Amazon Q Developer vs GitHub Copilot
Auto-updated comparison · last refreshed September 3, 2026
TL;DR
| Amazon Q Developer | GitHub Copilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | extension | extension |
| Vendor | AWS | GitHub / Microsoft |
| Pricing | Free tier · Pro $19/month (Pro tier for higher limits + advanced features) | Free tier · Pro $10/month · Business $19/user · Enterprise $39/user |
| Autocomplete | Yes | Yes |
| Agent mode | Yes | Yes |
| MCP support | No | Yes |
| Local models | No | No |
| Self-hosted | No | No |
| Codebase indexing | Yes | Yes |
| Team features | Yes | Yes |
Where Amazon Q Developer wins
- deep AWS integration
- IaC generation (CDK, Terraform)
- enterprise-friendly
Where GitHub Copilot wins
- enterprise trust
- wide IDE support
- included with GitHub Business
Weaknesses
Amazon Q Developer: only shines on AWS workloads; less impressive outside AWS context
GitHub Copilot: chat feels dated vs Cursor; slower to ship new models
Best for
Pick Amazon Q Developer if you are AWS-heavy devs, or cloud infrastructure work, or enterprises on AWS.
Pick GitHub Copilot if you are companies already paying for GitHub, or polyglot IDE users.
FAQ
Is Amazon Q Developer more expensive than GitHub Copilot?
Free tier · Pro $19/month (Pro tier for higher limits + advanced features) vs Free tier · Pro $10/month · Business $19/user · Enterprise $39/user. Compare the Pro tiers first if you're a solo dev; Business/Enterprise only matters for teams.
Do Amazon Q Developer and GitHub Copilot use the same AI models?
Amazon Q Developer supports: claude-sonnet-4-6, internal-aws. GitHub Copilot supports: claude-sonnet-4-6, gpt-5, gemini-2.5-pro, o4. Most modern tools default to Claude Sonnet 4.6 in 2026.
Can I use both?
Yes. They don't conflict at the file level. Some devs use one for autocomplete and one for agent work.
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