Okay, let’s get real for a second.
If you're coding in 2025 and you're not using AI tools yet... why? No judgment,
but also—you're making life harder than it needs to be.
I used to think AI coding tools were just hype or maybe something only junior
devs would lean on. But I gave a few of them a try, and now I’m lowkey annoyed
at how much time I wasted doing things the “pure” way.
So here's a quick rundown of the AI tools that have actually made my dev life
easier, faster, or just... less annoying. No fluff. Just what’s worked for me
(and what might work for you too).
GitHub Copilot
The autocomplete I didn’t know I needed
Yeah yeah, everyone’s heard of this one. But it’s actually
good. I was skeptical at first, but then it started finishing entire functions
the way I would’ve written them—and sometimes better. If you use VS Code, this
one’s kind of a no-brainer.
iIs $10/month (free for students + OSS folks)
Amazon Q Developer
Kind of a must if you touch AWS stuff
I mostly use this when I’m dealing with AWS setups, which usually gives me a
headache. Q Developer helps with boilerplate and even flags security issues.
It’s like having a friendly AWS-savvy dev in your corner.
Free version available, Pro is \$19/month
Codium
A solid, free Copilot alternative
If you’re not trying to spend money (respect), Codium is actually pretty great.
It’s make autocomplete with multiple languages, and you don’t have to install
much to get going. Definitely worth trying if you’re on a budget.
🤖 Claude (by Anthropic)
Smarter than I expected
I wasn’t expecting much from Claude, but turns out it’s surprisingly good at
understanding context. You can describe what you want in regular language, and
it’ll generate clean, readable code. Bonus: it explains what it wrote, which
makes it a great learning tool too.
Free version available, Pro is \$20/month
🧠 ChatGPT
You already know. But yes, it’s useful.
Yes, it’s everywhere. But it’s actually helpful. I’ve used it to troubleshoot
bugs, review logic, and even talk through how a feature *should* work before I
touch code. It’s like rubber-duck debugging—but the duck talks back.
Free trial is enough. If you need GPT-4 it's chagege20$/month.
Codie by Sourcegraph
Reads your whole codebase like a pro
This one is a bit more advanced. If you’re working on big projects, Codie can
understand your codebase and keep things consistent. You can even ask it
questions like “Where is the auth token handled?” and it’ll find it for you.
Kinda wild.
Free for solo use, \$9/month for Pro
🎨 Visual Copilot
Turns Figma into code. Seriously.
This one blew my mind a bit. You connect it to your Figma designs and it spits
out actual frontend code. No more manually slicing and dicing mockups. It’s not
perfect, but it’s way faster than starting from scratch.
Free tier, \$19/month for more features
🔐 Snyk
Security that doesn’t feel annoying
I’ve started using Snyk more seriously this year. It checks your code and
dependencies for vulnerabilities, and it’s actually helpful without being
overwhelming. Integrates into your workflow without getting in the way.
Free for individuals, paid plans for teams
📚 Pieces for Developers
Finally organizing my spaghetti snippets
This is a niche tool but super handy. Pieces lets you save code snippets and
automatically tags them, which saves me from digging through old project
folders or scrolling through my notes app for that one regex pattern I can
never remember.
Still free at the time of writing
📝 Otter Ai
Meeting notes that don’t suck
Not a coding tool exactly, but I use this when I’m on team calls or doing code
reviews. Otter keep record of everything, and makes it searchable, then gives
you actual summaries. Saves me from frantically writing notes or forgetting who
said what.
Free basic trial and if you want to purchase paid plan,it starts at
\~\$17/month
Cursor
It an IDE with AI built-in
Cursor looks simillar with VS Code, but with AI baked in
from the ground up.You can talk to it like a teammate—ask questions, get ideas,
and even have it help you tweak stuff across your whole project.It’s kind of
like having a coding friend who never sleeps, lives in your editor, and always
knows what you’re trying to do—even when you don’t.
🛠️ VS Code + Extensions
Still the GOAT, just got some new tricks
If you’re already using VS Code (and let’s be real, most of us are), you don’t
need to switch to anything fancy. Just toss in a couple AI extensions—like
Copilot or CodeWhisperer—and suddenly your editor feels way smarter. It’s like
upgrading your toolbox without having to rebuild your whole workshop.
Customizable, fast, familiar.
Final Thoughts
AI tools won’t write your next big app for you. But they
will absolutely save you time, reduce mental overhead, and make you feel way
less alone when you're staring down a bug at 2 AM.
Use what helps. Ignore what doesn't. But don't sleep on
AI—it’s not just a trend anymore. It's a toolkit.
Let me know if you’ve tried any of these—or if there’s one I
missed that you swear by. Always down to try new stuff.
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