I use Microsoft Visual Studio occasionally. I prefer writing code directly on Notepad++, but when I need the IDE support, I use Microsoft Visual Studio for faster and better code development. It offers a good experience for individuals who are handy with IDEs.
Senior Software Architect at USEReady
Integrated tools and extensions offer straightforward and efficient code development
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
Microsoft Visual Studio is integrated with all tools and offers all necessary extensions, making it very convenient. It offers Git connectivity for all Git repositories. I find all its activities to be straightforward and efficient.
What needs improvement?
Maybe some documentation could be better. They can generate some educational videos online, which would be helpful.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Visual Studio for the last five to six years, but I do not use it frequently.
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Microsoft Visual Studio
September 2025

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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Microsoft Visual Studio is stable. I have not encountered any problems.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I use Microsoft Visual Studio on an individual basis, so I am not familiar with its scalability in terms of adding or deleting users, which may be an IT admin function.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I use Notepad++ more often than Microsoft Visual Studio.
How was the initial setup?
The installation of Microsoft Visual Studio is simple, and one person can manage it.
What was our ROI?
The ROI includes time savings, which are approximately ten to twenty percent.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
As a partner, the cost may be part of an integrated license package. I am not sure about specific pricing details.
What other advice do I have?
Maybe sometimes Microsoft Visual Studio hangs if your computer resources are limited. Rating it, I would give it eight points overall.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Last updated: Apr 16, 2025
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Department Manager, Certification Project Management at Institute for Information Industry
Have streamlined development with debugging features but face challenges with performance due to bloat
What is our primary use case?
I create my site or application for my company for internal use only.
What is most valuable?
The best feature of Microsoft Visual Studio for debugging applications is IntelliSense, which I refer to as autocomplete. Additionally, the integration capabilities with Microsoft DevOps Server streamline my development process efficiently, making it perfectly integrated with Microsoft Visual Studio.
What needs improvement?
The software has become larger than before, requiring a powerful desktop or notebook to run Microsoft Visual Studio. I must use or install all the features which makes Microsoft Visual Studio bulky. Some optional installation methods to remove features I do not use could improve the experience.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using it for more than fifteen years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Performance is a problem because if I use a notebook that is not high-end, Microsoft Visual Studio may experience lag sometimes.
How are customer service and support?
I think the support could be better because the documentation and other resources, such as videos, are too numerous, making it hard to find the correct one. AI support could be a good addition.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I used Microsoft Visual Studio Code and no others.
How was the initial setup?
There is no trouble or problem to install it. I can handle the installation myself.
What about the implementation team?
I can install the solution by myself.
What was our ROI?
Microsoft Visual Studio saves me time, approximately forty percent.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Microsoft Visual Studio is expensive.
What other advice do I have?
The main concern is that the documentation is so detailed and vast that it takes a lot of time to sift through. I would rate Microsoft Visual Studio seven out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: Apr 16, 2025
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Microsoft Visual Studio
September 2025

Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Visual Studio. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2025.
868,787 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Student at a media company with 501-1,000 employees
Robust debugging and plugin support improve coding productivity
What is most valuable?
Microsoft Visual Studio is an IDE, or integrated development environment, which enables users to set up their own dev environment to code and build websites and then host them. Through Microsoft Visual Studio, users can host to cloud services with one button or one fly server. It's essentially an environment for coding; it's an IDE.
Microsoft Visual Studio is a robust Microsoft product. It is a very secure device and tool. It has numerous extensions and plugins available, and it's a cross-platform development tool, meaning development is possible for any other devices. It supports everything, provided you have the specific graphics for processing and a CPU with an intensive workload, a clock speed-based device.
IntelliSense in Microsoft Visual Studio can sense automatically. It can identify syntax errors and declarations if there are mistakes. It's extremely helpful during coding. With IntelliSense, issues can be rectified on the fly, either before or after compiling.
Microsoft Visual Studio's debugging tools are excellent and straightforward. Users can utilize a line-by-line debugging feature.
The built-in Git integration for source control in Microsoft Visual Studio has a simple setup process. Users just need to provide the repo link and grant access. The integration is seamless and helpful, allowing for easy code pushing and pulling.
Some of the most impactful plugins include static code analysis tools and GitHub Copilot. There are also JSON viewers, JSON parsers, and numerous third-party plugins available.
The performance profiling tools in Microsoft Visual Studio are effective. Once an application is ready, it can be tested with performance profiling. Users can perform performance upgrades, check function calling processes, identify redundant elements, and determine if code-level changes are needed for better processing.
What needs improvement?
Microsoft Visual Studio is performing well currently. One potential improvement would be integration with solutions such as Codespaces, where users can have their own virtual dev environment setup. A hybrid setup would be beneficial, particularly for users with low-performance PCs. A hybrid collaboration with Microsoft Visual Studio system where some processing occurs in the cloud would be more effective.
How are customer service and support?
The support and community forums for Microsoft Visual Studio are strong, deserving a solid eight out of ten rating.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
What other advice do I have?
I have leveraged the plugin ecosystem to tailor my IDE experience. The overall rating for Microsoft Visual Studio is 8 out of 10.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: Jul 16, 2025
Flag as inappropriateSoftware Engineer at Varian Medical Systems, Inc.
A stable solution that provides advanced design and reporting features
Pros and Cons
- "We can use different .NET features."
- "The solution must provide user-friendly features."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for Windows applications and different .NET features. We also use the BI tools.
What is most valuable?
I like the design tools. Nowadays, it is very advanced. We can use different .NET features.
What needs improvement?
We have different platforms available for web development. The solution must provide user-friendly features. We get updates frequently. Multiple versions are released within a short period. We need to keep updating the solution.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for more than ten years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the tool’s stability an eight out of ten. We need to consider a lot of things while creating projects on Visual Studio. There are a lot of dependencies to add and maintain.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The tool is scalable. There are more than 1000 users in our organization.
How are customer service and support?
We have used Microsoft’s support for SQL Server Reporting Services. Sometimes, we do not receive prompt responses. We have to work with different teams and need to wait for resolutions.
How was the initial setup?
The setup is straightforward. We update the product when we get information from our teams.
What about the implementation team?
The deployment can be done in-house.
What was our ROI?
The solution has benefited us. The users are really happy to use the product for reporting purposes. It has many features.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend the solution to others. Overall, I rate the tool an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
CTO at Open HealthCare
Easy to use, works well in the Microsoft Windows ecosystem, and integrates well with Git
Pros and Cons
- "Microsoft Visual Studio is a must-have tool if you work in Windows environments."
- "Long installation or upgrade times are sometimes a problem."
What is our primary use case?
My first use case was to develop Microsoft Windows tools in .Net Framework (formerly from 3.5). Later I developed web platforms in ASP .NET and lately, I have developed APIs in both .NET Framework and NET Core, the latest in NET 6.
The platforms that I develop in Windows environments and do not have CI/CD systems I deploy them directly from Visual Studio. The entire Windows ecosystem is well managed by Visual Studio.
When I program in Microsoft Windows I usually use Visual Studio.
How has it helped my organization?
Microsoft Visual Studio is a must-have tool if you work in Windows environments.
Organizations working on a large number of workstations or organizations that are just starting out have a complete tool for use in several versions, most popularly free. So starting or developing a project under these conditions is extremely affordable.
But back to the main feature, with Microsoft Visual Studio you have a Swiss army knife of software development (integration, development, debugging, and deployment) complete and free in its most popular version.
What is most valuable?
The features I found most valuable are those related to the Microsoft Windows ecosystem. The famous umbrella that Microsoft extends over its products.
Working with Azure or SQL Server (connect, implement, deploy, etc.) is extremely easy, a common feature in all Microsoft products.
Deploying to Azure or Windows Server with IIS is also extremely easy and enjoyable.
Finally, integration with Git has improved a lot in the latest versions, as well as integration with GitHub and Copilot.
What needs improvement?
Efficiency is the main focus. Since Visual Studio's inception, it has been a race of constant improvements and attempts to improve the efficiency of the tool in every release. However, crashes and freezes are common when you work with the tool for a long time. The problems get worse when you have more than one project under development and then you need a very powerful computer to be able to perform complex developments. Even having a very powerful computer, as in my case, does not prevent you from having freezes from time to time.
Long installation or upgrade times are sometimes a problem.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used the solution for more than ten years.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I had previously tried other environments such as Atom or Sublime Text, but none offered the capabilities of Microsoft Visual Studio.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The most popular version of Microsoft is the Visual Studio 2022 Community Edition. Making it free gives it a boost in all types of organizations.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I had previously tried other environments such as Atom or Sublime Text. Lately, Visual Studio Code has become very popular and I used it eventually.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: Mar 10, 2025
Flag as inappropriateAdvisor Cloud Master Architecture Azure AWS (USA, UK, Argentina) at cstechlab
Enables seamless cloud-native migration and robust debugging features
What is our primary use case?
I use Microsoft Visual Studio to deploy and migrate different solutions from monolithic to 100% cloud-native solutions in Azure. When I have a client-server solution that is very monolithic, I can perfectly migrate it to Azure to create backends in different Kubernetes environments and utilize modern frontend technologies like React for a more efficient solution in cloud platforms.
What is most valuable?
Microsoft Visual Studio is a very robust application. I can read and analyze logs in C#. It's friendly with JavaScript, TypeScript, and Java, making many deployments guided for different solutions possible. The .NET library, although very old, is a very robust application for deployment in cloud settings, being friendly for working with functions and logic apps, which are best used for deploying .NET services. Visual Studio offers a great debugging tool where I can debug quickly and resolve issues efficiently with specific solutions designed for strong debugging.
What needs improvement?
The patching aspect can continue to be improved. Although Visual Studio has very expressive refactor solutions and efficient, reliable patching for code, there is always room for enhancement in these areas.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Visual Studio for more than twenty years.
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
The deployment depends on the project as I use methodologies like Agile or Kanban, allowing the creation of very structured steps in projects. A big deployment can start for three to six months. Locally, when working with Azure, I deploy with Visual Studio on my local machine, integrating with the cloud when I publish.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Microsoft Visual Studio is a very robust and stable application, especially when I have integration with Azure DevOps.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Microsoft Visual Studio is scalable in integrating with various cloud platforms and solutions for effective deployment.
How are customer service and support?
Microsoft's support is very strong, with good resources available when creating support tickets. They respond quickly and have professional resources for resolving different software or deployment issues. A very big library is available at dev.microsoft.com with many solutions for investigation.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of Microsoft Visual Studio is not complex. I have been using it for maybe 10 to 15 years and it is the most robust application software for deployment.
What was our ROI?
The ROI depends on the contract I have with Microsoft. For example, in an Enterprise Agreement (ELA), Microsoft might provide free licenses for deployment. The ROI varies based on the company's agreements, and different subscription licenses are available like basic, standard, and business premium.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing for Microsoft Visual Studio is favorable. While many open-source solutions are available, none offer the robustness of Visual Studio, which includes a Marketplace for creating different add-ons and integration solutions for quality assurance.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have knowledge of NetBeans, an open-source solution, but it does not have the robustness of Microsoft Visual Studio which offers a Marketplace to create different add-ons.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend Microsoft Visual Studio for different clouds as it can integrate with AWS, GCP, Huawei, and Red Hat OpenShift due to its add-ons. I rate Microsoft Visual Studio a nine out of ten. Despite rating it a nine, all features align well with my personal experience, reflecting no dissatisfaction on my part.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Last updated: May 6, 2025
Flag as inappropriateIntuitive database technology with robust integrated development environment, offering high scalability, excellent collaboration features and strong stability
Pros and Cons
- "Notably, the Enterprise version facilitates seamless integration with Microsoft products, leveraging the ease of connectivity within the Microsoft ecosystem."
- "Despite its advantages, challenges in diverse cloud environments may prompt the uninstallation of the application or entire development environment for resolution."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for comprehensive support in software development, encompassing tasks such as code writing, unit testing, and deployment to both cloud and on-premises services.
How has it helped my organization?
It proved versatile for diverse purposes, serving as a valuable tool for developing solutions across web, desktop, and mobile platforms. It facilitated not only coding activities but also aided in managing repositories and deploying applications to various environments, whether they be cloud-based or on-premises infrastructure.
What is most valuable?
Within Visual Support, there are three versions available, each housed in distinct containers. I'm focusing on the Enterprise version due to its customizable nature. This version boasts additional features, such as a pricing application for enhanced functionality and comprehensive unit testing coverage. The testing capabilities extend to diverse features, providing a thorough examination of different aspects. Notably, the Enterprise version facilitates seamless integration with Microsoft products, leveraging the ease of connectivity within the Microsoft ecosystem. Moreover, it supports integration with open-source products, including Python, allowing for a flexible and inclusive approach to development.
What needs improvement?
When using Visual Support for web development, challenges arise when specific components require hardware configurations beyond the application's scope. Efforts are directed at enhancing the IDE and introducing features for seamless collaboration, extending to Azure with the Explore version. This version incorporates "live share," enabling real-time code collaboration among team members. Despite its advantages, challenges in diverse cloud environments may prompt the uninstallation of the application or entire development environment for resolution.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with it for approximately thirteen years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is noteworthy because Visual Studio offers both a release and a preview version. The release version is reliable, free of issues, and suitable for general use. However, for those seeking additional features and improvements, the preview version is available. This version allows users to test new features directly and report any issues to the community for resolution. While encountering some issues in the preview version, they are typically addressed promptly through community feedback, resulting in a stable and refined release version shortly thereafter. I would rate it eight out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
High scalability makes it a strong recommendation, especially for enterprise-level development, given its robust capabilities as an integrated development environment. I would rate it ten out of ten.
How are customer service and support?
I've interacted with Microsoft support, but the community support for Visual Studio testing has been particularly outstanding. Unlike conventional support, the community channels provide an open and collaborative environment, similar to open-source platforms. This allows users to easily report issues, open discussions, and communicate effectively, making it a gateway to a more responsive and interactive support experience.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Having used various products at different companies, I must highlight that Microsoft's development technology, particularly in the realm of databases, has proven to be more intuitive and superior. It demonstrated a higher level of user-friendliness and efficiency.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward. Simply download the controller and proceed with the installation, selecting the desired options for a new environment and clicking through the prompts. I would rate it nine out of ten.
What about the implementation team?
Setting it up in the initial stages used to be a time-consuming process, often taking more than an hour. This was primarily due to the need to download setup data, often distributed on CDs or DVDs, and then proceed with the installation. Additionally, a decade ago, machines were not as swift, further extending the setup time. However, in recent years, there's been a more efficient option. Users now have two options: an online installation and an offline installation. For the online version, users simply download it and direct it to the storage directory on their machines.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing varies depending on the version, and with three options available (Community, Professional, and Enterprise), you can choose based on your needs. While the enterprise version can be relatively expensive due to its comprehensive features, I find the license I currently possess to be reasonable, considering it includes the full suite without additional activations or charges.
What other advice do I have?
Overall, I would rat it ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Senior technical project manager at net solutions
Allows for easy integration with other tools such as MS Teams
Pros and Cons
- "The code analysis tool is particularly valuable as it eliminates the need for manual code reviews."
- "Sometimes, the deprecation of packages can be a challenge."
What is our primary use case?
We use Visual Studio for website development and related tasks. It's been quite helpful for us.
What is most valuable?
From a professional perspective, I've been using Visual Studio since childhood, so I find it very useful. The code analysis tool is particularly valuable as it eliminates the need for manual code reviews.
Many essential features are built-in, making it a great tool. Additionally, it allows for easy integration with other tools like MS Teams, which enhances its usefulness.
What needs improvement?
Sometimes, the deprecation of packages can be a challenge. Although Visual Studio provides suggestions when we compile and encounter deprecated packages, it can still be confusing. Even after multiple attempts, we may struggle to fix these deprecated packages and related issues. So, it is one of the areas of improvement in Visual Studio.
I have been working on a website that I inherited from a client, and when I tried to run it on my system, I discovered that some of the packages were either depreciated or no longer in use. It would be helpful if Visual Studio could suggest and handle such unused packages in a more user-friendly manner.
I am suggesting this as an area of improvement because recently I was working on a bigger client project. The project was functioning correctly on my system but not on another system. Later, I found that some packages were depreciated, which might have caused the issue. However, we couldn't determine the exact reason for the difference in behavior because we used the same ZIP file and the same Visual Studio version. Then, when the person tried to run the same code on her system, it didn't work. It seemed to be related to the deprecated packages. Ultimately, the solution we eventually found was to set up a new system for her, reinstalling Microsoft Visual Studio and related components.
Another area that could greatly benefit from Microsoft within Visual Studio is unit testing. It's a pain point for every software developer. If Microsoft can provide better tools or features related to unit testing, it would be really helpful. Especially when working on complex projects, writing comprehensive test cases can be time-consuming. However, clients often cannot afford to pay for that additional time in the competitive market.
So in future releases, having some automation capabilities or built-in support for generating test cases would be great. Although we can integrate third-party automation testing tools, they are often paid solutions. For example, I've noticed the presence of plugins like ChatGPT in Visual Studio Code, but I'm not fully aware of their capabilities. Therefore, if Visual Studio could offer some level of automation for test cases, it would be a valuable addition.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft Visual Studio for over 15 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I would rate the stability of Visual Studio a ten out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Microsoft has gained a lot of confidence in the market, so I would rate the scalability of Visual Studio around eight out of ten.
Based on my recent experience, sometimes, we faced difficulties with the same set of codes. Therefore, considering the recent incident, I leaned toward an eight and not a ten for scalability.
In my company, around 20 people are using this solution.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very simple. Microsoft has made it very easy to set up.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Price-wise, it is good. We are using the paid versions, and the price is reasonable. For our company, it's a genuine price.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I have only worked with Visual Studio.
What other advice do I have?
Overall, I rate it a ten. It's very user-friendly and feature-rich.
However, there's always room for improvement in the product. Features like automation test cases to meet market requirements would be beneficial.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Private Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.

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Download our free Microsoft Visual Studio Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.