The recommended way of doing this is through workspace recommended extensions, this is a .vscode/extensions.json in your project that will prompt the user to install them when they first open the folder, the file looks like this:
{
"recommendations": [
"eg2.tslint",
"dbaeumer.vscode-eslint",
"msjsdiag.debugger-for-chrome"
]
}
You can also try setting up a bash/bat script or some other automation to directly install the extensions using the CLI as suggested by parsley72 in the other answer. You will likely annoy users by doing this though, unless this is in a personal dotfiles project or something similar.
See nybon's answer for configuring recommendations in the UI.
Answer from Daniel Imms on Stack Overflowconfiguration - Automatically install extensions in VS Code? - Stack Overflow
What is your favorite JSON editor extension?
Best settings.json configurations and must-have extensions?
VS Code file .vscode/extensions.json select custom version of one extension - Stack Overflow
Videos
The recommended way of doing this is through workspace recommended extensions, this is a .vscode/extensions.json in your project that will prompt the user to install them when they first open the folder, the file looks like this:
{
"recommendations": [
"eg2.tslint",
"dbaeumer.vscode-eslint",
"msjsdiag.debugger-for-chrome"
]
}
You can also try setting up a bash/bat script or some other automation to directly install the extensions using the CLI as suggested by parsley72 in the other answer. You will likely annoy users by doing this though, unless this is in a personal dotfiles project or something similar.
See nybon's answer for configuring recommendations in the UI.
Thanks to Daniel's suggestion, and I find if you want to keep a list of vscode extensions and install all of them in single click, you can try this approach:
- Create the list of extensions you want using the workspace recommended extensions
- Use the
Configure Recommended Extensionscommand to create theextensions.jsonfile
You will create a file like this:
{
// See https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=827846 to learn about workspace recommendations.
// Extension identifier format: ${publisher}.${name}. Example: vscode.csharp
// List of extensions which should be recommended for users of this workspace.
"recommendations": [
"ms-vscode.cpptools",
"file-icons.file-icons",
"shd101wyy.markdown-preview-enhanced",
"sagebind.mathpad",
"johnpapa.vscode-peacock"
],
// List of extensions recommended by VS Code that should not be recommended for users of this workspace.
"unwantedRecommendations": []
}
- Add your favorite vscode extension id into the list in JSON
- Re-launch vscode to open the workspace folder (the parent folder for
.vscodefolder) - Navigate to "Extensions", filter extensions using "Recommended" filter

- A list of extensions will be shown in "Workspace Recommendations"
- Click the button to install all extensions at once

There are a couple I've tried, but they either aren't what I need or aren't updated anymore... JSON Editors I've tried:
JSON Editor (and a lot of forks of this repo)
JSON Tree Editor
JSON
What's your favorite JSON editor?
Hey everyone,
I’ve been using VS Code for a while, but I feel like I’m not taking full advantage of its customization options. I want to optimize my setup, so I’m looking for recommendations on:
Best
settings.jsonconfigurations – What tweaks have significantly improved your workflow, performance, or overall experience?Must-have extensions – Which extensions do you consider essential for productivity, debugging, or specific workflows?
I mostly work with TypeScript, JavaScript, React, Next.js, Node.js, Express, NestJS, Python, C++, .NET, and React Native, so any suggestions to those would be great. But I’m also open to general improvements that could benefit any workflow.
Would love to see what works for you all. Thanks!
Thanks in advance!