Claude Code now leads AI coding tools with 39% developer adoption
JetBrains just released findings from its Developer Ecosystem Survey 2026, its tenth annual study of more than 15,000 professional developers worldwide. The AI coding tool rankings shifted hard between January and July 2026, and the numbers are worth paying attention to if you’re deciding which tools to put in your own stack.
The headline numbers
90% of professional developers used AI coding agents at work at least weekly as of May to July 2026. 68% used them daily. These are not experimental tools anymore. They’re part of the default workflow.
Tool by tool breakdown
Claude Code is the clear leader. Adoption went from 18% in January 2026 to 39% worldwide by mid-2026. In the US, that number sits at 47%. It’s also the primary AI coding tool for 31% of developers, which JetBrains notes represents roughly an 80% conversion rate from regular use to being the single most-used tool. That’s twice the adoption rate of GitHub Copilot.
OpenAI Codex is the fastest mover. It went from 3% adoption in January to 16% by mid-2026, roughly a 5x jump in six months. Awareness also surged, from 27% to 65% of developers having heard of it.
GitHub Copilot dropped from 29% adoption a year ago to 21% by mid-2026. It still has strong brand recognition, with 79% awareness globally and 86% to 90% in Europe, the UK, and the US. According to the survey, 39% of Copilot users also use it inside JetBrains IDEs.
Cursor gained awareness (69% to 75%) but lost adoption, falling from 18% to 12%. The sharpest drop was in China, where it went from 28% to 16%.
OpenCode, the open-source coding agent, reached 7% adoption and holds a 42% mindshare without a major company backing it.
Google Antigravity held steady at 6% adoption while awareness jumped from 29% to 47%. In India it’s tied for third place with Cursor at 15% adoption, up from 10% in January.
JetBrains AI (including its Junie agent) is at 9% adoption worldwide. Claude Agent, Codex, GitHub Copilot, and OpenCode are integrated directly into JetBrains IDEs, with additional agents available via its Agent Client Protocol.
The operator takeaway
Claude Code’s jump from 18% to 39% in roughly six months is the kind of adoption curve that warrants a practical look if you haven’t tried it yet. The survey covered professional developers across all major regions, weighted by regional developer population, employment status, and programming language. If you’re evaluating AI coding tools for a small team, these numbers give you a current baseline to compare against your own experience.
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