Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Sourcegraph VS Visual Studio IntelliCode

Compare Sourcegraph VS Visual Studio IntelliCode and see what are their differences

Sourcegraph logo Sourcegraph

Sourcegraph is a free, self-hosted code search and intelligence server that helps developers find, review, understand, and debug code. Use it with any Git code host for teams from 1 to 10,000+.

Visual Studio IntelliCode logo Visual Studio IntelliCode

Visual Studio IntelliCode is an experimental set of AI-assisted development capabilities for next-generation developer productivity.
  • Sourcegraph Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-06
  • Visual Studio IntelliCode Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-02-23

Sourcegraph features and specs

  • Code Search
    Sourcegraph offers powerful, fast, and precise code search across large codebases, which helps developers quickly find references, definitions, or implementations.
  • Cross-Repository Search
    Allows searching across multiple repositories within the same interface, enhancing discoverability and productivity.
  • Integrations
    Sourcegraph integrates with popular code hosting platforms like GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and more, providing a seamless experience.
  • Code Intelligence
    Supports advanced code intelligence features like hover tooltips, go-to-definition, and find-references, making code navigation easier.
  • Extensibility
    Developers can extend Sourcegraph's functionality with custom extensions, adapting it to their specific needs.
  • Data Privacy
    Sourcegraph can be self-hosted, giving organizations control over their code and data privacy.
  • Multi-Language Support
    Supports a wide range of programming languages and continuously adds more, catering to diverse development environments.

Possible disadvantages of Sourcegraph

  • Complex Setup
    Setting up Sourcegraph, especially self-hosted versions, can be complicated and time-consuming, requiring a good understanding of DevOps practices.
  • Resource Intensive
    Sourcegraph can be resource-heavy, necessitating significant computational power and memory, especially for large codebases.
  • Cost
    While there is a free tier, advanced features and self-hosted options can be expensive for small teams or individual developers.
  • Learning Curve
    The myriad of features and customizations can result in a steep learning curve for new users, potentially slowing down initial adoption.
  • Limited Offline Support
    While Sourcegraph provides robust online features, its functionality is limited when offline, which can impact productivity in environments with restricted internet access.
  • Dependency on Code Hosts
    Sourcegraph's heavy reliance on integrations with external code hosting platforms can introduce friction if there are changes or issues with those services.

Visual Studio IntelliCode features and specs

  • Intelligent Code Recommendations
    IntelliCode uses machine learning models trained on open-source GitHub projects to provide contextual code recommendations, helping developers write better code faster.
  • Custom Models for Teams
    Teams can train their own models based on their codebase, enhancing the relevance of IntelliCode's suggestions and ensuring they conform to the team's coding standards and practices.
  • Improved Code Quality
    By suggesting best practices and common code patterns, IntelliCode aids in maintaining high code quality and consistency across projects.
  • Supports Multiple Languages
    IntelliCode supports a wide range of programming languages, including Python, Java, JavaScript, and more, making it versatile for different types of projects.
  • Code Completion and Refactoring Assistance
    It provides intelligent code completions and helps with code refactoring tasks, making the development process more efficient and less error-prone.

Possible disadvantages of Visual Studio IntelliCode

  • Limited Training Data
    The effectiveness of IntelliCode's suggestions depends on the quality and breadth of the training data. For very unique or proprietary codebases, the recommendations may not be as relevant.
  • Dependency on Visual Studio
    IntelliCode is integrated with Visual Studio, so developers using other IDEs might not be able to benefit from its features unless they switch to Visual Studio.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running IntelliCode, especially with custom models, can be resource-intensive, potentially impacting the performance of the development environment.
  • Privacy Concerns
    Using custom models might raise privacy concerns as code from the team’s repository could be used to train the AI, potentially exposing sensitive information.
  • Learning Curve
    There might be a slight learning curve for new users to understand and effectively use the recommendations provided by IntelliCode.

Sourcegraph videos

Code review with IDE powers: Sourcegraph Chrome extension

More videos:

  • Review - Better code reviews on GitHub with the Sourcegraph browser extension
  • Review - Sourcegraph's new GitLab native integration

Visual Studio IntelliCode videos

Visual Studio IntelliCode

More videos:

  • Review - Visual Studio IntelliCode -- AI meets IntelliSense!

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Sourcegraph and Visual Studio IntelliCode)
Developer Tools
51 51%
49% 49
AI
28 28%
72% 72
Git
100 100%
0% 0
Code Collaboration
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Sourcegraph and Visual Studio IntelliCode

Sourcegraph Reviews

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Visual Studio IntelliCode Reviews

Top 10 Vercel v0 Open Source Alternatives | Medium
While not entirely open-source, Microsoft’s IntelliCode deserves a mention on this list due to its powerful AI-assisted coding capabilities and integration with popular development tools. IntelliCode uses machine learning to provide intelligent code completions and suggestions.
Source: medium.com
10 Best Github Copilot Alternatives in 2024
Some of the best free GitHub Copilot alternatives are Kite, Codeium, and IntelliCode. These tools offer AI-powered code completions without costing you anything. They help you write code faster and are great options if you’re looking for a Copilot alternative free of charge.
6 GitHub Copilot Alternatives You Should Know
Visual Studio IntelliCode is an extension for Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code that provides AI-assisted code completions and recommendations. IntelliCode is based on the previous generation of machine learning techniques, so it provides a more basic level of code completion compared to other tools. One of its key features is the ability to learn patterns from the...
Source: swimm.io
Top 10 GitHub Copilot Alternatives
A Microsoft tool exclusively accessible through Visual Studio, IntelliCode is an experimental AI coding assistance trained on a sample of GitHub projects. Your completion list is prioritized by IntelliCode so that the items you’re most likely to utilize are at the front.
Source: hashdork.com
Top 9 GitHub Copilot alternatives to try in 2022 (free and paid)
IntelliCode is an experimental AI coding assistant trained on a subset of GitHub projects, a Microsoft product available for Visual Studio only. One of the more attractive features of IntelliCode is team completion. Team completion may prove beneficial for organizations with a Microsoft-based architecture and developers accustomed to Visual Studio in an age of remote...
Source: www.tabnine.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Sourcegraph should be more popular than Visual Studio IntelliCode. It has been mentiond 34 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Sourcegraph mentions (34)

  • Ask HN: Cursor or Windsurf?
    This is a product by Sourcegraph https://sourcegraph.com who already have a solution in this space. Is this something wildly different to Cody, your existing solution, or just a "subtle" attempt to gain more customers? - Source: Hacker News / 13 days ago
  • Ask HN: Who is hiring? (April 2025)
    Sourcegraph | San Francisco / Remote | Full-Time | SWE, Database Platform Eng, Forward Deployed Eng, Solutions Eng, Dev Advocate (all roles write code) | https://sourcegraph.com Sourcegraph is how enterprises industrialize software development with AI. We accelerate and automate how software is built in the world's most important companies, including 7/10 top software companies by market cap and 4/6 top US banks.... - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • Quickly build UI components with AI
    Cody by Sourcegraph can transform how you build UI components, from basic buttons to complex, dynamic systems. It handles the heavy lifting so you can focus on crafting good UI/UX designs. Whether you’re customising components or managing complex UI systems, Cody provides the tools to make the process faster and more efficient. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • 22 Unique Developer Resources You Should Explore
    URL: https://sourcegraph.com What it does: A universal code search tool for navigating large codebases. Why it's great: Quickly locate what you need in vast repositories — ideal for collaboration! - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • Copilot vs. Cody: All you need to know
    What is Sourcegraph Cody? Cody, introduced by Sourcegraph, is an AI-powered coding assistant designed to use advanced search and codebase context to help you understand, write, and fix code faster. Launched in 2023, Cody aims to provide deeper context and more accurate code suggestions, particularly for complex and large-scale projects. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
View more

Visual Studio IntelliCode mentions (11)

  • 🎈5 AI Coding Tools That Will Change the Way You Develop Forever🎇(You Won't Believe #3!)
    IntelliCode is Microsoft’s own AI-powered code completion tool, and it integrates seamlessly with Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code. With IntelliCode, developers get context-aware suggestions based on a vast number of GitHub repositories, allowing them to write more efficient and error-free code. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • Beware the Mid-Career Crisis for Programmers: The Four Major Causes
    Visual Studio IntelliCode is an intelligent code editor that offers efficient and personalized code completion suggestions based on context and your coding habits, making coding smoother. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • 6 AI tool that you should use as a developer
    IntelliCode is a machine learning-powered intelligent code assistant that significantly boosts developer productivity. IntelliCode suggests context-aware code completions by analyzing millions of lines of code from various open-source projects, making coding faster and more efficient. Its advanced algorithms recognize coding patterns and make intelligent suggestions, saving developers time and reducing errors.... - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
  • Rider: Refact vs CoPilot
    OP is referring to IntelliCode. It's a step beyond IntelliSense, but I agree with other posts here: you should be really sure you're not leaking business code this way or implement code from sources you didn't approve yourself. Source: about 2 years ago
  • GitHub Copilot X: The AI-powered developer experience
    You might be thinking of IntelliCode, which was released in 2019. https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/services/intellicode/. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Sourcegraph and Visual Studio IntelliCode, you can also consider the following products

OpenGrok - OpenGrok is a fast and usable source code search and cross reference engine.

GitHub Copilot - Your AI pair programmer. With GitHub Copilot, get suggestions for whole lines or entire functions right inside your editor.

Atlassian Fisheye - With FishEye you can search code, visualize and report on activity and find for commits, files, revisions, or teammates across SVN, Git, Mercurial, CVS and Perforce.

Tabnine - TabNine is the all-language autocompleter. We use deep learning to help you write code faster.

codespell.ai - AI-Powered Code Completion for Faster SDLC

Codeium - Free AI-powered code completion for *everyone*, *everywhere*