GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (2024)

GitHub Copilot is an AI pair programmer tool that helps you write code faster and smarter.

Sign up for a GitHub Copilot free trial

GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (1)

When you install Copilot in Visual Studio Code, you get two extensions:

  • GitHub Copilot (this extension) - Provides inline coding suggestions as you type.
  • GitHub Copilot Chat - A companion extension that provides conversational AI assistance.

Getting access to GitHub Copilot

Sign up for a 30-day free trial with GitHub Copilot today or request Copilot access from your enterprise admin. To access GitHub Copilot, an active GitHub Copilot subscription is required. You can read more about our business and individual offerings at github.com/features/copilot.

What can I do with GitHub Copilot?

You can use Copilot in Visual Studio Code to generate code, fix errors, ask questions about your code, and much more...

Code completions

GitHub Copilot provides autocomplete-style suggestions from an AI pair programmer as you code. Just start writing your code in the editor and Copilot provides you with relevant suggestions. Need something specific? Add a natural language code comment to give directions to Copilot about what you want.

GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (2)

Chat

Sometimes you just want to ask a question. Whether you're troubleshooting a bug or crafting a new feature, GitHub Copilot is here to assist when you encounter challenges – simply ask for guidance via chat.

Chat view:

Ask Copilot for help with any task or question in the Chat view, bringing in code from your current files. Copilot is not just a search engine. Rather than giving you a generic answer, it can give answers that are relevant for your codebase.

GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (3)

Inline Chat:

Apply Copilot's AI suggestions directly to your code, staying in the flow. Need help with refactoring a method, adding error handling, or explaining a complex algorithm? Just launch Copilot in the editor!

GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (4)

Quick Chat:

Do you just want to ask a quick question and immediately get back in the action? Open Quick Chat with the Chat: Open Quick Chat command , or use the Ctrl+Shift+I or Cmd+Shift+I keyboard shortcut.

GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (5)

Participants

Participants are experts in a particular domain, such as coding, the editor, or many other areas. You can tag them in any chat to scope your questions and get better answers.

Below are examples of using participants built into VS Code.

@workspaceGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (6)

@terminalGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (7)

@vscodeGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (8)

Slash commands

Chat participants can also contribute what we call slash commands, which are shortcuts to specific functionality. Slash commands give you access to meticulously crafted prompts for common coding workflows, no prompt engineering required.

Below are examples of using several slash commands.

/fixGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (9)

/docGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (10)

/testsGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (11)

Variables

Variables enable you to reference specific information in your code, the editor, or information from other extensions. Combine these with participants to easily pass all the necessary context to Copilot.

#fileGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (12)

#terminalLastCommandGitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (13)

Supported languages and frameworks

GitHub Copilot works on any language, including Java, PHP, Python, JavaScript, Ruby, Go, C#, or C++. Because it’s been trained on languages in public repositories, it works for most popular languages, libraries and frameworks.

Version compatibility

As Copilot Chat releases in lockstep with VS Code due to its deep UI integration, every new version of Copilot Chat is only compatible with the latest and newest release of VS Code. This means that if you are using an older version of VS Code, you will not be able to use the latest Copilot Chat.

Only the latest Copilot Chat versions will use the latest models provided by the Copilot service, as even minor model upgrades require prompt changes and fixes in the extension. An older version of Copilot Chat will still use the latest version of Copilot completions.

Privacy and preview terms

By using Copilot Chat you agree to GitHub Copilot chat preview terms. Review the transparency note to understand about usage, limitations and ways to improve Copilot Chat during the technical preview.

Your code is yours. We follow responsible practices in accordance with our Privacy Statement to ensure that your code snippets will not be used as suggested code for other users of GitHub Copilot.

To get the latest security fixes, please use the latest version of the Copilot extension and VS Code.

Resources & next steps

GitHub Copilot - Visual Studio Marketplace (2024)

FAQs

What is the success rate of GitHub Copilot? ›

90% of developers found they were more fulfilled with their job when using GitHub Copilot, and 95% said they enjoyed coding more with Copilot's help. Quickly adopted by developers. Over 80% of Accenture participants successfully adopted GitHub Copilot with a 96% success rate among initial users.

Does GitHub Copilot work on Visual Studio? ›

GitHub Copilot's latest experience is integrated into Visual Studio and combines the capabilities of GitHub Copilot's code completion and GitHub Copilot Chat into one convenient package. Download the latest Visual Studio 2022 to discover the new features and improvements.

What are the limitations of GitHub Copilot? ›

One of the limitations of Copilot Chat is that it may generate code that appears to be valid but may not actually be semantically or syntactically correct or may not accurately reflect the intent of the developer.

How do I get 100% free Copilot on GitHub? ›

GitHub provides a way for us to use a lot of its services for 100% free. In order to get free GitHub Copilot, it's only enough for you to be a student and sign up for GitHub Student Developer Pack. If you sign up for the GitHub Student Developer Pack, you can use so many other tools besides free GitHub Copilot.

Why not to use GitHub Copilot? ›

Negatives of GitHub Copilot

Over-reliance: There's a risk that developers might become overly reliant on Copilot, potentially stunting their organic coding skills. Sometimes, it's wrong: While Copilot is impressive, it's not infallible. It can sometimes suggest incorrect or inefficient code.

What are some of the risks of using GitHub Copilot? ›

"Put simply, when Copilot suggests code, it may inadvertently replicate existing security vulnerabilities and bad practices present in the neighbor files," he wrote. "This can lead to insecure coding practices and open the door to a range of security vulnerabilities."

Is GitHub Copilot better than ChatGPT? ›

GitHub Copilot is a better solution than ChatGPT for most coding and programming use cases. In general, GitHub Copilot produces more accurate code outputs, code completions, code snippets, and specific coding requests. It also offers more contextualized information about why certain coding decisions were made.

Is GitHub Copilot allowed in companies? ›

Enterprise owners can allow some or all organizations in the enterprise to access GitHub Copilot. If an organization has access to Copilot, owners of the organization can assign Copilot Enterprise seats to some or all members of the organization.

Do software engineers use GitHub Copilot? ›

GitHub Copilot can significantly increase your efficiency as a software engineer in several ways: Code Assistance and Autocompletion: GitHub Copilot assists developers by providing real-time code suggestions as you type, thus helping you complete entire lines or blocks of code.

What are the negatives of Copilot? ›

The learning curve may slow down initial adoption and require training for optimal use. Reliance on Technology: While Copilot enhances productivity, it may also lead to a reduced reliance on critical thinking and problem-solving skills. There's a risk that users might become too dependent on the tool.

Is GitHub Copilot being sued? ›

The class action lawsuit alleges several causes of action arising from the use of the plaintiffs' OSS that was stored on GitHub and used to train Copilot, and the reproduction of that source code in Copilot's real-time suggestions without proper attribution.

What is better than GitHub Copilot? ›

Several reviewers have compared and contrasted Microsoft's GitHub Copilot and two GitHub Copilot alternatives: Amazon's AWS CodeWhisperer and the Tabnine Copilot. These were identified by TechTarget as the best copilot alternatives for 2024.

Does Copilot use GPT-4? ›

Microsoft 365's Copilot gets a GPT-4 Turbo upgrade and improved image generation.

Is Copilot no longer free? ›

So, is Microsoft Copilot free for business users? No, but you do get a lot more functionality. The Copilot for Microsoft 365 plan costs $30 per user per month, or you can purchase the plan for $360 per year. You'll also still need a qualifying Microsoft 365 plan.

What percentage of developers have said that GitHub Copilot makes them code faster: 70%, 83%, 65%, 90%? ›

Expert-Verified Answer. 75 % percentage of developers have said that github copilot makes them code faster. We truly know how 2,000 developers feel about using Copilot because of a quantitative poll, and 75% of those developers report they feel more fulfilled as a result.

What is the potential of GitHub Copilot? ›

GitHub Copilot has revolutionized the way developers code by offering an AI-powered assistant that generates code suggestions in real-time. With its ability to understand context and provide accurate completions, Copilot streamlines the coding process, saving developers time and effort.

How to measure success of GitHub Copilot? ›

User engagement data: In addition to survey responses, the Copilot Metrics API and Copilot User Management API provide measures related to how your developers are using Copilot. Measures such as Average Daily Active Users and Total Acceptance Rate can help identify where further enablement of your team is required.

Is GitHub Copilot worth the money? ›

Conclusion. So, back to our main question: Is GitHub Copilot worth the investment? Our data shouts a resounding "yes." But hey, tools are only as good as how we use them. It might be the perfect fit for some, while others might find alternative methods more suited to their workflow.

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