My Dev Setup in 2026

Tried WebStorm, Came Back

Dev tools shift a little each year. New stuff comes out, existing stuff gets updated, preferences change. But the core workflow is surprisingly stable. Here's what I'm using as of 2026.

Editor: Still VS Code

WebStorm is smarter, I'll admit. But VS Code's lightweight feel and extension ecosystem are unbeatable. Especially as I've been coding directly on servers via Remote SSH more often, VS Code's edge has only grown.

Must-have extensions: ESLint, Prettier, GitLens, Error Lens, Tailwind CSS IntelliSense. These 5 are enough. I used to have 20+ installed, then realized unused extensions were slowing down the editor and cleaned house.

(I genuinely thought I needed all 20.)

Terminal: Windows Terminal + WSL2

I develop on Windows. Ubuntu running on WSL2, accessed through Windows Terminal. I'd love macOS, but realistically I use the Windows laptop my company gave me.

Shell: zsh + Oh My Zsh. Plugins: just three -- autosuggestions, syntax-highlighting, and z. Prompt customized with Starship. Git branch, Node version, and execution time visible in the prompt. Handy.

Can't Imagine Coding Without AI

GitHub Copilot is my primary tool. Productivity gains are real, especially for boilerplate and test code.

But I don't blindly accept Copilot's suggestions. Roughly 70% are usable, 20% need tweaking, 10% are straight-up wrong. AI-written code still ships under my name. Being critical is essential.

Switched from Postman to Bruno

Made the jump this year. Open source, and managing API collections through Git was the clincher. You can share API test environments with teammates as code.

Postman's cloud sync is convenient, but storing company APIs on an external cloud felt security-wise iffy.

DBeaver to TablePlus

DBeaver has more features but it's Java-based and heavy. TablePlus is native, lightweight, clean UI. PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis, MongoDB all in one app.

It's paid, but the value-to-cost ratio is excellent. Inline editing of query results is especially nice.

Notes: Obsidian

Dev notes, learning journals, meeting notes all go in Obsidian. Markdown-based so it feels natural for developers. Local files mean it's fast. Backlinks for connecting notes are a nice touch.

I use the Daily Note plugin for work notes and consolidate during weekly reviews. This routine has been going for over a year now.

Odds and Ends

No Git GUI. CLI is enough, and in tricky situations, CLI is actually more precise. Docker Desktop is a must. Local dev environments managed with docker-compose -- DB, Redis, message queue all spun up at once.

The Best Tool Is the One You Know

Switching tools constantly doesn't help productivity. There's a cost to learning new ones. I used to jump on every new tool that came out. Now I only evaluate alternatives when frustration with the current tool builds up.

Use whatever fits your workflow, regardless of what everyone else is using.