Boost Your IntelliJ IDEA Productivity: 15 Must-Have Plugins and Tips

After installing IntelliJ IDEA, applying the following initialization steps can boost work efficiency tenfold.

Plugins

1. Codota – AI Code Completion

Typing the first letters triggers intelligent suggestions for entire statements, showing usage frequency because it learns from your project code and adapts to your coding preferences.

2. Key Promoter X – Shortcut Hints

A popup in the lower right corner reminds you of shortcuts, helping you quickly master key bindings.

3. CodeGlance – Code Minimap

The minimap provides a thumbnail view of large files, making navigation easier.

4. Lombok – Reduce Boilerplate

Generates getters, setters, constructors, toString, hashCode, etc., eliminating manual code.

5. Alibaba Java Coding Guidelines – Code Inspection

Checks code against Alibaba’s Java standards, highlights issues with colored markers and tooltips, guiding you to write compliant code.

6. CamelCase – Naming Conversion

Use Shift+Alt+U to toggle between camelCase and snake_case, handy for bulk renaming.

7. MybatisX – MyBatis Helper

Provides efficient MyBatis operations within the IDE.

8. SonarLint – Code Quality

Suggests using loggers instead of System.out and offers other quality improvements.

9. Save Actions – Auto Formatting

Optimizes imports, adds final to unchanged variables, inserts this in method calls, and enforces consistent formatting.

10. CheckStyle – Style Checks

Functions similarly to the Alibaba plugin, enforcing coding style rules.

11. Grep Console – Custom Console Output

Allows custom formatting of console logs.

12. MetricsReloaded – Complexity Analysis

Analyzes code complexity metrics.

13. Statistic – Code Statistics

Provides various code statistics.

14. Translation – Inline Translation

Translates selected text directly within the IDE.

15. Rainbow Brackets – Colorful Brackets

Displays matching brackets in the same color, improving readability.

Custom Live Templates

Typing a short abbreviation (e.g., apr) can auto‑generate full statements like @Autowired, and you can create templates that match your coding habits.

Global Configuration Tweaks for Efficiency

1. Optimize Import Settings

2. Disable Single‑Line Tab Display

Shows multiple lines per tab for easier file navigation.

3. Move Comment Slashes to Code Start

Adjusts comment placement for cleaner code.

4. Enable Whole‑Line Copy

Allows copying an entire line without selecting it.

5. Turn Off Case‑Sensitive Matching

Enables suggestions regardless of case (e.g., typing s suggests String).

6. Color‑Code Version Control Directories

7. Auto‑Insert Author and Timestamp on New Files

8. Show Line Numbers and Method Separators

These tweaks further streamline coding workflows.

Feel free to discuss any other IntelliJ IDEA efficiency tricks or plugins you use.