// side by side · same rules, same day

Cursor (agent mode) vs Windsurf Cascade

Cursor (agent mode) 5/5 · Windsurf Cascade 4/5

Download the card Cursor (agent mode) dossier →Windsurf Cascade dossier →

01

The three axes

the rules →
Cursor (agent mode)Anysphere AGENTWindsurf CascadeWindsurf AGENT
CAPABILITYyes / no / uncertain5/5 AGENT4/5 AGENT
PROOFhow well you can check usOPERATOR INSPECTABLEOPERATOR INSPECTABLE
TRACE ACCESSwho can read the recordOPERATOR-OWNEDWhoever runs it holds the record; nothing is publishedOPERATOR-OWNEDWhoever runs it holds the record; nothing is published
LEASHtool calls between human turnsnot measured — measure it yourselfnot measured — measure it yourself
CHECKEDversion and dateCursor 3.6+ run modes2026-08-11Windsurf Cascade; docs.windsurf.com now redirects to Devin Desktop docs (docs.devin.ai/desktop), Aug 20262026-08-11
CONFIDENCEours, in this dossier5/106/10
COMMUNITYwhat visitors ruledA0 · W0 · C0n=0 raw votes · signal at 25A0 · W0 · C0n=0 raw votes · signal at 25
IN COURTopen challengesno cases filedno cases filed
DISPUTEDwhere the axes disagreenothing disputed — every answer is inspectablenothing disputed — every answer is inspectable
02

Question by question

rows marked "they differ" are where the comparison earns its keep
Cursor (agent mode)Anysphere AGENTWindsurf CascadeWindsurf AGENT
LOOPSruns until done ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 5/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Docs state 'There is no limit on the number of tool calls Agent can make during a task', so it keeps going. ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 8/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Background planning agent continuously refines the plan and auto-updates it on new info; Cascade self-directs a variable tool-call count up to 20, with Auto-Continue past that cap.
CHOOSESpicks its own tools ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 5/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Docs list its tools — file edits, codebase search, terminal execution, browser — and the model picks each. ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 8/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Docs: Cascade has Search, Analyze, Web Search, MCP and the terminal at its disposal and detects which packages need installing, so tool and order are picked at runtime, not pre-wired.
ACTSchanges the world ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 5/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Edits files without approval (except config files) and executes terminal commands, per the security docs. ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 9/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Code mode creates and modifies files in the codebase and the agent runs terminal commands itself (Turbo auto-executes all but denylisted) — state changes outside the conversation.
RECOVERSfixes its own errors ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 6/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Agent executes terminal commands and monitors their output with no cap on tool calls in a task, so a failed command is read and answered with a different edit inside the same run. ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 6/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Linter integration, on by default: Cascade auto-detects lints in code it just wrote and issues a different corrective edit unprompted; Explain-and-Fix is user-triggered and doesn't count.
UNSUPERVISEDnobody watchingthey differ ✓ yes OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 9.7/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Cursor's Run Modes docs document "Run Everything" mode: "Every tool call runs automatically" with zero prompts. Rule 05: a documented no-approval mode = Yes; the approval default doesn't force No. ✗ no OPERATOR INSPECTABLE confidence 6/10 · checked 2026-08-11 Deny-listed and destructive commands always prompt; fully hands-off Turbo mode is opt-in, not default.

Every answer here is the same one on the dossier and in the dataset — this page holds no numbers of its own. Think one is wrong? Bring a trace.