VSCodium: VS Code Without Microsoft’s Tentacles

Solves in a sentence: Like VS Code but worried about Microsoft collecting usage data? VSCodium removes telemetry and tracking, giving you the authentic VS Code experience.

VS Code is undoubtedly the most popular code editor right now. But it has one controversial aspect — Microsoft collects usage data (telemetry) in the background. While you can turn it off in settings, many people still feel uncomfortable.

VSCodium was born to address this exact pain point.

What is VSCodium?

VSCodium is a free and open-source fork of VS Code. It’s compiled directly from VS Code’s source code but removes Microsoft-branded binaries, telemetry tracking, and license restrictions.

Simply put: You’re still using VS Code, but Microsoft doesn’t know about it.

The problem it solves: Providing a privacy-conscious version of VS Code that doesn’t collect data.

Real Differences from VS Code

Comparison	VS Code	VSCodium
Telemetry	Enabled by default	Completely removed
Branding	Microsoft brand	Community brand
Extension Marketplace	Microsoft Marketplace	Open VSX
Update Source	Microsoft servers	GitHub
Experience	Identical	Identical

The biggest difference is in extensions. Microsoft’s official extension marketplace (Marketplace) doesn’t accept requests from VSCodium. This means some extensions (like C#, Live Share) need to be installed manually. However, VSCodium defaults to connecting to Open VSX Registry — an open-source alternative marketplace that has most commonly used extensions.

If an extension is only available on the Microsoft marketplace, you can manually modify the extension marketplace address in VSCodium to point to Microsoft’s. But that wouldn’t be as “pure.”

Who Needs VSCodium?

• Privacy-sensitive users: Don’t want any usage data collected
• Open-source advocates: Want the editor to fully comply with free software definitions
• Enterprise compliance scenarios: Some company policies prohibit software with telemetry
• VS Code power users: Don’t want to change habits but want a “clean” version

Download

• Official website: https://vscodium.com/
• GitHub Releases: https://github.com/VSCodium/vscodium/releases
  • Windows users download VSCodiumSetup-x64-*.exe

Tip: VSCodium’s official download speed is average. If slow, use a mirror. After installation, go to Open VSX to install the extensions you need.

Quick Start

1. Download and install VSCodium
2. After opening, the interface is almost identical to VS Code
3. Click the extensions icon on the left to install extensions from Open VSX
4. If you’re used to VS Code’s shortcuts and settings, you can import them directly
5. Daily use is exactly the same as VS Code — no learning cost