I’m Using VSCode Less and Less—I’ve Switched to Zed

I’ve basically stopped using VSCode and switched to Zed.

Back in the era of manual coding, VSCode was essential. Code completion, syntax highlighting, and a rich ecosystem of plugins were all available. Some data analysis tools, like Jupyter, could also be used directly within VSCode.

But now, when I actually write code, I mostly rely on Codex. Some people around me don’t use Codex but use Claude instead.

The opportunity to hand-code is really rare nowadays. Whether it’s Codex or Claude, their ecosystems are becoming increasingly rich. The Codex app can even preview files and directly operate the browser.

I basically only use an editor in a few scenarios now. The most common is opening VSCode to view Markdown. There are also cases where managing project directories and files with Finder isn’t very convenient, and tools like VSCode with a directory tree are much handier.

But if it’s just for that purpose, VSCode feels too heavy.

Zed is also open-source, mainly taking up less space and consuming fewer system resources. It’s more than enough for viewing Markdown or making simple code edits.

Moreover, Zed has officially announced support for OpenAI subscriptions, so OpenAI’s Codex credits can be used directly within Zed. Other third-party models, like DeepSeek, are also supported. As a code editor, it’s fully sufficient.

Still, I never thought I’d see the day when I would uninstall VSCode. It’s quite a reflection.