Introduction
Your development environment plays a crucial role in your productivity and focus as a developer. Whether you're working on a complex software project or a simple coding task, the right Visual Studio Code theme can help you stay organized, efficient, and inspired. While many developers prefer dark themes, there are numerous options to customize your workspace to suit your preferences and needs.
In this article, we review some of the best Visual Studio Code themes to enhance your coding experience, no matter what type of developer you are.
The importance of VSC themes
With so many themes available, choosing a starting point can be challenging. That's why we've compiled a list of the best Visual Studio Code themes that every developer should try. Choosing the right Visual Studio Code theme can help you:
- Reduce eye pressure
- Increase productivity
- Make coding a more enjoyable experience
1. One Dark Pro – Classic and Minimalist VSC Code Theme
You’ve probably heard of the ATOM editor, one of the popular code editors. This theme is based on one of the iconic ATOM themes. One Dark Pro features a balanced color palette with less contrast between the background and text. It features a dark gray background with several options, such as:
- One Dark Pro
- One Dark Pro Darker
- One Dark Pro Flat
- One Dark Pro Mix
With over 7.2 million installs, it is one of the most popular themes in the Visual Studio marketplace. Created by Binaryify, it offers customization for different colors, bold or italic text, and options to enable or disable vivid colors.
One downside to this theme is that sometimes, the gray background makes it difficult to see different colored text. Additionally, the dark color scheme and bold syntax highlighting may be off-putting to some users. However, if you like dark modes, this theme is a great choice.
2. Dracula Official – Dark and mysterious code theme in VSC
Dracula Official is a popular Visual Studio Code theme that features a purple background with a balanced color scheme. It offers two options:
- Dracula
- Dracula Soft
The theme is easy on the eyes and offers great contrast to highlight syntax. With over 5 million downloads, it is highly popular among developers.
However, some users may find the official Dracula theme too bold or overwhelming due to its bright colors and high contrast. It may not be suitable for those who prefer lighter themes or have difficulty seeing bright colors on a dark background. However, it is a great choice for those who want a bold and vibrant theme with excellent syntax highlighting and customization options.
3. GitHub Themes – Light and dark code themes similar to GitHub
If you like the GitHub design, this theme is for you. The GitHub theme is inspired by the popular code hosting platform. It offers a mix of light and dark theme options, such as:
- GitHub Dark
- GitHub Dark Colorblind
- GitHub Dark Default
- GitHub Dark Dimmed
- GitHub Dark High Contrast
- GitHub Light
- GitHub Light Colorblind
- GitHub Light Default
- GitHub Light High Contrast
This theme has over 8.4 million downloads in the Visual Studio Code Marketplace. If you’re not a fan of dark mode, this theme offers some of the best light theme options for Visual Studio Code. It’s a sleek and modern theme with various background shades, such as blue, dark gray, and white, making it a solid choice for developers who prefer lighter color schemes and a clean, minimalist design.
4. Night Owl
The Night Owl theme is ideal for low-light conditions. It has a unique design and is easy on the eyes, using muted colors with a blue background shade. This theme is designed for programmers who code at night. It includes options such as:
- Night Owl
- Night Owl (No Italics)
- Night Owl Light
- Night Owl Light (No Italics)
With over 1.9 million downloads, it is recommended by many programming communities. It was created by Sarah Dresner. However, the light version of this theme has a white background, with syntax colors that are not dark enough, making the code difficult to read. However, it is a great choice for programmers who prefer a dark mode without high-contrast syntax colors.
5. Ayu – A sleek VSC theme
The Ayu theme has over 1.8 million downloads in the Visual Studio Marketplace. It offers a mix of light and dark themes, including:
- Ayu Dark
- Ayu Dark Bordered
- Ayu Light
- Ayu Light Bordered
- Ayu Mirage
- Ayu Mirage Bordered
It has a great color scheme for a dark theme, with high-contrast colors for syntax and a darker background. The Mirage version offers a fog-like background that is slightly darker than the Dark version. However, the Light version falls short, as the contrast between the syntax and background colors is not well-balanced. Overall, this theme is a good choice for developers who prefer high-contrast syntax colors and a darker background. It also offers bordered or borderless options.
6. Moonlight – A dark and elegant code theme in contrast to improve productivity
Moonlight is one of my favorite themes. It was created by Atomiks and has over 132k downloads on the VS Code marketplace and over 550 stars on GitHub. The only thing I like about this theme is the soothing syntax colors that match the background shade. It also has the ability to change the syntax color to high contrast colors. It has various options like
- Moonlight
- Moonlight II
- Moonlight Italic
- Moonlight II Italic
The Moonlight theme may not be suitable for users who prefer high-contrast themes. Overall, it is a stylish and modern theme that is easy on the eyes and offers excellent syntax highlighting and a unique look and feel, making it a great choice for developers.
7. 2077 – Futuristic VSC Theme
The 2077 theme is perfect for developers looking for a futuristic, cyberpunk-inspired theme. Based on the popular game "Cyberpunk 2077," it features a dark background with neon colors. Created by Endormi, it has over 254,000 downloads on the Visual Studio Market and is rated 5 out of 5.
This theme features a dark blue background with unique, bright colors that are easy to distinguish from each other. However, it may overwhelm developers who prefer more subtle colors. Overall, this is a unique and bold theme that gives your code editor a futuristic look.
8. Noctis – A minimal and intuitive code theme vs.
I found one of the best light themes in this collection. The Noctis theme offers a combination of light and dark themes with a mix of warm and cool contrasting colors. It features blue, teal, purple, and gray. It includes a variety of styles, such as:
- Noctis
- Noctis Azureus
- Noctis Bordeaux
- Noctis Hibernus
- Noctis Lilac
- Noctis Lux
- Noctis Minimus
- Noctis Obscuro
- Noctis Sereno
- Noctis Uva
- Noctis Viola
With over 800,000 downloads in the Visual Studio Code marketplace and over 440 stars on GitHub, Noctis is a solid choice for developers who want a clean, minimalist theme that's easy on the eyes.
9. Shades of Purple – A vibrant code theme in VSC
The Shades of Purple theme is very popular among Visual Studio Code users with over 1.4 million downloads. If you love the color purple, this theme is for you. It has a purple background and offers two options:
- Shades of Purple
- Shades of Purple (Super Dark)
With high contrast syntax colors, this theme is bold and has a lot of contrast between the dark background and the text. If you prefer low contrast themes, this may not be the theme for you. Overall, this is a unique theme with great syntax highlighting and bold colors.
10. City Lights – A modern and sophisticated code theme vs.
The City Lights theme was created by design agency Yummygum. It is a visually pleasing theme with a bright, colorful design, high contrast, and bold typography. The color palette stands out from other themes, featuring soft, light colors with low contrast. While it doesn’t offer a lot of options, you should still give this theme a try.
With over 210,000 downloads on the Visual Studio Marketplace and a rating of 4.9 out of 5, the City Lights theme is perfect for developers who want a visually striking, modern theme with syntax highlighting and great customization options. However, it may not be for everyone, so it's worth checking out to see if it meets your needs.
Result
Choosing the right Visual Studio Code theme is essential for developers looking to improve their coding experience. Whether you prefer a dark or light background, or a minimalist or colorful design, there are countless options available to help you personalize your workspace and increase your productivity. From the popular One Dark Pro to the beautiful and futuristic City Lights 2077, each of these themes offers unique benefits and features to improve your coding workflow. So why not try them out for yourself and see which one suits your style and needs the best?
