The real cost of AI coding tools
AI coding went from $10 flat to metered billing in about a year, and the bills stopped being predictable. This hub tracks the receipts: what the meters actually charge, what real developers report paying, and the three-year math nobody puts on a pricing page.
The pattern across every post is the same one. Flat subscriptions became quota subscriptions, quotas became credits, and credits bill by the token. Each step is rational for the vendor and a surprise for the developer who budgeted last year.
Our position is on the pricing page in one sentence: Bodega One Code is free to use, commercial work included, and your model costs are whatever you choose to run, including zero if you run local.
- 7 min read
DeepSeek is raising API prices. The cheap-cloud-AI bet just moved.
DeepSeek warned developers of a significant API price hike on August 6, reversing its cheap-AI pitch. What changed, why, and the local-first fix.
- 8 min read
Claude Fable 5: the cost of frontier AI
Anthropic's Claude Fable 5 is its most powerful public model yet: 1M context, $50/M output. What it does, and how to use frontier AI without lock-in.
- 9 min read
Even Uber hit the AI coding cost wall
Uber burned its 2026 AI budget in 4 months, then capped engineers at $1,500/mo. Microsoft cut Claude Code. Why metered agentic AI hits a cost wall.
- 6 min read
GitHub Copilot Business and Enterprise AI credits cut on September 1: the pool math
GitHub Copilot Business AI credits fell 3,000 to 1,900 per user and Enterprise 7,000 to 3,900 on Sept 1, 2026. Pool math, overage, admin fixes.
- 8 min read
GitHub Copilot, one week in: real developer bills since AI Credits went live
One week into Copilot's June 1 AI Credits flip, real developer bills are landing. The single-request burns, the math, and what removes the meter.
- 10 min read
GitHub Copilot AI Credits, decoded: what Pro, Pro+, and Max actually cover after June 1
Pro includes $15 in AI credits, Pro+ gets $70, Max gets $200. Here's the real token math per tier, what burns credits fastest, and free BYOK options.
- 10 min read
Kilo Pass vs Anthropic API direct: the cost math
Kilo Pass runs $19-$199/mo in credits plus a 5% fee. We compare it to paying Anthropic direct at $3/$15 per million tokens across four usage tiers.
- 7 min read
The real cost of Kilo Code in 2026
Kilo Code's extension is free, but Kilo Pass runs $19-$199/mo plus a 5% fee, and cloud agents bill hourly. What it really costs before you sign up.
- 7 min read
AI IDE cost comparison: how much are you really paying?
Cursor, Copilot, Windsurf: the monthly fees add up fast. Use our free cost calculator to see your 1-, 2-, and 3-year total vs a free local IDE.
- 8 min read
The real cost of AI coding subscriptions (3-year analysis)
ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, Copilot: $80/month. Multiply by 36 and it's $2,880 you'll never own. Here's the breakdown, and the free local option.
More topics
Bodega One Code is the local-first AI IDE these guides are written around. Free for everyone in the open beta, commercial use included.