5.4 Tool Selection Guide Beginner Free

Prerequisites: 5.1 IDE-Integrated Tools, 5.2 Terminal-Native Tools, 5.3 Cloud-Based AI Development

Why Do You Need It? (Problem)

Now that you've learned about 10+ AI coding tools, you face a new challenge:

Choice Paralysis
- Cursor, Windsurf, and Copilot all claim they're the best—who to trust?
- Is the free Trae enough? Or must I pay?
- Trying every tool is too costly
Too Many Tools, Lower Efficiency
- Installed 3 IDE tools, don't know which to open
- Terminal tools overlap with IDE tools
- Spend more time switching tools than using them
Different Roles, Different Needs
- Frontend developers need rapid UI generation
- Backend developers focus on business logic and databases
- DevOps engineers need to edit code directly on servers
- Product managers just want to quickly validate prototypes
Budget Constraints
- Students/individuals: free if possible
- Small teams: limited budget, need cost-effectiveness
- Large enterprises: focus on security and compliance

Goal of this section: Provide clear tool combination recommendations based on your role, scenario, and budget.

What Is It? (Concept)

Tool Selection Framework: 3 Dimensions × 2 Decisions

Decision Tree:

By Role Selection

Frontend Developers

Core Needs:

Rapid UI component generation
Responsive design and style adjustments
Automatic component documentation

Recommended Combo:

Tool	Purpose	Price
Cursor or Windsurf	Daily coding, refactoring	$20 or $10/month
v0	Rapid UI component generation	Free 200 credits
Cline (Optional)	Handle complex logic with Claude Sonnet 4.6	Pay-per-use

Workflow Example:

Need: Create user profile page

Step 1: Generate UI with v0
Prompt: "Design a user profile page with avatar, name, bio, social links"
→ Get React component code

Step 2: Integrate in Cursor
- Copy code generated by v0
- Use Cursor Agent to connect backend API
- "Modify this component to fetch data from /api/user and display"

Step 3: Optimize details
- Cursor Chat: "Add skeleton loading state"
- Cursor Chat: "Add edit mode to modify profile"

Cost Analysis:

Windsurf Pro: $10/month
v0 Free: 200 credits/month (sufficient)
Total: $10/month

Backend Developers

Core Needs:

Business logic implementation
Database query optimization
API documentation generation
Test case writing

Recommended Combo:

Tool	Purpose	Price
Cursor	Code writing, refactoring, testing	$20/month
Claude Code	Quick fixes on servers	$20/month (included in Claude Pro)

Or Low-Cost Alternative:

Tool	Purpose	Price
Cline	Agent programming in VS Code	Pay-per-use
Codex CLI	Quick queries in terminal	Pay-per-use
DeepSeek API	Low-cost model ($0.14/1M tokens)	~$5/month

Workflow Example:

Need: Optimize order query API performance

Step 1: Analyze in Cursor
"Analyze performance bottlenecks in app/api/orders.py"
→ Cursor points out: N+1 query problem, missing indexes

Step 2: Let Cursor optimize
"Refactor this API:
1. Use JOIN instead of N+1 queries
2. Add database indexes
3. Add caching (Redis)"
→ Cursor auto-modifies code and generates migration files

Step 3: Generate tests
"Generate unit tests and performance tests for this API"
→ Cursor creates tests/test_orders.py

Cost Analysis:

Option 1 (Cursor + Claude Code): $20/month (Claude Pro unlocks both tools)
Option 2 (Cline + DeepSeek): ~$5/month

Full-Stack Developers

Core Needs:

Frontend and backend development simultaneously
Database model and API sync modifications
End-to-end feature implementation

Recommended Combo:

Tool	Purpose	Price
Cursor (Agent Mode)	Multi-file editing, full-stack refactoring	$20/month
bolt.new (Optional)	Quick project scaffolding	Free/month

Workflow Example:

Need: Add user favorite feature (frontend + backend + database)

Input in Cursor Composer (⌘ I):

"Add user favorite article feature:
1. Database: Create favorites table (user_id, article_id, created_at)
2. Backend: Add POST /favorites and DELETE /favorites/:id API
3. Frontend: Add favorite button in article list, call API on click
4. Real-time UI state update"

→ Cursor automatically:
- ✅ Creates database migration file
- ✅ Creates app/api/favorites/route.ts
- ✅ Modifies components/ArticleCard.tsx to add favorite button
- ✅ Adds state management (React Context or Zustand)
- ✅ Generates test cases

Done! One command implements end-to-end feature.

Cost Analysis:

Cursor Pro: $20/month
bolt.new: Free (only for quick project generation)
Total: $20/month

DevOps / SRE Engineers

Core Needs:

Quick config modifications on servers
Log analysis and troubleshooting
Writing automation scripts
Optimizing CI/CD pipelines

Recommended Combo:

Tool	Purpose	Price
Claude Code	Modify code/config on servers	$20/month
Codex CLI	Quick queries and script generation	Pay-per-use
MCP Tools (Optional)	Integrate Kubernetes, GitHub, Jira	Free

Workflow Example:

bash

# Scenario: Production CPU spike, need to investigate

# Step 1: SSH to server
ssh user@prod-server

# Step 2: Launch Claude Code
claude-code

# Step 3: Let AI help analyze
You: Analyze logs from the last hour, find cause of CPU spike

Claude: 
I performed the following analysis:
1. ✅ Checked /var/log/app.log
2. ✅ Found many "Slow query" warnings
3. ✅ Located query at app/db/queries.py:145 missing index

Suggestion: Add index on email field in users table.

You: Create migration file and execute

Claude:
✅ Created migrations/add_email_index.sql
✅ Executed migration: psql -f migrations/add_email_index.sql
✅ Verified: EXPLAIN ANALYZE SELECT * FROM users WHERE email = '...'
✅ CPU usage returned to normal

Problem solved!

Cost Analysis:

Claude Code (included in Claude Pro): $20/month
Codex CLI + DeepSeek: ~$5/month
Total: $20-25/month

Tech Leaders / Architects

Core Needs:

Code review
Architecture design discussions
Automatic documentation generation
Team collaboration and knowledge sharing

Recommended Combo:

Tool	Purpose	Price
Cursor	Code writing, review	$20/month
GitHub Copilot Business	Unified team tool + audit	$19/month/person
AGENTS.md	Define team AI coding standards	Free

AGENTS.md Example:

markdown

# Team AI Coding Standards

## Architecture Patterns
- Use clean architecture (Controller → Service → Repository)
- Follow SOLID principles
- Prefer composition over inheritance

## Code Style
- TypeScript strict mode enabled
- Use functional components (React)
- Avoid `any` type, always use specific types

## Testing
- Unit test coverage > 80%
- Use Jest + Testing Library
- Mock external APIs

## Documentation
- All public APIs must have JSDoc
- README includes setup instructions and examples
- Architecture diagrams in /docs/architecture

## Security
- Never commit secrets (.env in .gitignore)
- Use environment variables for config
- Validate all user inputs

Workflow Example:

Scenario: Code Review

Step 1: Use Cursor to review PR
"Analyze this PR, check:
1. Does it follow team coding standards (refer to AGENTS.md)
2. Are there security vulnerabilities
3. Are tests missing
4. Any performance issues"

Step 2: Cursor generates review report
"Found the following issues:
1. ❌ app/api/users.py:23 - Direct SQL concatenation, injection risk
2. ❌ Missing unit tests
3. ⚠️ Function process_data() exceeds 50 lines, suggest splitting
4. ✅ Type hints complete
5. ✅ Documentation complete"

Step 3: Auto-generate improvement suggestions
"Generate fix code:
1. Use Parameterized Query instead of string concatenation
2. Generate test case template"

Cost Analysis (10-person team):

Option 1 (Cursor): $20/month × 10 = $200/month
Option 2 (Copilot Business): $19/month × 10 = $190/month
Recommend Copilot Business (unified management, audit logs, GitHub native integration)

Students / Budget-Limited Individual Developers

Core Needs:

Free as much as possible
Learning programming
Quickly validate ideas

Recommended Combo (Completely Free):

Tool	Purpose	Price
Trae	AI assistance in IDE	Free (2M tokens/month)
Gemini CLI	Quick queries in terminal	Free (1500/day)
v0	UI component generation	Free (200 credits/month)
bolt.new	Full-stack prototypes	Free (5 times/day)

Workflow Example:

Project: Develop a personal blog

Step 1: Generate initial project with bolt.new
"Create a Next.js blog with Markdown articles, tag categories, search"
→ Get complete project in 5 minutes

Step 2: Download project locally
Click "Download" → Unzip

Step 3: Continue development in VS Code + Trae
- Install Trae extension
- "Add dark mode toggle"
- "Add article reading time estimation"
- "Optimize mobile styles"

Step 4: Use v0 for UI components
- "Generate article card component showing title, excerpt, cover, tags"
- Copy code to project

Step 5: Use Gemini CLI for quick queries in terminal
gemini "How to configure sitemap.xml in Next.js?"

Cost Analysis:

Total: $0/month
Limits:
- Trae 2M tokens/month (about 400 GPT-4o conversations)
- v0 200 credits/month (about 40 generations)
- bolt.new 5 generations/day
- Gemini CLI 1500 requests/day

Is Free Quota Enough?

For learning and small projects, absolutely!

Trae 2M tokens = ~13 complex conversations/day (GPT-4o basis)
v0 200 credits = 10 components/week
If not enough, upgrade to Windsurf Pro ($10/month) for best value

By Scenario Selection

Scenario 1: Rapid Product Idea Validation (MVP)

Need: Build a demo-ready prototype in 3 days

Recommended Tools:

bolt.new (generate complete app)
v0 (optimize UI)
Replit AI (quick deployment)

Process:

Day 1: Generate project skeleton with bolt.new (2 hours)
Day 2: Continue development in Replit (6 hours)
Day 3: Beautify UI with v0 + deploy (4 hours)

Total: 12 hours (vs traditional 80+ hours)

Scenario 2: Legacy Code Maintenance

Need: Understand unfamiliar codebase, quickly fix bugs

Recommended Tools:

Cursor (codebase indexing + Agent refactoring)
Claude Code (quick terminal modifications)

Process:

Step 1: Open project in Cursor
"Analyze this project's architecture and core modules"

Step 2: Locate bug
"Where could this error be? [paste error log]"

Step 3: Auto-fix
"Fix this bug and generate test cases"

Step 4: Verify
Run tests, confirm fix

Scenario 3: Team Collaboration Development

Need: 5-person team, unified tools and standards

Recommended Tools:

GitHub Copilot Business (unified platform + audit)
AGENTS.md (team standards)
Replit AI (pair programming/code review)

Management Advantages:

Unified billing (per-seat)
Code not used for model training
Audit logs (who used how much AI)
IP protection (enterprise version)

Scenario 4: Open Source Project Contribution

Need: Quickly understand project, submit PRs

Recommended Tools:

Cline (free, open-source friendly)
Gemini CLI (free, long context for project understanding)

Process:

bash

# Step 1: Clone project
git clone https://github.com/xxx/project.git
cd project

# Step 2: Understand project with Gemini CLI
gemini "Summarize this project's architecture" --context "$(find . -name '*.py' | head -50 | xargs cat)"

# Step 3: Develop new feature with Cline
cline "Implement Issue #123: add avatar upload feature"

# Step 4: Submit PR
git commit -am "feat: add avatar upload"
git push

Recommended "Beginner Starter Pack"

Phase 1: Free Experience (Weeks 1-2)

Goal: Zero-cost AI coding experience, understand workflow

Tool Combo:
- Trae (IDE)
- Gemini CLI (Terminal)
- v0 (UI generation)
- bolt.new (Full-stack prototyping)

Learning Tasks:
1. Generate a TODO app with bolt.new
2. Generate 5 different UI components with v0
3. Complete 10 AI conversation coding sessions in Trae

Phase 2: Paid Upgrade (Weeks 3-4)

Goal: Deep usage, 5× efficiency boost

Tool Choice (pick one):
- Option A: Windsurf Pro ($10/month, best value)
- Option B: Cursor Hobby + Claude Pro ($20/month, most powerful)

Learning Tasks:
1. Develop a complete full-stack app with Agent mode
2. Use AGENTS.md / .cursorrules to customize AI behavior
3. Try multi-file refactoring, auto-generate tests

Phase 3: Tool Matrix (Month 2+)

Goal: Switch tools by scenario, achieve professional-level efficiency

Tool Matrix:
- Daily coding: Cursor / Windsurf
- Server ops: Claude Code
- Quick queries: Gemini CLI / Codex CLI
- UI design: v0
- Prototype validation: bolt.new

Advanced Learning:
1. Integrate MCP tools (GitHub, database, search)
2. Write custom Skills
3. Explore local models (Ollama + Cline)

Cost Optimization Strategies

Strategy 1: Tiered Model Usage

Simple tasks → Cheap models (DeepSeek, GPT-4o-mini)
Complex tasks → Premium models (GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet 4.6 Sonnet)

Implementation:
- Codex CLI: Switch --model parameter
- Cline: Configure multiple API Keys, switch manually

Cost Comparison:

All GPT-4o: $50/month
Tiered usage: $10/month (80% savings)

Strategy 2: Leverage Free Quotas

Platform	Free Quota	Value
Google AI Studio	1500/day (Gemini 2.5 Flash)	$45/month
Trae	2M tokens/month	$30/month
v0	200 credits/month	$10/month
bolt.new	5 times/day	$15/month
Total	-	~$100/month equivalent

Strategy: Use free quotas before considering paid options

Strategy 3: Team Shared Subscription

Scenario: 5-person small team

Option A (Individual subscriptions):
Cursor Pro × 5 = $100/month

Option B (Shared + On-demand):
- 2 people subscribe Cursor Pro (core developers): $40/month
- 3 people use Trae + Gemini CLI (free): $0/month
- Shared Claude Pro account (terminal tools): $20/month
Total: $60/month (40% savings)

Final Recommendation Matrix

Role	Budget $0	Budget $10-20	Budget $40+	Enterprise
Frontend	Trae + v0	Windsurf + v0	Cursor Pro + v0 Pro	Copilot Business
Backend	Trae + Gemini CLI	Cursor Hobby + Claude Code	Cursor Pro + Claude Pro	Copilot Enterprise
Full-stack	Trae + bolt.new	Cursor Hobby	Cursor Pro + bolt.new Pro	Copilot Business
DevOps	Gemini CLI + Codex CLI	Claude Code	Claude Code + MCP Tools	Copilot + Custom MCP
Student	Trae + All Free Tools	Windsurf Pro	-	-

Hands-On Practice (Practice)

Task: Install and try recommended tools for 15 minutes based on your role

Steps:

1. Identify Your Role

Choose the best match below:

[ ] Frontend developer (mainly React/Vue etc.)
[ ] Backend developer (mainly API/database)
[ ] Full-stack developer (both frontend and backend)
[ ] DevOps/SRE (ops, deployment, monitoring)
[ ] Student/beginner (learning programming)

2. Check Your Recommended Solution

Based on the "Final Recommendation Matrix" above, find the tools for your role and budget.

3. Install First Tool (5 minutes)

If choosing Cursor:

bash

# macOS
Download: https://cursor.sh
Install and login (Google/GitHub)

# Create test project
mkdir ai-test
cd ai-test
cursor .

If choosing Windsurf:

bash

# Download: https://windsurf.ai
# Install and login

# Create test project
mkdir ai-test
cd ai-test
windsurf .

If choosing Trae:

bash

# Install Trae extension in VS Code
# 1. Open VS Code
# 2. Extensions → Search "Trae"
# 3. Install → Reload

# Create test project
mkdir ai-test
cd ai-test
code .

4. Try First AI Task (10 minutes)

Task: Let AI help you write an HTTP API

Input in AI Chat (Cursor/Windsurf/Trae all have):

Create an Express.js API with:
1. GET /health - Health check
2. GET /users - Get user list (return mock data)
3. POST /users - Create user (accept name and email)

Requirements:
- Use TypeScript
- Add error handling
- Add request logging

Observe AI performance:

✅ How many files generated?
✅ Code quality?
✅ Can it run directly?

5. Run and Test

bash

# Install dependencies (AI may have generated package.json)
npm install

# Run
npm run dev

# Test (open new terminal)
curl http://localhost:3000/health
curl http://localhost:3000/users

6. Try Iteration (if time allows)

Continue conversation:

"Add data validation: email must be valid format"
"Add unit tests"
"Add Swagger documentation"

7. Record Your Experience

Note in notebook:

✅ Which feature most useful?
❓ What problems encountered?
💡 Any improvement suggestions?
💰 Worth paying for?

Summary (Reflection)

What it solved: No longer confused about "which tool to choose", get clear answers based on role, scenario, budget
What it didn't solve: Know the tools, but don't know how to use them well—need to learn "context engineering" techniques to make AI understand your needs more accurately (Chapter 6)
Key Points:
1. No "best" tool, only "most suitable" combination
2. Beginner recommendation: Trae (free) → Windsurf Pro ($10) → Cursor Pro ($20)
3. Frontend first choice: Cursor/Windsurf + v0
4. Backend first choice: Cursor + Claude Code
5. Full-stack first choice: Cursor Agent mode
6. DevOps first choice: Claude Code + Codex CLI
7. Enterprise first choice: GitHub Copilot Business/Enterprise
8. Budget-limited: Trae + Gemini CLI + v0 (completely free)
9. Cost optimization: Tiered model usage, leverage free quotas, team shared subscriptions
10. Next step: Learn how to provide better context for higher-quality AI-generated code

Last updated: 2026-02-20

5.4 Tool Selection Guide Beginner Free ​

Why Do You Need It? (Problem) ​

What Is It? (Concept) ​

By Role Selection ​

Frontend Developers ​

Backend Developers ​

Full-Stack Developers ​

DevOps / SRE Engineers ​

Tech Leaders / Architects ​

Students / Budget-Limited Individual Developers ​

By Scenario Selection ​

Scenario 1: Rapid Product Idea Validation (MVP) ​

Scenario 2: Legacy Code Maintenance ​

Scenario 3: Team Collaboration Development ​

Scenario 4: Open Source Project Contribution ​

Recommended "Beginner Starter Pack" ​

Cost Optimization Strategies ​

Strategy 1: Tiered Model Usage ​

Strategy 2: Leverage Free Quotas ​

Strategy 3: Team Shared Subscription ​

Final Recommendation Matrix ​

Hands-On Practice (Practice) ​

Summary (Reflection) ​

5.4 Tool Selection Guide Beginner Free

Why Do You Need It? (Problem)

What Is It? (Concept)

By Role Selection

Frontend Developers

Backend Developers

Full-Stack Developers

DevOps / SRE Engineers

Tech Leaders / Architects

Students / Budget-Limited Individual Developers

By Scenario Selection

Scenario 1: Rapid Product Idea Validation (MVP)

Scenario 2: Legacy Code Maintenance

Scenario 3: Team Collaboration Development

Scenario 4: Open Source Project Contribution

Recommended "Beginner Starter Pack"

Cost Optimization Strategies

Strategy 1: Tiered Model Usage

Strategy 2: Leverage Free Quotas

Strategy 3: Team Shared Subscription

Final Recommendation Matrix

Hands-On Practice (Practice)

Summary (Reflection)