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Top 10 Visual Studio Code extensions you need to install

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Visual Studio is amazing, but learn how to make it more perfect

1 Sep, 2020 · 3 min read

I’m making a big guess here, but you are using Visual Studio Code right? It’s an amazing Microsoft product (ahem: only one…) and we all love it. What makes it even better is the number of extensions for it.

In this article, we will be walking through ten unique extensions you need to install to make your life easier.

1. Tailwind CSS IntelliSense

Tailwind CSS IntelliSense

IntelliSense extensions are excellent in general. They enhance development by auto-completing things for you. This one is specifically built for Tailwind, and if you are using Tailwind, you cannot live without this one!

Install Tailwind CSS IntelliSense

2. TabNine

This extension is amazing, I’ve only got to know it very recently, but it’s like steroids for Visual Studio Code. It can auto-complete almost anything!

It understands whatever you are typing, code, normal sentences, or whatever and auto-suggests for you.

Install TabNine

3. Auto Import

Auto import

Auto import scripts are a live saver. This one works for Typescript and TSX. It will auto-import whatever you start typing, and if you ever worked on Typescript you know why you need this!

Install Auto Import

4. Browser Preview

This is such a cool extension! It gives you a real browser inside Visual Studio that you can debug. The amount of times I’ve used this plugin is insane. It’s based on a headless Chrome and has good security.

Install browser preview

5. Live Sass Compiler

This plugin will compile your SASS/SCSS files in realtime and even comes with a browser reload. It’s super easy to setup, and you only have to click the watch sass button to run it. Live couldn’t be easier to start developing SCSS!

Install Sass Compiler

6. Prettier - Code formatter

Prettier

This is a super cool code formatter. Prettier will make your code look beautiful and uniform. It works for many languages, which is amazing. The cool part about this one is that you can even make your own rules to fit your needs.

Install Prettier

7. Better Comments

Better Comments

The title says all, who doesn’t want better comments? This extension will help you create more human-friendly comments. It supports annotations, which is very helpful to showcase the perfect comment. Get your new habit started with Better Comments!

Install Better Comments

8. Live Server

Live Server

Live server is an amazing feature. I have a lot of demo HTML files for instance and sometimes just want to preview them. A simple spool up from live server and we are ready to go.

Install Live Server

9. Dracula Theme

Dracula

Sometimes extensions are not about being helpful in a literal sense, but help us by being visually appealing. Dracula is the best theme ever, if you haven’t given it a try, do it now. You won’t regret it.

Install Dracula

10. Bracket Pair Colorizer

Bracket Pair Colorizer

This plugin is amazing. It will colorize matching brackets. If you write large systems, this can become very tedious to see which bracket closes which function. This extension saves you by showcasing special colors for each pair.

Update: This feature is now native in Visual Studio Code, the plugin no longer exists.

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