JetBrains Survey Reveals Shifting AI Coding Tools Landscape: Claude Code Surges While GitHub Copilot Growth Stalls
Key Takeaways
- ▸90% of developers worldwide use at least one AI tool at work, with 74% adopting specialized AI coding assistants and agents
- ▸Claude Code is the fastest-growing AI coding tool, achieving 18% adoption (24% in North America) and 91% customer satisfaction despite being less known than GitHub Copilot
- ▸GitHub Copilot's growth has stalled at 29% adoption, while Cursor's growth has also slowed, indicating market consolidation around best-of-breed solutions
Summary
JetBrains' latest AI Pulse survey of over 10,000 professional developers worldwide reveals a rapidly evolving AI coding tools market. The January 2026 findings show that 90% of developers regularly use at least one AI tool at work, with 74% having adopted specialized AI coding assistants, editors, and agents. GitHub Copilot remains the most widely known tool at 76% awareness and 29% adoption, but its growth has stalled since the previous survey period. Meanwhile, Claude Code is experiencing explosive growth, jumping from 3% adoption in mid-2025 to 18% globally and 24% in North America, with exceptional satisfaction metrics (91% CSAT, 54 NPS). Cursor, once a close competitor to Copilot, has also seen slowing growth and now shares second place with Claude Code at 18% adoption rates.
The data suggests a fundamental market shift toward "best-of-breed" AI coding agents, where superior product performance now outweighs ecosystem lock-in. This indicates that developers prioritize individual tool excellence over integrated platform stacks when evaluating AI coding solutions. The survey, conducted across eight languages with a globally representative sample, provides crucial insights into professional adoption patterns as the industry moves toward more complex agentic development workflows.
- Developers are increasingly choosing superior standalone tools over integrated platform stacks, prioritizing performance and user experience over ecosystem lock-in
Editorial Opinion
This JetBrains research provides valuable data-driven insights into a rapidly consolidating AI coding tools market. The dramatic rise of Claude Code—achieving 6x growth in adoption within months—signals that the market has matured beyond early adopter phases and is now rewarding genuine product excellence. The stagnation of GitHub Copilot's growth despite its dominant market position suggests developers view it as a baseline offering rather than a category leader, a significant shift in just 12 months. As agentic AI becomes the norm in development workflows, these preference patterns will likely continue favoring tools with superior intelligence and user experience.
