GitHub Launches Free Version Of Microsoft Copilot With VS Code Integration: Here's How Many Code Completions Will Be Available Each Month

"The outcome here is to build something with software and not to try an AI tool for the sake of AI," GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke said.

GitHub, owned by Microsoft, has unveiled a free version of its AI-powered coding assistant, Copilot, which will now come pre-installed with Visual Studio Code (VS Code). Previously, Copilot required a subscription starting at $10 per month, with free access limited to verified students, educators, and open-source contributors.

The announcement comes as GitHub celebrates reaching 150 million developers on its platform, a significant jump from 100 million earlier this year.

Move Towards Accessibility

In an interview with TechCrunch, GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke highlighted the company’s ongoing efforts to make its tools more accessible. “You log in and you have Copilot free available, and you can start coding with it, which is ultimately the one thing that people are trying to achieve, right? The outcome here is to build something with software and not to try an AI tool for the sake of AI.”

The free Copilot version is tailored for occasional use, offering up to 2,000 code completions per month. Each AI suggestion counts toward this limit, regardless of whether it is used. While users on this plan are restricted to Anthropic’s Claude 3.5 Sonnet and OpenAI’s GPT-4o models, paid users have access to additional options, such as Google’s Gemini 1.5 Pro.

Copilot Chat, another feature of the tool, allows up to 50 messages per month for free users, while access to all Copilot extensions and skills remains unrestricted.

Expanding Developer Reach

Dohmke emphasised the importance of inclusivity, particularly in regions where subscription costs may be prohibitive. “Our mission is to … enable a billion users to become a developer worldwide — and obviously, if you look around the world, whether it’s in Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, in India or Indonesia, in Pakistan, their ten dollars are much more relative to the average income, and as such, we are hoping to also enable a lot more people who have the ambition to become a developer or use a Copilot to become a more productive, efficient, happy developer in those countries, all in the spirit of our one-billion-developer aspiration,” he said.

The move also simplifies access for students, who previously needed to go through a verification process to use Copilot for free.

Strategic Response To Competition

Since its launch in 2021, Copilot has become a leading AI tool for coders. However, with competitors like Tabnine and AWS offering similar free plans, GitHub’s decision to adopt a freemium model aligns with its strategy to expand its user base through VS Code's widespread adoption.

Dohmke sees this shift as part of a larger vision: “With Copilot Free, we are returning to our freemium roots and are laying the groundwork for something far greater: AI represents our best path to enabling a GitHub with one billion developers. There should be no barrier to entry for experiencing the joy of creating software.”

The free version of Copilot is compatible with VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, and GitHub.com, reinforcing its availability across various platforms.