Why it matters
- Free unlimited code completion with no credit card — the Individual tier makes AWS-aware AI coding accessible to all developers building on AWS.
- Security scanning (50 scans/month free) catches vulnerabilities specific to AWS configurations — IAM misconfigurations, exposed secrets, and security group issues.
- AWS ecosystem integration: generates correct CDK constructs, CloudFormation templates, and Boto3 calls from natural language.
- Reference tracker is unique: when code suggestions are based on open-source code, CodeWhisperer shows the source license and repository — important for license compliance.
Key capabilities
- Code completion: Context-aware code completion in 15+ languages with AWS service knowledge.
- Security scanning: Detect vulnerabilities in application code and AWS IaC (CloudFormation, CDK, Terraform).
- AWS-specific generation: CDK constructs, CloudFormation YAML, Boto3 calls, SAM templates.
- Reference tracker: Identifies when suggestions may be based on open-source code; shows license type.
- IDE support: VS Code, JetBrains, AWS Cloud9, Visual Studio, and more.
- Q in console: Ask AWS questions and get code suggestions directly in the AWS Console (Q Developer).
- CLI support: Amazon Q CLI for terminal assistance.
Technical notes
- Now branded: Amazon Q Developer (CodeWhisperer renamed 2024)
- Individual: Free; AWS Builder ID; 50 security scans/month
- Professional: $19/user/mo; unlimited scans; admin controls
- IDE support: VS Code, IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, Visual Studio, AWS Cloud9, JupyterLab
- Languages: Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, C#, Go, Rust, PHP, Ruby, Kotlin, C/C++, SQL, HCL, CloudFormation
- AWS specialization: CDK, CloudFormation, Boto3, SAM, Terraform for AWS
Ideal for
- AWS developers building cloud-native applications who need AI assistance that understands AWS services.
- Teams who want free AI code completion without GitHub Copilot's subscription cost.
- Security-conscious teams who need automated scanning of both application code and AWS infrastructure.
Not ideal for
- Non-AWS cloud developers (GCP, Azure) — AWS-specific knowledge doesn't transfer.
- Maximum code completion quality for general programming — GitHub Copilot or Cursor edge ahead for non-AWS tasks.
- Teams who need the advanced agentic features of Cursor or Windsurf for complex multi-file tasks.
See also
- Amazon Q — The broader Amazon Q product suite including Q Business for enterprise knowledge.
- GitHub Copilot — Industry-leading general AI coding assistant; better for non-AWS code.
- Cursor — AI IDE for advanced coding; multi-file, agentic capabilities.