Visual Studio
Classic
Full-featured IDE
Visual Studio is Microsoft's heavyweight IDE for .NET, C++ and enterprise development.
Debugger
Refactoring
Profiler
Freemium · from $0
JetBrains Rider
AI tool
The Cross-Platform .NET IDE
4.6
Paid · from $16.90/mo
Best for .NET developers wanting cross-platform IDEOverview
JetBrains Rider is a fast, feature-rich cross-platform IDE for .NET, ASP.NET, Xamarin and Unity development, with AI Assistant for code completion and generation.
Key features
- Cross-platform .NET development
- AI Assistant integration
- Advanced refactoring tools
- Unity and Unreal support
Pros
- Runs on macOS/Linux unlike full Visual Studio
- Superior refactoring tools
Cons
- Paid subscription required
- Heavier than lightweight editors
JetBrains Rider screenshot
Captured from the official website
JetBrains Rider replaces
AI alternatives to JetBrains Rider
Visual Studio Code
AI
Code editing. Redefined.
Visual Studio Code is Microsoft's free, extensible code editor with a massive extension marketplace, integrated terminal, debugging, and AI assistant integrations.
Massive extension marketplace
Integrated terminal & debugger
Git integration
Free · from Free
Cursor
AI
AI-first code editor
Cursor is a VS Code-based editor where an AI agent reads your repository, writes multi-file changes and explains unfamiliar code.
Repo-aware chat
Multi-file edits
Inline completions
Freemium · from $0
JetBrains Fleet
AI
The next-generation IDE by JetBrains
Fleet is JetBrains' lightweight, distributed code editor that can scale up into a full IDE with smart code assistance and remote development support.
Lightweight editor mode
Smart code navigation
Remote development
Freemium · from Free
Zed
AI
The fast, collaborative code editor
Zed is a native, GPU-accelerated code editor built in Rust that combines extreme performance with built-in AI assistance and real-time multiplayer collaboration.
Native GPU-accelerated rendering
Built-in AI code assistance
Real-time collaborative editing
Freemium · from Free
Windsurf
AI
Agentic AI coding editor
Windsurf is an AI-first editor whose agent reads your whole codebase, plans changes and edits multiple files at once. It is a direct rival to Cursor.
Codebase-aware agent
Multi-file edits
Inline completions
Freemium · from $15/mo