GitHub is changing its approach to its Copilot. Rather than reserving it for people paying a subscription, the company adopts a freemium model: a free version, usable by everyone on Visual Studio Code, but with monthly limits. A way to attract developers who have not yet succumbed to its sirens.
There are mainly two ways to use Copilot: code suggestions and direct requests via messages in the chat interface. This free version has limitations on both. It will therefore not be able to exceed 2,000 code suggestions and 50 messages exchanged in one month.
Not all functions are present either. You will have to do without the summaries of pull requests, issues and discussions, the upgrade assistant for Java, the code review in GitHub, Worskpace for pull requests, GitHub Mobile or the online interface command and compatibility with Windows Terminal.
Let us add that the compatibility of this free offer is limited to Visual Studio Code. You of course need a GitHub account and the offer is reserved for individual developers.
To remove these limits, you will of course have to pay for the Pro offer, available at $10 per month. Compatibility then extends to Visual Studio, Xcode, JetBrains, Neovim and Azure Data Studio.
« GitHub has a long history of offering free products and services to developers. Starting with free open source and public collaboration, we’ve added free private repositories, free minutes for GitHub Actions and GitHub Codespaces, and free package and release storage. Today we’re adding GitHub Copilot to the mix by launching GitHub Copilot Free », enthused Thomas Dohmke, CEO of GitHub. Even the boss of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, tweeted last night to announce the news.
