Cursor
AI-native IDE built on VS Code. Integrated tab completion, inline editing, chat, and agent mode — all in one editor. Cloud-only, no local model support.
Coding Agent, Developer Tool
No — cloud only
No
No
No — runs in the cloud
All-in-one AI IDE without provider management
Easy
macOS, Linux, Windows
Paid
Cursor is AI-native IDE built on VS Code. Integrated tab completion, inline editing, chat, and agent mode — all in one editor. Cloud-only, no local model support. Cursor is a proprietary AI-native IDE built on top of VS Code.
Cursor runs in the cloud via API providers. Cursor is a paid product. No special GPU required — all AI inference runs in the cloud via Cursor's servers. The IDE itself runs on any machine that can run VS Code.
Can it run on my hardware?
Cursor runs entirely in the cloud — no GPU required on your end. All AI inference happens on remote servers.
App compatibility
| Feature | Supported |
|---|---|
| Local models | No |
| OpenRouter | No |
| OpenAI-compatible API | No |
| Ollama | No |
| LM Studio | No |
| Anthropic API | No |
| Google API | No |
| Mistral API | No |
| Docker | No |
| Works offline | No |
| Needs GPU | No |
Recommended models
Local vs cloud: which should you use?
Use local models if
- You want privacy — data never leaves your machine
- You already have a GPU with sufficient VRAM
- You want zero per-token API costs
- You need offline access
Use cloud/API if
- Your GPU has insufficient VRAM for the models you need
- You want access to frontier model quality
- You need maximum coding/reasoning performance
- You don't want to manage local model downloads and updates
Setup overview
Setting up Cursor is straightforward. It runs on macos, linux, windows.
Limitations
- Local model users — no local inference support
- OpenRouter users — uses own infrastructure only
- Budget-conscious developers — $20/mo subscription required
- Maximum control — proprietary models, limited configuration
Related
Frequently asked questions
- What is Cursor?
- Cursor is AI-native IDE built on VS Code. Integrated tab completion, inline editing, chat, and agent mode — all in one editor. Cloud-only, no local model support. Cursor is a proprietary AI-native IDE built on top of VS Code.
- What is the best local model for Cursor?
- Cursor does not support local models directly. Use cloud API models for the best experience.
- Can I run Cursor on 12 GB VRAM?
- 12 GB VRAM is generally not sufficient for serious agentic coding with Cursor. You can run smaller models (7B-14B at Q4) but tool-calling reliability and context handling will be limited. For the best experience, 24 GB VRAM (RTX 3090/4090) is the community-recommended minimum for local agentic coding.
- Is Cursor free?
- Cursor is a paid product. It requires a subscription or one-time payment.