Using keyboard shortcuts in VS Code can greatly improve your productivity by reducing the need for a mouse and speeding up navigation, editing, and other common tasks. Here’s a list of some essential VS Code shortcuts and tricks to help you code more efficiently:

1. Basic Navigation

• Open Command Palette: Ctrl + Shift + P (or Cmd + Shift + P on Mac)
  
  Quickly access commands or search for actions.

• Open File/Folder: Ctrl + P (or Cmd + P on Mac)
  
  Quickly open a file by typing its name.

• Toggle Sidebar (Explorer, Search, etc.): Ctrl + B (or Cmd + B on Mac)
  
  Hide or show the sidebar to save screen space.

• Navigate Between Open Tabs:

  • Next Tab: Ctrl + Tab
  • Previous Tab: Ctrl + Shift + Tab

• Go to Definition: F12
  
  
  Jumps to the definition of a function, variable, or class.

• Peek Definition: Alt + F12 (or Option + F12 on Mac)
  
  
  Opens a small window with the definition without navigating away.

• Go to Line: Ctrl + G (or Cmd + G on Mac)
  
  
  Jump to a specific line in the current file.

• Open/Close Integrated Terminal: Ctrl + ~ (or Cmd + ~ on Mac)
  
  
  Quickly toggle the integrated terminal.

2. Editing Shortcuts

• Copy Line Up/Down: Alt + Shift + Up/Down (or Option + Shift + Up/Down on Mac)
  
  Copy the current line up or down.

• Move Line Up/Down: Alt + Up/Down (or Option + Up/Down on Mac)
  
  Move the current line or block of code up or down.

• Delete Line: Ctrl + Shift + K (or Cmd + Shift + K on Mac)
  
  Instantly delete the current line.

• Duplicate Line: Shift + Alt + Down (or Shift + Option + Down on Mac)
  
  Duplicate the selected line or block of code.

• Select All Occurrences of Word: Ctrl + D (or Cmd + D on Mac)
  
  Select the next occurrence of the word under the cursor for multi-cursor editing.

• Select All Occurrences in File: Ctrl + Shift + L (or Cmd + Shift + L on Mac)
  
  Select all instances of the selected word or variable in the file.

• Expand/Contract Selection: Shift + Alt + Right/Left (or Cmd + Shift + Right/Left on Mac)
  
  Expand or shrink the selection based on syntax context (useful for selecting entire functions, blocks, or HTML tags).

• Multi-Cursor Editing:

  • Add Cursor Below: Ctrl + Alt + Down (or Cmd + Option + Down on Mac)
  • Add Cursor Above: Ctrl + Alt + Up (or Cmd + Option + Up on Mac) This allows you to add multiple cursors for editing in multiple places at once.

• Jump to Matching Bracket: Ctrl + Shift + </code> (or Cmd + Shift + </code> on Mac)


Moves the cursor to the matching bracket (useful for nested code).

3. Refactoring and Code Formatting

• Rename Symbol: F2
  
  Renames the selected symbol throughout the codebase.

• Format Document: Shift + Alt + F (or Cmd + Option + F on Mac)
  
  Automatically formats the entire document based on the language’s conventions (can be configured in settings).

• Auto-Import Suggestions: Ctrl + . (or Cmd + . on Mac)
  
  Show quick fix options like importing a missing module.

• Toggle Comment Line: Ctrl + / (or Cmd + / on Mac)
  
  Quickly comment/uncomment a line.

• Comment/Uncomment Block: Shift + Alt + A (or Cmd + Option + A on Mac)
  
  Comment or uncomment an entire block of code.

4. Search and Replace

• Find: Ctrl + F (or Cmd + F on Mac)
  
  Opens the search box to find text in the current document.

• Find and Replace: Ctrl + H (or Cmd + H on Mac)
  
  Opens the search and replace panel.

• Find All Occurrences in Workspace: Ctrl + Shift + F (or Cmd + Shift + F on Mac)
  
  Searches for text across the entire workspace.

• Replace in Files: Ctrl + Shift + H (or Cmd + Shift + H on Mac)
  
  Replaces occurrences across files in the workspace.

5. File and Workspace Management

• Quickly Toggle Between Open Editors: Ctrl + 1, 2, 3...
  
  Switch between multiple editor groups using the number keys.

• New File: Ctrl + N (or Cmd + N on Mac)
  
  Creates a new file.

• Close Current Editor: Ctrl + W (or Cmd + W on Mac)
  
  Closes the current tab/editor.

• Split Editor: Ctrl + \ (or Cmd + \ on Mac)
  
  Splits the editor into multiple views.

• Reopen Closed Tab: Ctrl + Shift + T (or Cmd + Shift + T on Mac)
  
  Reopens the last closed tab.

• Cycle Between Editors: Ctrl + PageUp/PageDown
  
  Switches between open tabs.

6. Git and Source Control

• Open Git View: Ctrl + Shift + G (or Cmd + Shift + G on Mac)
  
  Opens the Git source control view.

• Stage All Changes: Ctrl + Shift + A
  
  Stages all the changed files for commit.

• Commit Staged Changes: Ctrl + Enter (or Cmd + Enter on Mac)
  
  Commits staged changes with a message.

• View Git Diff: Ctrl + D
  
  Opens a diff view to compare file changes.

7. Terminal Shortcuts

• New Terminal Instance: Ctrl + Shift + (or Cmd + Shift + on Mac)
  
  Opens a new terminal window.

• Switch Terminal Tabs: Ctrl + PageUp/PageDown
  
  Move between multiple terminal tabs.

• Focus on Terminal: Ctrl + (or Cmd + on Mac)

8. Extensions & Debugging

• Open Extensions View: Ctrl + Shift + X (or Cmd + Shift + X on Mac)
  
  Opens the Extensions sidebar where you can install or manage extensions.

• Start Debugging: F5
  
  Starts the debugger based on the selected configuration.

• Step Over: F10
  
  Steps over to the next line during debugging.

• Step Into: F11
  
  Steps into the function during debugging.

Tips & Tricks for Efficiency

• Zen Mode: Ctrl + K Z (or Cmd + K Z on Mac)
  
  Enter Zen Mode to remove all distractions (hide all sidebars, status bars, and tabs).

• Change All Occurrences: Select a word and press Ctrl + Shift + L (or Cmd + Shift + L on Mac) to select all occurrences in the file, making bulk edits faster.

• Go to File Symbol: Press Ctrl + Shift + O (or Cmd + Shift + O on Mac) to jump to functions, classes, or symbols within a file.

By mastering these shortcuts and tricks, you'll be able to navigate, edit, and refactor code more quickly, reducing the reliance on the mouse and enhancing your overall productivity.