Boost Your Java Productivity with IntelliJ Live Templates: A Complete Guide

Live Templates are a feature in IntelliJ IDEA that lets you insert predefined code snippets by typing short abbreviations, optionally with context‑aware variables, to reduce repetitive typing and improve development efficiency.

For example, typing psfs and pressing Enter expands to public static final String, saving you from manually typing the full declaration.

Common Live Templates

main and psvm

Insert a main method quickly.

public static void main(String[] args) {
}

Variable Declarations

psfs

public static final String

psfi

public static final int

prsf

private static final

St

String

Console Output

sout

Print a line to the console.

System.out.println();

souf

Print formatted text.

System.out.printf();

Loop Iteration

fori

Creates a for‑loop with the cursor positioned at the condition.

for (int i = 0; i < ; i++) {

}

iter

Iterates over a collection with a for‑each loop.

List<String> array = new ArrayList<>();
for (String s1 : array) {

}

itco

Iterates using an iterator.

List<String> array = new ArrayList<>();
for (Iterator<String> iterator = array.iterator(); iterator.hasNext(); ) {
  String next = iterator.next();
}

Surround Templates

After selecting code, press option + command + j (Mac) or use the Code → Surround With menu (Windows) to wrap the selection with a template such as a Callable implementation or read/write lock handling.

Custom Templates

You can create your own templates for frequently used code, such as a StopWatch timing snippet, by opening Settings → Editor → Live Templates → Java, clicking the plus sign, and defining the abbreviation, description, and template text with placeholders like $MESSAGE$ and $SELECTION$.

StopWatch stopWatch = new StopWatch("$MESSAGE$");
stopWatch.start();
$SELECTION$
stopWatch.stop();
System.out.printf("Execution time %s%n", stopWatch.toString());

When the template is expanded, the cursor lands on $MESSAGE$ for you to customize the label, and the selected code is inserted at $SELECTION$.

Supported Template Variables

Live Templates can include context variables such as $CLASS_NAME$ and $METHOD_NAME$ to automatically insert the current class or method name. For example, the built‑in soutm template expands to:

System.out.println("$CLASS_NAME$.$METHOD_NAME$");

Refer to the official IntelliJ documentation for a full list of predefined variables and functions.