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Where I can find good documentation for every available settings.json configuration option so I can configure VS code however I like to?

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  • every extensions has its own settings and there are a Kazillion extensions, so there is no place where they are all documented, if done right they are documented in the README of the extension and shown on the Extension page and in the Marketplace Commented Mar 27, 2022 at 9:37
  • read the VSC docs pages and the Release notes Commented Mar 27, 2022 at 9:39
  • For all the built-in settings, see code.visualstudio.com/docs/getstarted/… Commented Mar 27, 2022 at 16:33
  • Thanks @ Mark and @rioV8 - that's exactly what I was looking for! Commented Mar 27, 2022 at 20:06
  • Open Command Palette and type defaultSettings.json. This file contains a clean slate settings. It's read only, but you can copy and paste it into your user settings.json Commented Aug 15, 2022 at 17:50

4 Answers 4

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Update: as @scubbo points out, this is answer no longer works in July 2025.

As of May 2024, the native editor settings are documented fully at https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/getstarted/settings#_default-settings

An alternative is to use search in the settings GUI (open with CMD/Ctrl + ,).

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This is no longer true - the linked page gives documentation on how to apply settings, but does not document the settings themselves.
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There isn't an official maintained list of everything, but you can find some guides in the VS Code Documentation.

For theme color reference, you can see the list at Theme Color documentation.

The closest to what you want may be pressing Ctrl+, (or by using the gear menu in the bottom left), you can open a GUI that will show all configurable settings and allow you to search them. For some things, it will tell you to edit it in the settings.json instead, though. In which case, you may need to to look at the documentation for usage instructions.

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To effortlessly access the default settings in your VSCode editor, simply enable a specific setting within the workbench. Once activated, every time you open your settings.json file, whether manually through the file explorer or via the command palette, you'll encounter a read-only display of all the default settings.

Here's a visual guide to help you:

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The easiest way is 
Windows: %APPDATA%\Code\User\settings.json

Other options included below

Open your settings.json 
(Ctrl+Shift+P → “Preferences: Open Settings (JSON)”).
Start typing. VS Code’s IntelliSense will suggest all valid settings, including extension ones.
Hover over a setting → you get a short description and possible values.

Extension settings are listed on each extension’s Marketplace page and in the sidebar:
Open Extensions (Ctrl+Shift+X).
Click the gear ⚙️ → “Extension Settings.”

These also appear in settings.json with their full keys.

but to see settings, the better tool is the built-in:
Open Command Palette → “Preferences: Open Default Settings (JSON)”.

This opens a read-only JSON with everything VS Code knows about.

Hope this helps ✌️
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The formatting is odd here. Did you use AI to generate this answer?

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