How different is it from Visual Studio's default features and Intellisense?

Visual Assist and the built in Intellisense tooling share a few common features. Where we share features, VA frequently operate much faster and do a better job of giving you the correct results (e.g. finding more references that Visual Studio would miss). Also, the Visual Studio UI can arguably complicate some dialog boxes for simple tasks. An example is the Visual Studio unified search, which operates like the search bar in the operating system wherein everything is shown. In contrast, VA uses different search dialogs for each type of search, each with features specific to that kind of search and without displaying results you aren't interested in.

What support does Visual Assist provide?

Visual Assist (VA) is a coding productivity plugin for C++ and C# developers who work in Visual Studio. Visual Assist has its own code parser, separate from the built in Intellisense parser. This provides all of the features one would expect from a modern IDE and many more. These features include tools for Navigation, Refactoring, Debugging Assistance and Automatic Code Modernization with Code Inspections. VA also offer special support and tooling for Unreal Engine, Unity, Graphics Card "Shaders" and CUDA.

Are there special ways for students and teachers to use VA in education/academia?

Yes! We have special licenses for students and teachers. Visit this page to learn more .

How will the long-term benefits outweigh the initial cost?

As with any tool, how useful it is depends on how much you intend to use it. VA enhances productivity by improving Visual Studio's default features or by adding new ones absent from the IDE. Some users focus on a few features, while some take the time to try out all the features. There are many options available to you with all of them aimed at making you code faster, easier, and making the experience less frustrating. Read this blog to learn more about the value VA provides

What kind of developers benefit from using Visual Assist?

Developers using Microsoft's Visual Studio to develop and code using C, C# and C++ will benefit from using VA. There has been a focus on C++ game development (Unreal Engine) wherein the added support and tooling is most needed. Recent updates have also added support and tooling for Unity Engine, Graphics Card "Shaders" and CUDA development.

Visual Assist Blog - C++ Tips, Release Notes & Developer Guides

Build Announcements

Visual Assist 2026.1 release blog

By Tristan Soliven

January 19, 2026

TL;DR Visual Assist 2026.1 introduces several productivity and usability improvements designed to make large-scale C++ and Unreal Engine development faster and more efficient. The release adds Clang-powered macro expansion previews, realtime AI response streaming, a fully modernized UI experience, improved Visual Studio 2026 compatibility, and better integration with tools like GitHub Copilot. It…

Tips and Tricks

Building High-Performance AI/ML Pipelines with C++ and CUDA

By Shamal Jayawardhana

December 30, 2025

TL;DR Modern AI workloads are pushing hardware to its limits, where milliseconds matter and inefficiencies quickly add up. While Python is great for experimentation, production systems demand predictable, high-performance execution and that’s where C++ and CUDA stand out.

News Tips and Tricks

Writing Safer C++: Introducing Visual Assist’s New Code Safety Inspections

By Nuno Castro

December 5, 2025

C++ Safety is one of the most important conversations happening in software right now. From industry leaders to government agencies, including recent guidance coming from the U.S. government, there is a renewed call to strengthen memory safety and reduce classes of bugs that…

Community Tips and Tricks

C++ Safety Checkers Deep-Dive: Why Memory Safety Is Everyone’s Problem Now

By Tristan Soliven

November 1, 2025

TL;DR Memory safety has become one of the biggest challenges in modern C++ development, with pressure increasing from governments, industry leaders and standards bodies to reduce vulnerabilities caused by memory-related issues. To help address these concerns, Visual Assist 2025.4 provides development teams with over 60 new Clang-Tidy-based safety checkers to catch risky patterns, enforce modern…

Build Announcements

Visual Assist 2025.4 release post

By Tristan Soliven

October 22, 2025

TL;DR Visual Assist 2025.4 brings one of the platform’s largest updates to-date with 60+ new C++ code inspections focused on safety, a redesigned user experience for core navigation and refactoring features, and the introduction of VA Intelligence, a new local AI-powered…

Webinar Recap

Break Free from IntelliSense Hell with Visual Assist: Learn UE5 C++ Development Techniques [Webinar Recap]

By Tristan Soliven

October 13, 2025

This is the third session in the webinar series on Unreal Engine 5 workflows with Assembla and Visual Assist. Chris Gardner, lead developer at Whole Tomato Software, challenges conventional wisdom about when to use C++ versus Blueprints and demonstrates how Visual Assist…

Webinar Recap

Beyond the Basics: Setting up UE5 Source Builds and CI that works [Webinar Recap]

By Tristan Soliven

October 9, 2025

TL;DR Building Unreal Engine 5 from source requires more than just downloading files from GitHub. Proper hardware, secure Perforce configuration, structured stream workflows, and scalable branching strategies are all critical for smooth development and future engine upgrades. This webinar recap explores how experienced Unreal developers set up UE5 source builds, manage large repositories with…

Webinar Recap

Setting Up Your First UE5 Project That Won't Break [Webinar Recap]

By Tristan Soliven

October 7, 2025

TL;DR This webinar walks through how to set up an Unreal Engine 5 project in a way that actually scales once more people join the team. It covers practical things like choosing the right engine setup, organizing Perforce correctly, avoiding asset conflicts, handling large…

Community

What did we learn? A back-to-school update about Visual Assist's latest from our GM

By Ben Schwenk

September 11, 2025

New season, fresh start As Fall approaches, it’s not just students heading back to school. it’s also a perfect time to evaluate your coding tools. Which ones are ready for advanced coursework, and which might need some upgrading? You might find that some of those tools need a higher degree while others might be ready to graduate. And we’ve been doing our homework… At Whole Tomato…

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Visual Assist 2026.1 release blog

Building High-Performance AI/ML Pipelines with C++ and CUDA

Writing Safer C++: Introducing Visual Assist’s New Code Safety Inspections

C++ Safety Checkers Deep-Dive: Why Memory Safety Is Everyone’s Problem Now

Visual Assist 2025.4 release post

Break Free from IntelliSense Hell with Visual Assist: Learn UE5 C++ Development Techniques [Webinar Recap]

Beyond the Basics: Setting up UE5 Source Builds and CI that works [Webinar Recap]

Setting Up Your First UE5 Project That Won't Break [Webinar Recap]

How Visual Assist Supercharges Your C++ Development in Visual Studio

What did we learn? A back-to-school update about Visual Assist's latest from our GM

Featured Posts

C++26 Memory Safety: What Actually Ships for Existing Code

AI Coding Assistants for Large C++ Codebases: What Works, What Breaks, and How to Split the Work

How to Navigate a Large or Legacy C++ Codebase in Visual Studio

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