Configuring Zed

Zed is designed to be configured: we want to fit your workflow and preferences exactly. We provide default settings that are designed to be a comfortable starting point for as many people as possible, but we hope you will enjoy tweaking it to make it feel incredible.

In addition to the settings described here, you may also want to change your theme, configure your key bindings, set up tasks or install extensions.

Settings files

Your settings file can be opened with cmd-,|ctrl-,. By default it is located at ~/.config/zed/settings.json, though if you have XDG_CONFIG_HOME in your environment on Linux it will be at $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/zed/settings.json instead.

This configuration is merged with any local configuration inside your projects. You can open the project settings by running zed: open project settings from the command palette. This will create a .zed directory containing.zed/settings.json.

Although most projects will only need one settings file at the root, you can add more local settings files for subdirectories as needed. Not all settings can be set in local files, just those that impact the behavior of the editor and language tooling. For example you can set tab_size, formatter etc. but not theme, vim_mode and similar.

The syntax for configuration files is a super-set of JSON that allows // comments.

Default settings

You can find the default settings for your current Zed by running zed: open default settings from the command palette.

Extensions that provide language servers may also provide default settings for those language servers.

Settings

Active Pane Modifiers

Styling settings applied to the active pane.

Magnification

Description: Scale by which to zoom the active pane. When set to 1.0, the active pane has the same size as others, but when set to a larger value, the active pane takes up more space.
Setting: magnification
Default: 1.0

Border size

Description: Size of the border surrounding the active pane. When set to 0, the active pane doesn't have any border. The border is drawn inset.
Setting: border_size
Default: 0.0

Inactive Opacity

Description: Opacity of inactive panels. When set to 1.0, the inactive panes have the same opacity as the active one. If set to 0, the inactive panes content will not be visible at all. Values are clamped to the [0.0, 1.0] range.
Setting: inactive_opacity
Default: 1.0

Options

float values

Auto Install extensions

Description: Define extensions to be autoinstalled or never be installed.
Setting: auto_install_extension
Default: {"html": true}

Options

You can find the names of your currently installed extensions by listing the subfolders under the extension installation location:

On MacOS:

ls ~/Library/Application\ Support/Zed/extensions/installed/

On Linux:

ls ~/.local/share/zed/extensions/installed

Define extensions which should be installed (true) or never installed (false).

{
  "auto_install_extensions": {
    "html": true,
    "dockerfile": true,
    "docker-compose": false
  }
}

Autosave

Description: When to automatically save edited buffers.
Setting: autosave
Default: off

Options

To disable autosave, set it to off:

{
  "autosave": "off"
}

To autosave when focus changes, use on_focus_change:

{
  "autosave": "on_focus_change"
}

To autosave when the active window changes, use on_window_change:

{
  "autosave": "on_window_change"
}

To autosave after an inactivity period, use after_delay:

{
  "autosave": {
    "after_delay": {
      "milliseconds": 1000
    }
  }
}

Autoscroll on Clicks

Description: Whether to scroll when clicking near the edge of the visible text area.
Setting: autoscroll_on_clicks
Default: false

Options

boolean values

Auto Update

Description: Whether or not to automatically check for updates.
Setting: auto_update
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Base Keymap

Description: Base key bindings scheme. Base keymaps can be overridden with user keymaps.
Setting: base_keymap
Default: VSCode

Options

VSCode

{
  "base_keymap": "VSCode"
}

Atom

{
  "base_keymap": "Atom"
}

JetBrains

{
  "base_keymap": "JetBrains"
}

None

{
  "base_keymap": "None"
}

SublimeText

{
  "base_keymap": "SublimeText"
}

TextMate

{
  "base_keymap": "TextMate"
}

Buffer Font Family

Description: The name of a font to use for rendering text in the editor.
Setting: buffer_font_family
Default: Zed Plex Mono

Options

The name of any font family installed on the user's system

Buffer Font Features

Description: The OpenType features to enable for text in the editor.
Setting: buffer_font_features
Default: null
Platform: macOS and Windows.

Options

Zed supports all OpenType features that can be enabled or disabled for a given buffer or terminal font, as well as setting values for font features.

For example, to disable font ligatures, add the following to your settings:

{
  "buffer_font_features": {
    "calt": false
  }
}

You can also set other OpenType features, like setting cv01 to 7:

{
  "buffer_font_features": {
    "cv01": 7
  }
}

Buffer Font Fallbacks

Description: Set the buffer text's font fallbacks, this will be merged with the platform's default fallbacks.
Setting: buffer_font_fallbacks
Default: null
Platform: macOS and Windows.

Options

For example, to use Nerd Font as a fallback, add the following to your settings:

{
  "buffer_font_fallbacks": ["Nerd Font"]
}

Buffer Font Size

Description: The default font size for text in the editor.
Setting: buffer_font_size
Default: 15

Options

integer values from 6 to 100 pixels (inclusive)

Buffer Font Weight

Description: The default font weight for text in the editor.
Setting: buffer_font_weight
Default: 400

Options

integer values between 100 and 900

Buffer Line Height

Description: The default line height for text in the editor.
Setting: buffer_line_height
Default: "comfortable"

Options

"standard", "comfortable" or {"custom": float} (1 is very compact, 2 very loose)

Confirm Quit

Description: Whether or not to prompt the user to confirm before closing the application.
Setting: confirm_quit
Default: false

Options

boolean values

Centered Layout

Description: Configuration for the centered layout mode.
Setting: centered_layout
Default:

"centered_layout": {
  "left_padding": 0.2,
  "right_padding": 0.2,
}

Options

The left_padding and right_padding options define the relative width of the left and right padding of the central pane from the workspace when the centered layout mode is activated. Valid values range is from 0 to 0.4.

Direnv Integration

Description: Settings for direnv integration. Requires direnv to be installed. direnv integration make it possible to use the environment variables set by a direnv configuration to detect some language servers in $PATH instead of installing them. It also allows for those environment variables to be used in tasks.
Setting: load_direnv
Default:

"load_direnv": "direct"

Options There are two options to choose from:

shell_hook: Use the shell hook to load direnv. This relies on direnv to activate upon entering the directory. Supports POSIX shells and fish.
direct: Use direnv export json to load direnv. This will load direnv directly without relying on the shell hook and might cause some inconsistencies. This allows direnv to work with any shell.

Inline Completions

Description: Settings for inline completions.
Setting: inline_completions
Default:

"inline_completions": {
  "disabled_globs": [
    ".env"
  ]
}

Options

Disabled Globs

Description: A list of globs representing files that inline completions should be disabled for.
Setting: disabled_globs
Default: [".env"]

Options

List of string values

Inline Completions Disabled in

Description: A list of language scopes in which inline completions should be disabled.
Setting: inline_completions_disabled_in
Default: []

Options

List of string values

Don't show inline completions in comments:

"disabled_in": ["comment"]

Don't show inline completions in strings and comments:

"disabled_in": ["comment", "string"]

Only in Go, don't show inline completions in strings and comments:

{
  "languages": {
    "Go": {
      "inline_completions_disabled_in": ["comment", "string"]
    }
  }
}

Current Line Highlight

Description: How to highlight the current line in the editor.
Setting: current_line_highlight
Default: all

Options

Don't highlight the current line:

"current_line_highlight": "none"

Highlight the gutter area:

"current_line_highlight": "gutter"

Highlight the editor area:

"current_line_highlight": "line"

Highlight the full line:

"current_line_highlight": "all"

Cursor Blink

Description: Whether or not the cursor blinks.
Setting: cursor_blink
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Cursor Shape

Description: Cursor shape for the default editor.
Setting: cursor_shape
Default: bar

Options

A vertical bar:

"cursor_shape": "bar"

A block that surrounds the following character:

"cursor_shape": "block"

An underline / underscore that runs along the following character:

"cursor_shape": "underline"

An box drawn around the following character:

"cursor_shape": "hollow"

Options

Position the dock attached to the bottom of the workspace: bottom
Position the dock to the right of the workspace like a side panel: right
Position the dock full screen over the entire workspace: expanded

Editor Scrollbar

Description: Whether or not to show the editor scrollbar and various elements in it.
Setting: scrollbar
Default:

"scrollbar": {
  "show": "auto",
  "cursors": true,
  "git_diff": true,
  "search_results": true,
  "selected_symbol": true,
  "diagnostics": true
},

Show Mode

Description: When to show the editor scrollbar.
Setting: show
Default: auto

Options

Show the scrollbar if there's important information or follow the system's configured behavior:

"scrollbar": {
  "show": "auto"
}

Match the system's configured behavior:

"scrollbar": {
  "show": "system"
}

Always show the scrollbar:

"scrollbar": {
  "show": "always"
}

Never show the scrollbar:

"scrollbar": {
  "show": "never"
}

Cursor Indicators

Description: Whether to show cursor positions in the scrollbar.
Setting: cursors
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Git Diff Indicators

Description: Whether to show git diff indicators in the scrollbar.
Setting: git_diff
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Search Results Indicators

Description: Whether to show buffer search results in the scrollbar.
Setting: search_results
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Selected Symbols Indicators

Description: Whether to show selected symbol occurrences in the scrollbar.
Setting: selected_symbol
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Diagnostics

Description: Whether to show diagnostic indicators in the scrollbar.
Setting: diagnostics
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Editor Tab Bar

Description: Settings related to the editor's tab bar.
Settings: tab_bar
Default:

"tab_bar": {
  "show": true,
  "show_nav_history_buttons": true
}

Show

Description: Whether or not to show the tab bar in the editor.
Setting: show
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Description: Whether or not to show the navigation history buttons.
Setting: show_nav_history_buttons
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Editor Tabs

Description: Configuration for the editor tabs.
Setting: tabs
Default:

"tabs": {
  "close_position": "right",
  "file_icons": false,
  "git_status": false,
  "activate_on_close": "history"
},

Close Position

Description: Where to display close button within a tab.
Setting: close_position
Default: right

Options

Display the close button on the right:

{
  "close_position": "right"
}

Display the close button on the left:

{
  "close_position": "left"
}

File Icons

Description: Whether to show the file icon for a tab.
Setting: file_icons
Default: false

Git Status

Description: Whether or not to show Git file status in tab.
Setting: git_status
Default: false

Activate on close

Description: What to do after closing the current tab.
Setting: activate_on_close
Default: history

Options

Activate the tab that was open previously:

{
  "activate_on_close": "history"
}

Activate the neighbour tab (prefers the right one, if present):

{
  "activate_on_close": "neighbour"
}

Description: Whether or not to show various elements in the editor toolbar.
Setting: toolbar
Default:

"toolbar": {
  "breadcrumbs": true,
  "quick_actions": true
},

Options

Each option controls displaying of a particular toolbar element. If all elements are hidden, the editor toolbar is not displayed.

Enable Language Server

Description: Whether or not to use language servers to provide code intelligence.
Setting: enable_language_server
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Ensure Final Newline On Save

Description: Whether or not to ensure there's a single newline at the end of a buffer when saving it.
Setting: ensure_final_newline_on_save
Default: true

Options

boolean values

LSP

Description: Configuration for language servers.
Setting: lsp
Default: null

Options

The following settings can be overridden for specific language servers:

initialization_options
settings

To override configuration for a language server, add an entry for that language server's name to the lsp value.

Some options are passed via initialization_options to the language server. These are for options which must be specified at language server startup and when changed will require restarting the language server.

For example to pass the check option to rust-analyzer, use the following configuration:

"lsp": {
  "rust-analyzer": {
    "initialization_options": {
      "check": {
        "command": "clippy" // rust-analyzer.check.command (default: "check")
      }
    }
  }
}

While other options may be changed at a runtime and should be placed under settings:

"lsp": {
  "yaml-language-server": {
    "settings": {
      "yaml": {
        "keyOrdering": true // Enforces alphabetical ordering of keys in maps
      }
    }
  }
}

Format On Save

Description: Whether or not to perform a buffer format before saving.
Setting: format_on_save
Default: on

Options

on, enables format on save obeying formatter setting:

{
  "format_on_save": "on"
}

off, disables format on save:

{
  "format_on_save": "off"
}

Formatter

Description: How to perform a buffer format.
Setting: formatter
Default: auto

Options

To use the current language server, use "language_server":

{
  "formatter": "language_server"
}

Or to use an external command, use "external". Specify the name of the formatting program to run, and an array of arguments to pass to the program. The buffer's text will be passed to the program on stdin, and the formatted output should be written to stdout. For example, the following command would strip trailing spaces using sed(1):

{
  "formatter": {
    "external": {
      "command": "sed",
      "arguments": ["-e", "s/ *$//"]
    }
  }
}

External formatters may optionally include a {buffer_path} placeholder which at runtime will include the path of the buffer being formatted. Formatters operate by receiving file content via standard input, reformatting it and then outputting it to standard output and so normally don't know the filename of what they are formatting. Tools like prettier support receiving the file path via a command line argument which can then used to impact formatting decisions.

WARNING: {buffer_path} should not be used to direct your formatter to read from a filename. Your formatter should only read from standard input and should not read or write files directly.

  "formatter": {
    "external": {
      "command": "prettier",
      "arguments": ["--stdin-filepath", "{buffer_path}"]
    }
  }

Or to use code actions provided by the connected language servers, use "code_actions":

{
  "formatter": {
    "code_actions": {
      // Use ESLint's --fix:
      "source.fixAll.eslint": true,
      // Organize imports on save:
      "source.organizeImports": true
    }
  }
}

Or to use multiple formatters consecutively, use an array of formatters:

{
  "formatter": [
    {"language_server": {"name": "rust-analyzer"}},
    {"external": {
      "command": "sed",
      "arguments": ["-e", "s/ *$//"]
    }
  ]
}

Here rust-analyzer will be used first to format the code, followed by a call of sed. If any of the formatters fails, the subsequent ones will still be executed.

Code Actions On Format

Description: The code actions to perform with the primary language server when formatting the buffer.
Setting: code_actions_on_format
Default: {}, except for Go it's { "source.organizeImports": true }

Examples

Organize imports on format in TypeScript and TSX buffers:

{
  "languages": {
    "TypeScript": {
      "code_actions_on_format": {
        "source.organizeImports": true
      }
    },
    "TSX": {
      "code_actions_on_format": {
        "source.organizeImports": true
      }
    }
  }
}

Run ESLint fixAll code action when formatting:

{
  "languages": {
    "JavaScript": {
      "code_actions_on_format": {
        "source.fixAll.eslint": true
      }
    }
  }
}

Run only a single ESLint rule when using fixAll:

{
  "languages": {
    "JavaScript": {
      "code_actions_on_format": {
        "source.fixAll.eslint": true
      }
    }
  },
  "lsp": {
    "eslint": {
      "settings": {
        "codeActionOnSave": {
          "rules": ["import/order"]
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Auto close

Description: Whether to automatically add matching closing characters when typing opening parenthesis, bracket, brace, single or double quote characters.
Setting: use_autoclose
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Always Treat Brackets As Autoclosed

Description: Controls how the editor handles the autoclosed characters.
Setting: always_treat_brackets_as_autoclosed
Default: false

Options

boolean values

Example

If the setting is set to true:

Enter in the editor: )))
Move the cursor to the start: ^)))
Enter again: )))

The result is still ))) and not )))))), which is what it would be by default.

File Scan Exclusions

Setting: file_scan_exclusions
Description: Configure how Add filename or directory globs that will be excluded by Zed entirely. They will be skipped during file scans, file searches and hidden from project file tree.
Default:

"file_scan_exclusions": [
  "**/.git",
  "**/.svn",
  "**/.hg",
  "**/CVS",
  "**/.DS_Store",
  "**/Thumbs.db",
  "**/.classpath",
  "**/.settings"
],

Note, specifying file_scan_exclusions in settings.json will override the defaults (shown above). If you are looking to exclude additional items you will need to include all the default values in your settings.

File Types

Setting: file_types
Description: Configure how Zed selects a language for a file based on its filename or extension. Supports glob entries.
Default: {}

Examples

To interpret all .c files as C++, files called MyLockFile as TOML and files starting with Dockerfile as Dockerfile:

{
  "file_types": {
    "C++": ["c"],
    "TOML": ["MyLockFile"],
    "Dockerfile": ["Dockerfile*"]
  }
}

Git

Description: Configuration for git-related features.
Setting: git
Default:

{
  "git": {
    "git_gutter": "tracked_files",
    "inline_blame": {
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}

Git Gutter

Description: Whether or not to show the git gutter.
Setting: git_gutter
Default: tracked_files

Options

Show git gutter in tracked files

{
  "git": {
    "git_gutter": "tracked_files"
  }
}

Hide git gutter

{
  "git": {
    "git_gutter": "hide"
  }
}

Inline Git Blame

Description: Whether or not to show git blame information inline, on the currently focused line.
Setting: inline_blame
Default:

{
  "git": {
    "inline_blame": {
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}

Options

Disable inline git blame:

{
  "git": {
    "inline_blame": {
      "enabled": false
    }
  }
}

Only show inline git blame after a delay (that starts after cursor stops moving):

{
  "git": {
    "inline_blame": {
      "enabled": true,
      "delay_ms": 500
    }
  }
}

Show a commit summary next to the commit date and author:

{
  "git": {
    "inline_blame": {
      "enabled": true,
      "show_commit_summary": true
    }
  }
}

Use this as the minimum column at which to display inline blame information:

{
  "git": {
    "inline_blame": {
      "enabled": true,
      "min_column": 80
    }
  }
}

Indent Guides

Description: Configuration related to indent guides. Indent guides can be configured separately for each language.
Setting: indent_guides
Default:

{
  "indent_guides": {
    "enabled": true,
    "line_width": 1,
    "active_line_width": 1,
    "coloring": "fixed",
    "background_coloring": "disabled"
  }
}

Options

Disable indent guides

{
  "indent_guides": {
    "enabled": false
  }
}

Enable indent guides for a specific language.

{
  "languages": {
    "Python": {
      "indent_guides": {
        "enabled": true
      }
    }
  }
}

Enable indent aware coloring ("rainbow indentation"). The colors that are used for different indentation levels are defined in the theme (theme key: accents). They can be customized by using theme overrides.

{
  "indent_guides": {
    "enabled": true,
    "coloring": "indent_aware"
  }
}

Enable indent aware background coloring ("rainbow indentation"). The colors that are used for different indentation levels are defined in the theme (theme key: accents). They can be customized by using theme overrides.

{
  "indent_guides": {
    "enabled": true,
    "coloring": "indent_aware",
    "background_coloring": "indent_aware"
  }
}

Hard Tabs

Description: Whether to indent lines using tab characters or multiple spaces.
Setting: hard_tabs
Default: false

Options

boolean values

Description: Whether or not to show the informational hover box when moving the mouse over symbols in the editor.
Setting: hover_popover_enabled
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Inlay hints

Description: Configuration for displaying extra text with hints in the editor.
Setting: inlay_hints
Default:

"inlay_hints": {
  "enabled": false,
  "show_type_hints": true,
  "show_parameter_hints": true,
  "show_other_hints": true,
  "show_background": false,
  "edit_debounce_ms": 700,
  "scroll_debounce_ms": 50
}

Options

Inlay hints querying consists of two parts: editor (client) and LSP server. With the inlay settings above are changed to enable the hints, editor will start to query certain types of hints and react on LSP hint refresh request from the server. At this point, the server may or may not return hints depending on its implementation, further configuration might be needed, refer to the corresponding LSP server documentation.

The following languages have inlay hints preconfigured by Zed:

Use the lsp section for the server configuration. Examples are provided in the corresponding language documentation.

Hints are not instantly queried in Zed, two kinds of debounces are used, either may be set to 0 to be disabled. Settings-related hint updates are not debounced.

Journal

Description: Configuration for the journal.
Setting: journal
Default:

"journal": {
  "path": "~",
  "hour_format": "hour12"
}

Path

Description: The path of the directory where journal entries are stored.
Setting: path
Default: ~

Options

string values

Hour Format

Description: The format to use for displaying hours in the journal.
Setting: hour_format
Default: hour12

Options

12-hour format:

{
  "hour_format": "hour12"
}

24-hour format:

{
  "hour_format": "hour24"
}

Languages

Description: Configuration for specific languages.
Setting: languages
Default: null

Options

To override settings for a language, add an entry for that languages name to the languages value. Example:

"languages": {
  "C": {
    "format_on_save": "off",
    "preferred_line_length": 64,
    "soft_wrap": "preferred_line_length"
  },
  "JSON": {
    "tab_size": 4
  }
}

The following settings can be overridden for each specific language:

enable_language_server
ensure_final_newline_on_save
format_on_save
formatter
hard_tabs
preferred_line_length
remove_trailing_whitespace_on_save
show_inline_completions
show_whitespaces
soft_wrap
tab_size
use_autoclose
always_treat_brackets_as_autoclosed

These values take in the same options as the root-level settings with the same name.

Network Proxy

Description: Configure a network proxy for Zed.
Setting: proxy
Default: null

Options

The proxy setting must contain a URL to the proxy.

The following URI schemes are supported:

http
https
socks4 - SOCKS4 proxy with local DNS
socks4a - SOCKS4 proxy with remote DNS
socks5 - SOCKS5 proxy with local DNS
socks5h - SOCKS5 proxy with remote DNS

http will be used when no scheme is specified.

By default no proxy will be used, or Zed will attempt to retrieve proxy settings from environment variables, such as http_proxy, HTTP_PROXY, https_proxy, HTTPS_PROXY, all_proxy, ALL_PROXY.

For example, to set an http proxy, add the following to your settings:

{
  "proxy": "http://127.0.0.1:10809"
}

Or to set a socks5 proxy:

{
  "proxy": "socks5h://localhost:10808"
}

Preview tabs

Description: Preview tabs allow you to open files in preview mode, where they close automatically when you switch to another file unless you explicitly pin them. This is useful for quickly viewing files without cluttering your workspace. Preview tabs display their file names in italics.
There are several ways to convert a preview tab into a regular tab:
- Double-clicking on the file
- Double-clicking on the tab header
- Using the project_panel::OpenPermanent action
- Editing the file
- Dragging the file to a different pane
Setting: preview_tabs
Default:

"preview_tabs": {
  "enabled": true,
  "enable_preview_from_file_finder": false,
  "enable_preview_from_code_navigation": false,
}

Enable preview from file finder

Description: Determines whether to open files in preview mode when selected from the file finder.
Setting: enable_preview_from_file_finder
Default: false

Options

boolean values

Description: Determines whether a preview tab gets replaced when code navigation is used to navigate away from the tab.
Setting: enable_preview_from_code_navigation
Default: false

Options

boolean values

File Finder

Description: Max-width of the file finder modal. It can take one of these values: small, medium, large, xlarge, and full.
Setting: max_modal_width
Default: small

Preferred Line Length

Description: The column at which to soft-wrap lines, for buffers where soft-wrap is enabled.
Setting: preferred_line_length
Default: 80

Options

integer values

Projects Online By Default

Description: Whether or not to show the online projects view by default.
Setting: projects_online_by_default
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Remove Trailing Whitespace On Save

Description: Whether or not to remove any trailing whitespace from lines of a buffer before saving it.
Setting: remove_trailing_whitespace_on_save
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Search

Description: Search options to enable by default when opening new project and buffer searches.
Setting: search
Default:

"search": {
  "whole_word": false,
  "case_sensitive": false,
  "include_ignored": false,
  "regex": false
},

Show Call Status Icon

Description: Whether or not to show the call status icon in the status bar.
Setting: show_call_status_icon
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Show Completions On Input

Description: Whether or not to show completions as you type.
Setting: show_completions_on_input
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Show Completion Documentation

Description: Whether to display inline and alongside documentation for items in the completions menu.
Setting: show_completion_documentation
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Completion Documentation Debounce Delay

Description: The debounce delay before re-querying the language server for completion documentation when not included in original completion list.
Setting: completion_documentation_secondary_query_debounce
Default: 300 ms

Options

integer values

Show Inline Completions

Description: Whether to show inline completions as you type or manually by triggering editor::ShowInlineCompletion.
Setting: show_inline_completions
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Show Whitespaces

Description: Whether or not to show render whitespace characters in the editor.
Setting: show_whitespaces
Default: selection

Options

all
selection
none
boundary

Soft Wrap

Description: Whether or not to automatically wrap lines of text to fit editor / preferred width.
Setting: soft_wrap
Default: none

Options

none to avoid wrapping generally, unless the line is too long
prefer_line (deprecated, same as none)
editor_width to wrap lines that overflow the editor width
preferred_line_length to wrap lines that overflow preferred_line_length config value

Wrap Guides (Vertical Rulers)

Description: Where to display vertical rulers as wrap-guides. Disable by setting show_wrap_guides to false.
Setting: wrap_guides
Default: []

Options

List of integer column numbers

Tab Size

Description: The number of spaces to use for each tab character.
Setting: tab_size
Default: 4

Options

integer values

Telemetry

Description: Control what info is collected by Zed.
Setting: telemetry
Default:

"telemetry": {
  "diagnostics": true,
  "metrics": true
},

Options

Diagnostics

Description: Setting for sending debug-related data, such as crash reports.
Setting: diagnostics
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Metrics

Description: Setting for sending anonymized usage data, such what languages you're using Zed with.
Setting: metrics
Default: true

Options

boolean values

Terminal

Description: Configuration for the terminal.
Setting: terminal
Default:

{
  "terminal": {
    "alternate_scroll": "off",
    "blinking": "terminal_controlled",
    "copy_on_select": false,
    "dock": "bottom",
    "detect_venv": {
      "on": {
        "directories": [".env", "env", ".venv", "venv"],
        "activate_script": "default"
      }
    },
    "env": {},
    "font_family": null,
    "font_features": null,
    "font_size": null,
    "line_height": "comfortable",
    "option_as_meta": false,
    "button": false,
    "shell": {},
    "toolbar": {
      "breadcrumbs": true
    },
    "working_directory": "current_project_directory"
  }
}

Terminal: Dock

Description: Control the position of the dock
Setting: dock
Default: bottom

Options

"bottom", "left" or "right"

Terminal: Alternate Scroll

Description: Set whether Alternate Scroll mode (DECSET code: ?1007) is active by default. Alternate Scroll mode converts mouse scroll events into up / down key presses when in the alternate screen (e.g. when running applications like vim or less). The terminal can still set and unset this mode with ANSI escape codes.
Setting: alternate_scroll
Default: off

Options

Default alternate scroll mode to on

{
  "terminal": {
    "alternate_scroll": "on"
  }
}

Default alternate scroll mode to off

{
  "terminal": {
    "alternate_scroll": "off"
  }
}

Terminal: Blinking

Description: Set the cursor blinking behavior in the terminal
Setting: blinking
Default: terminal_controlled

Options

Never blink the cursor, ignore the terminal mode

{
  "terminal": {
    "blinking": "off"
  }
}

Default the cursor blink to off, but allow the terminal to turn blinking on

{
  "terminal": {
    "blinking": "terminal_controlled"
  }
}

Always blink the cursor, ignore the terminal mode

{
  "terminal": {
    "blinking": "on"
  }
}

Terminal: Copy On Select

Description: Whether or not selecting text in the terminal will automatically copy to the system clipboard.
Setting: copy_on_select
Default: false

Options

boolean values

Example

{
  "terminal": {
    "copy_on_select": true
  }
}

Terminal: Env

Description: Any key-value pairs added to this object will be added to the terminal's environment. Keys must be unique, use : to separate multiple values in a single variable
Setting: env
Default: {}

Example

{
  "terminal": {
    "env": {
      "ZED": "1",
      "KEY": "value1:value2"
    }
  }
}

Terminal: Font Size

Description: What font size to use for the terminal. When not set defaults to matching the editor's font size
Setting: font_size
Default: null

Options

integer values

{
  "terminal": {
    "font_size": 15
  }
}

Terminal: Font Family

Description: What font to use for the terminal. When not set, defaults to matching the editor's font.
Setting: font_family
Default: null

Options

The name of any font family installed on the user's system

{
  "terminal": {
    "font_family": "Berkeley Mono"
  }
}

Terminal: Font Features

Description: What font features to use for the terminal. When not set, defaults to matching the editor's font features.
Setting: font_features
Default: null
Platform: macOS and Windows.

Options

See Buffer Font Features

{
  "terminal": {
    "font_features": {
      "calt": false
      // See Buffer Font Features for more features
    }
  }
}

Terminal: Line Height

Description: Set the terminal's line height.
Setting: line_height
Default: comfortable

Options

Use a line height that's comfortable for reading, 1.618. (default)

{
  "terminal": {
    "line_height": "comfortable"
  }
}

Use a standard line height, 1.3. This option is useful for TUIs, particularly if they use box characters

{
  "terminal": {
    "line_height": "standard"
  }
}

Use a custom line height.

{
  "terminal": {
    "line_height": {
      "custom": 2
    }
  }
}

Terminal: Option As Meta

Description: Re-interprets the option keys to act like a 'meta' key, like in Emacs.
Setting: option_as_meta
Default: false

Options

boolean values

{
  "terminal": {
    "option_as_meta": true
  }
}

Terminal: Shell

Description: What shell to use when launching the terminal.
Setting: shell
Default: system

Options

Use the system's default terminal configuration (usually the /etc/passwd file).

{
  "terminal": {
    "shell": "system"
  }
}

A program to launch:

{
  "terminal": {
    "shell": {
      "program": "sh"
    }
  }
}

A program with arguments:

{
  "terminal": {
    "shell": {
      "with_arguments": {
        "program": "/bin/bash",
        "args": ["--login"]
      }
    }
  }
}

Terminal: Detect Virtual Environments

Description: Activate the Python Virtual Environment, if one is found, in the terminal's working directory (as resolved by the working_directory and automatically activating the virtual environment.
Setting: detect_venv
Default:

{
  "terminal": {
    "detect_venv": {
      "on": {
        // Default directories to search for virtual environments, relative
        // to the current working directory. We recommend overriding this
        // in your project's settings, rather than globally.
        "directories": [".venv", "venv"],
        // Can also be `csh`, `fish`, and `nushell`
        "activate_script": "default"
      }
    }
  }
}

Disable with:

{
  "terminal": {
    "detect_venv": "off"
  }
}

Description: Whether or not to show various elements in the terminal toolbar.
Setting: toolbar
Default:

{
  "terminal": {
    "toolbar": {
      "breadcrumbs": true
    }
  }
}

Options

At the moment, only the breadcrumbs option is available, it controls displaying of the terminal title that can be changed via PROMPT_COMMAND.

If the terminal title is empty, the breadcrumbs won't be shown.

The shell running in the terminal needs to be configured to emit the title.

Example command to set the title: echo -e "\e]2;New Title\007";

Terminal: Button

Description: Control to show or hide the terminal button in the status bar
Setting: button
Default: true

Options

boolean values

{
  "terminal": {
    "button": false
  }
}

Terminal: Working Directory

Description: What working directory to use when launching the terminal.
Setting: working_directory
Default: "current_project_directory"

Options

Use the current file's project directory. Will Fallback to the first project directory strategy if unsuccessful

{
  "terminal": {
    "working_directory": "current_project_directory"
  }
}

Use the first project in this workspace's directory. Will fallback to using this platform's home directory.

{
  "terminal": {
    "working_directory": "first_project_directory"
  }
}

Always use this platform's home directory (if we can find it)

{
  "terminal": {
    "working_directory": "always_home"
  }
}

Always use a specific directory. This value will be shell expanded. If this path is not a valid directory the terminal will default to this platform's home directory.

{
  "terminal": {
    "working_directory": {
      "always": {
        "directory": "~/zed/projects/"
      }
    }
  }
}

Theme

Description: The theme setting can be specified in two forms - either as the name of a theme or as an object containing the mode, dark, and light themes for the Zed UI.
Setting: theme
Default: One Dark

Theme Object

Description: Specify the theme using an object that includes the mode, dark, and light themes.
Setting: theme
Default:

"theme": {
  "mode": "system",
  "dark": "One Dark",
  "light": "One Light"
},

Mode

Description: Specify theme mode.
Setting: mode
Default: system

Options

Set the theme to dark mode

{
  "mode": "dark"
}

Set the theme to light mode

{
  "mode": "light"
}

Set the theme to system mode

{
  "mode": "system"
}

Dark

Description: The name of the dark Zed theme to use for the UI.
Setting: dark
Default: One Dark

Options

Run the theme selector: toggle action in the command palette to see a current list of valid themes names.

Light

Description: The name of the light Zed theme to use for the UI.
Setting: light
Default: One Light

Options

Run the theme selector: toggle action in the command palette to see a current list of valid themes names.

Vim

Description: Whether or not to enable vim mode (work in progress).
Setting: vim_mode
Default: false

Project Panel

Description: Customize project panel
Setting: project_panel
Default:

{
  "project_panel": {
    "button": true,
    "default_width": 240,
    "dock": "left",
    "file_icons": true,
    "folder_icons": true,
    "git_status": true,
    "indent_size": 20,
    "indent_guides": true,
    "auto_reveal_entries": true,
    "auto_fold_dirs": true,
    "scrollbar": {
      "show": null
    },
    "indent_guides": {
      "show": "always"
    }
  }
}

Dock

Description: Control the position of the dock
Setting: dock
Default: left

Options

Default dock position to left

{
  "dock": "left"
}

Default dock position to right

{
  "dock": "right"
}

Git Status

Description: Indicates newly created and updated files
Setting: git_status
Default: true

Options

Default enable git status

{
  "git_status": true
}

Default disable git status

{
  "git_status": false
}

Default Width

Description: Customize default width taken by project panel
Setting: default_width
Default: N/A width in pixels (eg: 420)

Options

boolean values

Auto Reveal Entries

Description: Whether to reveal it in the project panel automatically, when a corresponding project entry becomes active. Gitignored entries are never auto revealed.
Setting: auto_reveal_entries
Default: true

Options

Enable auto reveal entries

{
  "auto_reveal_entries": true
}

Disable auto reveal entries

{
  "auto_reveal_entries": false
}

Auto Fold Dirs

Description: Whether to fold directories automatically when directory has only one directory inside.
Setting: auto_fold_dirs
Default: true

Options

Enable auto fold dirs

{
  "auto_fold_dirs": true
}

Disable auto fold dirs

{
  "auto_fold_dirs": false
}

Indent Size

Description: Amount of indentation (in pixels) for nested items.
Setting: indent_size
Default: 20

Indent Guides: Show

Description: Whether to show indent guides in the project panel. Possible values: "always", "never".
Setting: indent_guides

"indent_guides": {
  "show": "always"
}

Options

Show indent guides in the project panel

{
  "indent_guides": {
    "show": "always"
  }
}

Hide indent guides in the project panel

{
  "indent_guides": {
    "show": "never"
  }
}

Scrollbar: Show

Description: Whether to show a scrollbar in the project panel. Possible values: null, "auto", "system", "always", "never". Inherits editor settings when absent, see its description for more details.
Setting: scrollbar
Default:

"scrollbar": {
  "show": null
}

Options

Show scrollbar in the project panel

{
  "scrollbar": {
    "show": "always"
  }
}

Hide scrollbar in the project panel

{
  "scrollbar": {
    "show": "never"
  }
}

Assistant Panel

Description: Customize assistant panel
Setting: assistant
Default:

"assistant": {
  "enabled": true,
  "button": true,
  "dock": "right",
  "default_width": 640,
  "default_height": 320,
  "provider": "openai",
  "version": "1",
},

Outline Panel

Description: Customize outline Panel
Setting: outline_panel
Default:

"outline_panel": {
  "button": true,
  "default_width": 240,
  "dock": "left",
  "file_icons": true,
  "folder_icons": true,
  "git_status": true,
  "indent_size": 20,
  "auto_reveal_entries": true,
  "auto_fold_dirs": true,
  "indent_guides": {
    "show": "always"
  },
  "scrollbar": {
    "show": null
  }
}

Calls

Description: Customize behavior when participating in a call
Setting: calls
Default:

"calls": {
  // Join calls with the microphone live by default
  "mute_on_join": false,
  // Share your project when you are the first to join a channel
  "share_on_join": false
},

Unnecessary Code Fade

Description: How much to fade out unused code.
Setting: unnecessary_code_fade
Default: 0.3

Options

Float values between 0.0 and 0.9, where:

0.0 means no fading (unused code looks the same as used code)
0.9 means maximum fading (unused code is very faint but still visible)

Example

{
  "unnecessary_code_fade": 0.5
}

UI Font Family

Description: The name of the font to use for text in the UI.
Setting: ui_font_family
Default: Zed Plex Sans

Options

The name of any font family installed on the system.

UI Font Features

Description: The OpenType features to enable for text in the UI.
Setting: ui_font_features
Default: null
Platform: macOS and Windows.

Options

Zed supports all OpenType features that can be enabled or disabled for a given UI font, as well as setting values for font features.

For example, to disable font ligatures, add the following to your settings:

{
  "ui_font_features": {
    "calt": false
  }
}

You can also set other OpenType features, like setting cv01 to 7:

{
  "ui_font_features": {
    "cv01": 7
  }
}

UI Font Fallbacks

Description: The font fallbacks to use for text in the UI.
Setting: ui_font_fallbacks
Default: null
Platform: macOS and Windows.

Options

For example, to use Nerd Font as a fallback, add the following to your settings:

{
  "ui_font_fallbacks": ["Nerd Font"]
}

UI Font Size

Description: The default font size for text in the UI.
Setting: ui_font_size
Default: 16

Options

integer values from 6 to 100 pixels (inclusive)

UI Font Weight

Description: The default font weight for text in the UI.
Setting: ui_font_weight
Default: 400

Options

integer values between 100 and 900

An example configuration:

// ~/.config/zed/settings.json
{
  "theme": "cave-light",
  "tab_size": 2,
  "preferred_line_length": 80,
  "soft_wrap": "none",

  "buffer_font_size": 18,
  "buffer_font_family": "Zed Plex Mono",

  "autosave": "on_focus_change",
  "format_on_save": "off",
  "vim_mode": false,
  "projects_online_by_default": true,
  "terminal": {
    "font_family": "FiraCode Nerd Font Mono",
    "blinking": "off"
  },
  "languages": {
    "C": {
      "format_on_save": "language_server",
      "preferred_line_length": 64,
      "soft_wrap": "preferred_line_length"
    }
  }
}