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What Is Codeium?

Codeium is an AI-powered coding assistant designed to simplify the coding process for developers. Utilizing advanced machine learning models, Codeium understands the context of your code to offer intelligent code completions. Unlike GitHub Copilot, Codeium features a proprietary language model optimized for its platform, with the option to access GPT-4 in its premium plans. This model is trained on a diverse dataset to ensure accurate and contextually relevant code suggestions and solutions.

Codeium boosts developer productivity through seamless integration with popular IDEs like IntelliJ, PyCharm, and Android Studio. Its capabilities include AI-powered autocomplete, intelligent code search, and an AI-powered chat feature. These tools enable developers to generate code snippets, efficiently search for relevant files and code, and interact with the AI for tasks such as refactoring code, debugging, or creating comprehensive documentation. This makes Codeium a versatile tool that enhances the coding workflow and meets a wide range of programming needs.

What Is GitHub Copilot?

GitHub Copilot is an AI-powered code assistant developed by GitHub, a leading platform for developers. It is designed to enhance your coding efficiency by providing relevant suggestions tailored to your code.

The primary strength of GitHub Copilot lies in its contextual understanding of your code, offering suggestions for entire lines or blocks. It leverages the power of GPT-4 and OpenAI’s Codex, a specialized large language model trained on a comprehensive dataset of open-source code.

GitHub Copilot seamlessly integrates with various IDEs, including Visual Studio Code, JetBrains IDEs, Vim, Neovim, and Azure Data Studio. This integration allows developers to utilize Copilot’s features directly within their preferred development environment. Additionally, it supports multiple programming languages, making it a versatile tool suitable for developers working across different domains.

This is part of a series of articles about AI tools for developers.

Codeium vs. GitHub Copilot: 4 Key Differences 

Let’s have a look into the key differences between these two coding platforms.

1. IDE Integrations

Codeium supports several IDEs including IntelliJ, PyCharm, WebStorm, GoLand, PhpStorm, CLion, and Android Studio.

GitHub Copilot currently supports Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs, Vim, Neovim, and Azure Data Studio. 

2. Technology and Features

Codeium uses its own proprietary LLM to generate code snippets and suggestions, but also supports GPT-4 in its paid Teams plan. It provides AI-powered autocomplete, intelligent code search, which helps developers find files and code related to their intent, and AI-powered chat, which allows developers to generate boilerplate, refactor existing code, suggest bug fixes, and generate documentation.

GitHub Copilot, built on OpenAI’s Codex and GPT-4 models, provides lines or blocks of code based on context, drawing from a vast pool of data from public GitHub repositories. It provides a chat interface that lets developers debug existing code or create new code, scan generated code for security vulnerabilities, get AI-based suggestions as they type, and generate personalized code documentation with inline citations. A new feature is the ability to automatically generate pull request descriptions. 

3. User Experience and Community

Codeium is designed with a focus on enhancing user experience, offering a clean and intuitive interface that integrates seamlessly with various IDEs. Codeium’s community is growing, with a dedicated Discord channel for support and interaction among users. This fosters a collaborative environment where developers can share experiences, seek advice, and contribute to the platform’s improvement.

On the other hand, GitHub Copilot benefits from GitHub’s vast and active community. Users can leverage the collective knowledge and expertise of millions of developers, contributing to a rich and dynamic ecosystem. GitHub Copilot’s integration with popular IDEs and its user-friendly interface make it accessible and convenient for developers. The platform’s continuous updates and feature enhancements are largely driven by community feedback and the evolving needs of developers.

4. Pricing and Plans

Codeium offers an individual plan that is free forever, includes features like rapid code autocomplete, in-editor AI chat assistant, unlimited usage, trained on permissive data, support via Discord, and encryption in transit. There is also a Teams Plan that Costs $12 per seat/month for up to 200 seats. It includes all features of the Individual plan, plus an admin usage dashboard, seat management and invites, advanced personalization on your code base, GPT-4 support, and organization-wide zero-day retention.

GitHub Copilot offers both individual and business plans, with the individual plan priced at $10/month or $100/year and the business plan at $19/user/month. The business plan includes advanced features like organization-wide policy management and audit logs. Copilot also provides a 30-day free trial, allowing users to explore its features before committing to a subscription.

Codeium vs. GitHub Copilot: How to Choose? 

When deciding between Codeium and GitHub Copilot, consider the following factors to align the choice with your specific needs:

• Integration and compatibility: Assess which IDEs you currently use or plan to use. If your preferred IDE is better supported by one platform over the other, this could significantly influence your decision.
• Feature set and technology: Determine which features are most critical to your workflow. The two platforms offer similar capabilities, but it is a good idea to try each of them in real-world scenarios, experiment with IDE code completion, chat, and documentation features, and see which platform feels a more natural complement for your coding style.
• User experience and community support: Consider the type of community and support you prefer. Codeium’s dedicated Discord channel offers a more intimate community setting for interaction and support, while GitHub Copilot benefits from a vast, active community, potentially providing broader insights and networking opportunities.
• Pricing structure: Evaluate your budget and the pricing plans of each platform. If you’re an individual developer or a small team, the cost could be a decisive factor. Codeium’s free individual plan and cost-effective Teams plan may be attractive for budget-conscious users, while GitHub Copilot’s pricing structure, including a free trial period, offers flexibility to explore its features before committing.

By carefully considering these factors, you can make a more informed decision between Codeium and GitHub Copilot, ensuring that the chosen platform aligns with your specific development needs, preferences, and budget constraints.