Which AI Coder should you use for xlwings Lite (Python in Excel)?
- Amar Harolikar
- Oct 7
- 2 min read
Beginners: Gemini 2.5 Pro on aistudio.google.com. Free, simple, 1M context. Covered in my guides at xlwings-lite.tigzig.com
Heavy iterative work: Use proper AI coders that handle large codebases with incremental edits - Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code with Copilot, Gemini CLI.
My default for xlwings Lite: Gemini CLI. Nearly all my xlwings Lite work runs here. Simple setup. Strong free tier, 1M context.
Help your AI Coder: upload the AI Coder Instruction File I share in my xlwings guides. It is designed to make AI Coder's job easier and output reliable.
Why not ChatGPT?
It works fine for quick iterations, but on longer codes it forgets to check the instruction file consistently and the context window fills up too fast.
Claude?
Best AI coder by a wide margin. I use both Claude Code as well as Cursor. But both have been clamping down on message limits - so I toggle between AI Coders depending upon task and messaging quota remaining and typically keep them for more complex pieces.
Gemini CLI?
Not Claude-level, but excellent for xlwings Lite, Python FastAPI backends, simpler HTML-JS UI's. With the Instruction File it works out superbly well for xlwings Lite. And the free tier makes it practical. This is my current setup too.
Resources
Getting started with Gemini CLI
Installing Node.js (required for Gemini CLI)
Gemini CLI - How to Install, Setup and Use Tutorial
Gemini CLI docs
google-gemini/gemini-cli: An open-source AI agent that brings the power of Gemini directly into your terminal.
xlwings Practice Lab
AI Coder Instructions File, hands-on guides, resources and live xlwings Lite apps.
xlwings lite Official site and docs
xlwings
