shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use JetBrains?

JetBrains is a cutting-edge software vendor specializing in the creation of intelligent development tools, including IntelliJ IDEA – the leading Java IDE, and the Kotlin programming language. - jetbrains.com

Depends. Professional developers on Java, Kotlin, or .NET get unmatched IDE depth and should buy. Hobbyists, budget buyers, and security-sensitive orgs should start with free editors instead.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~30 public sources: reviews, CVE advisories, pricing pages, and company data.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo direct support evidence found
  • Security posture

Pricing

All Products Pack

Subscription (price not shown in reviewed sources)

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
AI ProAdd-on plan
Qodana (code quality)$6/contributor/month

Best for

  • JVM/Kotlin teams
  • .NET developers (Rider)
  • Polyglot shops wanting one bundle
  • Large legacy codebases

Not for

  • Hobbyists — free editors like VS Code do the job
  • Security-sensitive orgs uneasy after TeamCity RCEs
  • AI-heavy teams who hate metered credit pricing
  • Anyone wanting one cheap tool — bundles add up

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

AI Pro uses credit consumption; users report costs ballooning with Junie

medium

Yearly price increases announced across IDEs and .NET tools

medium

JetBrains defended removing negative reviews, so marketplace ratings may skew rosy

medium

Some companies have banned JetBrains IDEs internally over security concerns

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Best-in-class feature depth; IntelliJ IDEA is the leading Java IDE
  • 15.9M developers and 300,000+ organizations use the tools
  • Bootstrapped, ~$400M revenue, never raised VC — stable and independent
  • All Products Pack bundles 10 IDEs, extensions, and profilers
  • 88 of Fortune Global 100 companies are customers

Cons

  • Users call IDEs bloated with performance issues
  • Price increases announced for IDEs and .NET tools
  • AI credit-based pricing draws serious user complaints
  • Accused of removing negative reviews for AI products
  • Only 62% of employees would recommend the company

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/24/2026 - 14 sources - Multiple real CVEs, including a critical known-exploited TeamCity RCE and a 2026 incident with compromised AWS IAM users. Patch discipline required.

official x3review x6security x3news x2
  • CVE-2026-63077: unauthenticated RCE in TeamCity On-Premises, Critical unauthenticated remote code execution; JetBrains issued an advisory and Rapid7 published analysis.
  • CVE-2024-27198 added to CISA Known Exploited catalog, A JetBrains vulnerability was added to CISA's known-exploited vulnerabilities catalog.
  • CVE-2026-49366: IntelliJ IDEA command injection, Command injection flaw allowing code execution on developer machines.
  • Cadence security incident (August 2026), JetBrains disclosed an incident in which multiple AWS IAM users were compromised.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 3/5

    Rating

  • Subscription (price not shown in reviewed sources)

    Starting price

  • 14

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 3/5. Deep value, but price hikes and AI credits sting
  • Ease of use: 3/5. Users report bloat; 'easy' is subjective
  • Feature depth: 5/5. Leading Java IDE; bundles 10 IDEs
  • Support quality. No direct support evidence found
  • Security posture: 1/5. Exploited TeamCity RCE; IAM compromise incident
  • 15.9M Developers using 2023 annual report
  • 300,000+ Organizations Per JetBrains
  • 88 of 100 Fortune Global 100 Claimed customers
  • 62% Employee recommend Glassdoor reviews

Pricing

All Products Pack

Subscription (price not shown in reviewed sources)

  • 10 IDEs incl. IntelliJ IDEA and Rider
  • 3 extensions, 2 profilers
  • Also sold as single-IDE subscriptions

AI Pro

Add-on plan

  • AI Assistant + Junie agent
  • Credit consumption applies

Qodana (code quality)

$6/contributor/month

  • Static analysis pipeline
  • Cheapest evidence-backed price found

Security

Multiple real CVEs, including a critical known-exploited TeamCity RCE and a 2026 incident with compromised AWS IAM users.

  • CVE-2026-63077: unauthenticated RCE in TeamCity On-PremisesCritical unauthenticated remote code execution; JetBrains issued an advisory and Rapid7 published analysis.⁶
  • CVE-2024-27198 added to CISA Known Exploited catalogA JetBrains vulnerability was added to CISA's known-exploited vulnerabilities catalog.⁷

Patch discipline required.

  • CVE-2026-49366: IntelliJ IDEA command injectionCommand injection flaw allowing code execution on developer machines.
  • Cadence security incident (August 2026)JetBrains disclosed an incident in which multiple AWS IAM users were compromised.⁸

What users say

Sentiment is split: long-time users praise the depth but complain about bloat, price hikes, and AI credit costs.

“JetBrains is on a downwards slope in my opinion”
Reddit, r/Jetbrains
“Bloated IDEs and Performance Issues”
Reddit, r/Jetbrains

Alternatives

Compare JetBrains with each alternative.

Companies that use it

  • MRstudios
  • yworks
Full analysis

Based on ~30 public sources: reviews, CVE advisories, pricing pages, and company data.

Powerhouse IDEs, but price hikes, AI credit friction, and real CVEs. Buy for JVM/.NET pros; skip hobbyists.

Methodology

Based on ~30 public sources: reviews, CVE advisories, pricing pages, and company data.

Sources

  1. Is JetBrains still a good company?reddit.com
    review
  2. JetBrains Reviews — Glassdoorglassdoor.com
    review
  3. Trustpilot reviews of jetbrains.comtrustpilot.com
    review
  4. JetBrains defends removal of negative reviewsnews.ycombinator.com
    news
  5. AI pricing & credit consumption concernsintellij-support.jetbrains.com
    review
  6. CVE-2026-63077 TeamCity RCE analysisrapid7.com
    security
  7. CISA adds known-exploited JetBrains CVEcisa.gov
    security
  8. Cadence security incident, August 2026blog.jetbrains.com
    security
  9. JetBrains store and Toolbox plansjetbrains.com
    official
  10. JetBrains Annual Highlights 2023jetbrains.com
    official
  11. Our Customers: 88 of Fortune Global 100jetbrains.com
    official
  12. Bootstrapping a $400M revenue IDEalexandre.substack.com
    news
  13. JetBrains price increase announcementreddit.com
    review
  14. Qodana pricing comparison (DeepSource)dev.to
    review

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