GitHub Copilot is cheaper at $10/mo, against $20/mo.
OpenAI's coding agent: CLI + autonomous cloud PRs
AI completions and agents, native to GitHub
Copilot is the cheaper, safer default: $10/mo Pro, completions in the editor you already use, and a free tier at 2,000 completions a month. Codex is the more autonomous one, a terminal agent plus a cloud lane that takes a ticket and opens the PR itself. If your company already pays for Copilot, the real question is whether you also want Codex on top.
Codex and GitHub Copilot are alternatives in the Coding agents category. Codex: OpenAI's coding agent: CLI + autonomous cloud PRs. GitHub Copilot: AI completions and agents, native to GitHub. GitHub Copilot is cheaper at $10/mo against $20/mo.
| Attribute | Codex | GitHub Copilot |
|---|---|---|
| Primary surface | CLI + autonomous cloud PRs | Editor completions + GitHub agent |
| Free tier | None | 2,000 completions/mo |
| Entry paid price | Bundled with ChatGPT Plus $20/mo | $10/mo Pro |
| Top tier | ChatGPT Pro $200/mo | $100/mo Max |
| Code review | Via the PRs it opens | Native review on GitHub |
Copilot is the cheaper, safer default: $10/mo Pro, completions in the editor you already use, and a free tier at 2,000 completions a month. Codex is the more autonomous one, a terminal agent plus a cloud lane that takes a ticket and opens the PR itself. If your company already pays for Copilot, the real question is whether you also want Codex on top.
GitHub Copilot, at $10/mo against $20/mo.
OpenAI's coding agent: CLI + autonomous cloud PRs. It sits in the coding agents category, and ships in 1 tested stack here.
AI completions and agents, native to GitHub. It sits in the ai ides category.
They are alternatives at the same step, so most stacks pick one or the other. No aistack.sh stack uses both today, though nothing prevents a custom workflow.
Beyond each other, Codex's closest alternatives are Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf. GitHub Copilot's closest alternatives are Cursor, Claude Code, Windsurf, Claude.
