Best Pair Programming Tools for Linux of 2025

GitHub Copilot represents the next evolution of intelligent software development, combining AI-driven coding, collaboration, and automation in a single ecosystem. It seamlessly integrates with GitHub and leading IDEs, transforming natural language prompts into working code, tests, and documentation. The new Agent Mode allows developers to delegate tasks—Copilot autonomously writes, executes, and validates code using GitHub Actions, delivering ready-to-review pull requests. Developers can interact through Copilot Chat, switch between models like GPT-5, Claude Sonnet 4, and Gemini 2.0 Flash, and refine results with contextual feedback. Next Edit Suggestions and automated code review ensure project-wide consistency, helping teams catch bugs before they reach production. With Copilot Spaces, teams can organize shared context—code, notes, and knowledge—to produce tailored, high-quality results. Available in Free, Pro, and Pro+ plans, Copilot scales from individuals to enterprises with flexible model access and premium capabilities. Ultimately, GitHub Copilot transforms development from manual iteration to AI-augmented collaboration, enabling engineers to focus on innovation instead of boilerplate.

Visual Studio by Microsoft is a complete ecosystem for professional developers, combining robust coding environments, integrated AI capabilities, and advanced collaboration tools. The flagship Visual Studio 2022 IDE delivers an all-in-one workspace with compilers, debuggers, designers, and performance profilers for .NET, C++, C#, and Azure development. Meanwhile, Visual Studio Code (VS Code) offers a lightweight yet powerful editor that runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux, ideal for web, JavaScript, Python, and container-based workflows. With GitHub Copilot integration, developers receive intelligent code completions, automated refactoring, and natural language explanations of complex logic. Agent Mode introduces an AI-driven assistant that can edit across files, execute builds, and resolve compile or test errors autonomously. Built-in tools like unit test generators, CI-aware policy enforcement, and style validation help ensure clean, testable, and secure code. Thousands of extensions from the Visual Studio Marketplace expand functionality for database, cloud, and DevOps workflows. Together, these platforms redefine productivity, helping teams code smarter and deliver innovation faster.

Cursor is an AI-native integrated development environment (IDE) engineered to transform how software is written, reviewed, and deployed. Trusted by millions of professional developers, it merges human creativity with machine intelligence through features like Agent, a fully autonomous collaborator that turns ideas into executable code, and Tab, an adaptive autocompletion system that predicts your next move with precision. Cursor’s deep codebase indexing allows it to instantly understand large and complex repositories, enabling smart search, refactoring, and context-aware suggestions across files. With multi-model flexibility, developers can choose from leading AI models—OpenAI’s GPT-5, Anthropic’s Claude 4.5, Google’s Gemini 2.5, or xAI’s Grok Code—to match specific performance and reasoning needs. Cursor integrates effortlessly into existing workflows, acting as a teammate in GitHub, Slack, and other key tools. Its interface balances autonomy and control, letting users decide whether to perform quick edits, plan-mode changes, or let the agent operate end-to-end. Designed for individual creators and large enterprises alike, Cursor improves velocity, reduces cognitive load, and enhances collaboration across distributed teams. It’s more than an editor—it’s the next frontier in developer productivity.

Remote/distributed workforce productivity can be boosted by making their daily tools more collaborative. Drovio's mission aims to improve remote/distributed workforce productivity by allowing them to use the tools they already use every day remotely, as if they were all in one room. Drovio is a screen sharing app for remote pairing/mobbing and co-design. Participants get their own mouse cursors and can interact with any information being shared. We believe that learning and working together should not be limited by geography. Drovio will help you drive your team to success, no matter where they are located or what their tools may be. Drovio brings screen sharing to a new level with crisp voice chat and low latency streaming of any screen, app, or screen.

CodeTogether is a perfect combination of simplicity and functionality, created by a team that relies on collaboration. CodeTogether is the best tool to pair programming and mob programming. You'll be amazed at how much screen sharing and an online code editor can make a difference in collaborative coding. You can host or join a pair programming session using Eclipse, IntelliJ, or VS Code. Everyone can join the session from their local IDE, even if they use different IDEs. No separate client required! You can share a link with your teammates and they can join a pair of programming sessions from any modern browser. There is no need to register, download or install. Just select the theme and key bindings for your preferred IDE and get started typing!

Teletype for Atom enables developers to collaboratively share their coding environment and work on projects simultaneously. Collaborating in real time enhances knowledge exchange and contributes to the development of high-quality software. This Teletype package aims to simplify the process of coding together, making it as seamless as coding independently. It introduces innovative "portals" that allow users to share their workspace effectively. When a user creates a portal, their current tab becomes a collaborative space where invited team members can join and edit the code live. As the host navigates through different files, the collaborators automatically follow the active tab, ensuring they are always on the same page. Importantly, there is no central server monitoring your activity, as Teletype utilizes WebRTC to secure all interactions among users. In essence, the information shared within the portal remains exclusive to those involved, fostering a secure collaborative environment. This tool ultimately enhances teamwork and optimizes the coding experience for developers.

Experience lightning-speed screen sharing with simultaneous control, exceptional audio clarity, and top-notch video quality, ideal for collaborative coding sessions. With Pop’s multiplayer screen sharing feature, everyone can take charge of the screen using their own mouse and keyboard, making coding collaboration seamless and effective. Creating and sharing ideas through whiteboarding has reached a new level of convenience, allowing users to sketch together from any device, whether it’s a tablet or smartphone, without the hassle of traditional markers. Inviting participants is a breeze; simply share a link, and guests can join even before signing up. All it takes is a laptop or smartphone to become part of the action, making collaboration accessible to everyone. Additionally, this user-friendly setup encourages spontaneous teamwork, enhancing productivity and creativity.

Aider enables collaborative programming with LLMs, allowing you to modify code within your local git repository seamlessly. You can initiate a new project or enhance an existing git repository with ease. Aider is optimized for use with models like GPT-4o and Claude 3.5 Sonnet, and it can interface with nearly any LLM available. Additionally, Aider has achieved impressive results on the SWE Bench, a rigorous software engineering benchmark that evaluates the ability to resolve actual GitHub issues from well-known open-source projects such as Django, Scikit-learn, and Matplotlib, among others. This capability makes Aider a valuable tool for developers looking to improve their coding efficiency and tackle complex challenges in software development.

Duckly is a plugin that allows developers to communicate and collaborate on code in real time, regardless of the IDE they are using. This tool enhances the coding experience by enabling users to share their code, terminal sessions, and local servers seamlessly, while also facilitating audio and video communication within the integrated development environment. With a focus on security, all connections are peer-to-peer and encrypted end-to-end, making it a safe option for collaboration. By combining these capabilities, Duckly simplifies pair programming, code review processes, and overall team collaboration, ultimately boosting productivity and minimizing reliance on additional tools. Users can engage in audio and video discussions and share their screens directly in the IDE, allowing for efficient teamwork and immediate feedback on coding projects. Furthermore, developers can effortlessly share their local servers with teammates, enabling them to observe real-time changes as they occur. This innovative approach fosters a more connected and interactive coding environment among team members.

An IDE plugin designed for real-time collaborative editing caters to the needs of distributed software development teams. It is compatible with both Eclipse and IntelliJ IDEA, allowing various developers to work together simultaneously on shared projects while each individual maintains a locally synchronized version of the project. This tool boasts several key features, such as the ability for multiple developers to edit concurrently, a follow-mode that enables users to track the navigation and editing actions of their teammates, and awareness information that shows recent contributions and current selections from all collaborators. Saros supports collaborative sessions involving up to five participants and provides the option for users to set up their own servers, ensuring that all communication remains within their organization's network. This innovative design significantly enhances the experience of collaborative coding, making it ideal for activities like pair programming, code reviews, and mentoring. Additionally, it allows teams to efficiently coordinate their efforts, ultimately leading to improved productivity and code quality.

Introducing a remote pair programming tool designed specifically for Atom, ensuring a seamless lag-free experience! We've implemented a basic integration with Share.js, enabling real-time collaborative editing through operational transformation (OT), and we've linked several Atom events to a websocket, such as file opening, closing, and saving. To get started, simply use the Atom package manager available in the Settings view or execute the command `apm install motepair` directly in your terminal. Once installed, you can initiate collaboration by using the Motepair connect command, which can be accessed via Cmd+Shift+P. It’s crucial for all participants to open the same project directory, as the functionality depends on the relative project path for accurate file identification. Additionally, you can easily deploy your own server on Heroku to enhance your setup. Please note that the current connection is not encrypted; if this is a concern for you, it is advisable not to use this tool until we address this issue, which is currently on our to-do list. Keep in mind that this package is still under development and may exhibit some instability; however, we are diligently working to enhance the remote pair programming experience for everyone involved. Your feedback is invaluable as we strive to improve this tool further.

Code With Me is an innovative service designed for collaborative coding and pair programming. It allows you to seamlessly invite others into your Integrated Development Environment (IDE) project, enabling real-time collaboration. You and your teammates can address issues, review code, and work on coding tasks together instantly, making it easier to develop, debug, and resolve problems as a cohesive unit within a single remote collaborative IDE. By inviting others to your project, you can effectively demonstrate and clarify your code, making it an excellent resource for educational settings and online coding interviews. Simply click the link provided by the host to get started—no need to download repositories or pull changes from different branches. You'll no longer waste time setting up environments, tackling compile-time errors, or dealing with dependency issues just to access a project. Moreover, as a guest, you won’t even need to have a JetBrains IDE installed, eliminating barriers to entry for collaboration. This streamlined approach enhances productivity and fosters a more efficient coding experience for everyone involved.

Visual Studio Live Share is an innovative tool designed for real-time collaboration among developers, allowing them to edit and debug code together, share terminal sessions, and communicate effectively within their chosen development environments. This tool is versatile, supporting a range of programming languages and application types, thus enabling quick and secure project sharing without the hassle of cloning repositories or configuring new environments. Live Share enhances collaborative efforts by facilitating pair programming, conducting code reviews, holding technical interviews, and hosting educational sessions, all while offering features like shared debugging sessions and terminal instances. One of its standout features is localhost web app forwarding, which allows users to view web applications and databases without needing to expose Internet ports. Additionally, participants can preserve their unique editor configurations, including themes and keybindings, ensuring a personalized and productive atmosphere while working together. The ability to set breakpoints and scroll through code as a group further enriches the collaborative experience, making it an essential tool for modern development teams. Whether working on a small project or a large-scale application, Live Share fosters an engaging and efficient development process.

Remote Collab is an open-source plugin for Sublime Text designed for remote pair programming, enabling several developers to collaborate on the same project in real-time. To install it with ease, utilize Sublime Package Control: access the command palette via the tools menu, select "Package Control: Install Package," search for RemoteCollab, and press enter. Alternatively, for manual installation, download the .zip or .tar.gz file, extract it, rename the folder to RemoteCollab, and place it into the Packages directory, which you can access through the Sublime Text menu. To initiate a collaborative session, open the file you want to edit together, access the command palette again through the tools menu, select "remote: Host Session," and you will begin hosting a Remote Collab session. After that, share your IP address with the colleague you intend to collaborate with, allowing them to join your session seamlessly. This tool streamlines the process of remote teamwork and enhances productivity by facilitating real-time collaboration among developers.