Signal-by-signal breakdown
| Signal | Cursor | Windsurf |
|---|---|---|
| Signal Score (overall) | 87.2 ✓ | 76.0 |
| Citation Score | 90 ✓ | 78 |
| Trust Score | 84 ✓ | 74 |
| Entity Strength | 88 ✓ | 76 |
| Coverage Score | 84 ✓ | 72 |
| Source Diversity | 86 ✓ | 73 |
| Consistency | 85 ✓ | 75 |
| Freshness | 94 ✓ | 88 |
| Expert Mentions | 88 ✓ | 74 |
Cursor- Starting price
- $20/mo
- Founded
- 2022
- HQ
- San Francisco, California
- Category rank
- #2
Windsurf- Starting price
- $15/mo
- Founded
- 2021
- HQ
- Mountain View, California
- Category rank
- #5
Which should you choose?
Choose Cursor if…
- →Developers who want AI editing across a whole codebase
- →Teams moving from autocomplete to agentic workflows
- →Engineers who want a familiar editor with deeper AI context
Choose Windsurf if…
- →Developers who want an agent that keeps up with their edits
- →Teams evaluating an alternative to Cursor
- →Engineers who need self-hosted or on-premise deployment options
Frequently asked questions
Which has better AI visibility, Cursor or Windsurf?
Cursor has stronger AI visibility, with a Signal Score of 87.2 versus 76.0 for Windsurf — a 11.2-point gap. AI engines cite and recommend Cursor more consistently.
What is Cursor's AI visibility score?
Cursor has a Top Citation Signal Score of 87.2 out of 100 (Strong Signal), measured across ai coding assistants buyer questions in AI answers.
What is Windsurf's AI visibility score?
Windsurf has a Top Citation Signal Score of 76.0 out of 100 (Established), measured across ai coding assistants buyer questions in AI answers.
How is Cursor vs Windsurf measured for AI visibility?
Both brands are scored on Top Citation Signal's eight signals — citation, trust, entity strength, coverage, source diversity, consistency, freshness, and expert mentions — from real answers given by AI engines with live web search. The comparison is independent and not pay-to-play.
How does your brand score?
See exactly how AI engines cite and recommend your business — the same way we scored Cursor and Windsurf. Free to start with a Google sign-in.
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