Claude Sonnet 4: VSCode vs. Cursor - Which is the Ultimate AI Coding Setup?
Z
Zack Saadioui
8/12/2025
Here's the thing about the new wave of AI coding assistants: the model itself is only half the story. You can have the most powerful AI on the planet, but if it's a pain to use in your daily workflow, you're just not going to get the most out of it. This is the exact situation with Anthropic's Claude Sonnet 4, a genuinely impressive model for coding & reasoning. The real question isn't if it's good, but where it works best.
Right now, the two main contenders for your time & attention are Visual Studio Code (the trusty editor we all know) & Cursor, the AI-native fork of VSCode that's been making HUGE waves.
I’ve spent a ton of time in both, trying to figure out the optimal setup, the little annoyances, & the "aha!" moments for each. So, let's break down how to get Claude Sonnet 4 humming in both VSCode & Cursor, what the real differences are, & which one is probably the right fit for you.
The Two Flavors of Claude Integration
Before we dive into the nitty-gritty, you have to understand the fundamental difference in philosophy here.
Cursor is all about seamless, native integration. It’s a purpose-built IDE where the AI is woven into the very fabric of the editor. The goal is to make using the AI feel effortless, like a natural extension of your coding process.
VSCode, on the other hand, relies on an external tool called Claude Code. This is a command-line interface (CLI) that you run inside VSCode. It's more of a powerful, bolt-on engine than a seamlessly integrated feature. It offers a TON of power & flexibility, but historically it came with the friction of using a terminal.
That friction point is key, because as we'll see, a new tool has completely changed the game for the VSCode setup.
The Cursor Approach: Truly "It Just Works"
Honestly, getting started with Claude Sonnet 4 in Cursor is almost laughably easy. This is their biggest selling point: minimal fuss, maximum flow. Cursor is a fork of VSCode, so the entire interface feels instantly familiar, but it’s been re-engineered from the ground up to be AI-first.
How to Get it Working
If you have Cursor installed, here's the "complex" multi-step process:
Make sure your Cursor IDE is updated. They move fast, so you want to be on a recent version.
Go to
1
Settings
(the little gear icon, or
1
Ctrl + ,
).
Click on the
1
Models
tab.
You'll see a list of available models. Just find
1
Claude 4 Sonnet
& enable it.
That's it. Seriously.
Now, in the top-right of your editor window, you'll see a dropdown menu where you can select which AI model you want to use for your chat or code generation. Just pick Sonnet 4, & you're off to the races.
Why It Feels So Good (The Optimal Workflow)
The magic of Cursor isn't just the easy setup; it's how the AI is deeply embedded in the workflow. It's not a separate "thing" you call up; it's just... there.
Full Codebase Context: This is Cursor's superpower. When you ask it a question (
1
Ctrl+K
), it doesn't just see the file you have open. It has awareness of your ENTIRE project. You don't need to manually paste file paths or explain your project structure. It just knows. This leads to dramatically more relevant & accurate answers.
Inline Edits & Chat: You can highlight any block of code, press
1
Ctrl+K
, & start a conversation about that specific code. "Refactor this to be more efficient," or "Add error handling here," or "What the heck does this do?" The chat is contextual & the suggestions are applied as clean diffs you can accept or reject.
Checkpoints & Timeline: This is a killer feature. Every time the AI makes a change, Cursor saves a "checkpoint." If the AI goes down a weird rabbit hole & messes things up, you can just click a button to rewind to the previous state. It’s like a built-in, AI-aware version control that gives you the freedom to experiment without fear.
The "Vibe": It’s hard to quantify, but the autocomplete feels more intuitive & the whole experience is just smooth. There's no context switching. You stay in your editor, in the flow.
For 90% of daily coding tasks—fixing bugs, writing tests, refactoring functions, understanding legacy code—Cursor's implementation is a dream. It's designed for the developer who wants to move faster & stay focused.
The VSCode Approach: The Power User's Playground
Now for VSCode. For a long time, the story here was much clunkier. You had to live in the command line, & it felt disconnected. But things have changed DRAMATICALLY. The setup is still more involved, but the payoff is a level of customization & power that Cursor can't quite match.
The key is understanding that you're not just using an "extension." You're using the Claude Code CLI & a brilliant GUI wrapper called Claudia.
Step 1: Installing the Claude Code CLI
This is the engine. It's a command-line tool from Anthropic that gives you direct access to Claude's power.
Prerequisites: You need to have Node.js (version 18.0 or higher) installed on your system.
Get an API Key: You'll need an API key from Anthropic. You can get this from your Anthropic dashboard. This is how they track usage & billing.
Install it: Open your computer's terminal (not necessarily the one in VSCode yet) & run the installation command:
1
npm install -g claude-code
Configure it: Run
1
claude login
& paste in your API key when prompted.
Once that's done, you can technically start using it. Open VSCode, open the integrated terminal (
1
Ctrl + \``), navigate to your project folder, & type
claude
1
. This will start an interactive session where you can give it prompts like "fix the bug in
main.js`" & it will analyze your code & propose changes. [5] When it suggests a change, it automatically brings up a diff view right in your editor, which is pretty cool. [5]
But... living in the terminal feels a bit clunky. That's where the REAL magic happens.
Step 2: Installing Claudia, the GUI Game-Changer
Claudia is a free, open-source desktop app that acts as a visual interface for the Claude Code CLI you just installed. It takes the raw power of the CLI & makes it as intuitive & manageable as Cursor. It is, without a doubt, the key to making the VSCode setup feel optimal.
Once you download & install Claudia, it automatically detects your Claude Code installation. [3] Suddenly, you have a command center for everything.
Why This Setup is SO Powerful
With Claude Code + Claudia, you unlock a different kind of workflow. It's less about simple inline edits & more about orchestrating the AI to perform complex tasks.
The Agent Builder: This is the killer feature. In Claudia, you can create custom "agents" with specific system prompts, names, & icons. [5] For example, you can create a "React Test Writer" agent whose system prompt is pre-loaded with instructions on using Jest & React Testing Library. Or a "Bug Fixer" agent that's told to be methodical & explain its reasoning. This is HUGE for standardizing repetitive tasks.
Session Management: Claudia keeps track of all your Claude Code sessions. You can see your history, resume past sessions with the full context intact, & easily manage multiple projects without them stepping on each other's toes. [5]
Visual Diff & Checkpoints: Just like Cursor, Claudia provides a beautiful visual diff viewer for any changes the AI proposes. [5] It also has a checkpoint system, allowing you to save states & roll back if an agent goes off the rails.
Total Control & Transparency: You get a dashboard that shows your token usage in real-time, so you can monitor costs. You have fine-grained control over which models to use (Sonnet 4 for speed, Opus 4 for brainpower) for each agent or session. [5]
Automation Ready: Because it's all built on a CLI, you can script it. You can integrate Claude Code into your CI/CD pipelines, git hooks, or other automated workflows. [1] This is something a purely IDE-based tool like Cursor can't do.
This setup is for the developer who wants to build a bespoke AI-powered workflow. The kind of person who sees the AI not just as an assistant, but as a customizable tool to be molded & directed.
Head-to-Head: Which One Should You Actually Use?
Okay, let's cut to the chase. Both are incredible, but they excel in different areas.
Choose Cursor if:
You value a frictionless, out-of-the-box experience above all else.
You want the AI to feel like a natural, seamless part of your editor.
Your primary use case is day-to-day coding assistance: quick fixes, refactoring, generating boilerplate, & understanding code.
You love the idea of a safety net like the checkpoint/timeline feature for easy rollbacks.
You prefer a single, all-in-one application without needing to install separate tools.
Choose VSCode + Claudia if:
You want maximum power & control, & you don't mind a little initial setup.
You are excited by the idea of building your own custom AI agents for specific, repeatable tasks.
You need to automate AI tasks using a command-line interface.
You want to leverage the absolute largest context windows that Claude offers, as the direct CLI sometimes has higher limits than third-party integrations. [5]
You're a "power user" who loves to tinker & build a perfectly tailored development environment.
The Broader Picture: AI as a Core Business Tool
It's fascinating to see this developer-focused tooling evolve. What we're really talking about is creating more efficient, powerful ways to communicate with computers. In the same way developers use tools like Cursor & Claudia to have a conversation with their codebase, businesses are starting to realize they need similar tools to have conversations with their customers.
This is where platforms like Arsturn come into the picture. Businesses are building no-code AI chatbots trained on their own data—their help docs, their product info, their policies. Arsturn helps these businesses create custom AI chatbots that provide instant customer support, answer questions, & engage with website visitors 24/7. It's the same core idea: leveraging AI to understand context & provide intelligent, helpful responses. Just as a developer in Cursor can "ask" their codebase a question, a customer on a website powered by an Arsturn bot can "ask" the business a question & get an instant, accurate answer. It's all about building more meaningful, efficient connections through conversational AI.
The Final Verdict
So, what’s the final word on Claude Sonnet 4 in VSCode vs. Cursor?
Honestly, there's no single "winner." The competition is driving innovation on both sides, which is fantastic for all of us. [2]
Cursor has absolutely nailed the user experience. For most developers, its seamless, powerful, & intuitive integration is going to be the better choice. It lowers the barrier to entry & lets you benefit from powerful AI with virtually zero learning curve. It's what you should probably try first.
However, the VSCode + Claude Code + Claudia combination is a beast of a different nature. It's a true power user's setup. The ability to create custom, shareable agents & automate workflows via the CLI is a level of control that Cursor doesn't offer. If you're the kind of developer who builds custom scripts & meticulously configures your environment, this setup will feel like a dream come true. The arrival of the Claudia GUI has completely eliminated the old usability complaints, making it a genuinely viable—and in some ways, more powerful—alternative.
My advice? Try Cursor first. See if its smooth, integrated workflow fits your style. If you find yourself wishing for more control, more customization, & the ability to build your own army of specialized AI agents, then it's absolutely worth your time to set up Claude Code & Claudia.
Hope this was helpful! I'm super excited to see where these tools go next. Let me know what you think.