# Is Cursor free? A Free plan exists, but usage is limited

> As of October 27, 2026, Cursor's Free plan costs $0 with limited Agent and Chat use, and paid plans start at $8 a month.

URL: https://claudegpt.si/news/is-cursor-free  
Published: 2026-10-27T10:51:39.326Z  
Author: ClaudeGPT Si Newsroom  
Section: AI Tools  
Topics: Cursor, AI pricing, AI coding  
Publisher: ClaudeGPT Si

## Key takeaways

- As of October 27, 2026, Cursor has a $0 Free plan with limited Agent, Chat and Tab usage on Cursor's own models.
- Third-party models such as Claude and GPT are not available on Free; paid plans run $8 (Plus), $30, $100 and $200 a month.
- Cursor lists no free trial, and new sign-ups for its legacy student discount closed on June 25, 2026.

Is Cursor free? Partly. As of October 27, 2026, Cursor's [pricing page](https://cursor.com/pricing) lists a Free plan at $0 a month that includes Agent, Chat and Tab completions with Cursor's own models, but only "limited" usage, and no third-party models such as Claude or GPT. Paid plans start at $8 a month.

Cursor does not publish a number for the free allowance. Its docs say only that Free usage is limited, so you find the ceiling by hitting it.

## What the Free plan gets you

According to Cursor's [help center](https://cursor.com/help/account-and-billing/pricing), the Free plan gives access to core features with limited usage. That means Agent, Chat and Tab completions running on Cursor's models, which the docs name as Grok and Composer. Free is part of The X Subscription, the plan family Cursor moved to, so it also covers standard X features.

What Free does not include, as of October 27, 2026:

- Third-party models. The [pricing docs](https://cursor.com/docs/account/pricing) list third-party models as not available on Free.
- Cloud Agents, Bugbot and Origin. These are listed as excluded on the legacy Hobby plan, which Cursor says works the same way for Cursor features.
- A stated free trial. Neither the pricing page nor the docs mention one.

## What Cursor costs on each plan

Prices below are from cursor.com/pricing and the pricing docs, checked on October 27, 2026. They exclude tax.

| Plan | Monthly price | Annual price | Included usage |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Free | $0 | n/a | Limited |
| Plus | $8 | $80 | Base pool, Grok models only |
| Premium | $30 | $300 | 4x Plus |
| Super | $100 | $1,000 | 15x Plus |
| Ultra | $200 | $2,000 | 50x Plus |
| Teams | $30, $100 or $200 per seat | not listed | Matches the seat's tier |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Pooled |

Third-party models on Premium and above are billed at API list price from prepaid credit, outside the plan's pool. Our [breakdown of the weekly pool](https://claudegpt.si/news/cursor-pricing-plans-weekly-pool) covers how that changed from the old monthly plans.

## How the usage limit works

Cursor's docs describe a weekly pool of usage for Cursor models, shared across the editor Agent, the CLI, Cloud Agents and the Grok apps. The pool covers Grok 4.7, Grok 4.6, Grok 4.5 and Composer 2.5, and different models draw from it at different rates. It refreshes weekly, and unused usage does not roll over.

The [usage limits page](https://cursor.com/help/models-and-usage/usage-limits) writes the pool details for paid plans and does not spell out the Free allowance. When you reach your limit, you get a notice in the editor and three options: wait for the weekly reset, keep working from prepaid credit, or upgrade. Cursor says requests are never downgraded in quality or speed.

To see how much is left, check editor settings, or the Usage page at grok.com/dashboard. Our guide to [checking Cursor token usage](https://claudegpt.si/news/cursor-how-to-check-token-usage) walks through it.

## Is there a student discount or free trial?

Not for new sign-ups, as of October 27, 2026. Cursor's [student discount page](https://cursor.com/help/account-and-billing/student-discount) says new sign-ups for the legacy student discount stopped on June 25, 2026. People who already redeemed it keep their rate until the plan expires, then move to the regular price, which is $20 a month on legacy Pro.

Cursor says undergraduates can get credits and discounts at on-campus and online events starting this fall. Master's students, PhD candidates, researchers and educators can request credits through a form on that page. The page lists no amounts.

## What about Hobby, Pro and Pro+?

These are the legacy plans. Hobby is free, Pro is $20 a month and Pro+ is $60 a month, per the [legacy plans docs](https://cursor.com/docs/account/pricing/legacy-cursor-plans). Those docs say existing customers keep them as they are and "new customers start on The X Subscription". They do not say whether the legacy plans can still be bought, so check your account before counting on one.

## What to check before you rely on it

Free is enough to try Cursor's editor and its own models. If your work depends on Claude or GPT inside Cursor, the cheapest route is Premium at $30 a month plus prepaid credit for those models. Cursor can change limits and prices at any time, so confirm on the pricing page before you decide.

## Frequently asked questions

### Does Cursor have a free trial?

Cursor's pricing page and docs do not mention one, as of October 27, 2026. They list a Free plan at $0 instead.

### Is there a Cursor student discount?

New sign-ups for the legacy student discount stopped on June 25, 2026. Existing holders keep their rate until the plan expires, and Cursor offers credits through events and a request form.

### What happens when I hit the Cursor free limit?

Cursor shows a notice in the editor. You can wait for the weekly reset, use prepaid credit, or upgrade. Cursor does not publish the Free allowance.

### Can I use Claude or GPT on the free Cursor plan?

No. Cursor's pricing docs list third-party models as not available on Free. On Premium and above they are billed at API list price from prepaid credit.

## Sources

- [Cursor pricing](https://cursor.com/pricing), Cursor
- [Cursor docs: pricing](https://cursor.com/docs/account/pricing), Cursor
- [Cursor docs: legacy Cursor plans](https://cursor.com/docs/account/pricing/legacy-cursor-plans), Cursor
- [Cursor help: pricing and plans](https://cursor.com/help/account-and-billing/pricing), Cursor
- [Cursor help: usage limits](https://cursor.com/help/models-and-usage/usage-limits), Cursor
- [Cursor help: student discount](https://cursor.com/help/account-and-billing/student-discount), Cursor