Visual Studio 2026 First Look: Evolution, Not Revolution

I’ve ne'er wholly understood nan Microsoft roadmap. I surely enjoyed utilizing Visual Studio 2022 (VS 2022) for C# and .NET development, but erstwhile it was dropped for Mac users (replaced pinch VS Code for nan Mac), I assumed we would soon each beryllium utilizing Visual Studio Code — moreover connected PC. As it is, VS Code is fine, but it feels for illustration a Lego solution that you person to build yourself. For example, location isn’t a elemental “build” fastener consecutive retired of nan box.

I besides don’t cognize if I person a licence aliases not — I deliberation so, but possibly that’s for Office. Or possibly Pro. Or possibly I americium moving nan Community edition. I can’t remember. Microsoft has ever understood really to pass pinch their galore endeavor customers, but little truthful pinch individual developers.

In consequence to nan AI whirlwind, Microsoft refers to this merchandise pinch deeper Copilot integration arsenic nan first Intelligent Developer Environment (IDE).

What I do cognize is that Visual Studio 2026 is now disposable via “Insiders,” its beta build channel. I’ve utilized Insiders before, and nan build sat beside my existent type without incident. With basal devices for illustration Visual Studio, which truthful galore of america dangle on, location is nary gyration — conscionable evolution. In consequence to nan AI whirlwind, Microsoft refers to this merchandise pinch deeper Copilot integration arsenic nan first Intelligent Developer Environment (IDE). I observe a grade of tongue-in-cheek here; location has been a batch of expansive renaming of platforms utilizing AI complete nan past year.

In this post, I’ll chiefly beryllium checking nan groundwork, giving developers nan assurance to effort it retired for themselves (or not). But I’m expecting it to beryllium faster and person deeper AI hooks pinch Copilot (whether I want them aliases not); plus, I’m proceeding nan UI is sharper. I’ve besides heard it useful pinch nan “dead” Windows 10, which is wherever my existent PC dev situation sits — truthful I’m keen to cheque that.

Installing nan Visual Studio 2026 Insider Build

So we’ll spell for an instal connected my Windows 10 PC. It is simply a bully thought to statement nan somewhat different icon designs betwixt 2022 and 2026, truthful you don’t get confused betwixt nan 2 builds. As I commencement nan instal nan questions start, but they are brief:

It’s made clear that they will prime up extensions properly, arsenic good things that mightiness beryllium retired of support. I usage VS 2022 pinch nan Unity extensions, and I checked that it was nan Community version:

My email seemed to beryllium capable for Microsoft to corroborate my identity, but it besides asked for GitHub (for Copilot), which enforces afloat 2 measurement authentication. This is what it had to install:

So arsenic we yet commencement nan app, loading a known and managed project, nan surface looks for illustration this:

First of all, I usage a acheronian taxable and I would not person Copilot successful nan correct pane by default. Before I changed to nan Unity Project pane, I asked Copilot: “How do I group acheronian mode?” It gave plentifulness of answers. In a trice, we were good. Although location was nary action to “just do it,” it did connection a script. It besides offered screenshots for 2026, truthful astatine slightest it knew nan type for sure.

A Look astatine nan User Interface Enhancements

New files were loaded into nan editor reasonably quickly aft selecting. The User Interface (UI) is simply a small clearer — comparison nan caller type of nan apical pane…

…with nan aged type below. Same layout, but nan aged type uses nan coagulated folders. There is small quality beyond that.

The task was built successful astir 8.5 seconds, which was astir apt without nan thief of a cache.

Putting Copilot’s AI Features to nan Test

Microsoft’s Copilot is nan default AI position pinch VS, arsenic you would expect. Now, VS is decidedly not intended for vibe coding, but aft utilizing truthful galore fantabulous Agentic CLIs recently, nan ChatGPT style of thief feels a small dated.

However, Code Completions are my main usage of AI successful mundane coding. They look to beryllium a spot smoother successful VS 2026 — possibly nan statement completion is quicker, and nan suggested codification is simply a small little insistent. But I will request much clip to measure this properly.

I do person woeful codification sum (49%) successful nan loaded project, truthful I was happy to fto Copilot create other tests and spot if it tin boost coverage. I’ll prime 1 people area wherever I person precocious moved much functionality into:

(For those who can’t conjecture what nan columns mean successful sum reports, location are 138 lines of codification covered and 232 lines not covered, giving america 37% coverage. So while I don’t judge successful leaving tests exclusively to LLMs, we tin fto it make suggestions. I besides person a Mock framework.

As it says, this is utilizing GPT-5 mini. I could person changed to Claude Haiku. After running, it created an other trial fixture:

I person to put nan caller tests successful myself, which aft utilizing agentic devices that do this for me, feels a spot disappointing. The style utilized is akin to mine, pinch uses of Mocks erstwhile needed. In this example, nan only somewhat overseas point is nan lengthy method name:

The codification builds, truthful I tally nan tests done Unity (which is nan intended target).

All nan tests successful nan caller fixture run:

Unfortunately, they don’t person immoderate superior effect connected nan codification coverage:

So it has only covered an other 3 lines! I afloat admit that since I tally nan tests from Unity, moreover an agentic moving task couldn’t amended this easy via Visual Studio. It has astir apt chosen to screen methods that constituent straight into different structures which don’t thief to screen nan calling class.

Maybe a amended study of nan task (the sum reports were accessible) would person helped, but we cognize location are different apps that specialise successful creating tests. By conscionable creating nan codification templates, I tin adhd my ain tests; and really I would find this much useful.

Conclusion: An Evolutionary Step Forward

There is overmuch much to Visual Studio than I’ve looked astatine here, for illustration profiling pinch Copilot for example. I tin spot that my extensions for Unity person been afloat respected, and my existing task has been built instantly without a hitch. There is astir apt nary logic not to effort this retired if you are utilizing Visual Studio 2022 — but expect evolution, not revolution.

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