Actually, this isn't my first time using Zed. I tried it back in 2025, but after just a few days I sheepishly went running back to VSCode. The reason was simple — Zed was too bare-bones back then, its language server support lagged behind, and basically all the languages I was working with still needed VSCode to carry the load. With tools like this, if the features aren't there, they aren't there. Nostalgia doesn't put food on the table.
But things are different now.
A year has passed, and two things shifted at the same time.
First, my own development toolchain changed. The languages I write now have mostly moved into the JetBrains family: WebStorm (with TypeScript 7 native), IDEA (Java goes without saying, no question), RustRover, PyCharm. These languages were always VSCode's sore spots — experiences cobbled together with plugins — and now they've all migrated away. VSCode's core competitive edge for me was cut in half.
Second, VSCode itself changed a lot — and in a direction I don't like. It used to be a blank canvas that pieced itself into an IDE through its extension ecosystem. That was its strength — you got to decide what it became. Now it's turned into an AI editor, piling on all kinds of AI features, making the whole app increasingly bloated. The problem is it's still fundamentally a text editor (an Electron-based text editor), but now it's stuffed full like some jack-of-all-trades that fails to please anyone.
So I deleted it. Before I did, I already had a pretty good idea what would happen: I'd probably sheepishly reinstall it in a few days (I've got a track record, after all = =).
But that didn't happen!
So what makes Zed the winner?
The most immediate impression isspeed — incredible speed. When writing code, Zed's resource usage is way lower than Electron-based apps like VSCode, and you barely notice that faint, ever-present lag VSCode has. The autocomplete window pops up in an instant — so fast there's practically zero wait time. Use it long enough and you get hooked; go back to VSCode and it feels like the editor is contemplating life.
The interface is clean too — nothing unnecessary fighting for your attention.
The learning curve
The first-time setup is genuinely complicated. Extensions, themes, fonts — you have to tinker with every little thing yourself. It's not like VSCode where things work out of the box (its plugin ecosystem is right there; install whatever you want with one click).
But after all the tinkering, looking back, that "complexity" is actually one of Zed's strengths. Because its configuration granularity is so fine, and you can tweak everything item by item, what you end up with is truly "your own editor" — not just some patchwork of plugins thrown together. VSCode gives you a sense of limitless possibilities through its plugin ecosystem; Zed gives you a sense of control through its configuration itself. Two different approaches, but that feeling of "hand-tuning" everything yourself is oddly addictive (though your mileage may vary).
A personal take on Vim Mode
I personally think Zed is the best editor for using Vim Mode right now, bar none. The reason is straightforward: Vim Mode's advantages are built on the premise of "speed." If the editor itself is sluggish and key presses have noticeable latency, then Vim Mode's navigation logic suffers badly (at which point using Vim or not hardly matters). Zed is fast enough — its responsiveness keeps up — and Vim Mode here truly becomes an advantage, not an exercise in self-punishment.
Final thoughts
This isn't to say VSCode is done for, or that you absolutely have to switch to Zed. It's just to say: if you're like me, and your primary development languages have gradually moved over to the JetBrains family, leaving you needing only a general-purpose editor for lightweight editing scenarios, then Zed is worth giving a serious try — especially now, not the bare-bones version it used to be.
Actually, this isn't my first time using Zed. I tried it back in 2025, but after just a few days I sheepishly went running back to VSCode. The reason was simple — Zed was too bare-bones back then, its language server support lagged behind, and basically all the languages I was working with still needed VSCode to carry the load. With tools like this, if the features aren't there, they aren't there. Nostalgia doesn't put food on the table.
But things are different now.
A year has passed, and two things shifted at the same time.
First, my own development toolchain changed. The languages I write now have mostly moved into the JetBrains family: WebStorm (with TypeScript 7 native), IDEA (Java goes without saying, no question), RustRover, PyCharm. These languages were always VSCode's sore spots — experiences cobbled together with plugins — and now they've all migrated away. VSCode's core competitive edge for me was cut in half.
Second, VSCode itself changed a lot — and in a direction I don't like. It used to be a blank canvas that pieced itself into an IDE through its extension ecosystem. That was its strength — you got to decide what it became. Now it's turned into an AI editor, piling on all kinds of AI features, making the whole app increasingly bloated. The problem is it's still fundamentally a text editor (an Electron-based text editor), but now it's stuffed full like some jack-of-all-trades that fails to please anyone.
So I deleted it. Before I did, I already had a pretty good idea what would happen: I'd probably sheepishly reinstall it in a few days (I've got a track record, after all = =).
But that didn't happen!
So what makes Zed the winner?
The most immediate impression isspeed — incredible speed. When writing code, Zed's resource usage is way lower than Electron-based apps like VSCode, and you barely notice that faint, ever-present lag VSCode has. The autocomplete window pops up in an instant — so fast there's practically zero wait time. Use it long enough and you get hooked; go back to VSCode and it feels like the editor is contemplating life.
The interface is clean too — nothing unnecessary fighting for your attention.
The learning curve
The first-time setup is genuinely complicated. Extensions, themes, fonts — you have to tinker with every little thing yourself. It's not like VSCode where things work out of the box (its plugin ecosystem is right there; install whatever you want with one click).
But after all the tinkering, looking back, that "complexity" is actually one of Zed's strengths. Because its configuration granularity is so fine, and you can tweak everything item by item, what you end up with is truly "your own editor" — not just some patchwork of plugins thrown together. VSCode gives you a sense of limitless possibilities through its plugin ecosystem; Zed gives you a sense of control through its configuration itself. Two different approaches, but that feeling of "hand-tuning" everything yourself is oddly addictive (though your mileage may vary).
A personal take on Vim Mode
I personally think Zed is the best editor for using Vim Mode right now, bar none. The reason is straightforward: Vim Mode's advantages are built on the premise of "speed." If the editor itself is sluggish and key presses have noticeable latency, then Vim Mode's navigation logic suffers badly (at which point using Vim or not hardly matters). Zed is fast enough — its responsiveness keeps up — and Vim Mode here truly becomes an advantage, not an exercise in self-punishment.
Final thoughts
This isn't to say VSCode is done for, or that you absolutely have to switch to Zed. It's just to say: if you're like me, and your primary development languages have gradually moved over to the JetBrains family, leaving you needing only a general-purpose editor for lightweight editing scenarios, then Zed is worth giving a serious try — especially now, not the bare-bones version it used to be.
As for me, I'm really not going back this time.