26 Amazing VS Code Extensions for JavaScript Developers (2019)

Visual Studio Code (VSCode) is a lightweight yet powerful cross‑platform source code editor that has become popular among developers thanks to built‑in support for TypeScript, Chrome debugging, and a rich ecosystem of extensions.

1. Project Snippets

Project Snippets let you create reusable code snippets scoped to a specific project or workspace, avoiding conflicts with other projects. You can add a new global snippet file via File > Preferences > User Snippets and define a JSON file (e.g., typescriptreact.json) that generates code when you type a custom prefix such as rsr and press Tab.

2. Better Comments

Better Comments introduces colored annotations (e.g., TODO, FIXME) to make comments stand out and easier to locate.

3. Bracket Pair Colorizer

This extension color‑codes matching brackets, improving readability of nested code structures.

4. Material Theme

Material Theme provides an epic, visually appealing color scheme for VSCode.

5. @typescript-eslint/parser

Switch from TSLint to ESLint + TypeScript using @typescript-eslint/parser to keep your TypeScript projects future‑proof.

6. Stylelint

Stylelint enforces CSS/SCSS/Sass/Less style conventions, integrates with Prettier, and supports community plugins.

7. Markdownlint + docsify

Markdownlint highlights markdown style issues, while Docsify adds live preview and documentation features.

8. TODO Highlight

Highlights TODO comments throughout the codebase for quick navigation.

9. Import Cost

Shows the size of imported packages directly in the editor.

10. Highlight Matching Tag

Visually indicates matching HTML tags.

11. vscode-spotify

Allows you to control Spotify playback from within VSCode.

12. GraphQL for VSCode

Provides GraphQL syntax highlighting, autocompletion, and validation.

13. Indent‑Rainbow

Colors indentation levels to make code hierarchy clearer.

14. Color Highlight

Displays color values directly in the code.

15. Color Picker

Offers a GUI for selecting and generating color codes.

16. REST Client

Enables sending HTTP requests from a plain .http file. Example request: https://google.com Press CTRL + SHIFT + P and choose Rest Client: Send request to view the response. You can also send POST requests with JSON bodies:

POST https://test.someapi.com/v1/account/user/login/
Content-Type: application/json

{ "email": "[email protected]", "password": 1 }

17. Settings Sync

Synchronizes VSCode settings, extensions, and keybindings across machines via a GitHub Gist using SHIFT + ALT + U to upload and SHIFT + ALT + D to download.

18. Todo Tree

Collects all TODO comments into a tree view for easy navigation.

19. Toggle Quotes

Switches between single, double, and back‑ticks for string literals.

20. Better Align

Aligns assignment operators and comments using the command palette.

21. Auto Close Tag

Automatically closes HTML tags.

22. Sort Lines

Sorts selected lines alphabetically.

23. VSCode Google Translate

Provides quick translation of selected text within the editor.

24. Prettier

Formats JavaScript, TypeScript, and other files automatically.

25. Material Icon Theme

Offers a clear, colorful set of file icons, especially useful with dark themes.

26. IntelliSense for CSS Class Names in HTML

Provides CSS class name autocompletion based on workspace definitions.

27. Path Intellisense

Offers automatic path completion for imports and file references.

These extensions collectively boost developer productivity, code quality, and overall workflow when working with JavaScript and TypeScript in VSCode.