VS Code User Settings vs Workspace Settings
When configuring Visual Studio Code (VS Code), you will encounter two primary configuration scopes: User Settings and Workspace Settings. This article explains the key differences between these two settings types, how they interact, and when to use each to optimize your development environment.
What are User Settings?
User Settings are global configurations that apply to every instance of VS Code you open, regardless of the project or folder you are working on. These settings are tied to your specific user account on your operating system.
- Scope: Global (applies to all projects).
- Storage Location: Stored in a global
settings.jsonfile in your system’s user profile directory. - Best Used For: Personal preferences that you want to remain consistent across all your work, such as your editor theme, font size, telemetry preferences, and custom keyboard shortcuts.
What are Workspace Settings?
Workspace Settings are project-specific configurations that only apply to the currently open folder or workspace. These settings take precedence over your global User Settings.
- Scope: Local (applies only to the active project/folder).
- Storage Location: Stored inside a
.vscodefolder within your project’s root directory in a file namedsettings.json. - Best Used For: Project-specific configurations, such as code linter rules, formatting standards, path configurations, and language-specific settings that need to be shared with a team.
Key Differences at a Glance
| Feature | User Settings | Workspace Settings |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Global (all projects) | Local (current project only) |
| Precedence | Lower (overridden by Workspace) | Higher (overrides User Settings) |
| File Location | System user profile | Project
.vscode/settings.json |
| Version Control | Typically excluded (private) | Typically committed (shared via Git) |
| Team Sharing | No | Yes (ensures consistent team environment) |
How the Settings Hierarchy Works
VS Code applies settings using a specific order of precedence. If a setting is defined in multiple places, the most specific setting wins.
The order of override is: 1. Default Settings: The baseline configurations built into VS Code. 2. User Settings: Your global personal preferences (overrides Defaults). 3. Workspace Settings: Project-specific settings (overrides User Settings). 4. Folder Settings: Specific settings for sub-folders in a multi-root workspace (overrides Workspace Settings).
For example, if your User Settings set the tab size to
4, but your project’s Workspace Settings set the tab size
to 2, VS Code will use a tab size of 2 when
you are working inside that specific project.
How to Access and Change Settings
You can modify both settings types using either the graphical Settings UI or the JSON file.
- Open settings using
Ctrl+,(Windows/Linux) orCmd+,(macOS). - At the top of the Settings editor, you will see tabs for User and Workspace.
- Select the appropriate tab to make changes to that specific scope.
To edit the JSON files directly, click the Open Settings (JSON) icon in the top right corner of the Settings tab.