The 5 paid subscriptions I actually use in 2024 as a software engineer
I care a lot about the tools I use. Especially when they aren’t free.
Here’s what I’m paying for in 2023–24 to improve my performance and productivity as a software engineer.
GitHub Copilot: an AI pair programmer
When I’m writing code, Copilot works in the background by reading what I’ve written and quietly suggesting what I might want to write next.
Last year Copilot has improved my productivity by at least 30%. The real figure might be closer to 50%. I spend considerably less effort on the mundane and boilerplate, and I feel much more satisfied with the engaging bits of software engineering.
My biggest productivity improvements have come from:
- Writing test cases. Most of the time I write the description for the test case and Copilot fills out everything else.
- Small things I would have to look up. e.g. Instead of searching for the correct RegEx to parse a string, I write a comment explaining what I want the RegEx to do and Copilot writes the RegEx for me.
- Boilerplate functions. For 90% of boilerplate functions (e.g.
snakeCaseToCamelorloggingMiddleware) I write the function name and Copilot writes the function.
Kagi: a better search engine than Google
I measure the effectiveness of searches by how long it takes me to find what I was actually looking for. By that measure, Google has been steadily getting worse.
When I search for something on Kagi, the correct result is in the first 2 links 95% of the time. It's in the top 5 links 99% of the time. That just doesn't happen with Google, Bing, etc.
The consistently great results page is further boosted by the search personalization I control. I've told Kagi that any results from Stack Overflow or Medium should be weighted higher, as well as blocked other sites I don't care to see results from.
No ads. Objectively better search results. Of all the subscriptions I pay for, this is the hill I will die on.
Why pay for search? The same reason I pay for Medium: The goals of ad-supported search (and ad-supported content generally) directly conflict with why I use search engines. If you want to get indoctrinated, read their post The Age of PageRank is Over.
ChatGPT: an AI companion for my whole job
"Describe this block of code for me."
"Why did this Go code panic?"
"I'm going into a review cycle and I am seeking a promotion. Can you analyze my self review and suggest improvements before I send it to my manager?"
I'm constantly pinging ChatGPT with technical questions. It's usually spot on, and the rubber-ducking I do with it is 100x more effective than using an actual rubber duck.
Adding ChatGPT (or Bard or Bing Chat) feels clumsy at first. Of course it does. You're working with a new tool. You have to practice it to become an expert. But keep at it, the payoff in productivity and quality gains is monumental
Medium: knowledge-sharing with other engineers
My favorite platform for learning from other people in my field is this blogging platform (Medium). Here you can read thousands of high-quality articles about programming, data science, technology, and more.
I've been a fan of Medium for years. And yes, I work here. But I chose to work here because I really love the platform!
Excalidraw: easy and beautiful diagrams
This is an app that made the list this year. I upgraded to Excalidraw+ in April 2023 and haven't looked back.
We use diagrams extensively at Medium Engineering. Most of our diagrams are created in Excalidraw, which makes them clean, fun, and editable.
I stopped paying for tools I don't use
Midjourney has been replaced by ChatGPT + DALL-E. Midjourney image generation is a bit better, but it's more than I need. I would pay for ChatGPT without the image generation, but having DALL-E bundled in the subscription is a nice bonus. The image generation is still great, and I can chat more naturally with DALL-E than I can with Midjourney (I can't chat with Midjourney at all 😩).
Scribd has been replaced by Kindle + Libby. I finally bought a Kindle! Not sure why that took so long… But it has been life-changing. eReaders aren't for everyone, but they work well for me with 3 kids and a busy schedule. Scribd was great, but the Kindle ecosystem is top-tier.
I care a lot about spending money on things that improve my life. These tools bring tremendous value to me as a software engineer. Consider adding these to your toolbox!