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Visual Studio Code (VS Code) has become the dominant code editor for Python development, and for good reason. It is completely free, actively maintained by Microsoft, and trusted by millions of developers worldwide — from beginners writing their first script to teams shipping production AI applications. If you are entering the world of Python and AI, VS Code is where you want to start.

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What is an IDE?

IDE stands for Integrated Development Environment. Think of it as a smart text editor purpose-built for writing code. Unlike a plain text editor, an IDE understands your code and actively assists you as you work. With an IDE like VS Code, you get:
  • Syntax highlighting — your code is colour-coded so different parts stand out at a glance
  • Inline error detection — problems are flagged before you even run your program
  • Intelligent code completion — suggestions appear as you type, based on your code’s context
  • One-click execution — run your scripts directly inside the editor
  • Project organisation — manage folders, files, and configurations from a single interface
VS Code starts as a lean code editor, but with extensions it becomes a full-featured IDE for Python, Jupyter notebooks, Git, Docker, and more.

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Why VS Code for Python and AI?

Python’s AI ecosystem — libraries like OpenAI, LangChain, pandas, and FastAPI — is best experienced interactively. VS Code supports interactive Python execution (running individual cells from .py files), full Jupyter notebook integration, and first-class debugging. You can inspect data structures, visualise outputs, and iterate on model code without ever leaving the editor.
VS Code is technically a “code editor,” but with the Python, Pylance, and Jupyter extensions installed, it becomes a complete Python IDE with everything you need for AI development.

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The connection to AI coding assistants

If you have heard of Cursor or Windsurf — the popular AI-powered coding tools — here is something important to know: they are both built directly on top of VS Code. They share the same interface, the same keyboard shortcuts, and the same extension model. Every skill you develop in VS Code transfers to those tools immediately.
Learning VS Code is not just learning one tool — it is learning the foundation that powers the entire modern Python and AI developer workflow, including the most advanced AI coding assistants available today.

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Completely free, no limitations

VS Code has no trial period, no paid tier for core features, and no feature paywalls. Every capability covered in this course — from debugging to notebooks to Git integration — is available to you at no cost.

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What you will set up next

In the following pages, you will install VS Code, configure the essential extensions, and create your first Python workspace. By the end of this section, you will have a professional-grade development environment ready for everything this course covers.

Install VS Code

Let’s get VS Code installed and configured on your computer.