Visual Studio Code and Visual Studio are two of the most popular editors used by developers today. Both tools are powerful, feature-rich and offer a wide range of functionality. But what are the differences between them and which one should you choose? This article will answer these questions and provide a comprehensive comparison between Visual Studio Code and Visual Studio.
Visual Studio Code Features
Visual Studio Code is a lightweight, fast and open-source code editor that has a growing community of developers behind it. It has a wide range of features that make it suitable for a variety of development tasks. Some of its key features include:
- IntelliSense: Visual Studio Code provides smart code completions based on variables, functions, and modules.
- Git integration: The Git version control system is integrated into Visual Studio Code, making it easy to manage your source code.
- Debugging: Visual Studio Code has a powerful debugging engine that allows you to step through your code, set breakpoints, and inspect variables.
- Extensibility: Visual Studio Code has a large and growing library of extensions that add new functionality to the IDE.
Visual Studio Features
Visual Studio is a full-featured IDE that offers a comprehensive set of tools for developers. Some of its key features include:
- Code analysis: Visual Studio includes a code analysis engine that checks your code for potential issues and helps you fix them.
- Advanced debugging: Visual Studio provides a more advanced debugging experience than Visual Studio Code, including features such as debugging multiple processes, debugging in the cloud, and debugging server-side code.
- Team collaboration: Visual Studio includes a range of team collaboration features that make it easier to work with other developers on a project.
- Deployment: Visual Studio includes a range of tools for deploying your applications, including the ability to publish to the cloud.
Comparable Table
| Feature | Visual Studio | Visual Studio Code |
| Editor Type | Full-Featured IDE | Lightweight Code Editor |
| More suitable for | .NET Framework, C++, C#, ASP.NET Web, ASP.NET Web APi and Xamarin projects | Web based projects on React, Angular, Node.js and other |
| Crossplatform | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Min System Requirments | 1.8 GHz, Min 4 GB RAM, 20-50 GB Free space | 1.6 GHz, Min 1 GB RAM, 500 MB Free Space |
| Template Orientation | Oriented to open project and solutions | Oriented to open project directories |
| Unit Test and Debugging | Visual Studio has its own tools to manage rich debugging and unit testing. | VS Code requires finding extensions to make debugging and unit testing similar to Visual Studio. |
| Competitors/Alternatives | Jet Brains Rider | Atom, Electron, Sublime Text |
| Pricing | Depends on plan, for example Professional Subscription can cost $1199 per year | Open source and free of cost |
Visual Studio vs Visual Studio Code – Compare Screenshots
Compare menu possibilities. Click on screenshot to open it on a new tab.
Create the .NET Console Application in the Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code.
Final Word – What to Choose?
Both Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code are powerful and feature-rich IDEs that offer a range of functionality. The choice between the two will depend on your specific needs as a developer. If you need a more comprehensive development environment, with support for a wide range of programming languages and technologies, then Visual Studio may be the better choice. On the other hand, if you need a fast, efficient and extensible code editor, then Visual Studio Code is the way to go. For my personal opinion, if I need a web project written on Angular/React I choose Visual Studio Code and if I need a C# Web API project I choose Visual Studio.
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