Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in your environment

To use Copilot in your preferred coding environment, you must install the GitHub Copilot extension.

In this article

About the GitHub Copilot extension in Azure Data Studio

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Azure Data Studio allows you to receive coding suggestions from Copilot as you type.

To see instructions for other popular coding environments, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Azure Data Studio

  1. Make sure you have access to GitHub Copilot. For information, see "About GitHub Copilot."

  2. Make sure you have a compatible version of Azure Data Studio. To use GitHub Copilot in Azure Data Studio, you must have Azure Data Studio version 1.44.0 or later installed. See the Azure Data Studio download page in the Azure Data Studio documentation.

  3. Install the GitHub Copilot extension in Azure Data Studio. See Install the GitHub Copilot extension in the Microsoft documentation.

  4. If a popup window in Azure Data Studio prompts you to sign in to use GitHub Copilot, click Sign in to GitHub and follow the instructions on screen.

    • If you have previously authorized Azure Data Studio for your account on GitHub, GitHub Copilot will be automatically authorized.
    • If you don't get the prompt to authorize, you can view notifications by clicking the bell icon in the bottom panel of the Azure Data Studio window.

  5. If you are following the authorization steps, in your browser, GitHub will request the necessary permissions for GitHub Copilot. To approve these permissions, click Authorize Azure Data Studio.

About the GitHub Copilot extension in JetBrains IDEs

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in JetBrains IDEs allows you to chat with Copilot in your IDE and receive coding suggestions from Copilot as you type.

To see instructions for other popular coding environments, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.

Version compatibility

For information about version compatibility of the GitHub Copilot extension in JetBrains IDEs, see GitHub Copilot Versions in the JetBrains Marketplace.

Installing the GitHub Copilot plugin in your JetBrains IDE

The following procedure will guide you through installation of the GitHub Copilot plugin in IntelliJ IDEA. Steps to install the plugin in another supported IDE may differ.

  1. Make sure you have access to GitHub Copilot. For information, see "About GitHub Copilot."

  2. Make sure you have a JetBrains IDE that is compatible with GitHub Copilot. GitHub Copilot is compatible with the following IDEs:

    • IntelliJ IDEA (Ultimate, Community, Educational)
    • Android Studio
    • AppCode
    • CLion
    • Code With Me Guest
    • DataGrip
    • DataSpell
    • GoLand
    • JetBrains Client
    • MPS
    • PhpStorm
    • PyCharm (Professional, Community, Educational)
    • Rider
    • RubyMine
    • RustRover
    • WebStorm

    See the JetBrains IDEs tool finder to download.

  3. Install the GitHub Copilot plugin for JetBrains. See GitHub Copilot plugin in the JetBrains Marketplace.

  4. After GitHub Copilot is installed, click Restart IDE.

  5. After your JetBrains IDE has restarted, click the Tools menu. Click GitHub Copilot, then click Login to GitHub.

    Screenshot of the expanded "Tools" menu and "GitHub Copilot" sub-menu. The "Login to GitHub" option is highlighted in blue.

  6. In the "Sign in to GitHub" dialog box, to copy the device code and open the device activation window, click Copy and Open.

    Screenshot of the "Sign in to GitHub" dialog. A device code is displayed above a button labeled "Copy and Open".

  7. A device activation window will open in your browser. Paste the device code, then click Continue.

  8. GitHub will request the necessary permissions for GitHub Copilot. To approve these permissions, click Authorize GitHub Copilot Plugin.

  9. After the permissions have been approved, your JetBrains IDE will show a confirmation. To begin using GitHub Copilot, click OK.

About the GitHub Copilot extension in Vim/Neovim

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Vim/Neovim allows you to receive coding suggestions from Copilot as you type.

To see instructions for other popular coding environments, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Vim/Neovim

GitHub recommends that you install the GitHub Copilot plugin with Vim/Neovim's built-in plugin manager. Alternatively, you can use a plugin manager of your choice to install github/copilot.vim. For more information, see the copilot.vim repository.

  1. Make sure you have access to GitHub Copilot. For information, see "About GitHub Copilot."

  2. Make sure you have a compatible version of Vim/Neovim installed. To use GitHub Copilot in Vim/Neovim you must have Vim version 9.0.0185 / Neovim version 0.6 or above and Node.js version 18 or above. See the Vim / Neovim documentation and the Node.js website.

  3. Install GitHub Copilot using the built-in plugin manager:

    • For Vim on macOS or Linux, run the following command in the terminal.

      Shell
      git clone https://github.com/github/copilot.vim \
~/.vim/pack/github/start/copilot.vim

    • For Vim on Windows, run the following command in Git Bash:

      Shell
      git clone https://github.com/github/copilot.vim.git \
$HOME/vimfiles/pack/github/start/copilot.vim

    • For Neovim on macOS or Linux, run the following command in the terminal.

      Shell
      git clone https://github.com/github/copilot.vim \
~/.config/nvim/pack/github/start/copilot.vim

    • For Neovim on Windows, run the following command in Git Bash:

      Shell
      git clone https://github.com/github/copilot.vim.git \
$HOME/AppData/Local/nvim/pack/github/start/copilot.vim

  4. To configure GitHub Copilot, open Vim/Neovim and enter the following command.

    Shell
    :Copilot setup

  5. Enable GitHub Copilot in your Vim/Neovim configuration, or with the Vim/Neovim command.

    Shell
    :Copilot enable

About the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio allows you to receive coding suggestions from Copilot as you type.

To see instructions for other popular coding environments, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.

Version compatibility

Starting from Visual Studio 2022 Version 17.10, the unified Copilot and GitHub Copilot Chat extension is included by default as a built-in component. For more information, see "Install GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio" in the Microsoft documentation.

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio

  1. Make sure you have access to GitHub Copilot. For information, see "About GitHub Copilot."

  2. Make sure you have a compatible version of Visual Studio installed. To use GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio, you must have version 2022 17.8 or later of Visual Studio for Windows installed. For more information, see "Install Visual Studio" in the Microsoft documentation.

  3. Install the GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio See "Install GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio" in the Microsoft documentation.

  4. After installing the GitHub Copilot extension, to enable GitHub Copilot, ensure you have added your GitHub account to Visual Studio. For more information, see Add your GitHub accounts to your Visual Studio keychain in the Microsoft documentation.

About the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio Code

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio Code allows you to receive coding suggestions from Copilot as you type. It also automatically installs the GitHub Copilot Chat extension, which allows you to chat with Copilot.

To see instructions for other popular coding environments, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.

Version compatibility

Copilot Chat releases in lockstep with Visual Studio Code, due to its deep UI integration. As a result, every new version of Copilot Chat is only compatible with the latest release of Visual Studio Code. This means that if you are using an older version of Visual Studio Code, you will not be able to use the latest Copilot Chat.

Only the latest Copilot Chat versions will use the latest large language model provided by the Copilot service, as even minor model upgrades require prompt changes and fixes in the extension. An older version of Copilot Chat will still use the latest version of Copilot code completions.

Installing the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio Code

  1. Make sure you have access to GitHub Copilot. For information, see "About GitHub Copilot."

  2. Install Visual Studio Code. See the Visual Studio Code download page.

  3. Install the GitHub Copilot extension in Visual Studio Code. For detailed instructions, see "Set up GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio Code" in the Visual Studio Code documentation.

Next steps