Fast Compare installs statistics
By David Kolář · VS Code Marketplace · Other
Enables fast way of comparing two files via Context Menu Action on Text Editor Title.
Fast Compare has 109,358 recorded installs on VS Code Marketplace.
It ranks #2247 of 2,501 tracked VS Code Marketplace listings by installs.
It is rated 5.0 out of 5 from 20 ratings.
PluginStats has 4 daily observations since Oct 16, 2026; the latest is from Oct 19, 2026.
Rating: 5.00 / 5 from 20 ratings
About Fast Compare
⚡ FAST COMPARE ⚡
Enables fast way of comparing two files via Context Menu Action on Text Editor Title.
Installation from a GitHub release
Each GitHub release includes a versioned .vsix file. Download it from the release assets and install it with Extensions: Install from VSIX... in VS Code, or run:
To create the same package locally, run npm ci followed by npm run package:vsix -- --out fastcompare-.vsix.
Development requirements
The extension remains compatible with VS Code 1.70 and later. Building, testing, or packaging it from source requires a more recent development environment:
• Node.js 22.13 or later. • npm, included with the standard Node.js installation. • Network access when running npm ci, packaging the extension for the first time, or running the integration tests. The test runner downloads a compatible VS Code Electron build into .vscode-test/.
Install the dependencies and run the complete validation suite with:
The test command compiles the TypeScript sources, runs ESLint, launches the VS Code integration-test environment, and executes the extension tests. To create a local release package after validation, run:
Release Notes
1.3.0
• GitHub releases now include a ready-to-install .vsix package, allowing Fast Compare to be installed directly from the release assets. • Added automated linting, compilation, testing, VSIX packaging, and GitHub Release creation when a version tag is pushed. • Modernized the development toolchain to TypeScript 6, ESLint 10, and TypeScript-ESLint 8, including migration to ESLint flat configuration. • Updated the VS Code integration-test stack to Mocha 11, Glob 13, and VS Code Test Electron 3, with test discovery migrated to the promise-based Glob API. • Updated and consolidated development dependencies, removing all known high severity findings from the npm audit report.
1.2.1
Removed ability to swap compared files since this feature was added to VSCode in version 1.86. https://stackoverflow.com/a/77638341
1.2.0
Added ability to Compare with active file in Explorer's folder view.
1.1.1
Restricted mode compatibility added! Now you can use the extension while in restricted mode.
1.1.0
Swap feature added! You can now easily swap the files you are comparing. Command is assignable to a key shortcut.
1.0.4
Fixed a bug with some files not being found.
1.0.3
Minor fixes.
1.0.2
Extension now has an icon!
1.0.1
Extension now supports in-memory files (not saved).
1.0.0
Initial release of Fast Compare.
Description from the VS Code Marketplace listing.
Charts
Images: 30d · 1y · all time · 1600×900 dark
Adoption over time
7/30/90-day growth
Ranking history
Ratings over time
Listing placement
Filled points are observed values; hollow points come from Internet Archive snapshots of the listing page. Dashed segments span periods with no observations — values between points are not interpolated.
Each band is one page of 20. Installs on a log scale. Placement is projected from installs, so it can differ from the marketplace's own sort order. Hover a dot to see the listing.
Recent observations
Full history (4)Similar VS Code Marketplace Other plugins
All 20 Fast Compare alternativesData source
Install counts, average rating, and rating counts come from the public Visual Studio Marketplace gallery API. Installs are cumulative and exclude updates.
Listing: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=DavidKol.fastcompare. First seen Oct 16, 2026; last successful collection Oct 19, 2026. See the methodology.