AI coding platform Cursor is deepening its commitment to India with a new country-specific plan, arriving just as the company prepares for a major ownership transition. The launch marks its first localized subscription and signals a sharper focus on one of the world's most active developer ecosystems.
Called Cursor Start, the new plan is priced at ₹649 per month, or about $7, making it far more affordable than the company's standard $20 Pro tier. The subscription is designed for developers who want more AI-assisted coding power than the free version offers, without moving to the full premium package.
Cursor says India is already its third-largest market worldwide and the country where its most engaged users are concentrated. Over the past year, its Indian user base has more than tripled, reflecting the scale of the market and the strength of local engineering talent.
The India plan includes access to Composer 2.5 and Grok 4.5, along with higher usage limits, cloud agents, the iOS app, plugins, Model Context Protocol support, hooks, and skills. It also supports payments in rupees through cards and UPI, making the experience more locally adapted.
Unlike the Pro tier, Cursor Start does not include frontier models from OpenAI or Anthropic, nor advanced tools such as Bugbot, Auto Mode, Automations, and the Cursor SDK. The company says the goal is broader access, not a replacement for its flagship offering.
Cursor is also expanding its footprint on the ground, with new hires in sales and support and a growing presence across Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi. The company sees room to grow beyond individual developers into universities, startups, and larger enterprises.
The move comes as more global AI companies experiment with India-specific pricing to match local demand. If Cursor's model gains traction, it could become a template for broader regional pricing strategies across the AI industry. The future may belong to products that scale globally by thinking locally.
