VS Code IntelliSense Not Working

How to fix it

Try these in order — the most common fix is first.

1. 1. Confirm the extension is enabled

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   1. Open the Extensions view and search for your language extension (for Python: Python and Pylance)
   2. Enable it and click Restart Extensions if prompted
   Did this fix it? Yes No

2. 2. Check the language server setting

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   1. Search python.languageServer in Settings
   2. Use Default or Pylance rather than None
   Did this fix it? Yes No

3. 3. Reload the window

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   1. Run Developer: Reload Window
   2. Wait for the language server to finish indexing
   Did this fix it? Yes No

4. 4. Fix Python import resolution

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   1. Select the correct interpreter with Python: Select Interpreter
   2. Add source folders to python.analysis.extraPaths
   Did this fix it? Yes No

5. 5. Reduce what the server scans

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   1. Add large folders to files.exclude and files.watcherExclude
   2. Open the project root, not a parent folder with many projects
   Did this fix it? Yes No

6. 6. Trust the workspace

   1. Click Manage in the restricted mode banner and trust the folder if you know its contents are safe
   Did this fix it? Yes No

Symptoms

No autocomplete, no hover info, or no go to definition for a language.

Why it happens

• Language extension not installed or disabled
• Language server crashed or disabled (python.languageServer set to None)
• File opened outside a workspace folder
• Missing import paths for Python
• Huge folders such as node_modules or .venv slowing the server
• Workspace not trusted

This guide also covers

• vscode intellisense not working
• vscode autocomplete not working
• pylance not working

Other VS Code errors

• VS Code Terminal Not Working
• VS Code Python Interpreter Not Found
• VS Code High CPU Usage
• VS Code High Memory Usage
• VS Code Extension Host Terminated Unexpectedly
• VS Code Extensions Not Loading or Installing
• VS Code 'code' Command Not Found
• VS Code Unable to Watch for File Changes (ENOSPC)