Metals v2.0.0-M13: full Scala IDE in VS Code without IntelliJ

Metals v2.0.0-M13: full Scala IDE in VS Code without IntelliJ

Metals (`scalameta.metals`) is the official Scala Language Server, developed by Scala Center and VirtusLab, bringing 27+ LSP features — completions, go-to-definition across library sources, integrated test running, and scalafmt formatting — to VS Code and six other editors. v2.0.0-M13 Gold (2026-05-20) adds a Gradle MBT extractor, BSP CodeLenses, and a forward-port from v1.6.7 stable.

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June 4, 2026 · 1:29 AM
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If you write Scala outside IntelliJ, Metals (scalameta.metals) is the official answer — the Language Server Protocol implementation that brings type-aware completions, go-to-definition across library sources, integrated test running, and scalafmt formatting to VS Code, Vim, Emacs, Helix, and Zed. 1 Version v2.0.0-M13 Gold shipped on May 20, 2026 — the latest milestone in the active v2 pre-release series — adding a Gradle MBT (Module Build Target) extractor and BSP CodeLenses improvements on top of a full forward-port from the v1.6.7 stable track. 2
The name Metals is a portmanteau of Meta (Scalameta, the compiler toolkit) and LS (Language Server). Development is led by Scala Center (EPFL) and VirtusLab, the firm behind the Scala compiler and scala-cli. 3 The GitHub repository has 2.3k stars, 423 forks, and 10,071 commits. 1

Install

Search Scala (Metals) in the VS Code Extensions panel (publisher: scalameta), or install from the terminal: 4
code --install-extension scalameta.metals
The stable channel installs v1.66.2. To try the v2 pre-release features covered below, open the extension's page in VS Code and click Switch to Pre-Release Version.
Requirements: JDK 11 minimum (JDK 17 default; auto-downloaded via Coursier if none found). Scala 2.13, 2.12, or Scala 3 (3.3.4+). macOS, Linux, or Windows. No JetBrains plugin — IntelliJ IDEA uses its own separately-maintained Scala plugin. 5

The three-step daily workflow

1. Import the build

Open a folder containing build.sbt, build.sc, or a src/main/scala tree. Metals activates automatically and prompts you to import the build. 4
Metals "Import build" notification in VS Code when opening an sbt project
Metals detects the sbt workspace and offers a one-click import — compile diagnostics start appearing in the Problems panel once the build is imported. 4
Behind the scenes, Metals exports the project to Bloop (a fast incremental build server) for sbt, Gradle, Maven, and Mill. You don't need Bloop installed separately. First import on a small cached project takes about 10 seconds; a large uncached project with many dependencies can take 10–15 minutes. 6

2. Run or debug from a code lens

After import, every object with a main method gets a run | debug code lens above its definition line. Every test class gets test | test debug. Click to run — no terminal command needed. 4
run | debug code lenses above object Main in VS Code with Metals
Code lenses above object Main — click run or debug to launch without leaving the editor. 4
For custom JVM flags or arguments, add a .vscode/launch.json:
{
  "version": "0.2.0",
  "configurations": [
    {
      "type": "scala",
      "request": "launch",
      "name": "Run with args",
      "mainClass": "example.Main",
      "args": ["--config", "prod.conf"],
      "jvmOptions": ["-Xmx2g"]
    }
  ]
}

3. Format on save with scalafmt

Metals includes scalafmt (the standard Scala formatter) with no additional install. Enable format-on-save in .vscode/settings.json: 5
{
  "[scala]": {
    "editor.formatOnSave": true
  }
}
If no .scalafmt.conf exists in the project root, Metals creates one. Multi-line strings get | alignment automatically as you type (onTypeFormatting) and when you paste (formatOnPaste), both enabled by default.

Full feature set

CategoryWhat you get
CompletionsAuto-import, override completions, exhaustive match cases, string interpolators, file name completions
NavigationGo-to-definition (project + library jars), find references, find implementations, workspace symbol fuzzy search
HoverType at point, symbol signature, docstring
DiagnosticsSyntax errors as-you-type; type errors on save via the build tool
RefactoringRename symbol (workspace-wide), code actions (extract method, insert type, convert to/from)
ImportsOrganize imports, auto-insert on completion
ImplicitsVirtual text decorations showing inferred implicit parameters and conversions
TestingVS Code Test Explorer (JUnit4, MUnit, Scalatest, Weaver), per-suite run/debug
Worksheets*.worksheet.sc files evaluate on save, results shown as inline hints
MCP serverHTTP + stdio transport for AI agent integration (added in v1.6.0)
DecompilerAuto-decode .class / .semanticdb / .tasty files (VS Code, added v1.6.7)
Metals Test Explorer in VS Code showing Scala test suites grouped by module with run/debug controls
Test Explorer groups suites by build module — run a single test, a whole suite, or everything at once. 4

What v2.0.0-M13 adds

The v2 series (started May 6, 2026 with M10) is a significant architectural shift: Metals v2 indexes source files directly at roughly 1 million lines per second, making navigation available before the build finishes. 7 Build integration remains required for type errors and third-party dependency navigation.
v2.0.0-M13, released May 20 with contributions from Tomasz Godzik, @snjeza, @odisseus, and @jchyb, brings three headline changes: 2
  • Gradle MBT extractor (PR #8385): Gradle projects can now use the Module Build Target format to drive Metals imports, the same mechanism introduced for Bazel in M12.
  • BSP server + CodeLenses (PR #8375): BSP-backed servers now expose run/debug code lenses.
  • Forward port from v1.6.7: all 37 commits from the April stable release, including stdio transport for the MCP server and .class/.tasty/.semanticdb auto-decompilation.

Caveats worth knowing

v2 is pre-release, and a few known bugs bite. Cross-module navigation with Gradle MBT is broken (issue #8442, reproduced with the Apache Kafka repo — symbols from a different Gradle module can't be resolved). 8 Cross-platform projects (JVM + Scala.js) don't see compile errors in VS Code under v2 (issue #8257). 9 The stable extension channel (v1.66.2 / Metals v1.6.7) has neither issue.
Type errors are build-dependent. Metals shows syntax errors inline as you type, but type-checking requires a save and a round-trip to sbt/Bloop. On large multi-module projects, that delay is measurable. IntelliJ IDEA reimplements parts of the Scala compiler internally, which is why it recovers from type errors faster and without saving. 10
Find references has a gap. Looking up references to Dog.name() won't surface callers of Animal.name() — overridden method references aren't included. 11
No JetBrains target. Metals has no IntelliJ plugin; IntelliJ users stay on the JetBrains Scala plugin. The practical split: VS Code + Metals if you want a lightweight editor or need Vim/Emacs/Helix/Zed; IntelliJ if you need Structural Search and Replace, integrated profiler, or AI Assistant features. 12
Worksheets have a 30-second evaluation timeout and don't support value classes (AnyVal). Move AnyVal subclasses to a separate file as a workaround. 11

Install

Extension ID: scalameta.metals · Stable server: v1.6.7 (extension v1.66.2) · Pre-release server: v2.0.0-M13 (2026-05-20) · IDE: VS Code (also: Vim, Emacs, Helix, Zed, Sublime Text) · Language: Scala 2.12 / 2.13 / 3 · Use case: full language server (completions, navigation, diagnostics, testing, formatting, debug) · License: Apache-2.0 · GitHub: 2.3k ★ 1

References

  1. 1scalameta/metals — GitHub
  2. 2Metals v2.0.0-M13 Gold release
  3. 3Metals official site
  4. 4Scala (Metals) — VS Code Marketplace
  5. 5Metals VS Code docs
  6. 6Build Tools Overview — Metals
  7. 7Metals v2 homepage
  8. 8GitHub Issue #8442 — MBT + Gradle cross-module navigation
  9. 9GitHub Issue #8257 — no compile errors in cross-platform projects
  10. 10Scala 3 improvements in Metals — Igal Tabachnik
  11. 11Metals editors overview
  12. 12IntelliJ Scala Plugin 2026.1
VS Code / JetBrains Plugin Pick
VS Code / JetBrains Plugin Pick

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