | 48.7% | 15.6% | 14.5% | 7.6% | 10.2% | 0.76% | 1.4% | 1.2% |
| Jun 2026 | 49.2% | 15.7% | 11% | 10.9% | 9.1% | 1.1% | 1.4% | 1.6% |
| Jul 2026 | 46.2% | 18.3% | 14.6% | 9% | 7.1% | 1.6% | 2% | 1.3% |
| Aug 2026 | 43.2% | 20.9% | 13.1% | 10.1% | 7.9% | 1.8% | 1.8% | 1.1% |
| Sep 2026 | 43.7% | 21.4% | 13.9% | 8.6% | 8.2% | 1.5% | 1.5% | 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 assistants worldwide moved from 24.9% to 43.7%, 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 assistants worldwide moved from 17.7% to 8.6%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 864K to 616K.
How did search popularity change for AI coding assistants worldwide in September 2026?
2 changes
In September 2026, Claude Code gained share of searches among AI coding assistants worldwide, from 43.2% to 43.7%.
In September 2026, Cursor lost share of searches among AI coding assistants worldwide, from 10.1% to 8.6%.
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
Other head-to-heads among AI coding assistants
Claude Code vs Replit: compare search popularity
Claude Code vs OpenAI Codex: compare search popularity
Claude Code vs GitHub Copilot: compare search popularity- Replit vs OpenAI Codex: compare search popularity
- Replit vs Cursor: compare search popularity
- Replit vs GitHub Copilot: compare search popularity
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