Visual Studio Code vs IntelliJ IDEA : Which is Better?

Visual Studio Code icon

Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code is a source code editor developed by Microsoft for Windows, Linux and macOS. Developed by Microsoft

License: Open Source

Categories: Development

Apps available for Mac OS X Windows Linux Electron / Atom Shell

VS
VS
IntelliJ IDEA icon

IntelliJ IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA is a Java integrated development environment (IDE). Developed by JetBrains

License: Freemium

Categories: Development

Apps available for Mac OS X Windows Linux

Visual Studio Code VS IntelliJ IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA is a robust IDE best suited for Java development and offers extensive built-in tools, while Visual Studio Code is a lightweight and highly customizable code editor that excels in web development and supports various programming languages.

Visual Studio Code

Pros:

  • Lightweight and fast
  • Highly customizable with extensions
  • Great support for web development
  • Built-in terminal for convenience
  • Strong community support and documentation

Cons:

  • Limited built-in features compared to full IDEs
  • May require multiple extensions for full functionality
  • Some features may not be as robust as in dedicated IDEs
  • Performance can degrade with too many extensions
  • Not ideal for large enterprise projects

IntelliJ IDEA

Pros:

  • Comprehensive IDE with advanced features
  • Excellent support for Java and Kotlin
  • Strong refactoring capabilities
  • Built-in tools for testing and debugging
  • Integrates well with version control systems

Cons:

  • Heavier on system resources
  • Primarily focused on Java and JVM languages
  • Less customizable compared to editors like VS Code
  • Some features require paid licenses
  • Can be overwhelming for beginners

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