How to Use GitHub Copilot in 2026 — Setup, Tips & Best Practices

GitHub Copilot scored 86/100 in our testing. It's the most widely used AI coding tool — and most developers use only 20% of its capabilities. Here's the full picture.

Setup by IDE

VS Code

1. Install the GitHub Copilot extension from the Extensions marketplace
2. Sign in with your GitHub account
3. Install GitHub Copilot Chat extension for the chat panel
4. Test: open any file, start typing a function, press Tab when the suggestion appears

JetBrains (IntelliJ, PyCharm, WebStorm, etc.)

1. Settings → Plugins → search "GitHub Copilot" → Install
2. Tools → GitHub Copilot → Login to GitHub
3. Restart the IDE

Neovim

1. Install via your plugin manager: Plug 'github/copilot.vim'
2. Run :Copilot setup and follow the authentication flow
3. Use Tab to accept suggestions by default

The Features Most Developers Miss

Copilot Chat

Copilot Chat (available in VS Code and JetBrains) is more powerful than completions for complex tasks:

In VS Code: Click the chat icon in the sidebar or press Ctrl+Shift+I

Useful chat commands:

/explain — explains selected code
/fix — suggests a fix for a bug in selected code
/tests — generates unit tests for selected code
/doc — generates documentation for selected code
/simplify — simplifies complex code

Inline Chat (VS Code)

Select code → press Ctrl+I → type your request. Copilot shows a diff inline.

Refactor this to be more readable
Add input validation
Convert to use the new API format

Copilot in the Terminal

In VS Code's integrated terminal, type # followed by your question:

# list all files modified in the last 7 days
# find all TODO comments in this repo
# run tests for the auth module only

Copilot suggests the shell command. Press Tab to accept, then Enter to run.

Getting Better Suggestions

Write Good Comments First

Copilot generates code from context — the more context you provide, the better the suggestions.

Before:

function process(data) {
  // Copilot doesn't know what this should do

After:

// Filters an array of user objects to return only active users
// who have logged in within the last 30 days
// Returns sorted by most recent login date
function getRecentActiveUsers(users) {
  // Copilot now generates accurate code

Use Docstrings and Type Hints

In Python, well-typed function signatures dramatically improve Copilot suggestions:

def calculate_compound_interest(
    principal: float,
    annual_rate: float,
    compounds_per_year: int,
    years: int
) -> float:
    """Calculate compound interest.
    
    Returns the total amount including principal.
    """
    # Copilot accurately completes this

Open Related Files

Copilot uses files open in your editor as additional context. Before working on a feature:

1. Open the relevant interface/type definition file
2. Open an existing similar implementation for reference
3. Open the test file for the module you're editing

More relevant open files = better completions.

Copilot for Testing

Test generation is one of Copilot's best features:

1. Open your function file
2. Create a new test file
3. Type the test function name: describe('UserService', () => {
4. Copilot suggests complete test cases based on the function signatures in your open file

Or use the Chat command: select your function → /tests → specify testing framework if needed.

Keyboard Shortcuts (VS Code)

Copilot vs Cursor: When to Use Which

GitHub Copilot (86/100) and Cursor (87/100) are close in quality. The key differences:

• Copilot: Works in any IDE, familiar VS Code interface, enterprise-ready
• Cursor: Better multi-file context understanding, more powerful agent mode, VS Code only

For teams with JetBrains, Neovim, or other IDE users, Copilot is the only practical choice. For individual developers in VS Code, either works — test both free tiers.

See also: GitHub Copilot review → | Cursor review → | Cursor alternatives →