# Visual Studio Reviews **Vendor:** Microsoft **Category:** [Java Integrated Development Environments (IDE)](https://www.g2.com/categories/java-integrated-development-environments-ide) **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 3,965 ## About Visual Studio Visual Studio is a comprehensive integrated development environment (IDE) designed to empower developers in building applications across various platforms, including Android, iOS, Windows, web, and cloud. It supports multiple programming languages, such as .NET, C++, Python, and JavaScript, providing a versatile environment for software development. Key Features and Functionality: - IntelliSense: Offers context-aware code suggestions to enhance coding efficiency. - GitHub Copilot Integration: Provides AI-assisted coding to streamline complex tasks. - Advanced Debugging Tools: Includes a robust debugger to identify and resolve issues early in the development process. - Integrated Testing: Facilitates seamless testing with built-in tools for both manual and automated testing. - CI/CD Support: Enables continuous integration and deployment through Git and Azure DevOps integration. - Cross-Platform Development: Supports development for multiple platforms, including mobile, desktop, and cloud applications. Primary Value and Solutions Provided: Visual Studio enhances developer productivity by offering a unified environment that integrates coding, debugging, testing, and deployment tools. Its support for multiple languages and platforms allows developers to create diverse applications efficiently. The integration of AI tools like GitHub Copilot and comprehensive debugging features ensures high-quality code production. Additionally, Visual Studio's support for modern development practices, including CI/CD pipelines and cloud integration, streamlines the software development lifecycle, enabling faster and more reliable application delivery. ## Visual Studio Pros & Cons **What users like:** - Users enjoy the **ease of use** of Visual Studio, seamlessly integrating tools for a smooth development experience. (205 reviews) - Users value the **extensive features** of Visual Studio, enabling seamless development and integration across various tools and services. (180 reviews) - Users appreciate the **comprehensive IDE quality** of Visual Studio, enhancing development efficiency and productivity across projects. (151 reviews) - Users value the **comprehensive functionality** of Visual Studio, enhancing productivity with robust tools and seamless integrations. (141 reviews) - Users enjoy the **advanced debugging tools** in Visual Studio, enhancing their productivity and overall development experience. (137 reviews) - Users love the **intuitive code editing experience** in Visual Studio, enhancing speed and reducing errors across various languages. (120 reviews) - Development Efficiency (104 reviews) - IntelliSense (103 reviews) - Git Integration (98 reviews) - Extension Support (88 reviews) **What users dislike:** - Users experience **slow performance** during heavy programming, leading to crashes and cumbersome re-runs, especially in Python. (146 reviews) - Users find Visual Studio to have **high resource consumption** , especially with large projects affecting performance on lower-end machines. (85 reviews) - Users experience **high memory usage** with Visual Studio, impacting performance, especially on lower-end machines during large projects. (80 reviews) - Users experience a **slow startup** time and frustrating pauses during solution reloads, impacting their workflow efficiency. (73 reviews) - Users experience **performance issues** with Visual Studio, facing lags, crashes, and slower response times on larger projects. (60 reviews) - Software Heaviness (59 reviews) - High System Requirements (51 reviews) - Users often face **slow loading** times and performance issues, hindering their development experience with Visual Studio. (51 reviews) - Slow Speed (51 reviews) - High Resource Usage (49 reviews) ## Visual Studio Reviews ### 1. A Complete Development Environment That Boosted My Productivity **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Siddhartha P. | Research Internship, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 30, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** One thing stands out with Visual Studio - its sharp debugging paired with a complete built-in environment. Working inside a single space lets coding flow into testing, then straight to fixing errors, skipping extra apps altogether. On my own backend tasks, even complex full-stack builds, it turned out to be a steady companion. Heavy on memory at times, yet the perks - smart code suggestions, built-in version control, handy add-ons - tip the scale. Productivity gets a clear boost after some time spent adjusting **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** One moment everything runs fine, next - memory spikes hit without warning. Extensions pile up quietly until the system drags behind. Performance dips show up most when stacking tools together. The editor keeps ticking, yet feels heavier than before. Getting things running at first might slow you down a bit. Still, most find the speed later makes up for early waits. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** Working on projects often meant juggling separate apps just to write code, run tests, check errors, or manage updates. A smoother path opened when all those pieces came together inside Visual Studio. Because I stay inside the IDE, coding flows smoother now. Jumping around less means fewer mistakes creep in at the start. Fixing issues happens faster when everything sits close together. Stability shows up clearer by the end, thanks to this setup. ### 2. Review **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Fabrizio M. | OPERATORE ANTINCENDIO - OSPEDALE PEDIATRICO BAMBINO GESù, Hospital & Health Care, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 29, 2026 ### 3. Best Platform For Software Development **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Amit S. | Co-Founder, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** June 07, 2021 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** A complete platform for web or application development. It includes the toolset most developers look for and comes with an IDE. I use it for .NET and PHP, and I believe it’s one of the best IDEs (Integrated Development Environment) I’ve worked with. It also allows me to develop cross-platform applications. It’s available across platforms and supports C#, Java, Visual Basic, HTML, XML, and more. One of the best parts is that it provides a team development environment and makes coding easier. It's AI made it more easier to write codes **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** The reporting feature should be more effective. Other than that, I didn’t find anything I can say I dislike. **Recommendations to others considering Visual Studio:** Definitely I will recommend it to others. Nothing is better than this for any organization or individual. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** The major thing is now I am able to develop mobile application also with the help of it. And it's updates are too good as it solves many of my coding problems as compared to other applications. I don't need to switch any other applications for development as most and major development problems I can solve here. ### 4. Helpful Guides, Easy Drag-and-Drop Form Design, and Handy Built-In Github Copilot **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Glen L. | Quality Engineering Intern, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 28, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** I really like using the availability of guides on how to use the specific aspects of the IDE like the toolbox when designing a form allowing a user to drag and drop elements directly onto the page making the designing much more simple to do. The built-in copilot ai support is nice too allowing you to highlight specific parts or error messages and ask it for help on fixing it. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** Installing NuGet Packages is not integrated in very well. Often requiring a restart to ensure the package has been properly installed into the solution and even running the NuGet package manager causes the IDE to slow down drastically. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** It is a free license which is always appreciated allowing us to try using the tool before being stuck committing to it. It also integrates well with other microsoft tools like Azure Devops allowing for checking version differences directly in the IDE. ### 5. Complete Yet Uncluttered—IntelliSense and Debugging That Save Time **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Abraam C. | Front End Developer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 07, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** What I like most about Visual Studio is how complete it feels without ever becoming overwhelming. IntelliSense is incredibly helpful—it speeds up my coding a lot and cuts down on small, silly mistakes. I also really appreciate the debugging tools: being able to step through code, inspect variables, and quickly track down issues ends up saving me a ton of time. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** At times, it takes a while to load, and the performance can feel laggy if your machine isn’t powerful enough to handle it smoothly. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** Visual Studio solves the problem of having to juggle multiple tools and workflows when building software. Rather than constantly switching between an editor, a debugger, version control, and build tools, I can keep everything in one place. That saves me a lot of time and helps me stay focused on the work. It also reduces errors while I’m coding. Features like IntelliSense, real-time error checking, and refactoring tools help catch issues early and make it easier to write clean, maintainable code. As a result, I spend less time debugging later and feel more confident in what I’m building. ### 6. Comprehensive IDE for Enterprise Development **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Rohini M. | Associate Consultant, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 19, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** Using Microsoft Visual Studio has made application development more efficient and well-structured, especially for backend and enterprise-level projects. It provides a complete environment for coding, debugging, and testing, which reduces dependency on multiple tools. The ease of use is quite good once you get familiar with it. The interface is clean and customizable, making it easier to manage multiple projects. Features like IntelliSense, code navigation, and built-in templates help speed up development and reduce errors. Implementation is straightforward with a guided setup that allows selecting specific workloads, making onboarding easier. The IDE offers a rich set of features such as advanced debugging, integrated terminal, testing tools, and code analysis, all of which improve productivity and code quality. Integration is seamless with version control systems and other Microsoft tools, which supports smooth collaboration in team environments. I use it regularly in my daily workflow, and it performs reliably even for larger projects. From a support perspective, Microsoft provides extensive documentation, community forums, and regular updates, which help in resolving most issues efficiently. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** While Microsoft Visual Studio is a powerful IDE, there are some areas that could be improved. The setup process, although guided, can take a considerable amount of time due to the size of the installation. In terms of ease of use, the UI can feel overwhelming initially because of the number of features and configuration options, especially for new users. Performance is another concern at times. The IDE can be resource-intensive, leading to slower startup times and occasional lag when working on large solutions or using multiple extensions. Although integration with Microsoft tools is strong, working with certain third-party tools may require extra configuration, which impacts ease of integration. From a customer support perspective, while documentation and community support are helpful, resolving very specific or complex issues can sometimes take longer than expected, especially when official support responses are not immediate. Overall, improvements in performance optimization, simplified UI for beginners, and faster support responses would enhance the overall experience. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** I use Visual Studio for developing and maintaining applications, especially backend services. It simplifies my workflow by integrating coding, debugging, and testing into one platform, saving time and boosting productivity. It enhances code quality with IntelliSense and streamlines project management and collaboration. ### 7. Simple to Use and Easy to Implement **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Gopal k. | Software Engineer, Information Technology and Services, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** February 18, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** The IntelliSense is extremely powerful — it doesn’t just autocomplete, it understands context. The debugger is one of the best available; features like conditional breakpoints, watch windows, and immediate window make diagnosing issues much faster. For large enterprise applications, especially in C# and ASP.NET, Visual Studio feels mature, stable, and optimized for serious development work. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** MeOne thing I dislike about Visual Studio is that it can be heavy and resource-intensive, especially for large enterprise solutions. Startup time and solution load time can be slow compared to lighter IDEs. It also sometimes feels overloaded with features, which can make it overwhelming for beginners or when working on smaller projects where a lightweight editor would be faster. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** For me, the biggest benefit is productivity. Features like IntelliSense reduce syntax errors and speed up development. The powerful debugger helps me quickly identify root causes instead of relying on trial and error. Built-in tools for Git, NuGet, and Azure integration eliminate the need to constantly switch between different applications. ### 8. The most powerful all-in-one IDE in the market supercharged with AI **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Jorge R. | Support Team Lead, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 09, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** It’s the most powerful IDE on the market, capable of handling just about everything. It’s the best choice for the Microsoft stack, but it can also be used to develop for macOS, iOS, Java, Android, etc. I use it every day in my development work. Productivity is excellent, thanks to all its refactoring and IntelliSense capabilities. The debugger is out of this world: it lets you set different types of breakpoints, do time travel, and even get diagnostics. All of that works out of the box, with a single setup. If you need more, you can expand it with multiple extensions. It also stays up to date with the latest technologies, including a seamless AI integration. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** It’s a large application, so you’ll need a fairly powerful machine to run it smoothly. It can feel heavy and resource-intensive. For smaller tasks or simpler applications, other options may be more suitable. The learning curve can also be steep, since several features are tucked away behind right-click menus or buried in submenus. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** I can develop any app I need and debug any issues I run into with my applications, without needing a million different apps just to get my work done. ### 9. VSCode: unbeatable plugin ecosystem and super responsive community **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Rinaldo B. | CTO, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 08, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** I have been using Visual Studio Code for years and every time I try to move away, I come back to it. The main reason is its ecosystem of plugins: the integration with Docker, GitHub, and AI tools like GitHub Copilot turns it into a complete work environment, without having to leave the editor. Added to this is one of the most active open source communities I know: bugs are resolved quickly, documentation is always up-to-date, and there are immediate responses on any channel. I have never felt alone in front of a problem. Finally, despite its power, VSCode remains surprisingly simple to use: clean interface, fast navigation, and everything at your fingertips. It is the tool I recommend to everyone, from the first day of coding to the most complex projects. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** However, there are some drawbacks: with many plugins active, memory consumption can become significant, and on older machines, some slowdown is noticeable. Furthermore, the number of available extensions is such that finding the right one requires time and some trial and error. Small compromises that, all in all, are willingly accepted. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** VSCode solves the problem of fragmentation of development tools: instead of using a separate editor, a Git client, a container manager, and an AI tool, I have everything integrated into a single environment. This translates into fewer flow interruptions, fewer contexts to manage, and faster transitions from one phase of work to another — from code to deploy, without ever changing applications. ### 10. A Complete, Customizable IDE with a Powerful Debugger **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** jesus Emilio F. | iOS Engineer, Computer Software, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 07, 2026 **What do you like best about Visual Studio?** What I like most about Visual Studio is how complete it feels as a development environment. Everything is in one place—coding, debugging, testing, and even version control—so you don’t have to jump between tools all the time. The debugger in particular is very powerful and saves a lot of time when tracking down issues. I also appreciate how customizable it is. You can tailor the interface, extensions, and workflows to match your way of working. Plus, the integration with .NET and Azure is really smooth, and with swift. which makes it especially convenient if you’re working within that ecosystem. **What do you dislike about Visual Studio?** One downside is that Visual Studio can feel quite heavy, especially on older machines. It takes a noticeable amount of time to start up, and large solutions can slow it down even more. Compared to lighter editors, it sometimes feels like overkill for smaller projects. Also, managing extensions and updates can occasionally be a bit frustrating, as some updates may introduce unexpected issues or require additional configuration. **What problems is Visual Studio solving and how is that benefiting you?** Visual Studio helps streamline the entire development workflow by bringing everything into a single environment. It solves the problem of juggling multiple tools for coding, debugging, testing, and deployment, which makes day-to-day work much more efficient. For me, it mainly reduces context switching and speeds up development. Features like IntelliSense, built-in debugging, and integrated version control make it easier to write reliable code and catch issues early. 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