Last year I spent a day moving VS Code plugins and keybinds to Cursor, thinking it was the future. Last week I clicked Cancel Subscription. Not because GPT-5 isn't smart enough, but because a colleague used a domestic tool called Trae-for free-and built an API with auth middleware from one sentence. I was still agonizing over $20/month, and suddenly felt a bit cheated.
The Unsubscribe Wave: Not That Tools Got Worse, But Choices Exploded
Zhihu, Bilibili, V2EX are full of "bye Cursor" and "domestic AI coding卷 crazy." The sentiment boils down to three points:
- Wallet pain: Cursor Pro is $20/month, Claude Code is token-billed, while domestic tools are basically free or generously quota'd.
- Network and fit pain: International tools lag loading models or indexing large repos; Chinese comments and docs feel machine-translated.
- Anxiety from the卷: ByteDance, Alibaba, Tencent are baking Agent capability, cloud-native integration, and WeChat ecosystem right into the IDE.
I spent a week running Cursor, Trae, Qoder (Alibaba Tongyi Lingma IDE), CodeBuddy (Tencent Cloud), and Claude Code from install to real project.
Five Tools' Real Performance
| Tool | Form | Model Core | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cursor | VS Code mod | GPT-4.1, Claude 4.0 etc. | $20/mo Pro |
| Claude Code | CLI terminal agent | Claude 4.0 proprietary | Token-billed |
| Trae CN | ByteDance AI-native IDE | Self + Yunxiao, external models | Basic free |
| Qoder | Alibaba Tongyi IDE | Tongyi + RAG | Free |
| CodeBuddy | Tencent Cloud IDE/plugin/CLI | Hunyuan, multi-model | Free quota ample |
Scenario 1: Cross-file Understanding + Distributed Lock
Opened a 20+ microservice Spring Cloud project, asked "add a distributed lock in order-service, Redis, exception handling in common module."
- Cursor: Full-repo index found common module, but lock logic was simple SETNX-no renewal or reentrance.
- Claude Code: Auto-planned 4 steps (modify exception class, add lock util, change business logic, update pom.xml), diff per step, like a senior engineer.
- Trae CN: Solo mode opened terminal + file browser, generated Alibaba-spec RedisLock annotation + AOP + SpEL, native Chinese comments.
- Qoder: @workspace searched local repo, used Redisson (more component-savvy than Cursor), but didn't reuse existing BizException.
- CodeBuddy: Plan mode split into 3 subtasks, strong on WeChat ecosystem, weaker on Alibaba deps.
Cross-file complex tasks: Claude Code's agent planning is top-tier; Trae and Qoder's context understanding exceeded expectations; Cursor is stable but not smart enough.
Scenario 2: FastAPI with JWT Auth
| Tool | First-run usability | Code quality | Highlight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cursor | Runs, missing token expiry | Decent | Completion < 0.5s |
| Claude Code | Complete first try, incl. refresh_token | Rigorous, clear docstrings | Auto-created requirements.txt + tests |
| Trae | Runs directly, unified exception decorator | Natural Chinese comments | Auto uvicorn config |
| Qoder | Runs, logging not JSON-formatted | Has type hints | Detected pyproject.toml |
| CodeBuddy | Usable, token HS256 not RS256 | Brief comments | One-click Tencent Cloud deploy |
Trae's "Chinese requirement to code" shines; Claude Code is a tireless master.
Scenario 3: Agent + Toolchain Orchestration
- Trae Solo: Most aggressive. "Scrape page data into SQLite and visualize" - it opened browser, analyzed HTML, wrote crawler, created table, launched Flask. Two confirmations, pure "Vibe Coding."
- Claude Code: Terminal exec/edit/git/MCP, but no graphical preview.
- Qoder/CodeBuddy: Agent mode is "conversational," not Trae's multi-panel collaboration. CodeBuddy's Tencent Cloud one-click deploy is a highlight.
- Cursor: Agent needs extra config, still mainly completion and chat.
For "mouth-strong kings" who toss requirements to AI and grab coffee, Trae and Claude Code satisfy best.
Domestic Tools Switched Tracks
ByteDance Trae: Agent as IDE core. Solo mode is pragmatic, retains full IDE features. CSDN review: install/value/Chinese fit 9.5, overall 9.4-highest. Free for indie/small teams, 6M+ registered. Shortcoming: plugin ecosystem < VS Code, complex algorithms occasionally "wrong direction."
Alibaba Qoder: Steady enterprise-grade. Tongyi model deeply understands Java/Spring Boot, precision exceeds GitHub Copilot. @workspace RAG searches private repo-"understands you" beats generic. Shortcoming: Agent conservative, lacks "operate for you" boldness.
Tencent CodeBuddy: WeChat ecosystem "biological son." Mini-program code meets review specs, 125% efficiency boost, Plan mode 90% adoption. Non-Tencent stacks are a weakness.
Why still can't leave Cursor/Claude Code: Underlying model reasoning depth. For bugs requiring tracing dozens of files, Claude Code's "read entire repo, give precise plan" is unmatched domestically. Cursor's VS Code plugin moat is deep.
Selection Pitfall Guide
1. Student/Indie/Quick Prototype
Trae CN (free) + occasional Claude Code (pay-per-use). Trae Solo from requirement to deploy; switch to Claude Code for complex bugs.
2. Full-stack Full-time
Cursor Pro ($20/mo) or primary Trae + backup Cursor free. VS Code ecosystem dependents pick Cursor; new-tool adopters pick Trae (Web dev experience already exceeds Cursor, free).
3. Enterprise/Compliance
Baidu Comate or Tencent CodeBuddy. Comate is the only "org-level" (private deployment + SPEC + Project Memory); CodeBuddy dominates Tencent Cloud/WeChat. Alibaba Cloud teams pick Qoder.
4. Cost Calculation
| Tool | Free quota | Monthly | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trae | Basic all-free | 0 | 0 |
| Qoder | Free | 0 | 0 |
| CodeBuddy | Ample free | 0 | 0 |
| Cursor | Limited trial | ~145 yuan | ~1740 yuan |
| Claude Code | No fixed free | 50-200 yuan | 600-2400 yuan |
An indie dev's annual Cursor cost buys a mechanical keyboard; Trae saves it for ChatGPT Plus as backup.
Conclusion
What makes you a great dev isn't Cursor vs Trae-it's whether, facing a vague requirement, you toss it to AI immediately or spend 10 minutes drawing a flowchart first. Tools change; debuggability and understanding are the constant hard currency. Don't be hijacked by "domestic replacement" anxiety, don't cling to Cursor. Try Trae's Solo, feel Claude Code's rigor, pick the tool that lets you sleep at night.
References