Head-to-head comparison

Codex vs GitHub Copilot

GitHub Copilot is cheaper at $10/mo, against $20/mo.

· 1 months ago

Codex vs GitHub Copilot pricing

Codex
Codex
Coding agents
$20/mo
Free · $20/mo ChatGPT Plus · $100/mo Pro 5x · $200/mo Pro 20x · $25/user/mo Business · API metered

OpenAI's coding agent: CLI + autonomous cloud PRs

$10/mo
Free 2,000 completions/mo · $10/mo Pro · $39/mo Pro+ · $100/mo Max

AI completions and agents, native to GitHub

Quick answer

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.

When to pick which

Codex

Pick Codex when

  • You want an agent that works the ticket end to end and opens the pull request without you watching.
  • You live in the terminal and want file system access rather than an editor plugin.
  • You already pay for ChatGPT Plus at $20/mo or Pro from $100/mo, since Codex is bundled with both.
  • You are happy to treat the cloud lane as a separate task budget on top of the subscription.

Pick GitHub Copilot when

  • You want the cheapest paid tier of any serious coding assistant at $10/mo Pro.
  • Your employer has already bought it, which is true more often than for any competitor.
  • You want completions in your editor first and agents second.
  • You want AI code review on GitHub itself without adding another vendor.

Hard differences

AttributeCodexGitHub Copilot
Primary surfaceCLI + autonomous cloud PRsEditor completions + GitHub agent
Free tierChatGPT Free, $0/mo2,000 completions/mo
Entry paid priceBundled with ChatGPT Go $8/mo$10/mo Pro
Top tierChatGPT Pro $500/mo$100/mo Max
Code reviewVia the PRs it opensNative review on GitHub

Where each ships

Codex-only stacks (1)

Codex vs GitHub Copilot FAQ

Should you pick Codex or GitHub Copilot?

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.

Which is cheaper, Codex or GitHub Copilot?

GitHub Copilot, at $10/mo against $20/mo.

What is Codex best for?

OpenAI's coding agent: CLI + autonomous cloud PRs. It sits in the coding agents category, and ships in 1 tested stack here.

What is GitHub Copilot best for?

AI completions and agents, native to GitHub. It sits in the ai ides category.

Can I use Codex and GitHub Copilot together?

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.

What are the alternatives to Codex and GitHub Copilot?

Beyond each other, Codex's closest alternatives are Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf. GitHub Copilot's closest alternatives are Cursor, Claude Code, Windsurf, Claude.

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