15 Game-Changing VS Code Features for Faster Coding

The integrated terminal in VS Code allows you to run your code or scripts without leaving the editor. To open it, press Ctrl + ` (backtick). This gives you access to a terminal that stays within the editor window. You can select the terminal shell from a dropdown menu that includes options like PowerShell, Command Prompt, or Bash. Simply click the dropdown and choose the one you need. Split Terminal: To work with multiple terminal profiles simultaneously, use the Split Terminal feature. Click the dropdown next to the Plus icon on the top of the terminal window and select Split Terminal. This will let you work with separate shells for different tasks, like running a development server in one and executing commands in another.

VS Code offers a split editor feature, allowing you to view and edit multiple files side by side. To split your current editor horizontally, press **Ctrl + **.This feature helps when you’re comparing two files or working on different sections of code simultaneously. You can create several split layouts, including grid layouts, by going to View → Editor Layout → Select Layout and choose how you want your workspace to be arranged.

Commands:

• Split the editor horizontally: *Ctrl + *
• Close active split: Ctrl + W
• Switch between splits: Ctrl + 1/2/3...
• Create a new split layout: View → Editor Layout → Select Layout

When you click on a file path in your code (for example, in an import statement), hold Ctrl and click the path to open the file instantly. If the file doesn’t exist yet, VS Code will prompt you to create it right then and there, making it super easy to manage files without leaving the editor.

Commands:

• Open a file from the path: Ctrl + Click on the path
  

For large files, scrolling through code can be slow. But if you press Alt and scroll with your mouse wheel, the scroll speed increases by 5x, making it much faster to navigate large files.

Commands:

• Fast scroll: Alt + Mouse Scroll
  

When you are comparing two files side by side, you can synchronize the scrolling so that when you scroll one editor, the other scrolls at the same speed. To enable this, open the Command Palette (Ctrl + Shift + P), search for Toggle Locked Scrolling Across Editors, and hit Enter.

Commands:

• Open Command Palette: Ctrl + Shift + P
• Toggle-locked scrolling across editors: Toggle Locked Scrolling Across Editors

When working with large files, especially those with sections or headings, the Sticky Scroll feature allows the current section you’re editing to remain visible at the top of the editor. This helps with navigation and keeps your focus on the relevant part of the document.

To activate it, go to the Command Palette (Ctrl + Shift + P) and search for Toggle Editor Sticky Scroll.

Commands:

• Open Command Palette: Ctrl + Shift + P
  
• Toggle Sticky Scroll: Toggle Editor Sticky Scroll

Multi-cursor editing is an incredibly useful feature when you want to edit the same text in multiple places simultaneously. To add multiple cursors, hold Alt and click in multiple locations. If you want to add cursors at every occurrence of a selected word, press Ctrl + Shift + L.

You can also add a cursor for the next occurrence by pressing Ctrl + D repeatedly.

Commands:

• Add multiple cursors: Alt + Left-click
• Add cursor to every occurrence: Ctrl + Shift + L
• Select the next occurrence: Ctrl + D

If you’re working with markdown files, you can preview them easily in VS Code. To open a markdown preview in a new tab, press Ctrl + Shift + V. Alternatively, you can use Ctrl + K V to view the markdown in a side-by-side split.

Commands:

• Open Markdown preview in a new tab: Ctrl + Shift + V
• Open Markdown preview in split view: Ctrl + K V

For distraction-free coding, Zen Mode eliminates all UI elements except the editor, allowing you to focus solely on your code. To enable Zen Mode, press Ctrl + K Z. To exit, press Esc twice.

Commands:

• Enable Zen Mode: Ctrl + K Z
• Exit Zen Mode: Esc (twice)

To quickly reorder lines of code, you can move them up or down without cutting and pasting. Press Alt + Up Arrow to move a line up and Alt + Down Arrow to move it down.

Commands:

• Move line up: Alt + Up Arrow
• Move line down: Alt + Down Arrow

Renaming a function or variable across your entire codebase is easy in VS Code. Select the item you want to rename and press F2. Then type the new name, and it will be updated in all occurrences automatically.

Commands:

• Rename variable or function: F2

To automatically format an entire document according to the defined code style, press Ctrl + Shift + I. This will tidy up your code without needing to manually adjust indentations or line breaks.

Commands:

• Format entire document: Ctrl + Shift + I
  

To comment or uncomment multiple lines at once, press Ctrl + Shift + A on Linux (this is OS-specific). This is a huge time-saver when you want to quickly disable or enable sections of code.

Commands:

• Comment multiple lines (Linux only): Ctrl + Shift + A

VS Code includes a Simple Browser extension for viewing web content directly in the editor. This is useful for quickly previewing web pages or documentation without leaving the code editor.

To use it, open the Command Palette (Ctrl + Shift + P) and search for Simple Browser.

Commands:

• Open Simple Browser: Ctrl + Shift + P → search for “Simple Browser”
  

By default, VS Code will close files that you haven’t modified when you open a new file. However, if you want to keep a file open even after opening another, simply double-click the file in Explorer. This will keep the file active in the editor.

Commands:

• Open a file and keep it active: Double-click the file in the explorer