Verdict
Devin Desktop suits developers who want a VS Code-style editor that runs a local agent and dispatches cloud and third-party agents from one board 9,10. The catch is churn: the Windsurf brand and Cascade agent were replaced in 2026, Devin Local still lacks some Cascade features, and quotas are not stated in numbers 2,3,7.
Good fit if you are
- Developers who want an AI-first, VS Code-compatible editor with local and cloud agents in one place
- Teams that run several agents, such as Devin, Codex and Claude, and want one board to track them
- Public-sector teams that need a FedRAMP High authorized coding IDE
Look elsewhere if you are
- Windows users who need the agent sandboxed at the OS level
- Teams that depend on Cascade memories, workflows or app deploys
- Buyers who want numeric usage limits before they commit
Pros and cons
What we like
- One board manages Devin Local sessions, Devin cloud agents and ACP agents such as Codex CLI, Claude Agent and Gemini CLI 9,10.
- Tab completions and inline edits are unlimited, even on the Free plan 3.
- Allow, ask and deny rules, OS-level sandboxing and admin caps on autonomy give fine control over what the agent runs 7,8,13.
- The desktop app holds FedRAMP High, IL4 and ITAR authorization, with zero data retention in federal deployments 20.
- Plans, pricing and extensions carried over from Windsurf, and onboarding imports VS Code or Cursor settings 2,16.
What to watch
- Quotas are described as 'increased' or 'significantly higher', and extra usage bills at API list prices 3,5.
- Devin Local has no memories, workflows, app deploys or Arena mode, so Cascade users must migrate to skills 7.
- The OS-level sandbox Devin Local shares with Devin CLI is not supported on Windows 7,17.
- SSO is no longer sold as a Teams add-on, and Teams flex seats do not include Devin Desktop 4,23.
- On self-serve plans, data may be used for model training until a paid workspace opts out 18.
Key facts
| Made by | Cognition |
|---|---|
| Pricing | $20/month Pro; usage past quota at API list prices |
| Cost per developer | $20 a month (Pro plan, billed monthly; usage past the daily and weekly quota is billed at API list prices) |
| Also requires | Runs on macOS, Windows 10+ or Linux with glibc 2.28+; cloud agents need Pro or above |
| Where it runs | IDE, Cloud (background) |
| AI models | GPT, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek, Grok, Kimi and GLM models, plus Cognition's SWE-1.6 and SWE-2 3,15 |
| Works with | VS Code extensions, JetBrains, Slack, Linear, Figma, Vercel, Datadog, Codex CLI, Claude Agent, Gemini CLI, Junie, OpenCode |
| Security reports | SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, FedRAMP High, DoD IL4 |
| Free trial | No trial published; Free plan available |
What Devin Desktop is
Devin Desktop is the agentic code editor formerly sold as Windsurf 1. Cognition launched it on June 2, 2026 as the next generation of Windsurf: the VS Code-compatible IDE is still there, but the app now opens on the Agent Command Center, a Kanban board for every local and cloud agent 2,9. Its default local agent, Devin Local, replaced Cascade and shares its harness with Devin CLI 7.
Cognition bought Windsurf in July 2025, days after Google hired its CEO and research leaders in a $2.4 billion deal 24. At the time Windsurf had $82 million in annual recurring revenue and at least 350 enterprise customers 24. Cognition raised $2 billion at a $48 billion valuation in September 2026 26.
What it can do
Devin Local works on your machine with your files, tools and environment. It edits code, runs commands and tests, and spawns subagents in the foreground or background 7. Plan mode researches the codebase and writes a plan for your approval before any edit 7. A session can run in its own git worktree, which you merge back when it is done 7. Permissions use allow, ask and deny rules for reads, writes, commands, web fetches and MCP tools, and an optional OS-level sandbox limits files and network access 7. MCP tools ask for approval by default 7.
The Agent Command Center puts local sessions, Devin cloud sessions on their own VMs, and third-party agents connected over ACP, such as Codex CLI, Claude Agent, Gemini CLI, Junie and OpenCode, on one board 9,10. Spaces group sessions, PRs, files and context per project 9. Quick Review has a second agent review the diff, using the free SWE-check model or token-billed GPT 5.5 and Opus 4.7 12. Tab completions, Supercomplete and Fast Context remain for hands-on editing 1.
- Actions. Devin Local edits files, runs commands and tests on your machine, spawns subagents, and can work in its own git worktree that you merge back 7. The Agent Command Center also launches and tracks Devin cloud sessions on their own VMs and third-party ACP agents 9,10.
- Setup. Install on macOS, Windows 10+ or Linux and import VS Code or Cursor settings during onboarding 16. Windsurf installs updated over the air with plans and extensions intact 2.
- Reviewing its changes. Devin Local runs an edit only after you approve it unless your rules allow it, worktree sessions come back through a Merge button, and Quick Review has a second agent check the diff 7,12.
- Analytics. Admin dashboards show the share of code written by Devin Desktop 14, and an Analytics API reports agent runs, tool calls and lines written 7.
Pricing
Devin Desktop uses Devin's plans, and Windsurf customers kept their plan and price at the rename 2,3. Free includes a light agent quota, limited models and unlimited Tab completions and inline edits 3. Pro is $20 a month with full model access and Devin Cloud agents, and Max is $200 for a much larger weekly quota with no daily cap 3,4. Teams has an $80 monthly minimum with $40 full seats; free flex seats do not include Devin Desktop 4. Quota is a daily and weekly token budget, and free models don't count against it 5. Past it you buy extra usage at API list prices for the model you use 5. Enterprise is quote-only: newer contracts bill ACUs, while older ones used pooled credits at $120 per 1,000 6. Third-party ACP agents bill you directly 10.
| Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $03 | Light agent quota, limited models, unlimited inline edits and Tab completions |
| Pro | $20/month3,4 | Daily and weekly quota, full model availability, Devin Cloud agents, free SWE-2 in Devin Desktop and CLI through October 16, 2026, extra usage at API pricing |
| Max | $200/month3,4 | Everything in Pro with a significantly larger weekly quota and no daily cap |
| Teams | $80/month minimum + $40/month per full seat3,4 | Up to 200 members; each full seat gets a Pro-sized quota and Devin Desktop; free flex seats exclude Devin Desktop; admin dashboard with analytics |
| Enterprise | Quote only3,6 | SAML/OIDC SSO, centralized admin controls, dedicated deployment option; newer contracts billed in ACUs |
| Extra usage | API list price of the model used5 | Usage beyond the plan quota on paid plans; free models do not count against quota |
Security and data
Devin Desktop falls under Cognition's security program: SOC 2 Type II since September 2024 and ISO/IEC 27001:2022, with reports behind an NDA 18,19. Enterprise data is never used for training without written consent 18. On self-serve plans data may be used for training by default; a paid workspace can opt out, which also turns on zero data retention with model providers 18. Devin Desktop and Devin CLI hold FedRAMP High, IL4 and ITAR authorization, with zero data retention on for all features in federal deployments 20. The FedRAMP deployment runs on AWS GovCloud and requires SSO 21. Windsurf put its self-hosted offering into maintenance mode in May 2025 and takes no new self-hosted customers 22. Third-party ACP agents fall outside Devin Desktop's privacy policy and terms 10.
- Zero data retention. Zero data retention with model providers turns on when a paid workspace opts out of training, and is on for all features in federal deployments 18,20
- Data residency. FedRAMP deployment runs on AWS GovCloud; commercial regions not published 21
- Training on your data. Enterprise data is never used for training without written consent; self-serve data may be used by default until a paid workspace opts out 18
- AI models. OpenAI, Anthropic and Google models, open models such as DeepSeek, Kimi and GLM, and Cognition's SWE models 15
What customers say
Independent ratings cover the Windsurf plugin for other editors rather than the desktop app. The VS Code extension, still listed as Windsurf Plugin (formerly Codeium), scores 4.7 from 1,472 ratings across about 4 million installs 27. The JetBrains plugin scores 4.1 from 1,525 ratings and more than 10 million downloads, with 183 one-star votes 28. Cognition names Ramp, Harvey, NVIDIA, Modal and Intact Financial as users, and quotes a Ramp research engineer on dispatching and monitoring agents 1. The 2025 sale came amid turbulence: Google hired away Windsurf's leadership just before it, and Cognition offered staff buyouts weeks after 24,25.
| Platform | Rating | Reviews | Seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visual Studio Marketplace (Windsurf Plugin (formerly Codeium))27 | 4.7 / 5 | 1,472 | 8 October 2026 |
| JetBrains Marketplace (Windsurf Plugin for Python, JS, Java, Go...)28 | 4.1 / 5 | 1,525 | 8 October 2026 |
What Cognition claims (not independently verified):
- More than 1 million users and 4,000 enterprise customers 1
- Devin Local uses up to 30% fewer tokens than Cascade for most tasks 2,7
Concerns raised by others:
- Google hired Windsurf's CEO, a co-founder and research leaders in a $2.4 billion deal days before Cognition bought what remained 24.
- Weeks after the deal, Cognition laid off 30 Windsurf staff, offered about 200 others buyouts and told those who stayed to expect 80-plus-hour weeks 25.
- The JetBrains plugin averages 4.1, with 183 of 1,525 ratings at one star 28.
How we scored it
| Criterion | Why | Score |
|---|---|---|
| What it can do 30% of the total | Devin Local edits, runs commands and tests, and spawns subagents locally 7, the Agent Command Center launches Devin cloud agents on their own VMs 9, and MCP, skills and ACP agents extend it 7,10. | 5/5 |
| Pricing 20% of the total | Free, Pro, Max and Teams prices are public and overage uses API list prices, but quotas are not stated in numbers and Enterprise is quote-only 3,5. | 4/5 |
| Control 20% of the total | Allow, ask and deny rules, OS-level sandboxing and approve-before-edit or worktree merges are documented 7, with admin caps on autonomy and team allow and deny lists 8,13, but checkpoints exist only for legacy Cascade 11 and Desktop audit logs are not documented. | 4/5 |
| Security and data 15% of the total | Cognition holds SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 18,19, the app has FedRAMP High 20, and zero data retention follows a training opt-out 18, but self-serve data may be used for training by default 18. | 4/5 |
| Customer evidence 15% of the total | The Windsurf plugin scores 4.7 from 1,472 VS Code Marketplace ratings 27 and 4.1 from 1,525 JetBrains ratings 28, but those cover the plugin rather than the desktop app; named customers include Ramp and NVIDIA 1. | 4/5 |
| Total | Weighted sum of the 5 levels, out of 10. | 8.6 |
Sources
- Devin Desktop
- Windsurf is now Devin Desktop
- Plans and Pricing
- Self-serve plans
- Quota
- Plans and Usage
- Devin Local Agent
- Terminal
- Agent Command Center
- Agent Client Protocol
- Cascade Overview
- Quick Review
- Admin controls
- Guide for admins
- AI Models
- Install Devin Desktop
- Sandbox
- Security at Cognition
- Cognition Trust Center
- Compliance (federal deployments)
- FedRAMP Security Admin Guide
- Self-hosted deployment maintenance mode
- Devin Desktop Teams and Enterprise setup
- Cognition, maker of the AI coding agent Devin, acquires Windsurf
- Three weeks after acquiring Windsurf, Cognition offers staff the exit door
- Cognition hits $48B valuation, signaling investors believe AI coding is far from a winner-take-all market
- Windsurf Plugin (formerly Codeium)
- Windsurf Plugin for Python, JS, Java, Go...