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Developer Tools · head to head

Cody vs HID Global

Cody logo

Cody

Developer Tools

AI coding assistant powered by code search

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
HID Global logo

HID Global

Cybersecurity

Physical access control, credential issuance and workforce authentication hardware and software

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Cody has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Cody sourcegraph now publishes a single Enterprise plan starting at $16K, with no free or individual Pro tier listed on the pricing page; HID Global sales run through integrators, so the price you get depends on which partner quotes it and there is no published list to negotiate against.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cody and HID Global actually diverge.

Attributes where Cody and HID Global differ
AttributeCodyHID Global
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, Windows, iOS, Android
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity
Founded2013Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Cody

Nothing recorded that HID Global does not also cover.

Only in HID Global

  • Physical access readers
  • Mobile access
  • Seos credential technology
  • Card issuance
  • Workforce authentication
  • Visitor management

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Cody

  • Code completion and intelligent autocomplete in IDEsnot HID Global
  • Developer chat with codebase context awarenessnot HID Global
  • Automated debugging and error identificationnot HID Global
  • Customizable prompts for workflow automationnot HID Global

HID Global

  • An enterprise moving from plastic badges to phone-based credentials without replacing every reader in the estatenot Cody
  • A government agency needing card issuance and PKI credentials under a national identity programmenot Cody
  • A hospital consolidating access control, visitor screening and clinician authentication onto one credentialnot Cody
  • An organisation retiring cloneable legacy proximity cards after a physical penetration test found them trivially copiednot Cody

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Cody

  • Sourcegraph now publishes a single Enterprise plan starting at $16K, with no free or individual Pro tier listed on the pricing page
  • sourcegraph.com/cody redirects to the documentation rather than a Cody product or pricing page
  • AI features are metered as credits included per user, and exceeding the allocation requires buying a higher volume bucket
  • Volume credit buckets are sold as an add-on rather than included
  • A customer success manager and premium support are optional paid extras on top of the Enterprise plan
  • Standard support is 24x5 rather than 24x7, with round-the-clock coverage sold as an upgrade
  • The published $16K figure is a starting price that scales with team size, so the actual cost is quoted rather than listed

HID Global

  • Sales run through integrators, so the price you get depends on which partner quotes it and there is no published list to negotiate against.
  • Mobile credentials are charged per identity as an ongoing fee, which converts a one-off card cost into a recurring per-employee subscription that budgets rarely anticipate.
  • Large estates run mixed generations of readers, so a credential upgrade is a multi-year hardware programme and the software licence is a small fraction of the true cost.
  • Legacy credential technologies still widely deployed have documented cloning weaknesses, and HID commercial interest in selling the replacement does not remove your exposure in the interim.
  • The portfolio spans hardware, firmware and several acquired software products, so integration between HID own components is less consistent than the single-vendor pitch implies.

Pricing, plan by plan

Cody

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Cody review.

HID Global

On request
  • HID Access and Identity Products$undefined/year
    • Hardware, credentials and software quoted through channel partners
    • Credential costs charged per card or per mobile identity
    • Reader hardware and installation quoted separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Cody if

  • You want to start without paying.
Cody review

Choose HID Global if

  • You need physical access readers.
  • You work on Web, Windows, iOS, Android.
  • You also want mobile access.
HID Global review

Questions people ask

Is Cody or HID Global better?
Neither clearly leads. Cody starts at Free and HID Global at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cody or HID Global?
Cody has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Cody and On request for HID Global.
Does Cody or HID Global run on more platforms?
Cody runs on Web. HID Global runs on Web, Windows, iOS, Android.
Can I use Cody for free?
Yes. Cody has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. HID Global starts at On request.
What is Cody best used for?
Cody is most often used for code completion and intelligent autocomplete in ides, developer chat with codebase context awareness, automated debugging and error identification, customizable prompts for workflow automation. Of those, code completion and intelligent autocomplete in ides and developer chat with codebase context awareness are not what HID Global is typically brought in for.
What can Cody do that HID Global cannot?
HID Global covers Physical access readers, Mobile access, Seos credential technology, Card issuance.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cody: Is Cody free?

Cody offers a free tier for individual developers via VS Code, JetBrains, Visual Studio, and the web app. Unlimited free usage is available for solo developers.

Source
HID Global: Do we have to replace readers to use mobile credentials?

Often yes, at least in part. Reader capability determines which credential technologies work, and that hardware cost dominates the business case.

Cody: What does Cody Enterprise cost?

Cody Enterprise pricing is custom and requires contacting Sourcegraph sales. It is available for Sourcegraph Enterprise customers and must be quoted based on your deployment and usage needs.

Source
HID Global: Are mobile credentials cheaper than cards?

Not necessarily. Cards are a one-off cost per employee, mobile identities are typically a recurring charge, so the crossover depends on staff turnover.

Cody: What LLMs does Cody use?

Cody uses the latest large language models for code completions, chat, and debugging. It leverages Sourcegraph's advanced Search API to pull codebase context from local and remote repositories.

Source
HID Global: Can we buy directly from HID?

Generally not for access control deployments. Products are sold and installed through channel partners, so partner selection is part of the buying decision.

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