Install the extension

Step-by-step install guide for CSS & JS Minifier: from the VS Code Marketplace, from a downloaded file, and soon from Open VSX.

Never installed an extension before? That is fine, every step is written out. Pick one route, install, then check that it worked.

Before you start

You need Visual Studio Code version 1.144.0 or newer. To see your version, open Help > About on Windows and Linux, or Code > About Visual Studio Code on macOS. If it is older, update VS Code first.

Which route should you use?

Route 1: the VS Code Marketplace

The extension is published as JS & CSS Minifier Tool and Compressor by miguel-colmenares. Its short ID is miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier. There are three ways to install it from the Marketplace. They give the same result.

From the Extensions view inside VS Code

1. Open VS Code.
2. Open the Extensions view. Click the square icon in the Activity Bar (the bar of icons on the far left), or press Ctrl+Shift+X on Windows and Linux, or Cmd+Shift+X on macOS.
3. Click the search box at the top and type @id:miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier. This finds exactly this extension.
4. Click the extension in the list, then click the blue Install button.
5. When it finishes, the Install button turns into a gear button called Manage. That means it is installed.

From the Marketplace page

1. Open the extension page on the Marketplace in your browser.
2. Click Install.
3. Your browser may ask if it can open Visual Studio Code. Allow it. VS Code opens on the extension page, where you click Install if it is not installed yet.

From the terminal

Open a terminal and run:

code --install-extension miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier

The Marketplace holds one package for each type of computer (Windows, macOS and Linux, on Intel/AMD and on ARM). VS Code picks the right one for you.

Route 2: Open VSX (VSCodium and other forks)

Editors such as VSCodium, Eclipse Theia and Gitpod use Open VSX instead of the Microsoft Marketplace. Once the extension is active there, these are the steps that will apply:

1. Open the Extensions view of your editor.
2. Search for miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier and click Install.
3. Or, from a terminal, run codium --install-extension miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier (use the command name of your editor).

Until then, use route 3, which also works in most VS Code forks.

Route 3: a downloaded .vsix file (offline or manual)

A .vsix file is the extension packed in one file. Use this route when the computer has no internet access or you want a specific version.

Step 1: download the right file

1. Open the Releases page and open the newest release.
2. Under Assets, download the file that matches your computer. The names look like css-js-minifier-<version>-<platform>.vsix.

Not sure which one is yours? Match the architecture of VS Code itself: open the About dialog (see “Before you start”) and look at the line that starts with OS. It ends with a word like x64 or arm64.

Good to know:

• The six files above are the ones released so far (the latest release at the time of writing, 1.3.4, has exactly these six). New platforms are added to the table when they ship.
• Alpine Linux (and other musl-based Linux, common in small Docker images and Dev Containers) is not in the current release. Version 1.3.4 only has Linux files for the standard glibc Linux. Alpine packages (alpine-x64 and alpine-arm64) are already built for the next release, see issue #244.
• Each file is for one platform because the extension includes fast native code. That is why a release has several downloads.

Step 2: install the file

Either use the terminal. Replace the file name with the one you downloaded, and add the folder path if the file is not in the current folder:

code --install-extension css-js-minifier-1.3.4-win32-x64.vsix

Or use VS Code:

1. Open the Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X or Cmd+Shift+X).
2. Click the ... button at the top of the view (More Actions).
3. Choose Install from VSIX… and select the file you downloaded.

You can also open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P or Cmd+Shift+P) and run Extensions: Install from VSIX.

Check that it worked

1. Open the Extensions view and type @installed in the search box. You should see JS & CSS Minifier Tool and Compressor in the list. Or run code --list-extensions --show-versions in a terminal and look for miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier.
2. Open any .css or .js file. Right-click inside the editor. You should see Minify this File and Minify and Save as New File.

If you do not see them, go to Troubleshooting. If you do, continue with the Quick start.

Update

• Installed from the Marketplace: VS Code checks for updates on its own and installs them. It may ask you to restart the extensions, click Restart Extensions. To update right now, open the Command Palette and run Show Extension Updates, then click Update on this extension.
• Installed from a .vsix file: install the newer file as in route 3.

Uninstall

1. Open the Extensions view and find the extension (try @installed).
2. Click the gear button (Manage) and choose Uninstall.
3. If VS Code asks, restart the extensions.

From a terminal: code --uninstall-extension miguel-colmenares.css-js-minifier.

Uninstalling does not delete your files, including any .min files the extension created. The css-js-minifier.* lines you may have added to your settings stay in your settings.json. They do nothing without the extension, and you can delete them.

These steps follow the official VS Code guide to installing and managing extensions.