Top AI Coding Extensions for VS Code in 2025

Not everyone wants to switch to a new IDE like Cursor or Antigravity. Sometimes, you just want to supercharge your existing VS Code setup. In 2025, the ecosystem of AI extensions has exploded.

Here is the definitive list of the top AI coding extensions you can install right now.

1. GitHub Copilot

The Industry Standard

Copilot remains the default choice for most developers. With the new Agent Mode, it has evolved from a simple autocompleter to a semi-autonomous coding partner.

Best For: Teams using GitHub Enterprise and developers who want a "set it and forget it" experience.
Key Feature: Deep integration with GitHub Issues and PRs.
Price: $10/mo (Individual)

2. Continue

The Open Source Powerhouse

Continue is for the power user who wants control. It allows you to bring your own model (BYOM)—whether that's Claude 3.7, GPT-4o, or a local Llama 3 running on Ollama.

Best For: Privacy-conscious devs and those who want to use the absolute latest models immediately.
Key Feature: Full control over the context window and model selection.
Price: Free (Open Source)

3. Codeium

The Fast & Free Alternative

Codeium has gained a massive following for its generous free tier and blazing fast speed. It offers a "Windsurf-lite" experience directly inside VS Code.

Best For: Individual developers who want a premium experience for free.
Key Feature: "Command" mode that lets you refactor code with natural language.
Price: Free (Individual)

4. Cline

The Agentic Debugger

Cline (formerly a niche tool) has broken out as a top-tier agentic extension. It specializes in autonomous debugging loops—it can run your app, see the error, fix the code, and try again.

**Best For:**Solving complex bugs and refactoring legacy code.
Key Feature: Autonomous terminal control and file editing.
Price: Free (Open Core)

5. Amp (Sourcegraph)

The Enterprise Brain

Amp brings Sourcegraph's massive code graph knowledge to your editor. It understands your entire organization's codebase, not just the open files.

Best For: Large enterprise teams working in monorepos.
Key Feature: Knowledge graph context that spans thousands of repositories.
Price: Enterprise Pricing

6. Roo Code

The Code Review Expert

Roo Code focuses on the collaborative aspect of coding. It acts as an always-on code reviewer, catching potential issues before you even commit.

Best For: Teams who want to keep code quality high.
Key Feature: AI-driven code review comments in real-time.
Price: $15/mo

7. Amazon Q

The AWS Specialist

If you live in AWS, Amazon Q is indispensable. It's trained on years of AWS best practices and can help you write infrastructure-as-code (CDK, Terraform) better than any generic model.

Best For: Cloud engineers and backend devs on AWS.
Key Feature: Deep knowledge of AWS services and security best practices.
Price: $19/mo

8. Tabnine

The Privacy-First Choice

Tabnine was one of the first AI coding tools, and it remains a strong contender for enterprises that demand strict data privacy. It can run entirely self-hosted.

Best For: Banks, healthcare, and security-sensitive industries.
Key Feature: Zero data retention and air-gapped deployment options.
Price: $12/mo

Conclusion

You don't need a new IDE to get agentic powers.

Grab Copilot for reliability.
Grab Continue for flexibility.
Grab Cline for autonomy.
Grab Codeium for speed.

The best part? You can install most of these side-by-side.