Pick Cursor if…
you're an individual developer who wants agents inside your editor and is happy to buy the X bundle.
Cursor is an editor with agents in it. Factory starts from the agents: its Droids write, test, review and deploy code across the software lifecycle, from desktop, CLI or SDK, running locally or in the cloud. Cursor covers part of that too — cloud agents and Bugbot code reviews on Premium — but its centre is still the editor. One more practical split: Cursor has a free plan, Factory doesn't.
Pick Cursor if you want an AI editor for your own coding and would also use Grok and X Premium — Plus ($8/mo) is Grok-only, Premium ($30/mo) adds cloud agents and code reviews. Pick Factory ($20/mo per seat) if your team wants background agents handling testing, review and deploys, with SSO, SAML/SCIM and Zero Data Retention on Business.
| App | Free tier | Paid from | Top plan | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cursor | Yes | $8/mo | $200/mo | Developers who want agentic multi-file editing and don't mind buying it bundled with a Grok/X chat subscription |
| Factory (Droids) | No | $20/mo | $200/mo | Engineering teams that want an agent-native workflow spanning coding, testing, review, and deploys, not just an IDE sidebar |
Monthly prices in US dollars before tax, from each vendor's official pricing (US list price; weekly-billed plans converted to a monthly figure). Updated November 2, 2026
| Cursor | Factory (Droids) | |
|---|---|---|
| Centre of gravity | The editor: agentic multi-file edits, Tab autocomplete | Autonomous Droids across code, tests, review, deploy |
| Free plan | Yes, limited agent and chat requests | None — Pro is the entry plan |
| Background agents | Cloud agents from Premium | Cloud and local Droids on Pro; Droid Computers on Plus |
| Usage ladder | Premium 4×, Super 15×, Ultra 50× of Plus | Plus ~5×, Max ~10× of Pro, per seat |
| Security & deployment | SAML/OIDC SSO on Teams; SCIM and audit logs on Enterprise | Zero Data Retention on Business; on-premise on Enterprise |
you're an individual developer who wants agents inside your editor and is happy to buy the X bundle.
you run an engineering team that wants agents working beyond the editor — testing, reviewing and deploying — with enterprise security options.
They aim at different buyers. Factory's Droids cover the full software lifecycle and suit teams; Cursor is an editor first. If you want autocomplete and in-editor edits, Cursor is the closer fit.
No. Factory starts at Pro, $20/mo per seat. Cursor has a free plan with limited requests, and paid tiers from $8/mo.
Cursor Teams starts at $30/mo per user. Factory Teams is $40/mo per seat plus a monthly base fee, for up to 10 seats.
How we choose: prices come from each vendor's official pricing page and are re-checked every week. We take no affiliate fees, so rankings aren't for sale.