---
Order: 6
Area: nodejs
TOCTitle: Angular Tutorial
ContentId: f6b7b0c2-ccbe-4e5f-8f2e-6c1ecea52f69
PageTitle: Angular JavaScript Tutorial in Visual Studio Code
DateApproved: 3/7/2019
MetaDescription: Angular JavaScript tutorial showing IntelliSense, debugging, and code navigation support in the Visual Studio Code editor.
MetaSocialImage: images/angular/Welcome-to-app.png
---
# Using Angular in Visual Studio Code

[Angular](https://angular.io/) is a popular JavaScript library for building web application user interfaces developed by Google. The Visual Studio Code editor supports Angular IntelliSense and code navigation out of the box.

![Welcome to app](images/angular/Welcome-to-app.png)

## Welcome to Angular

We'll be using the [Angular CLI](https://cli.angular.io/) for this tutorial. To install and use the command line interface as well as run the Angular application server, you'll need the [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/) JavaScript runtime and [npm](https://www.npmjs.com/) (the Node.js package manager) installed. npm is included with Node.js which you can install from [here](https://nodejs.org/en/download/).

>**Tip**: To test that you have Node.js and npm correctly installed on your machine, you can type `node --version` and `npm --version`.

To install the Angular CLI, in a terminal or command prompt type:

```bash
npm install -g @angular/cli
```

This may take a few minutes to install. You can now create a new Angular application by typing:

```bash
ng new my-app
```

`my-app` is the name of the folder for your application. This may take a few minutes to create the Angular application in [TypeScript](/docs/languages/typescript.md) and install its dependencies.

Let's quickly run our Angular application by navigating to the new folder and typing `ng serve` to start the web server and open the application in a browser:

```bash
cd my-app
ng serve
```

You should see "Welcome to app!!" on [http://localhost:4200](http://localhost:4200) in your browser. We'll leave the web server running while we look at the application with VS Code.

To open your Angular application in VS Code, open another terminal (or command prompt) and navigate to the `my-app` folder and type `code .`:

```bash
cd my-app
code .
```

### Syntax highlighting and bracket matching

Now expand the `src\app` folder and select the `app.component.ts` file. You'll notice that VS Code has syntax highlighting for the various source code elements and, if you put the cursor on a parentheses, the matching bracket is also selected.

![angular bracket matching](images/angular/bracket-matching.png)

### IntelliSense

As you hover your mouse over text in the file, you'll see that VS Code gives you information about key items in your source code. Items such as variables, classes and Angular decorators are a few examples where you'll be presented with this information.

![angular decorator hover](images/angular/decorator-hover.png)

As you start typing in `app.component.ts`, you'll see smart suggestions and code snippets.

![angular suggestions](images/angular/suggestions.png)

You can click the information button (`i`) to see a flyout with more documentation.

![angular intellisense](images/angular/intellisense.png)

VS Code uses the TypeScript language service for code intelligence ([IntelliSense](/docs/editor/intellisense.md)) and it has a feature called [Automatic Type Acquisition](/docs/languages/javascript.md#automatic-type-acquisition) (ATA). ATA pulls down the npm Type Declaration files (`*.d.ts`) for the npm modules referenced in the `package.json`.

### Go to Definition, Peek definition

Through the TypeScript language service, VS Code can also provide type definition information in the editor through **Go to Definition** (`kb(editor.action.revealDefinition)`) or **Peek Definition** (`kb(editor.action.peekDefinition)`). Open the `app.module.ts` file and put the cursor over `AppComponent` in the `bootstrap` property declaration, right click and select **Peek Definition**. A [Peek window](/docs/editor/editingevolved.md#peek) will open showing the `AppComponent` definition from `app.component.ts`.

![angular peek definition](images/angular/peek-definition.png)

Press `kbstyle(Escape)` to close the Peek window.

## Hello World!

Let's update the sample application to "Hello World". Go back to the `app.component.ts` file and change the `title` string in `AppComponent` to "Hello World".

```ts
import { Component } from '@angular/core';

@Component({
  selector: 'app-root',
  templateUrl: './app.component.html',
  styleUrls: ['./app.component.css']
})
export class AppComponent {
  title = 'Hello World';
}
```

Once you save the `app.component.ts` file, the running instance of the server will update the web page and you'll see "Welcome to Hello World!!".

>**Tip**: VS Code supports Auto Save, which by default saves your files after a delay. Check the **Auto Save** option in the **File** menu to turn on Auto Save or directly configure the `files.autoSave` user [setting](/docs/getstarted/settings.md).

![hello world](images/angular/hello-world.png)

## Debugging Angular

To debug the client side Angular code, we'll need to install the [Debugger for Chrome](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=msjsdiag.debugger-for-chrome) extension.

>Note: This tutorial assumes you have the Chrome browser installed. Microsoft also publishes a version of this extension for their [Edge](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=msjsdiag.debugger-for-edge) browser.

Open the Extensions view (`kb(workbench.view.extensions)`) and type 'chrome` in the search box. You'll see several extensions which reference Chrome.

![debugger for chrome](images/reactjs/debugger-for-chrome.png)

Press the **Install** button for **Debugger for Chrome**. The button will change to **Installing** then, after completing the installation, it will change to **Reload**. Press **Reload** to restart VS Code and activate the extension.

### Set a breakpoint

To set a breakpoint in `app.component.ts`, click on the gutter to the left of the line numbers. This will set a breakpoint which will be visible as a red circle.

![set a breakpoint](images/angular/breakpoint.png)

### Configure the Chrome debugger

We need to initially configure the [debugger](/docs/editor/debugging.md). To do so, go to the Debug view (`kb(workbench.view.debug)`) and click on the gear button to create a `launch.json` debugger configuration file. Choose **Chrome** from the **Select Environment** drop-down list. This will create a `launch.json` file in a new `.vscode` folder in your project which includes a configuration to launch the website.

We need to make one change for our example: change the port of the `url` from `8080` to `4200`. Your `launch.json` should look like this:

```json
{
    "version": "0.2.0",
    "configurations": [
        {
            "type": "chrome",
            "request": "launch",
            "name": "Launch Chrome against localhost",
            "url": "http://localhost:4200",
            "webRoot": "${workspaceFolder}"
        }
    ]
}
```

Press `kb(workbench.action.debug.start)` or the green arrow to launch the debugger and open a new browser instance. The source code where the breakpoint is set runs on startup before the debugger was attached so we won't hit the breakpoint until we refresh the web page. Refresh the page and you should hit your breakpoint.

![hit breakpoint](images/angular/hit-breakpoint.png)

You can step through your source code (`kb(workbench.action.debug.stepOver)`), inspect variables such as `AppComponent`, and see the call stack of the client side Angular application.

![debug variable](images/angular/debug-variable.png)

The **Debugger for Chrome** extension README has lots of information on other configurations, working with sourcemaps, and troubleshooting. You can review it directly within VS Code from the **Extensions** view by clicking on the extension item and opening the **Details** view.

![debugger for chrome readme](images/reactjs/chrome-debugger-readme.png)

## Popular Starter Kits

In this tutorial, we used the Angular CLI to create a simple Angular application. There are lots of great samples and starter kits available to help build your first Angular application.

### Recipes

The VS Code team has created [recipes](https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode-recipes) for more complex debugging scenarios. There you'll find the [Chrome Debugging with Angular CLI](https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode-recipes/tree/master/Angular-CLI) recipe which also uses the Angular CLI and goes into detail on debugging the generated project's unit tests.

### MEAN Starter

If you'd like to see a full MEAN (MongoDB, Express, Angular, Node.js) stack example, look at [MEAN.IO](http://mean.io/). They have documentation and an application generator for a sample MEAN project. You'll need to install and start [MongoDB](https://docs.mongodb.com/v3.0/installation/), but you'll quickly have a MEAN application running. VS Code also has great [MongoDB support](/docs/azure/mongodb.md) through the [Azure Cosmos DB](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-azuretools.vscode-cosmosdb) extension.

### React

[React](https://facebook.github.io/react/) is another popular web framework. If you'd like to see an example of React working with VS Code, check out the [Using React in VS Code](/docs/nodejs/reactjs-tutorial.md) tutorial. It will walk you through creating an React application and configuring the `launch.json` file for the [Debugger for Chrome](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=msjsdiag.debugger-for-chrome) extension.

## Angular Extensions

In addition to the functionality VS Code provides out of the box, you can install VS Code extensions for greater functionality.

<div class="marketplace-extensions-angular-curated"></div>

Click on an extension tile above to read the description and reviews on the [Marketplace](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com).

To find other Angular extensions, open the Extensions view (`kb(workbench.view.extensions)`) and type 'angular' to see a filtered list of Angular extensions.

![angular extensions](images/angular/angular-extensions.png)

The community has also created "Extension Packs" which bundle useful extensions together (for example, a linter, debugger, and snippets) into a single download. To see available Angular extension packs, add the "extension packs" category to your filter (angular @category:"extension packs").