JetBrains
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Professional developers on Java, Kotlin, or .NET get unmatched IDE depth and should buy.
New check
Comparison
JetBrains vs Zed
JetBrains and Zed both land on Depends.
Zed
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Buy it if you're a developer who wants a fast, free, open-source editor and can live with token-billed AI costs and recent CVE churn.
| Compare | JetBrains | Zed |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Depends | Depends |
| Best for | JVM/Kotlin teams | Professional developers wanting a fast, minimal editor |
| Who it's not for | Hobbyists . free editors like VS Code do the job | Non-developers . this is strictly a code editor |
| Privacy | Multiple real CVEs, including a critical known-exploited TeamCity RCE and a 2026 incident with compromised AWS IAM users.⁶ | Active risk: six CVEs disclosed across 2025-2026 (symlink escapes, Zip Slip, info disclosure); vendor does coordinate disclosure and ships security features like Worktree Trust. |
| Support quality | No direct support evidence found | No support evidence found |
| Public sentiment | Sentiment is split: long-time users praise the depth but complain about bloat, price hikes, and AI credit costs.¹ | Users consistently praise Zed's speed and simplicity, but report rough edges, pricing changes, and security frustrations. |
| Biggest gotcha | AI Pro uses credit consumption; users report costs ballooning with Junie⁵ | Patch fast: symlink-escape and Zip Slip CVEs hit the editor and extension archives in 2026. |
Pick JetBrains when
- JVM/Kotlin teams
- .NET developers (Rider)
- Polyglot shops wanting one bundle
- Large legacy codebases
When JetBrains is not a fit
- 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
Pick Zed when
- Professional developers wanting a fast, minimal editor
- AI-assisted coders comfortable with token billing
- Open-source-friendly engineering teams
- Collaborative and remote pair coding
When Zed is not a fit
- Non-developers . this is strictly a code editor
- Teams needing VS Code-level extension ecosystems today
- Security-sensitive orgs without fast patching discipline
- Anyone needing stable AI pricing . token billing changed mid-cycle
Sources
- Is JetBrains still a good company?reddit.comreview
- JetBrains Reviews . Glassdoorglassdoor.comreview
- Trustpilot reviews of jetbrains.comtrustpilot.comreview
- JetBrains defends removal of negative reviewsnews.ycombinator.comnews
- AI pricing & credit consumption concernsintellij-support.jetbrains.comreview
- CVE-2026-63077 TeamCity RCE analysisrapid7.comsecurity
security
- Cadence security incident, August 2026blog.jetbrains.comsecurity
- JetBrains store and Toolbox plansjetbrains.comofficial
- JetBrains Annual Highlights 2023jetbrains.comofficial
- Our Customers: 88 of Fortune Global 100jetbrains.comofficial
- Bootstrapping a $400M revenue IDEalexandre.substack.comnews
- JetBrains price increase announcementreddit.comreview
review
official
- Zed . Pricingzed.devofficial