In 2025, AI isn’t just a buzzword in tech circles, it’s an essential coding companion. Software teams across the globe are increasingly usingartificial intelligence tools to speed up delivery cycles, cut down debugging time, and maintain high-quality codebases.
Unlike the early days of autocomplete suggestions, the best AI pair programming tools 2025 offer:
The result? Developers aren’t just faster, they’re building smarter, cleaner, and more scalable codebases.
This blog will walk you through 10 AI pair programming tools for developers that are worth your attention this year, with an honest look at their strengths, weaknesses, and what makes each stand out.
If 2024 was the year of general-purpose AI coding assistants, 2025 belongs to context-first tools like Greta.
What makes Greta different is its ability to understand entire projects, not just the line of code you’re typing. Developers can point Greta to a repo, and it can quickly navigate, summarise, and generate meaningful code suggestions with deep context.
Why Greta Stands Out:
For developers working in VS Code, Greta integrates seamlessly, making it one of the best AI pair programming tools 2025 for devs who juggle complex projects.
GitHub Copilot has become synonymous with AI coding. It’s still one of the best AI coding assistants in 2025, especially for developers who live inside VS Code.
What’s New in 2025:
If you’re looking for something lightweight and already embedded in your daily flow, Copilot remains a strong pick. But if you need deep repo intelligence, you may want to compare it with newer players.
For enterprise teams, Amazon CodeWhisperer is an appealing option. It’s optimized for AWS environments and integrates tightly with Amazon services.
Why It Works for Enterprises:
If your stack is deeply tied to AWS, CodeWhisperer might be your best bet in 2025.
Tabnine has carved out its niche by offering AI pair programming tools for developers who prioritise privacy. Instead of relying purely on public models, Tabnine can be trained on your private codebase.
Key Features:
It may not be as flashy as Copilot, but for developers working in security-first environments, Tabnine is a lifesaver.
While Replit is often seen as a playground for quick projects, its AI tool Ghostwriter has matured into a serious contender in 2025.
What’s New:
If you’re working on side projects or prototyping fast, Ghostwriter is one of the best AI pair programming tools 2025 for rapid iteration.
Cody by Sourcegraph is designed for navigating huge codebases. Thinkenterprise-scale monorepos with thousands of files.
Why Developers Love Cody:
It’s the go-to AI assistant if your day-to-day involves untangling complex legacy systems.
JetBrains IDEs (like IntelliJ and PyCharm) are still favourites among professional developers. Their AI assistant is now built directly into the IDE experience.
Features Developers Appreciate:
For devs who live in JetBrains products, this is the best AI coding assistant to stay fully integrated.
Cursor isn’t just a plugin; it’s an entire AI-native IDE. Instead of bolting AI onto an old interface, Cursor rebuilds the coding environment around AI-first workflows.
Why It’s Different:
Cursor feels like the IDE Copilot should have built from scratch.
Born from research projects, PolyCoder has become a go-to for developers who want open-source AI in software development.
Strengths:
It may not have the polish of commercial offerings, but for developers who value control, it’s a gem.
MutableAI focuses on making refactoring and iteration frictionless. Instead of just writing new code, it excels at restructuring existing codebases intelligently.
Best Features:
For teams that spend more time maintaining than creating, this is a true productivity booster.
Choosing between these tools isn’t about picking “the best” globally it’s about picking the best for your workflow. Here’s how to compare:
If you’re in VS Code, here’s the quick rundown:
This makes VS Code the powerhouse editor for AI pair programming in 2025.
Tool | Best For | Key Strengths | Limitations | Works in VS Code? | Unique Edge |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Greta | Complex, large repos | Repo-wide understanding, architectural insights, and interactive conversations | Newer tool, still growing ecosystem | ✅ Yes | Deep context awareness across full projects |
GitHub Copilot | Everyday coding, small to mid projects | Seamless VS Code integration, large user base, good framework support | Limited repo-wide reasoning | ✅ Yes | Most popular assistant with GitHub-native workflows |
Amazon CodeWhisperer | AWS-heavy teams | AWS library recommendations, built-in security checks, and enterprise compliance | Less flexible outside AWS | ✅ Yes | Best for enterprise + AWS integration |
Tabnine | Privacy-focused teams | Trainable on private code, team consistency, and on-premise options | Less creative than Copilot | ✅ Yes | Strong data privacy and team control |
Replit Ghostwriter | Fast prototyping, learners | Full-stack suggestions, test generation, great for beginners | Best in-browser, weaker in local IDEs | ⚠️ Partial | Best for learning & rapid iteration |
Sourcegraph Cody | Large monorepos, onboarding | Code search + AI, repo-scale reasoning, natural language Q&A | Best for larger projects, overkill for small apps | ✅ Yes | Excellent for navigating legacy repos |
JetBrains AI Assistant | Java/Kotlin devs, JetBrains IDE users | Refactoring, smart docs/tests, native JetBrains integration | Not as strong outside JetBrains ecosystem | ⚠️ Partial | Best for JetBrains ecosystem |
Cursor | AI-first workflows | AI-native IDE, repo awareness, natural conversation coding | Requires moving to a new IDE | ❌ No | Built as an AI-first IDE |
PolyCoder | Researchers, open-source fans | Transparent, self-hosted, multi-language | Lacks polish, weaker UX | ⚠️ Partial | Open-source and customizable |
MutableAI | Teams focused on refactoring | Automated refactoring, test updates, smooth VS Code flow | Not as broad in feature set as Copilot or Greta | ✅ Yes | Speeds up maintenance and refactoring |
By 2025, AI pair programming isn’t optional it’s becoming the standard way developers write code. What used to feel like “cheating” is now just good engineering practice.
The tools we explored from Greta to Copilot, Cody to MutableAI each bring something unique to the table. Whether you want enterprise-grade compliance, repo-wide intelligence, or a lightweight sidekick in VS Code, there’s an AI partner waiting for you.
But one thing is certain: the best AI pair programming tools 2025 won’t replace developers, they’ll amplify them. Just like pair programming with a human, the magic happens when AI and a developer collaborate as equals.
AI pair programming is when developers use artificial intelligence tools to act as a coding partner. These tools suggest, review, debug, and even refactor code in real time.
It depends on your needs: Greta for repo-wide intelligence, Copilot for everyday coding in VS Code, Tabnine for privacy, and CodeWhisperer for AWS-heavy teams.
es, most of the best AI coding assistants like Greta, Copilot, Tabnine, and MutableAI integrate directly into VS Code. Some (like Cursor) require a separate IDE.
No AI pair programming tools are designed to assist, not replace. They speed up tasks, reduce bugs, and free developers to focus on solving higher-level problems.
Look at: repo size support, integration with your stack (VS Code, JetBrains, AWS), privacy needs, and whether you need fast prototyping or deep architectural insights.
See it in action