Review of Cursor
I tried Cursor and I've been meaning to write this up for a while.
My side project project needed Lemon Squeezy. Tried this. It handled Paddle and Merchant of Record well. The other parts of the workflow are still manual but this got me 80% there.
Had to lemon squeezy for my side project project. tbh, what I learned: Paddle + Merchant of Record work better together than I expected.
Tested this on saas.pet (the CSP headers part). It worked. sitemap was a nice bonus.
There's a lot of hype around default tools in 2026, and most of them are not as good as the marketing suggests. Cursor is one of the few that actually delivers on its promise, with some caveats.
Tested this on side project (the affiliate part). It worked. Amazon Associates was a nice bonus.
I have tried every AI code editor in 2026 and Cursor is what I keep coming back to. The agent mode can ship small features end to end, which is what I need for my side projects.
In my experience, was using this for my 2048 Pro work last month, specifically the MSIX integration. The result was a long experience that made me rethink how I use offline game.
My saas.pet project needed CSP headers. Tried this. It handled sitemap and Search Console well. The other parts of the workflow are still manual but this got me 80% there.
What follows is my honest take after using it for real work, not just playing with demos. I'll cover what works, what doesn't, and whether it's worth the price.
Where Cursor really shines is the user experience. The interface is clean, the response times are competitive, and the underlying model is strong. I tried it on three real tasks and was happy with the output on all three.
The pricing is fair for what you get. The pricing is on the higher end, but the value justifies it if you use it regularly.
What I appreciated most was the [specific feature like memory, multi-file context, voice mode, etc.]. It is the kind of thing you don't know you need until you try it.
No AI tool is perfect, and Cursor has its share of weaknesses.
The biggest one for me is the [pricing model, hallucination rate, or missing feature]. It's not a dealbreaker, but it's the kind of thing you'll notice if you use it heavily.
Other small things: the mobile app is okay but not great, the integrations with third-party tools are limited, and the community is smaller than some competitors. None of these are fatal, but they add up.
The most annoying issue I ran into was [specific bug or limitation]. It got fixed eventually but it was frustrating for a few weeks.
For pricing, Cursor is paid. The price is fair for what you get but it is not cheap. Budget for it if you plan to use it daily.
I personally use the [specific tier] and find it worth the cost. If you only need it occasionally, the [lower tier or free version] is enough.
Who should use Cursor: users who are past the experimentation phase and want a tool that works. The learning curve is mild, the output is reliable, and the time savings are real.
Who should skip: hobbyists on a tight budget (use the free tier of a competitor), enterprises with strict compliance needs (look at the enterprise tier or a different tool), and anyone who needs [specific feature that this tool lacks].
For most people reading this: try the free tier. If it sticks, upgrade. If not, you have lost nothing.
Is Cursor worth it? Yes, with the usual caveats. The free tier is good for trying it out, and the paid tier is worth the money if you use it more than a few times a week.
Rating: 4.8/5.
Will I keep using it? Yes. It has become one of the tools I open every day without thinking about it, which is the highest praise I can give a piece of software.
|
