Ctrl+Shift+P then type "settings". https://www.screencast.com/t/eDq4yjOX Answer from Deleted User on reddit.com
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Visual Studio Code
code.visualstudio.com › docs › configure › settings
User and workspace settings
November 3, 2021 - Then, File > Preferences > Settings and the keybinding ⌘, (Windows, Linux Ctrl+,) always open the settings.json file and not the Setting editor UI. Depending on your platform, the user settings file is located here: ... The workspace settings ...
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/vscode › where is settings.json?
r/vscode on Reddit: Where is settings.json?
February 27, 2022 -

Hi , I am new to VS Code, doing a python course. The course require to use an extension and change the settings by going and editing the json file. But when I open the settings.json file it is empty. If I click any option in the settings ui, that option is showing in the .json file but default settings are not shown. How do i fix this?

Top answer
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701

To open the User settings:

  • Open the command palette (either with F1 or Ctrl+Shift+P)
  • Type ">open settings" (You must include the '>' at the beginning)
  • You are presented with a few options¹, choose Open User Settings (JSON)

This image was taken in the VS Code online editor

Which, from the manual and depending on platform, is one of:

  • Windows %APPDATA%\Code\User\settings.json²
  • macOS $HOME/Library/Application\ Support/Code/User/settings.json
  • Linux $HOME/.config/Code/User/settings.json

The Workspace settings will be in a {workspaceName}.code-workspace file where you saved it, and the Folder settings will be in a .vscode folder if and when it has been created.


Official page on User and Workspace Settings

As stated by sevencardz below, VS Code includes a button in the Settings UI gutter which can be used to switch between JSON and graphical view.

The workbench.settings.editor option selects which of the settings files is opened by default when not using the above method, such as with the shortcut +, or through the application menu.

Footnotes

  1. The aforementioned settings, User and Workspace. Remote settings will appear when using WSL.

  2. By a test this maps to %APPDATA%\Roaming\Code\User\settings.json, I am not sure by what logic.

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On the settings UI page, there's a special button in the top right corner gutter that toggles between the settings.json file and the settings UI.

Bonus Answer:

Add "workbench.settings.editor": "json" to your settings.json file. This will make it so that menu FilePreferencesSettings or + , opens your settings.json file by default. Optionally, add a comment at the top to remind yourself where the toggle button is.

// Click the Open Settings (UI) button in the top
// right corner gutter to toggle the settings UI
{
    // Other settings in settings.json
    // ...
    "workbench.settings.editor": "json"
}
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Micro Focus
microfocus.com › documentation › vscode › enterprise › GUID-84045421-C70A-4583-BC59-45995A146745.html
Settings File (JSON)
This opens the global settings.json in the editor. The location of the file is %userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Code\User (Windows) or ~/.config/Code/User (Linux) for default installations.
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Laurens
laurens.io › blog › changing-vs-code-settings-locally-when-its-checked-into-git
Changing .vscode settings.json locally when it's checked into Git — Laurens Groeneveld's blog
August 25, 2020 - This is just a JSON file with, amongst others, the local settings. So I created a workspace with just this project, and then could change my window colors with Peacock at will. Problem solved! TL;DR Create a multi-root workspace in VS Code to work around the local .vscode folder.
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Bobby Hadz
bobbyhadz.com › blog › vscode-open-settings-json
How to open settings.json in VS Code [6 Ways] | bobbyhadz
The .vscode/settings.json file is easily accessible as the .vscode folder is located in the root directory of your project.
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Posit
docs.posit.co › ide › server-pro › user › vs-code › guide › settings.html
VS Code Settings – Posit Workbench Documentation Release 2026.04.0
Then, type and select: “Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON)” and press ENTER. ... Workspace settings are specified in .vscode/settings.json within the workspace folder.
Find elsewhere
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Checkmarx
docs.checkmarx.com › en › 34965-8138-vscode-tutorial---settings-json.html
VSCode Tutorial - Settings.json
March 26, 2024 - Checkmarx VSCode extension installed and enabled. ... On the Extension page, click the Extend icon. The CxVSCode plugin dialog appears. On the Checkmarx SAST 9.x plugin dialog, click . A dropdown menu appears. From the dropdown menu, select Extension Settings. Enable the Avoid Duplicate Project Scans In Queue option. Verify that the following has been added to the settings.json file: cx.avoidDuplicateProjectScansInQueue ": true.
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GitHub
gist.github.com › mrmartineau › ea3b428124bc1e31cd46dfa55469d781
vscode settings.json · GitHub
May 26, 2024 - vscode settings.json · Raw · settings.json · This file contains hidden or bidirectional Unicode text that may be interpreted or compiled differently than what appears below. To review, open the file in an editor that reveals hidden Unicode characters. Learn more about bidirectional Unicode characters ·
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GitHub
github.com › fabiorocha › vscode-settings.json
GitHub - fabiorocha/vscode-settings.json: My preferred settings and extensions for VS Code. · GitHub
The workspace setting file is located under the .vscode folder in your project.
Starred by 8 users
Forked by 7 users
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Medium
medium.com › @mattheweskolin › example-settings-json-for-vs-code-16f7f16c0989
Example settings.json for VS Code | by Matthew Eskolin | Medium
November 23, 2024 - I thought It would be fun to share my settings.json file. The number of available settings in VS Code is truly staggering. In the documentation above, the default settings example is near three thousand lines long! On Windows, the settings file is located here: %APPDATA%\Code\User\settings.json
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TMS Outsource
tms-outsource.com › home › how to open settings.json in vscode fast
How to Open Settings.json in VSCode Fast
November 18, 2025 - Press Ctrl+Shift+P (or Cmd+Shift+P on macOS), type “workspace settings json” and select “Preferences: Open Workspace Settings (JSON)” to access the local configuration file stored in your project’s .vscode folder.
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Medium
alinawrites.medium.com › how-to-open-settings-json-in-vscode-8edf1f47ff2e
How To Open settings.json in VSCode | by Alina Writes | Medium
August 14, 2022 - VSCode is an amazing editor. But it feels a bit all over the place when it comes to finding settings files. So I created these two videos explaining how to open settings.json file
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Visual Studio Code
code.visualstudio.com › docs › getstarted › personalize-vscode
Personalize VS Code
November 3, 2021 - The Settings editor (⌘, (Windows, Linux Ctrl+,)) provides a graphical interface to modify settings. When you modify settings, VS Code stores them in the settings.json file.
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Satyakomatineni
satyakomatineni.com › akc › display
Understand settings in vscode
The file/preferences/settings will open the "user" settings.json (No explicit way to go to workspace or folder settings from here. So this menu item behaves like "Show me the user settings" for this vscode irrespective of work space.
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Visual Studio Code
code.visualstudio.com › docs › cpp › customize-cpp-settings
C++ extension settings reference
November 3, 2021 - For example, use the VS Code extension ID ms-vscode.cmake-tools to provide configuration information from the CMake Tools extension. If you specified a configurationProvider, the configuration it provides takes precedence over your other settings in c_cpp_properties.json.
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Visual Studio Code
code.visualstudio.com › docs › getstarted › userinterface
User interface
1 month ago - Alternately, you can modify the ... settings.json file. For workspace settings, open the settings.json file in the .vscode folder in your workspace....
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Answer Overflow
answeroverflow.com › m › 1293904770079133736
Where can I find settings.json for vscode web? - Coder.com
October 10, 2024 - When I manually opened vscode's settings file and copied its absolute path, it returned (Settings) /User/settings.json(Settings) /User/settings.json. So, where can I find vscode's settings.json now?
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SitePoint
sitepoint.com › general web dev
VS Code settings.json File Corrupted. Can I Recover a Default settings.json? - General Web Dev - SitePoint Forums | Web Development & Design Community
May 9, 2025 - First, thank you to all who responded to my post introducing myself. It was a kind and warm welcome. Thank you. The t-shirt I’m wearing today proclaims: “Pretty sure I seized the wrong day”. It is appropriate as I ha…