How to Use IntelliSense and Code Completion in VS Code

IntelliSense is VS Code's name for smart code completion. As you type, a list of suggestions appears with methods, variables, properties, snippets, and keywords that fit the current context.

VS Code ships with rich IntelliSense for JavaScript, TypeScript, JSON, HTML, CSS, SCSS, and Less. For every other language, install the matching language extension and IntelliSense activates automatically.

If you are new to VS Code, the beginner setup guide covers which language extensions to install first.

How IntelliSense works

IntelliSense is powered by a language service that analyzes your source code. When the service knows possible completions, suggestions appear as you type. If you keep typing, the list filters to only show items that contain what you typed.

Each suggestion has an icon that tells you its type.

Common icons include methods (cube icon), variables, classes, interfaces, properties, keywords, snippets, and modules.

Trigger suggestions

Suggestions appear automatically while you type. If they do not, or if you want suggestions at a specific point:

• Press Ctrl+Space (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Space (macOS) to open the suggestion list manually.
• Type a trigger character like a period. In JavaScript, typing document. immediately shows available properties and methods.

To close the suggestion list without accepting anything, press Escape.

To see documentation for a method, press Ctrl+Space again while the list is open.

The documentation panel expands to the side. Press Ctrl+Space once more to collapse it.

Navigate and accept suggestions

The Enter key behavior is configurable through editor.acceptSuggestionOnEnter. The default value, on, means Enter always accepts. Set it to smart to accept only when the suggestion changes the text, or off to reserve Enter for new lines.

CamelCase filtering

You do not need to type the full start of a method name. Type the uppercase letters only, like cra to find createApplication. This works with the suggestion list open or with tab completion enabled.

Parameter hints

After you accept a method, VS Code shows its parameters. As you type each argument, the current parameter is highlighted.

Press Ctrl+Shift+Space (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+Space (macOS) to reopen parameter hints if they disappear.

Customize IntelliSense

Open the Settings editor (Ctrl+, / Cmd+,) and search for suggest to see every related option. Two settings cover most customization needs.

The editor.quickSuggestions setting controls where auto-suggestions appear automatically. By default they are enabled outside strings and comments. Set its strings option to false if you want to stop suggestions from popping up while you type prose inside string literals.

The editor.tabCompletion setting is off by default. Turn it on and pressing Tab inserts the best-matching suggestion without needing to open the list first.

Add AI completions with GitHub Copilot

GitHub Copilot adds AI-powered ghost-text suggestions on top of standard IntelliSense. It predicts whole lines or blocks of code and shows them in gray.

To set it up:

Copilot suggestions appear as ghost text. Press Tab to accept a suggestion. Press Ctrl+Right Arrow (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Right Arrow (macOS) to accept one word at a time. Press Escape to dismiss.

When IntelliSense is not working

For JavaScript, missing type declarations can cause sparse suggestions. Most popular libraries ship with types. You can install additional type packages from DefinitelyTyped using npm. For broader coverage of how to fix broken editor features, see IntelliSense not working fixes.