🌊

AI IDEFree Tier Available

Devin Desktop (formerly Windsurf)

by Cognition - The AI-first IDE built around deep codebase awareness, now the home for local and cloud coding agents

Devin Desktop (rebranded from Windsurf in June 2026 after Cognition, the maker of the Devin agent, acquired it) is a full IDE based on VS Code where every feature is designed around AI. Its standout feature is the local agent, Devin Local (which replaced the original Cascade agent in July 2026) - an agentic AI that understands your entire codebase, not just the current file, and can autonomously plan and execute multi-step tasks.

Made by

Cognition

Based on

VS Code

Free tier

Yes; Pro $20/mo

Best for

Agentic coding

Platform

Mac, Win, Linux

Website

devin.ai/desktop

⚡ Install & Setup

Step 1 - Download Devin Desktop

Go to devin.ai/desktop → click Download. Available for macOS (Apple Silicon + Intel), Windows, and Linux.

Step 2 - Sign In (Free Account)

Launch Devin Desktop → sign in or create a free Cognition account. No credit card needed for the free tier.

Step 3 - Open Your Project

File → Open Folder → select your project. The editor indexes your entire codebase in the background - this gives the agent full context.

Step 4 - Open the agent panel

Press Cmd+L (Mac) or Ctrl+L (Windows) to open the Cascade panel on the right.

🔑 Key Features

🌊

Devin Local (Agentic AI)

Autonomous AI agent that reads your codebase, plans multi-file changes, runs terminal commands, and iterates until the task is complete. Successor to Cascade.

🗂️

Agent Command Center

Kanban-style view of every agent you have running, local or cloud Devin, so you can run several tasks in parallel and review each one.

💡

Supercomplete

Context-aware inline completion that understands your entire repo - not just the current line. Predicts whole functions and logical next steps.

💬

Chat Mode

Ask questions about your code. Reference files with @filename. The agent answers with full repo context.

🔍

Codebase Indexing

The editor automatically indexes your project so the agent knows every function, class, and file - no need to paste context manually.

🔌

VS Code Compatible

All your VS Code extensions work in Devin Desktop. Same keybindings, themes, and settings - minimal transition friction.

🆓

Free Tier + Quotas

Free: unlimited tab completions, Cognition's own SWE-1.6 model, and a light daily agent quota. Pro ($20/mo) and Max ($200/mo) add frontier models (Claude, GPT, Gemini) and much larger daily/weekly quotas; extra usage bills at API rates.

🚀 Sample Usage

1. Inline Completion

Start typing and let Supercomplete finish your thought. Accept with Tab.

// calculate shipping cost based on weight and zone
function calcShipping(weight, zone) {
// ← the editor fills in the entire function body

2. Devin Local - Agentic Task

Open the agent panel (Cmd+L) and type a high-level task:

"Add pagination to the /api/products endpoint. Use cursor-based pagination. Update the React ProductList component to load more on scroll. Add tests for the new params."

The agent reads your existing files, proposes a plan, writes the changes, and runs your tests - all without you writing a single line.

3. Ask a Codebase Question

"Where does this app handle authentication? Walk me through the full auth flow from login to session."

The agent traces through your actual files and gives a specific answer with file references - no need to grep the codebase yourself.

💡 Pro Tips

Let the editor fully index your project before using the agent - wait for the indexing spinner to finish
Use @filename in the agent panel to focus on specific files
The agent can run terminal commands - useful for running tests and seeing results inline
Migrate from VS Code in seconds: Settings → Import from VS Code
For large tasks, set scope in your prompt: "Only modify files in src/api/ - do not touch the frontend"

⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts

Open agent panelCmd+L / Ctrl+L

Accept completionTab

Reject completionEsc

Accept next wordCmd+→ / Ctrl+→

Open command paletteCmd+Shift+P

New agent conversationCmd+N in the agent panel

⚖️ Which Coding Tool Should I Pick?

The current tool is highlighted. There is no single winner - pick by how you like to work. Models and pricing as of September 7, 2026.

Tool	Type	Pricing	Best for	Models / AI
GitHub Copilot	IDE extension	Free tier; Pro $10/mo	AI in your existing editor	GPT-5.6, Claude Sonnet 5, Gemini 3.8 Flash
Cursor	AI IDE (VS Code fork)	Hobby free; Pro $20/mo	All-round AI editor + agent	GPT-5.6, Claude Opus 5 / Sonnet 5
Devin Desktop (ex-Windsurf)(this page)	AI IDE (VS Code fork)	Free tier; Pro $20/mo	Local + cloud agents in one place	SWE-1.6 (own) + Claude / GPT / Gemini
Google Antigravity	Agent-first IDE	Free tier; Google AI Pro $19.99/mo	Autonomous build + browser test	Gemini 3.1 Pro / Gemini 3.8 Flash (agent-first)
Claude Code (CLI)	Terminal agent	Claude Pro/Max or API	Agentic coding in the terminal	Claude Opus 5 / Sonnet 5 / Haiku 4.5
VS Code + AI ext	Editor + extensions	Free options exist	Keep VS Code, add AI	Depends on extension

Pricing and model support change often. Verified June 2026 - confirm on each tool's official site.

🛠️ Troubleshooting & Common Pitfalls

⚠ Agent will not run

Sign in and check your usage quota. Agent runs draw on a daily/weekly allowance (credits were retired in March 2026); wait for the refresh or upgrade to Pro.

⚠ Confused: the app vs the plugin

Devin Desktop is the standalone IDE; the Windsurf plugin (formerly Codeium) adds completions to VS Code / JetBrains. Pick one per editor.

⚠ I still have Windsurf installed

Same product. Windsurf updated itself to Devin Desktop over the air in June 2026; your plan and settings carried over.

⚠ Slow indexing on big repos

First open indexes the whole codebase - let it finish. Exclude build/vendor folders to speed it up.

⚠ Completions stopped

Sign out and back in, and confirm Devin Desktop is the only AI completion engine running (two engines conflict).

📚 Related Course Lessons

Go deeper on the skills this tool is for:

L46 - Agentic Coding →L40 - AI Chat for Development →L47 - Custom AI Extensions →L56 - From Prompter to Loop Designer →

🔗 Official Resources

Download Devin Desktop ↗Mac, Windows, Linux (formerly Windsurf)VS Code / JetBrains plugin ↗Windsurf plugin (formerly Codeium)Pricing ↗Free, Pro $20, Max $200, Teams Docs ↗Desktop, CLI and cloud agent docs

Links open the official sites. Pricing and features change often - always confirm there. (Verified June 2026.)

→ Compare: Cursor → Compare: VS Code + AI → Compare: GitHub Copilot