A Month with Cursor: Can AI Really Be a Coder’s Teammate?

Introduction

About a month ago, I got access to Cursor IDE through my employer (thank you Qalmari ❤️). Like most people who have worked in software development, I have tested a lot of different coding tools over the years. But very few have actually changed the way I work as much as this one. Over the past month, I have used Cursor in my personal projects, and in this post I want to share what this AI-powered coding environment can really do.

If you have not heard of Cursor before, it is an IDE built on top of Visual Studio Code. It brings AI help straight into your daily work. Unlike simple code suggestion tools, Cursor feels more like a pair programming partner. It understands the code you are working on and can help you with everything from writing new features to troubleshooting complex bugs.

What Works Well: Surprisingly Smart AI Assistance

The first thing that impressed me was how well Cursor handled even vague requests. In one of my projects, I asked it to "add a nice background" to my app’s homepage. Instead of getting confused, Cursor read my existing code and added a smooth gradient animation that fit perfectly with the color scheme.

That experience encouraged me to try something more ambitious. I decided to create a small product from scratch using only Cursor. I started with a simple task manager built with Next.js and Chakra UI. I gave Cursor a list of basic requirements, and it created a working prototype faster than I could have written it myself. I only had to step in a couple of times during the whole process.

What impressed me the most was how well Cursor understood the context. When I asked it to "add login functionality," it did not just paste some random code. It actually connected the feature to my existing components and database structure. This level of understanding makes Cursor feel less like a tool and more like a true teammate who knows your project inside and out. If Cursor does not know something, it can automatically search for and read the right documentation.

I was also impressed by its agent mode and thinking process. Agent mode allows Cursor to complete a series of steps on its own when working on complex tasks. The thinking process gives you insight into how Cursor is making decisions, which helps you trust its suggestions. You can even learn from its reasoning, especially if you are trying to pick up a new technology.

Other Use Cases

One of my favorite ways to use Cursor has been for maintenance tasks that are normally boring and time-consuming. For example, I needed to replace a simple URL with a more complex structure in over a hundred files. Instead of doing a search and replace, I asked Cursor to write a Python script for me. In just a few seconds, it gave me a script that not only replaced the URLs but also logged the changes for review.

Cursor is also great at code reviews. When I asked it to "act like a lead developer and review this file," it gave me smart comments that helped me spot possible mistakes and even suggested ways to improve performance. This has been a lifesaver for solo projects, where I do not have another developer to double-check my work.

Learning Curve and Challenges

Of course, Cursor is not perfect. One of the biggest issues I have faced is that it sometimes overcomplicates solutions. For example, when I had a small user interface bug, instead of fixing the problem, Cursor suggested rewriting entire components. This "using a cannon to kill a fly" approach can be frustrating when all you need is a quick fix.

I also noticed that Cursor can be a bit stubborn when dealing with errors. If its first attempt to fix a bug fails, it will try again, which is a good thing. But after three tries, it sometimes gives up on promising solutions and settles for something less ideal. Once, I had some small network issues, and Cursor failed three times to fix the problem. Instead of trying the correct simple fix again, it decided to rewrite the entire component, even though only a couple of lines needed changing.

Another problem came up with Chakra UI. The library had recently gone through big updates, and Cursor seemed confused about which version I was using. It kept mixing up conventions from different versions, which led to inconsistent code that I had to fix by hand. This showed me that Cursor works best with well-known and stable technologies. Brand new tools or updates can throw it off.

Maybe the most important thing to know is that using Cursor well requires experience. If you are a beginner developer who is not yet able to judge code quality, you might follow Cursor’s suggestions without fully understanding what they do. Cursor is definitely a tool for developers who already know how to review and evaluate code critically.

Tips for Getting the Most Out of Cursor

• Take small steps. Break tasks into smaller pieces. If you ask Cursor to "build a complete authentication system," the results are often less reliable than if you guide it through each part one at a time.
• Start fresh conversations. Begin a new chat for each feature or component. This helps Cursor stay focused on the current task and prevents confusion from earlier discussions.
• Use agent mode for complex tasks. If you need to make changes across many files or handle a set of related tasks, agent mode can save you a lot of time.
• Ask for code reviews. Let Cursor review your code to catch issues that are easy to miss when you have been staring at the same file for too long.
• Automate routine tasks. Any job you do over and over can probably be automated with Cursor.

The Future of Development?

After a month with Cursor, I am convinced that AI-assisted coding is a major step forward for software development. But it is important to understand that tools like Cursor are not here to replace developers. They are meant to support us and handle routine coding tasks that do not require human creativity.

In the future, the most successful developers will be those who learn to work with AI tools and take advantage of their strengths while staying aware of their weaknesses. Cursor does not remove the need for coding skills. In fact, it requires even deeper knowledge to guide and evaluate its suggestions effectively.

Final Thoughts

Cursor has genuinely improved my productivity as a developer. Tasks that used to take hours now only take minutes, and I can focus more on architecture and problem-solving instead of just writing code.

But it is not a magic solution. Using Cursor well still takes experience, critical thinking, and the willingness to carefully review its output. A developer who blindly follows Cursor’s suggestions will only create future maintenance nightmares.

As AI coding assistants like Cursor continue to evolve, I believe they will become standard tools in every developer’s toolbox. The key is to treat them as partners rather than as magical oracles or simple autocomplete tools.

For now, Cursor is one of the most promising innovations I have seen in the world of development environments. Despite its occasional quirks and limits, it has earned a permanent place in my workflow. If you have not tried it yet, I recommend checking it out to see how it might change your own coding experience.