GitHub Copilot: AI Code Generation Guide
Write code faster with AI-powered code suggestions and completions
What is GitHub Copilot?
GitHub Copilot is an AI pair programmer that helps you write code faster by providing intelligent code suggestions as you type. Built on OpenAI’s Codex model, it understands context, autocompletes code, generates functions, and explains code snippets across multiple programming languages.
Pricing & Access
GitHub Copilot Individual
$10/month or $100/year
- Code suggestions & completion
- Full file generation
- Chat assistance
- Works with VS Code, Neovim, IDEs
- Free for verified students
GitHub Copilot Pro
$20/month
- All Individual features
- Priority queue access
- GPT-4 support
- Faster response times
- Advanced features
Key Features
Code Completion
- Line and function completion
- Context-aware suggestions
- Multi-language support
- Real-time suggestions
- Smart indentation
Copilot Chat
- Ask questions in chat
- Explain code snippets
- Generate code from descriptions
- Refactoring suggestions
- Bug detection
Supported Languages
JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Ruby, Go, Java, C++, C#, PHP, Rust, Kotlin, SQL, Shell, and more.
How to Get Started
- Install GitHub Copilot extension for your IDE
- Sign in with your GitHub account
- Start a free trial or subscribe
- Begin typing code – suggestions appear automatically
- Press Tab to accept suggestions
- Use Chat (Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + I) for questions
Best Practices for Using Copilot
Tips for Better Suggestions:
- Write clear, descriptive comments before code
- Specify function names and parameter names clearly
- Use consistent code style in your project
- Provide context with imports and class definitions
- Review all suggestions before accepting them
- Ask specific questions in Chat mode
- Use it for boilerplate and common patterns
Use Cases
- Rapid Development: Speed up coding, reduce typing
- Learning: Understand coding patterns and syntax
- Boilerplate: Quickly generate repetitive code
- Testing: Generate test cases and mocks
- Documentation: Generate docstrings and comments
- Refactoring: Get suggestions for code improvement
- Bug Fixing: Identify and fix common issues
Copilot vs Other AI Code Tools
| Feature | Copilot | Codeium | Tabnine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | $10-20/month | Free/$12/month | Free/$20/month |
| Code Quality | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| IDE Support | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Want to Learn More?
Visit our AI Tools Database for information about GitHub Copilot, Codeium, and other coding AI tools.