Trae is ByteDance's AI-native code editor — another entrant in the Cursor/Windsurf style of an AI-first fork of VS Code. It's currently the newest and smallest-adoption tool in the full ranking, sitting around #27 (roughly 0.8%), aimed at developers curious about newer entrants in the AI-editor space.
📌 Quick facts
Type: AI-native code editor
Made by: ByteDance
License: Freemium
Platforms: Windows, macOS
Primary use case: AI-assisted general-purpose coding
Key features
- A fork of VS Code with AI chat, inline edits, and autocomplete built into the core experience
- Multi-file AI-driven edits and codebase-aware chat, similar to Cursor/Windsurf
- Free tier with generous access to underlying AI models compared to some competitors
- Familiar VS Code-style UI and keybindings, easing the switch for existing VS Code users
- Supports importing existing VS Code settings and extensions
Getting started
Trae is a free download from its official site (trae.ai), available for Windows and macOS:
# Download the installer directly from trae.ai
# then sign in to access the built-in AI features
🎯 Best for: developers curious about newer AI-native editors and comparing them against Cursor or Windsurf before committing to one.