Copilot vs Claude Code (2026): pricing, limits and models compared

Copilot compared with Claude Code
	Copilot	Claude Code
What it is	An assistant and agent inside your existing IDE, plus a CLI, the Copilot app and a cloud agent that turns issues into pull requests.	An agent that works across your whole codebase from the terminal, VS Code, JetBrains, a desktop app, the web and Slack.
Where it runs	VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Eclipse, Xcode, Neovim, CLI, Copilot app, GitHub.com and GitHub Mobile.	Terminal, VS Code, JetBrains IDEs, desktop app, web and Slack.
Free option	Copilot Free: 2,000 completions a month and a limited chat and agent allowance.	None. The free Claude plan doesn't include Claude Code.
Cheapest paid plan	Pro, $10/month: 1,500 AI credits, model choice, cloud agent and code review.	Claude Pro, $20/month ($17/month billed annually).
Plan ladder	Free · Pro $10 · Pro+ $39 · Max $100 · Business $19/seat · Enterprise $39/seat	Pro $20 · Max $100 · Ultra $200 · Team from $20/seat · Enterprise $20/seat + usage
How usage is counted	Monthly AI credits (1 credit = $0.01). Inline completions don't use credits on paid plans.	One allowance shared with Claude chat, with a five-hour and a weekly limit. Ultra drops the five-hour limit for verified accounts.
Models	Claude, GPT, Gemini, Grok, Kimi and Microsoft models, or Copilot Fusion's automatic routing.	Claude only: Opus 5.5 by default, plus Sonnet 5.5, Haiku 5.5 and Fable 5.2.
Bring your own key	Yes, in VS Code, JetBrains, Xcode, the CLI and the app, even without a subscription.	Yes: an Anthropic API key, Amazon Bedrock, Google Cloud or Microsoft Foundry.
Training on your code	On by default for Free, Pro and Pro+ since April 24, 2026, with an opt-out. Not used on Business or Enterprise.	Consumer plans only if you allow it in settings. Not used on Team, Enterprise or API unless the customer opts in.
When you hit the limit	Set a budget at $0.01 per credit, upgrade, switch to a cheaper model, or wait for the 1st of the month.	Wait for the reset, upgrade, or turn on usage credits at API rates.

Copilot

Claude Code

What it is

An assistant and agent inside your existing IDE, plus a CLI, the Copilot app and a cloud agent that turns issues into pull requests.

An agent that works across your whole codebase from the terminal, VS Code, JetBrains, a desktop app, the web and Slack.

Where it runs

VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Eclipse, Xcode, Neovim, CLI, Copilot app, GitHub.com and GitHub Mobile.

Terminal, VS Code, JetBrains IDEs, desktop app, web and Slack.

Free option

Copilot Free: 2,000 completions a month and a limited chat and agent allowance.

None. The free Claude plan doesn't include Claude Code.

Cheapest paid plan

Pro, $10/month: 1,500 AI credits, model choice, cloud agent and code review.

Claude Pro, $20/month ($17/month billed annually).

Plan ladder

Free · Pro $10 · Pro+ $39 · Max $100 · Business $19/seat · Enterprise $39/seat

Pro $20 · Max $100 · Ultra $200 · Team from $20/seat · Enterprise $20/seat + usage

How usage is counted

Monthly AI credits (1 credit = $0.01). Inline completions don't use credits on paid plans.

One allowance shared with Claude chat, with a five-hour and a weekly limit. Ultra drops the five-hour limit for verified accounts.

Models

Claude, GPT, Gemini, Grok, Kimi and Microsoft models, or Copilot Fusion's automatic routing.

Claude only: Opus 5.5 by default, plus Sonnet 5.5, Haiku 5.5 and Fable 5.2.

Bring your own key

Yes, in VS Code, JetBrains, Xcode, the CLI and the app, even without a subscription.

Yes: an Anthropic API key, Amazon Bedrock, Google Cloud or Microsoft Foundry.

Training on your code

On by default for Free, Pro and Pro+ since April 24, 2026, with an opt-out. Not used on Business or Enterprise.

Consumer plans only if you allow it in settings. Not used on Team, Enterprise or API unless the customer opts in.

When you hit the limit

Set a budget at $0.01 per credit, upgrade, switch to a cheaper model, or wait for the 1st of the month.

Wait for the reset, upgrade, or turn on usage credits at API rates.

Verdict

Pick Copilot if you want an assistant inside the editor you already use, especially Visual Studio, Xcode, Eclipse or Neovim, which Claude Code doesn’t support. It’s cheaper to start, with a free plan and a $10 Pro plan, and it lets you switch between Claude, GPT, Gemini and other models in one place. Its cloud agent and code review are built into GitHub, so issues and pull requests are where the work happens.

Pick Claude Code if you want a strong agent that works across your whole codebase and you’re happy with Claude models. It comes with every paid Claude plan, so if you already pay for Claude, your coding is included. Hooks, subagents, skills and scheduled cloud tasks make it well suited to long, multi-step work.

On cost, Copilot’s credits are easy to predict but can run down quickly on premium models, since every request is billed against your allowance. Claude Code’s allowance is shared with your Claude chats and has a five-hour window on every plan except Ultra.

On privacy, note that Copilot’s individual plans now train on your interactions by default. Opt out in your GitHub Copilot settings if that matters to you. Claude’s consumer plans train only if you allow it.

You don’t have to choose: Copilot Pro and above can run Claude Code as a third-party agent.

Frequently asked questions

Is Copilot or Claude Code cheaper?

Copilot is cheaper to start: Pro is $10 a month and there's a free plan. Claude Code needs at least Claude Pro at $20 a month. For heavy agent work, compare Copilot's credit allowance (20,000 credits, worth $200, on the $100 Max plan) with Claude Max at $100 for 5x Pro usage.

Can I use Claude Code inside Copilot?

Yes. GitHub lists Claude Code and Codex as third-party agents available in Copilot from the Pro plan upwards.

Which is better for JetBrains or Visual Studio users?

Both support JetBrains IDEs. Only Copilot supports Visual Studio, Eclipse, Xcode and Neovim.

Does either train on my code?

Copilot Free, Pro and Pro+ use interaction data for training by default unless you opt out; Business and Enterprise don't. Claude Code trains on consumer sessions only if you allow it, and not on Team, Enterprise or API data.

Copilot × Claude Code

Verdict

Frequently asked questions

Sources