4 ms·

The era of subsidization is over, it seems. For my money, on the code side at least, GitHub Copilot on VSCode is still the most cost effective option, 10 bucks

The era of subsidization is over, it seems. For my money, on the code side at least, GitHub Copilot on VSCode is still the most cost effective option, 10 bucks for 300 requests gets me all I need, especially when I use OpenAI models which are counted as 1x vs Opus which is 3x. I've stopped using all other tools like Claude Code etc.

giwook 7mo ago
I use both GH Copilot as well as CC extensively and it does seem more economical, though I wonder how long this will last as I imagine Github has also been subsidizing LLM usage extensively. FWIW it feels like GH Copilot is a cheaper version of OpenRouter but with trade-offs like being locked into VSCode and the Microsoft ecosystem overall. I already use VSCode though and otherwise I don't see much downside to using GH Copilot outside of that.
- satvikpendem 7mo ago
  I'm hopeful because Microsoft already has a partnership and owns much of OpenAI so can get their models at cost to host on Azure with they already do, so they can pass on the savings to the user. This is why Opus is 3x as expensive in Copilot, because Microsoft needs to buy API usage from Anthropic directly.
  - treesknees 7mo ago
    I don’t think it’s API costs. Their Sonnet 4.6 is just 1x premium request which matches the 1x cost of the various GPT Codex models.
    - satvikpendem 7mo ago
      Sonnet is the worse model though, therefore it's expected that it is cheaper, the comparison would be Opus and GPT. That Anthropic's worse model is the same request cost as the best OpenAI model is what I mean when talking about Microsoft flexing their partnership.
- treesknees 7mo ago
  You’re not locked into vscode. There are plugins for other IDEs, and a ‘copilot’ cli tool very similar to Claude Code’s cli tool. I also wouldn’t say you’re locked into Microsoft’s ecosystem. At work we just have skills that allow for interaction with Bitbucket and other internal tooling. You’re not forced to use GitHub at all.
- sassymuffinz 7mo ago
  You could use something like [https://opencode.ai https://opencode.ai](OpenCode) which supports integration with Copilot.
- lossyalgo 7mo ago
  > but with trade-offs like being locked into VSCode and the Microsoft ecosystem overall You can use GH Copilot with most of Jetbrains IDEs.
- WithinReason 7mo ago
  You can use copilot models from OpenCode: https://github.blog/changelog/2026-01-16-github-copilot-now-supports-opencode/ https://github.blog/changelog/2026-01-16-github-copilot-now-...
sassymuffinz 7mo ago
I tried Claude Code for a week straight recently to see what all the hype was about and while it pumped out a bunch of reasonable looking code and features I ended up feeling completely disconnected from my codebase and uncomfortable. Cancelled the plan I had with them and happily went back to just coding like normal in VSCode with occasional dips into Copilot when a need arose or for rubber ducking and planning. Feels much better as I'm in full control and not trusting the magic black box to get it right or getting fatigue from reading thousands of lines of generated code. Anyone who says they're able to review thousands of lines effectively that Claude might slop out in a day are lying to themselves.
- torben-friis 7mo ago
  >Anyone who says they're able to review thousands of lines effectively that Claude might slop out in a day are lying to themselves. The amount you can review before burning out is now the reasonable limit, for the same reason that a car is supposed to stay at the speed you can handle and not the max speed of the engine. Of course, many people are secretly skipping reviews and some dare to publicly advocate for getting rid of them entirely.
  - sassymuffinz 7mo ago
    > For the same reason that a car is supposed to stay at the speed you can handle and not the max speed of the engine. As we know with driving, sensible drivers stick to the speed limit most of the time, but there's a good percentage of knuckle draggers who just love speeding, some people get drunk, some they just drive the wrong way down the highway entirely. Either way it's usually the sensible people who end up suffering.
  - ethbr1 7mo ago
    > The amount you can review before burning out is now the reasonable limit I realized this is the crux of our moment, because a variant of Amdahl's law applies to AI code gen. {time gained} = {time saved via gen AI} - {time spent in human review} There's no way that results in a positive number with 100% human review coverage, which means that human review coverage is headed to < 100% (ideally as low as possible).
deadbabe 7mo ago
Not over yet. More hikes will come. It will reach $1000.
- satvikpendem 7mo ago
  That's what I said by subsidization being over.
  - operatingthetan 7mo ago
    The subsidization being "over" would mean we are paying their actual cost or more.
    - satvikpendem 7mo ago
      I see what you mean, I misread your initial reply.
  - zamadatix 7mo ago
    Can you expand what you mean by "subsidization being over" in terms of the plan prices? - Plus is still the same $20 - 20x Pro is still the same $200 - This is a new 5x tier is $100 https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9793128-what-is-chatgpt-pro#:~:text=Who%20is%20the%20Pro%20plan%20for%3F https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9793128-what-is-chatgpt-... is probably a better direct comparison of the 3
    - satvikpendem 7mo ago
      They're trying to slowly move up market. I assume soon the $20 will get its own restrictions in the future (and/or ads) to get people to pay $100.
      - zamadatix 7mo ago
        The same could have been claimed in 2024 when they introduced the $200 Pro plan. Nothing is over yet just because of what could possibly happen next.
dismalaf 7mo ago
> The era of subsidization is over Of course it is. Returns are diminishing, AGI isn't happening with current techniques but it is good enough to sell, so it's time to monetize. I just got an email from OpenAI as well about ads in their free tier (I signed up once out of curiosity).
- rvz 7mo ago
  > AGI isn't happening with current techniques but it is good enough to sell, so it's time to monetize. Or perhaps it was a scam in the first place for an IPO.
- bluegatty 7mo ago
  Subsidization is not nearly over It's true AGI is 'not happening' but it doesn't matter. Demand for AI is explosive, sales are skyrocketing. We have another 5-8 years of this crazy investment stuff. Altman will step aside before they turn into a 'normal company'. Like they did at Uber.
_2d30 7mo ago
Pro used to be $200.
KellyCriterion 7mo ago
OT: In general I view VS Code and VS.NET Community + SQL Server free universe as the most effective option :) I think these products are great actually.

giwook 7mo ago

I use both GH Copilot as well as CC extensively and it does seem more economical, though I wonder how long this will last as I imagine Github has also been subsidizing LLM usage extensively. FWIW it feels like GH Copilot is a cheaper version of OpenRouter but with trade-offs like being locked into VSCode and the Microsoft ecosystem overall. I already use VSCode though and otherwise I don't see much downside to using GH Copilot outside of that.

satvikpendem 7mo ago
I'm hopeful because Microsoft already has a partnership and owns much of OpenAI so can get their models at cost to host on Azure with they already do, so they can pass on the savings to the user. This is why Opus is 3x as expensive in Copilot, because Microsoft needs to buy API usage from Anthropic directly.
- treesknees 7mo ago
  I don’t think it’s API costs. Their Sonnet 4.6 is just 1x premium request which matches the 1x cost of the various GPT Codex models.
  - satvikpendem 7mo ago
    Sonnet is the worse model though, therefore it's expected that it is cheaper, the comparison would be Opus and GPT. That Anthropic's worse model is the same request cost as the best OpenAI model is what I mean when talking about Microsoft flexing their partnership.
treesknees 7mo ago
You’re not locked into vscode. There are plugins for other IDEs, and a ‘copilot’ cli tool very similar to Claude Code’s cli tool. I also wouldn’t say you’re locked into Microsoft’s ecosystem. At work we just have skills that allow for interaction with Bitbucket and other internal tooling. You’re not forced to use GitHub at all.
sassymuffinz 7mo ago
You could use something like [https://opencode.ai https://opencode.ai](OpenCode) which supports integration with Copilot.
lossyalgo 7mo ago
> but with trade-offs like being locked into VSCode and the Microsoft ecosystem overall You can use GH Copilot with most of Jetbrains IDEs.
WithinReason 7mo ago
You can use copilot models from OpenCode: https://github.blog/changelog/2026-01-16-github-copilot-now-supports-opencode/ https://github.blog/changelog/2026-01-16-github-copilot-now-...

sassymuffinz 7mo ago

I tried Claude Code for a week straight recently to see what all the hype was about and while it pumped out a bunch of reasonable looking code and features I ended up feeling completely disconnected from my codebase and uncomfortable. Cancelled the plan I had with them and happily went back to just coding like normal in VSCode with occasional dips into Copilot when a need arose or for rubber ducking and planning. Feels much better as I'm in full control and not trusting the magic black box to get it right or getting fatigue from reading thousands of lines of generated code. Anyone who says they're able to review thousands of lines effectively that Claude might slop out in a day are lying to themselves.

torben-friis 7mo ago
>Anyone who says they're able to review thousands of lines effectively that Claude might slop out in a day are lying to themselves. The amount you can review before burning out is now the reasonable limit, for the same reason that a car is supposed to stay at the speed you can handle and not the max speed of the engine. Of course, many people are secretly skipping reviews and some dare to publicly advocate for getting rid of them entirely.
- sassymuffinz 7mo ago
  > For the same reason that a car is supposed to stay at the speed you can handle and not the max speed of the engine. As we know with driving, sensible drivers stick to the speed limit most of the time, but there's a good percentage of knuckle draggers who just love speeding, some people get drunk, some they just drive the wrong way down the highway entirely. Either way it's usually the sensible people who end up suffering.
- ethbr1 7mo ago
  > The amount you can review before burning out is now the reasonable limit I realized this is the crux of our moment, because a variant of Amdahl's law applies to AI code gen. {time gained} = {time saved via gen AI} - {time spent in human review} There's no way that results in a positive number with 100% human review coverage, which means that human review coverage is headed to < 100% (ideally as low as possible).

deadbabe 7mo ago

Not over yet. More hikes will come. It will reach $1000.

satvikpendem 7mo ago
That's what I said by subsidization being over.
- operatingthetan 7mo ago
  The subsidization being "over" would mean we are paying their actual cost or more.
  - satvikpendem 7mo ago
    I see what you mean, I misread your initial reply.
- zamadatix 7mo ago
  Can you expand what you mean by "subsidization being over" in terms of the plan prices? - Plus is still the same $20 - 20x Pro is still the same $200 - This is a new 5x tier is $100 https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9793128-what-is-chatgpt-pro#:~:text=Who%20is%20the%20Pro%20plan%20for%3F https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9793128-what-is-chatgpt-... is probably a better direct comparison of the 3
  - satvikpendem 7mo ago
    They're trying to slowly move up market. I assume soon the $20 will get its own restrictions in the future (and/or ads) to get people to pay $100.
    - zamadatix 7mo ago
      The same could have been claimed in 2024 when they introduced the $200 Pro plan. Nothing is over yet just because of what could possibly happen next.

dismalaf 7mo ago

> The era of subsidization is over Of course it is. Returns are diminishing, AGI isn't happening with current techniques but it is good enough to sell, so it's time to monetize. I just got an email from OpenAI as well about ads in their free tier (I signed up once out of curiosity).

rvz 7mo ago
> AGI isn't happening with current techniques but it is good enough to sell, so it's time to monetize. Or perhaps it was a scam in the first place for an IPO.
bluegatty 7mo ago
Subsidization is not nearly over It's true AGI is 'not happening' but it doesn't matter. Demand for AI is explosive, sales are skyrocketing. We have another 5-8 years of this crazy investment stuff. Altman will step aside before they turn into a 'normal company'. Like they did at Uber.

_2d30 7mo ago

Pro used to be $200.

KellyCriterion 7mo ago

OT: In general I view VS Code and VS.NET Community + SQL Server free universe as the most effective option :) I think these products are great actually.