Visual Studio Code shortcut keys for Windows

Code editors have always been about preference. Until Visual Studio Code came out. It is fair to say that finally there is one code editor of choice. And this it is. If you use any other text editor then stop, immediately, download this and learn Visual Studio Code shortcut keys.

Visual Studio Code is an amazing code editor made surprisingly by Microsoft. Surprising as it feels so open-source, lightweight and modern. In the 2019 Stacks Overflow developer survey rated it as the preferred developer tool. The volume and range of the Visual Studio Code shortcut keys is an indication of the scope of the program. It’s worth browsing over them just for that.  The capabilities of the error highlighting is amazing.  This program handles formatting like a charm.  Code formatting is a huge issue for any developer. When handling someone else’s code or after bashing out a follow of programatic consciousness there may be some lines to tidy up.  There’s a keyboard shortcut for that.  It works across every major programming language and if it doesn’t you can download an extension so it does.

A preview was initially released after the 2015 Microsoft Build conference. Visual Studio Code was later posted to GitHub under the Expat license. Not long after that support was announced for extensions.  This was when features like syntax highlighting became available for a bucket load of programming languages as the community continued to add to said bucket. For example, syntax highlighting doesn’t support liquid files out of the box.  But it only takes 30 second to install an extension so you can write clearly marked up code in any format.

It’s a great thing to have unanimously preferred code editor, especially a free, open source one. There’s no more living in doubt.  I am I using the best program? Will I have to download a new app? Shall I bother learning this properly? For now, to answer is yes and this is an ideal starting point.

Windows Mac
15 most useful shortcuts
Action Shortcut keys
User settings
Windows keys: Control-Plus
Indent line
Windows keys: Control-Right square bracket
Outdent line
Windows keys: Control-Left square bracket
Beginning of file
Windows keys: Control-Home
End of file
Windows keys: Control-End
Go to line
Windows keys: Control-G
Find
Windows keys: Control-F
Replace
Windows keys: Control-H
Find next
Windows keys: Function 3
Find previous
Windows keys: Shift-Function 3
Format document
Windows keys: Shift-Alt-F
Split editor
Windows keys: Control-Backslash
Focus into nth editor group
Windows keys: Control-1 or Control-2-etc
Toggle full screen
Windows keys: Function 11
Toggle sidebar visibility
Windows keys: Control-B
General shortcuts
Basic editing
Navigation
Multi-cursor and selection
Search and replace
Rich languages editing
Editor management
File management
Display
Debug
Integrated terminal

These shortcuts are accurate and correct to the best of our knowledge. Shortcut Killer is intended for informational or entertainment purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. Some of these shortcuts may not work for your version of the program. Either way, it doesn’t hurt to try and see which hotkeys can save you time. For the most relevant and up to date resource head to Microsoft’s shortcut cheat sheet for Windows or if you learnt anything, hit Control-K then Control-S!

If you see any mistakes, want to see any more information or have any comments please message me below.

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