Tips & Resources
What are the best free developer tools in 2025?
The strongest free developer tools in 2025 span IDEs, version control, deployment, and AI assistance. VS Code remains the dominant editor. GitHub provides free repositories, CI/CD via Actions, and Copilot's free tier. Vercel and Netlify offer generous free hosting. For AI coding, Cursor's free tier and Claude's API free credits lower the barrier to entry.
Key Considerations
- Free tiers change frequently — verify limits before building production workflows on them
- Self-hosted alternatives (Gitea, Coolify) eliminate vendor lock-in
- AI coding assistants are productivity multipliers but require review — don't blindly trust output
- Stack choices compound — pick tools that integrate well together