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VSCodium

Community-built, MIT-licensed VS Code binaries without Microsoft branding or telemetry.

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About VSCodium

VSCodium is a community project that builds VS Code from Microsoft's open-source code and publishes ready-to-install binaries. Microsoft's own Visual Studio Code download adds branding, telemetry and a proprietary licence on top of the MIT-licensed source; VSCodium's build scripts skip those additions, turn telemetry off and release the result under the MIT licence. Day to day it looks and behaves like VS Code. The main difference is extensions: it uses the Open VSX registry rather than Microsoft's Marketplace, and a handful of Microsoft-only extensions, such as Remote SSH, Live Share, the C# Dev Kit and GitHub Copilot's official extension, are unavailable or need workarounds. It is free and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, with packages in Homebrew, winget, Snap, Flatpak and many Linux repositories. It suits developers and organisations who want VS Code's experience without Microsoft telemetry or licence terms, and who can live with the extension gaps.

Best for: VS Code users who want the same editor without Microsoft telemetry or licence terms.

Pros and cons

What works

  • Same editor experience as VS Code
  • Telemetry disabled and MIT-licensed binaries
  • Widely packaged on all major platforms

Why people leave

  • Uses Open VSX, so some extensions are missing
  • Microsoft-only extensions like Remote SSH and Live Share don't work
  • Updates arrive slightly after VS Code releases

Top VSCodium alternatives

See all 5
  1. 1Eclipse Theia logo
    Eclipse Theia

    Another open, telemetry-free editor that runs VS Code extensions.

    77.6
  2. 2Zed logo
    Zed

    Open-source native editor that is much faster than Electron-based ones.

    73.3
  3. 3Visual Studio Code logo
    Visual Studio Code

    Microsoft's build, with the full Marketplace and Microsoft extensions.

    68.8
  4. 4Lapce logo
    Lapce

    Open-source Rust editor with a native UI, for people leaving Electron behind.

    57.2
  5. 5Kate logo
    Kate

    A free KDE editor with language server support and no telemetry concerns.

    55.3

Why people left VSCodium

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

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VSCodium: common questions

Is VSCodium free?

Yes. VSCodium is free, open-source software.

Is VSCodium open source?

Yes. The source code is on GitHub at VSCodium/vscodium.

What platforms does VSCodium run on?

VSCodium is available for Windows, macOS and Linux.

What are the best alternatives to VSCodium?

The highest-ranked VSCodium alternatives right now are Eclipse Theia, Zed and Visual Studio Code. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 5 VSCodium alternatives