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Competitor Alternative

Best Windsurf Alternative

For developers who like the AI-native IDE idea but want a different workflow shape.

The first decision is whether you still want another AI-native editor or the local environment outside the editor entirely. Windsurf started as Codeium (~$243M raised), was rebranded, and has had a turbulent ownership history — a failed $3B OpenAI acquisition, a $2.4B Google talent deal that took the founders, and then Cognition acquiring the remaining product for roughly $250M in July 2025. It is a VS Code fork with the Cascade flow-aware agent, a proprietary SWE-1.5 model, Supercomplete Tab (unlimited free completions), live previews, and MCP support. Pricing is competitive: free with 25 credits per month, Pro $15/mo, Teams $30/mo. It runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux. Solo is the strongest alternative when the problem is editor-centric local sprawl around agents, services, and startup commands. It gives you a desktop process dashboard with solo.yml, auto-restart, file-watch restarts, CPU/memory monitoring, and native desktop notifications. Cursor (widely reported as heavily funded) is strong if you still want an AI-first editor with more resources, 8 parallel background agents, and 40+ AI models. Zed (~$42M raised, free GPL v3) is strong if you want a faster open source editor with ACP and 20+ agents.

Comparing against Devin Desktop Visit Devin Desktop

Why people look for a Devin Desktop alternative

Windsurf's ownership changes (Codeium → failed OpenAI deal → Google talent deal → Cognition acquisition) raise questions about long-term product direction and stability.
Cascade and the flow-aware IDE experience can feel heavier than necessary if you want a tighter editor, and the SWE-1.5 model is proprietary with limited transparency.
You may want a different balance of background-agent workflows, model choice, external-agent flexibility, and editor ecosystem breadth than Windsurf offers.
You may want the editor to stop being the control plane for local development entirely and move process management into a dedicated tool.

What to look for in a Devin Desktop alternative

Whether you want the replacement to still be an editor or to become a separate local environment around your editor
How much Windsurf's ownership history and future direction factor into your decision
Whether local process visibility with auto-restart and monitoring matters more than another editor feature set
How much flexibility you want around model choice, background agents, external agents, and overall workflow shape

Recommended options

Start with the capability you want to replace. Each option overlaps with Devin Desktop in a different way.

Recommended option

Solo

Website

A lightweight local environment for agents, project commands, shell sessions, and process visibility on macOS and Windows.

Best when the goal is to keep your editor and move local agents, shell sessions, and project commands into a dedicated workspace outside it. Solo manages processes with auto-restart, file-watch restarts, CPU/memory monitoring, and native desktop notifications via solo.yml. Free for 4 projects, Pro $99/year.

Best for

Best for teams that want the local environment to stop living inside the editor.

Editor-agnosticProcess dashboard with CPU/memoryAuto-restart and file-watchMCP server

Recommended option

Cursor

Website Compare Solo vs Cursor

An agent-first coding product with a VS Code-based IDE, cloud agents, Bugbot, automations, and models from Cursor and major providers. Acquired by SpaceX in August 2026.

Best if you still want an AI-first editor with a tighter product surface, major funding backing, up to 8 parallel background agents, BugBot PR review, event-driven automations, and 40+ AI models. Pro $20/mo, Pro+ $60/mo, Ultra $200/mo.

Best for

Best for developers who still want an AI-native editor with more scale and stability than Windsurf.

8 parallel background agentsBugBot PR review40+ AI modelsEvent-driven automations

Recommended option

Zed

Website Compare Solo vs Zed

A fast, open source code editor with GPU-accelerated rendering, built-in AI, ACP for external agents, and real-time multiplayer collaboration.

Best if you want a faster, open source editor (GPL v3, ~$42M raised) with real-time multiplayer and ACP supporting 20+ external agents instead of a guided AI-native IDE. Free editor, $10/mo Pro.

Best for

Best for developers who want an open source editor with speed and external-agent flexibility.

Fast Rust editorACP with 20+ agentsReal-time multiplayerOpen source GPL v3
Switching guidance

How to switch away from Windsurf cleanly

The cleanest switch starts by deciding whether you are replacing the editor or unbundling the workflow.

  • If your pain is local workflow sprawl, keep your preferred editor and move agents, shell sessions, and shared project commands into Solo. Solo's auto-restart, file-watch restarts, and CPU/memory monitoring replace what you would otherwise manage inside Windsurf.
  • If your pain is Windsurf's stability or direction after the Cognition acquisition but you still want an AI-native editor, test Cursor (more funding, 8 parallel background agents, 40+ models) against the exact workflows you rely on now.
  • If your pain is guided IDE overhead more than AI itself, test Zed (free, open source, ACP with 20+ agents) before changing the rest of your stack.
  • Windsurf's Supercomplete Tab offers unlimited free completions — if that is your main dependency, note that Zed includes 2,000 free edit predictions per month and VS Code Copilot has a free tier as well.
Recommendation

Choose Solo if you no longer want the IDE to be the control plane for everything and want a dedicated local process dashboard. Choose Cursor if you still want an AI-first editor with more stability and scale. Choose Zed if you want a faster, open source editor with ACP and multiplayer.

Download Solo free download

Keep exploring the nearby options

Compare the products and workflows closest to Devin Desktop, including where Solo fits.

Directory

Browse all comparisons

Compare Solo with popular editors, terminals, and agent tools, then explore alternatives by product.

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Head to head

Devin Desktop (Windsurf) vs Zed

Compare Devin Desktop and Zed: local and cloud agents, ACP, collaboration, remote development, pricing, and where Solo fits.

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Related guide

Best Windsurf Alternatives

Compare the best Windsurf alternatives based on whether you want another AI-native editor or a lighter local environment outside the editor.

Read next

Agent workspace

Best Workspace for AI Coding Agents

Run Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Amp, and any terminal-based agent alongside your dev stack in Solo.

Read next

Recommended option

Compare Solo vs Cursor

An agent-first coding product with a VS Code-based IDE, cloud agents, Bugbot, automations, and models from Cursor and major providers. Acquired by SpaceX in August 2026.

Read next

Recommended option

Compare Solo vs Zed

A fast, open source code editor with GPU-accelerated rendering, built-in AI, ACP for external agents, and real-time multiplayer collaboration.

Read next

Common questions

What is the best Windsurf alternative if I do not want the IDE to run everything?

Solo is the best fit when the issue is not editing code itself, but the fact that local agents, services, and shared startup commands are all trapped inside an editor-centric workflow. Solo gives you a dedicated process dashboard with auto-restart, file-watch restarts, and CPU/memory monitoring outside any editor.

What is the best editor-first alternative to Windsurf?

Start with Cursor if you still want an AI-first editor with more stability, 8 parallel background agents, and 40+ AI models. Start with Zed if you want a faster, open source editor with ACP supporting 20+ agents and real-time multiplayer.

Does Solo replace Windsurf as an editor?

No. Solo is not an editor. It is the better alternative when you want the local environment separated from the editor instead of choosing another AI-native IDE. You would keep your preferred editor and add Solo for process management.

Should I be concerned about Windsurf's ownership changes?

That is a personal and team decision. Windsurf went from Codeium to a failed OpenAI acquisition process, then a major Google talent-and-licensing deal that took the founders, then Cognition acquiring the remaining product. The product still works and Cognition is investing in it, but the rapid changes are worth considering if editor stability matters to your team.

Last reviewed: 2026-03-20

Windsurf · Official product siteWindsurf Pricing · Official pricing pageCursor · Official product siteCursor MCP · Official docsCursor GitHub And Background Workflows · Official docsZed AI · Official AI pageZed ACP · Agent Control Protocol
Solo preview

See what Solo actually is

Solo is a lightweight desktop terminal workspace for local agents, project commands, interactive terminals, and long-running services. It sits beside your editor, keeps your stack visible, and gives Claude Code, Codex, and the rest of your tools one shared local control surface.

Built by

Built by Aaron Francis

Solo is built by Aaron Francis, creator of faster.dev and Database School, and VP of Marketing at Laravel. He built Solo after running Claude Code alongside his own dev stack and getting tired of juggling nine terminal tabs just to keep local agents, services, and project commands visible.

He is also a dad to two sets of twins, which tends to create a strong preference for software that reduces chaos instead of adding more of it. That is why Solo keeps showing up in these comparisons as the local workspace around your tools, not another editor or orchestrator trying to absorb the whole workflow.

Illustration of Aaron Francis holding two infant car seats

Give every coding agent the same room to work in.

Download Solo download

Free for four projects on macOS and Windows.

Start with a terminal and add the programmable meta-harness when you need to coordinate agents with your local development stack.

“I can't live without it.”

Jesse Hanley · @jessethanley