Boost Your IntelliJ IDEA Productivity: Essential UI Tweaks and Shortcuts

Show Toolbar

Enable the toolbar via View → Toolbar and the tool buttons via View → Tool Buttons .

Mouse Hover Documentation

Activate quick documentation on hover by navigating to File → Settings → Editor → General and checking Show quick documentation… .

Method Separator Display

Show method separators by going to File → Settings → Editor → Appearance and enabling the corresponding option.

Case‑Insensitive Completion

Disable strict case‑sensitivity in code completion via File → Settings → Editor → General → Code Completion , allowing suggestions like String when typing string.

Theme Settings

Switch between light and dark themes via File → Settings → Appearance & Behavior → Appearance . For eye‑friendly themes, adjust the background color in the same menu.

Importing External JARs

Import additional JAR files through the File → Settings → Project Structure → Libraries dialog, then restart IDEA to apply.

Auto‑Import Packages

Enable automatic import and removal of unused imports via File → Settings → Editor → General → Auto Import .

Multiple Tabs on a Single Row

Display several editor tabs on one line by disabling the Show tabs in separate rows option under File → Settings → Editor → General → Editor Tabs .

Font Configuration

Adjust the editor font size and family via File → Settings → Editor → Font to improve readability.

Comment and Documentation Templates

Set up class and method comment templates (useful for team accountability) by following the instructions linked in the original article.

Code Inspection Warning Levels

Keep code inspection warnings enabled (do not disable) to maintain high code quality.

Project Directory Folding

Collapse empty packages in the project view for a cleaner layout.

Window Reset

Restore the IDE window layout to default when it becomes cluttered via the Restore Default Layout action.

Local History

View the local history of a file through VCS → Local History → Show History to track changes.

Quick Semicolon Completion

Press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to automatically insert a semicolon at the end of the current line.

Find Controller Methods Quickly

Use Ctrl + Alt + Shift + N to search for any method (e.g., entering /bill to locate controller endpoints containing "bill").

Brace Matching

Jump between matching braces with Ctrl + ] or Ctrl + [.

IDE Configuration Files

The config folder stores user settings for easy migration, while the system folder holds IDE caches and can be deleted to recover from unexpected errors.