VSCode shortcuts that make more productive

I realised that for a long time my main focus was centred around the code that I was writing (on things like performance, readability, using the latest and the greatest ... etc) but as I spend the majority of the day writing code, learning to write, navigate, refactor faster should be at least as important.

Let's start with some basic shortcuts:

These ones I use the most.

CMD + W: closing current tab

CMD + '+' or '-': making the window bigger / smaller

CMD + /: comment the current line

CMD + delete: delete the current line

CMD + F / CMD + SHIFT + F: search in current file / globally

CMD + B: toggle the sidebar

CMD + J: toggle the terminal

CMD + P + nameOfAFile: jump to a specific file by name

CTRL + [1/2/3..]: navigate to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd tab

CTRL + space: show suggestion

CMD + left or right arrow: navigate to the beginning / end of the line

OPTION + left or right arrow: navigate to the previous or next word

Next, the commands I wish to incorporate in my day to day flow:

CTRL + J: join multiple lines together

CTRL + tabNr: jump to a specific tab (tabs are numbered starting from the left with the value of 1, 0 is actually the last tab on the right)

CMD + OPTION + left / right arrow: jump to the left or right tab

CMD + OPTION + [ or ]: unfold or fold code regions

CMD + P + : followed by lineNumber: jump to a specific line number

CMD + G: jump to a specific line number (same as above)

CMD + [ or ]: re-indent code either to the left or right

OPTION + DELETE: delete previous word (instead of previous character)

OPTION + up / down arrow: duplicate the current line above or bellow

CMD + OPTION + up / down arrow: duplicate cursor

SHIFT + OPTION + up / down arrow: column selection

OPTION + DELETE: delete previous word (instead of previous character\

CMD + P + @ or CTRL + SHIFT + .: search through all symbols (in file)

CMD + P + #: global symbol search

SELECT WORD + CMD + D: select and edit the same words with duplicate cursor mode

Extra: my iTerm configuration

As a good IDE must be always accompanied by a few terminals I am going to show you my iTerm setup (even though it's pretty minimalistic):

What I did is to create two profiles, one would open the terminals from the upper part of the screen and the other from the lower part. The keyboard triggers are SHIFT + ` and  SHIFT + CAPS + `.

Further than that I use CMD + ENTER for entering into the full screen mode, CMD + D  / CMD + SHIFT + D for vertical and horizontal splits

P.S: the articles from which I got inspired:

15 Visual Studio Code Shortcuts You Should Know

Mastering your keyboard can save you hours upon hours of time every week. Whether you’re working on that important project or trying to meet a deadline, knowing your shortcuts can be a massive…

The StartupBrandon Burrus

20 VS Code Shortcuts for Fast Coding

Not everyone has time to go through every tip and trick to find the ones that help them code faster — there’s just too many. This command help to get rid of extra white space at the beginning and end…

Better ProgrammingDeepak Gupta

Edit: one year later after publishing this post; the following video really changed my perspective above VSCode: