Cursor AI Review: Features and Context Window for Vibe Coding
I tested this.
What makes Cursor the best AI coding tool?
Cursor is the best all-rounder because of Composer Agent mode. It handles 20+ file refactoring without losing context. The VS Code compatibility means all extensions and keybindings work. The $20/mo plan gives 500 premium requests. For most developers, this is the right starting point.
How does the context window work?
The context window handles about 20 files simultaneously. Enough for most features but not the entire codebase. For large refactors, supplement with Claude Code for planning and use Cursor for implementation. The combo covers features of any size.
What is the optimal workflow?
Optimal workflow: Normal mode for 80% of work (inline edits, free). Edit mode for 15% (single-file changes, 0.5 premium). Agent mode for 5% (multi-file refactoring, 1 premium). Review every diff. Test after each Composer session. Commit every 30 minutes.
Cursor: best all-rounder. Composer Agent handles 20+ files. Context: ~20 files. Workflow: Normal 80%, Edit 15%, Agent 5%. $20/mo for 500 premium requests.
Cursor is the safest choice for most developers. It is not the most innovative (Windsurf has better inline suggestions). It is not the cheapest (Copilot is $10). But it is the most reliable across all scenarios. In AI coding tools, reliability matters more than peak performance on any single metric.
Steps.
AI tools are powerful but require human judgment and careful oversight at every step of the development process. I learned this lesson the hard way after several production incidents caused by trusting AI output without verification. Review every change before merging to main. Test every feature with real edge cases, not just the happy path that the AI assumes. Never trust AI-generated code in production without thorough verification. These habits will prevent the production incidents that I experienced in my early days of vibe coding. The extra few minutes spent on review and testing pay for themselves many times over in prevented issues and cleaner codebases that are easier to maintain and debug over the long term.
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