The Claude Code VS Code extension is Anthropic’s official extension (ID anthropic.claude-code) that puts Claude Code in a graphical panel inside VS Code. You install it from the Extensions view, sign in, and then Claude sees your open file and selection, shows proposed edits as side-by-side diffs you accept or reject, and shares history with the CLI. It needs VS Code 1.94.0 or later and a paid Claude plan or a Console account. If you prefer the terminal, you can also run the claude CLI in VS Code’s integrated terminal and keep the IDE diffs.
This guide covers install, the extension versus the CLI, the diff view, selection context, the settings worth changing, common problems, and a short section on JetBrains. Everything here is from the official VS Code docs and JetBrains docs.
Install the extension
- Open VS Code and press
Cmd+Shift+X(Mac) orCtrl+Shift+X(Windows/Linux). - Search for Claude Code and install the extension from Anthropic.
- If it does not appear right away, restart VS Code or run Developer: Reload Window from the Command Palette.
- Open the panel and sign in when it asks.
Requirements:
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| VS Code | 1.94.0 or later |
| Account | Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise plan, or a Console account |
| Workspace | Trusted (the extension does not run in Restricted Mode) |
Cursor and other VS Code forks
The docs give a direct Install for Cursor link, so Cursor is supported. Other VS Code forks can install the extension from the Open VSX registry. If your editor cannot install it at all, open its integrated terminal and run claude.
Open Claude Code
There are four ways in:
- Spark icon in the editor toolbar, top right. It only shows when a file is open.
- Activity Bar sessions list on the left.
- Command Palette (
Cmd+Shift+P/Ctrl+Shift+P): type “Claude Code” and pick Open in New Tab. - Status bar: click ✻ Claude Code in the bottom-right corner. Works without an open file.
You can drag the panel to the secondary sidebar (right), the primary sidebar (left) or the editor area as a tab. The docs suggest the sidebar for your main session and tabs for side tasks.
Extension or CLI in the integrated terminal?
Both are the same Claude Code. The difference is the interface and a handful of features.
| Feature | CLI | VS Code extension |
|---|---|---|
| Commands and skills | All | A subset (type / to see them) |
| MCP server config | Yes | Yes, with /mcp in the panel |
| Checkpoints | Yes | Yes |
! shell shortcut | Yes | No |
| Tab completion | Yes | No |
The catch that trips people up: installing the extension does not put claude on your PATH. The extension bundles a private copy of the CLI for its panel. To type claude in a terminal you need the standalone CLI install.
Once both are installed, they share conversation history. Run claude --resume in the terminal to pick up a conversation you started in the panel.
To run the CLI inside VS Code, press Ctrl+` (or Cmd+` on Mac) and run claude. It connects to the IDE automatically for diffs and diagnostics. From an external terminal, run /ide inside Claude Code to connect it to VS Code.
If you like the terminal interface but want it in the panel’s place, turn on the Use Terminal setting (claudeCode.useTerminal).
Rule of thumb: use the panel when you want to click through diffs and see plans as documents. Use the CLI when you want every slash command, ! shell mode, and the keyboard shortcuts from our cheat sheet.
Selection context and @-mentions
The extension adds the file open in the editor to your message, and Claude sees the text you have selected. You do not need to paste code into the prompt.
Option+K(Mac) /Alt+K(Windows/Linux) inserts a reference to the current file and selection, such as@auth.ts#5-10. The editor must be focused.@in the prompt box mentions any file or folder.@terminal:namereferences a terminal’s output.Cmd+Esc/Ctrl+Esctoggles focus between the editor and Claude.
Privacy note: selected text is not sent from files matched by files.exclude or search.exclude, or from gitignored files while respectGitIgnore is on. This applies to the chat panel. If you only want your selection sent, not the whole open file, turn off attachOpenFile.
The diff view
When Claude wants to change a file in Manual mode, VS Code shows a side-by-side diff of the proposed edit. You can accept it, reject it, or edit the proposed text before you accept. Recent versions also let you accept or reject single changes inside one edit, with Accept Change at Cursor and Reject Change at Cursor in the Command Palette. Very large edits (over 100 changes) do not get per-change buttons.
How often you see diffs depends on the permission mode in the prompt box:
| Mode | What happens |
|---|---|
| Manual | Claude asks before each edit and shows the diff |
| Edit automatically | Edits are applied without asking |
| Plan | Claude writes a plan as a Markdown document you can comment on, then waits |
| Auto | Claude decides with a safety check; this is the default in recent versions |
Checkpoints sit on top of this. Hover over a message for the rewind button: Rewind code to here, Fork conversation from here, or both at once.
Settings worth changing
Open VS Code settings (Cmd+, / Ctrl+,) and go to Extensions > Claude Code. Shared settings such as allowed commands, hooks and MCP servers belong in ~/.claude/settings.json, which the CLI reads too.
| Setting | Default | Why change it |
|---|---|---|
useTerminal | false | Open the CLI-style interface instead of the chat panel |
initialPermissionMode | unset | Start new chats in default, plan, acceptEdits or bypassPermissions |
preferredLocation | panel | sidebar keeps Claude docked on the right |
attachOpenFile | true | Turn off to send only your selection |
autosave | true | Saves files before Claude reads or writes them |
useCtrlEnterToSend | false | Use Ctrl/Cmd+Enter to send, Enter for new lines |
respectGitIgnore | true | Keep gitignored files out of search and selection context |
environmentVariables | [] | Env vars for the Claude process only |
allowDangerouslySkipPermissions | false | Adds Bypass permissions to the mode menu. Sandboxes only |
initialPermissionMode is read from your user settings only, not from workspace settings. Add "$schema": "https://json.schemastore.org/claude-code-settings.json" to settings.json for autocomplete.
Run several conversations
Open in New Tab (Cmd+Shift+Esc / Ctrl+Shift+Esc) and Open in New Window start extra conversations with their own history. A colored dot on the tab’s spark icon shows status: blue for a pending permission request, orange when Claude finished while the tab was hidden. The sessions list can group sessions and filter by Needs input, Working or Completed.
Fix common problems
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| Extension will not install | Check VS Code is 1.94.0+, that it may install extensions, or install from the Marketplace page |
| No Spark icon | Open a file (a folder alone is not enough), trust the workspace, disable conflicting AI extensions, reload the window |
Cmd+Esc does nothing on macOS | macOS Tahoe binds it to Game Overlay. Turn that off under Keyboard Shortcuts → Game Controllers, or rebind Claude Code: Focus input |
| “Not logged in · Please run /login” | Reload the window and sign in again |
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY not picked up | Launch VS Code from a terminal with code . so it inherits the environment |
claude not found in the terminal | Install the standalone CLI; the extension does not add it to PATH |
| Claude never responds | Check the connection, start a new conversation, then try claude in a terminal for a clearer error |
| Need logs | Run Claude Code: Show Logs from the Command Palette |
Claude Code in JetBrains IDEs
The Claude Code [Beta] plugin from the JetBrains Marketplace supports IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, Android Studio, WebStorm, PhpStorm and GoLand. Unlike the VS Code extension, it runs the claude CLI in the IDE’s terminal, so install the CLI first. If it shows “Cannot launch Claude Code”, claude is not on your PATH.
What you get:
Cmd+Esc/Ctrl+Escopens Claude Code from the editor.Cmd+Option+K/Alt+Ctrl+Kinserts a file reference such as@src/auth.ts#L1-99.- Proposed changes open in the IDE diff viewer. Set Diff tool to
autoorterminalin/config. - Your selection and IDE diagnostics (lint and type errors) are shared with Claude.
- From an external terminal, run
/ideto connect.
Two fixes from the docs: if Esc does not interrupt Claude, go to Settings → Tools → Terminal and uncheck “Move focus to the editor with Escape”. On WSL, set the plugin’s Claude command to wsl -d Ubuntu -- bash -lic "claude", and if you see “No available IDEs detected”, add a firewall rule or switch WSL to mirrored networking.
When a separate app for many agents makes sense
The extension is built around one editor window and a few conversations. That covers most days. It gets harder when you run four or five agents at once on different branches, or mix Claude Code with Codex or other CLI agents, and you lose track of which one needs an answer.
That is the case AgentVera is built for. It is a desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux that runs each CLI agent in its own pane, in a grid per project. It is not an editor and does not replace VS Code. Many people keep both open.
- Many agents, one view. The workspace lays agents out in grids up to 5×4. Group view counts the agents that are working, waiting for a reply or waiting for approval, with Approve and Reject on each card.
- Diffs without switching windows. The editor and terminal tools include a file editor and a Changes tab that shows the diff between HEAD and the working tree, unified or side by side. Git and GitHub adds worktrees and PRs.
- A second read. Automatic code review has a Claude model you choose review an agent’s code when its turn ends, with file:line links.
If you are setting up parallel work, git worktrees for parallel agents is the next step.
To try AgentVera, start at the home page.