# DESIGN.md: Visual Studio Code-style design system

Measured from https://code.visualstudio.com/ on 2026-10-15 by PikSpec (https://www.pikspec.com). An independent measurement of the rendered page, not Visual Studio Code's official design system, and not affiliated with Visual Studio Code.

Use it to build your own product in this design language: put this file in your project root and tell your AI tool (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, Lovable, v0) to follow DESIGN.md. Never use the original's name, logo, copy or images; licensed fonts are replaced with the closest free Google Fonts.

To capture any other page, or get a ready project for your tool: https://www.pikspec.com/build-with-ai

HOW IT SHOULD LOOK
Build it in the design language of code.visualstudio.com, measured from the live site: it should feel designed by the same team as code.visualstudio.com — the same temperament, colour, type and density — for a different product. Never use code.visualstudio.com's name, logo, words or images.

Stack: use the one your project already has. Starting fresh: React + Vite + TypeScript + Tailwind CSS v4, with no UI kit (no shadcn/ui, MUI or Chakra) — their defaults would override this system. In a chat that shows one file (an artifact or canvas), build one HTML file instead, with the tokens below in its <style> block.
Use every value exactly as written. Do not round, rename, approximate or substitute a colour, size, radius, shadow or easing (fonts: see section 1). Anything not listed here does not exist in this system.

THE WEBSITE THIS SYSTEM COMES FROM
- Reference page: https://code.visualstudio.com/ — "code.visualstudio.com" (home page).
- Page frame: a top navigation bar and a footer.
- Content is grouped in cards (14 on the page). Keep cards for grouped content only, not for every section.
- It uses 28 images, 7 of them large. Large, real product imagery is part of the look — leave clearly labelled image slots at those sizes rather than stock photos or abstract 3D shapes.
- Interaction: 9 buttons on one page.
- The page runs about 7 screens long at 1440px wide.
- Density is moderate.

HOW IT LOOKS (WHAT MAKES IT LOOK LIKE ITSELF, BEYOND THE VALUES)
- Almost entirely neutral: 98% of the page is painted in #FFFFFF and #FAFAFD.
- #001080 is an accent: 0.4% of the page, used for text only. Don't fill large areas with it.
- #A31515 is an accent: 0.3% of the page, used for text only. Don't fill large areas with it.
- The largest type (62px system-ui) is bold (700), tracked to -0.013em.
- Balanced: text covers 18% of the page.
- Structure comes from thin grid lines, not from shadows or filled cards.
- Share of the painted page: #FFFFFF 84.5% (dominant, backgrounds); #FAFAFD 6.1% (supporting, backgrounds); #475569 2.9% (supporting, text); #202020 1.2% (detail, text); #1E1E1E 0.8% (detail, backgrounds and text); #242424 0.7% (detail, text); #EEF4FB 0.7% (detail, backgrounds); #000000 0.7% (detail, text and lines). Keep accents at these proportions; do not promote them to fills.
- Hairline grid: 1px lines in #000000 run both across and down the page (79 across, 39 down), dividing it into cells instead of cards.
- Dashed lines: Dashed lines in #000000 as separators.
- Small marks: 46 small decorative marks (dots, crosses or ticks under 16px) in #606060 and #F0F1F2, placed at corners and edges.
- Large images: Photographs, video or raster artwork cover about 27% of the page.
- Type as set (size, weight and tracking measured together; use these pairs): 62px weight 700 tracking -0.013em; 30px weight 600 tracking -0.017em; 20px weight 600 tracking -0.025em; 18px weight 600; 16px weight 500; 14.4px weight 400.

1. DESIGN TOKENS — PASTE INTO YOUR GLOBAL CSS
Allowed colours, with how the original uses each. Use no other colour, including in hover states:
- #FFFFFF — 84.5% · backgrounds (var(--color-background))
- #FAFAFD — 6.1% · backgrounds (var(--color-fafafd))
- #475569 — 2.9% · text
- #202020 — 1.2% · text
- #1E1E1E — 0.8% · backgrounds, text (var(--color-1e1e1e))
- #242424 — 0.7% · text (var(--color-text-muted))
- #EEF4FB — 0.7% · backgrounds (var(--color-eef4fb))
- #000000 — 0.7% · text, lines (var(--color-text))
- #001080 — 0.4% · text
- #333333 — 0.3% · text
- #F0F1F2 — hairlines and grid lines (var(--color-surface))
- #606060 — small marks
- #C49B1E — small marks
- #0078D4 — Action (var(--color-action))
- #005FB8 — Link (var(--color-link))
- #388A34 — Positive (var(--color-positive))
- #A31515 — Negative (var(--color-negative))
- #795E26 — Warning (var(--color-warning))
Fonts — put these first in your global CSS (one import per font, so one that fails cannot stop the others):
```css
@import url("https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Source+Code+Pro:wght@400&display=swap");
```
Source Code Pro is on Google Fonts and loaded from there.
Keep every size, weight, line height and tracking exactly as listed whichever font renders.
```css
:root {
  --color-background: #FFFFFF; /* Background */
  --color-surface: #F0F1F2; /* Surface */
  --color-text: #000000; /* Text */
  --color-text-muted: #242424; /* Text muted */
  --color-action: #0078D4; /* Action */
  --color-on-action: #FFFFFF; /* On action */
  --color-link: #005FB8; /* Link */
  --color-positive: #388A34; /* Positive */
  --color-negative: #A31515; /* Negative */
  --color-warning: #795E26; /* Warning */
  --color-fafafd: #FAFAFD; /* 6.1% of the page, as fills */
  --color-1e1e1e: #1E1E1E; /* 0.8% of the page, as fills */
  --color-eef4fb: #EEF4FB; /* 0.7% of the page, as fills */
  --font-body: "Menlo", monospace; /* Menlo */
  --font-code: "Source Code Pro", monospace; /* Source Code Pro */
  --type-display: 62px; /* Display, weight 700 */
  --type-display-leading: 74.4px;
  --type-display-tracking: -0.013em;
  --type-headline: 30px; /* Headline, weight 600 */
  --type-headline-leading: 45px;
  --type-headline-tracking: -0.017em;
  --type-title-large: 20px; /* Title Large, weight 600 */
  --type-title-large-leading: 30px;
  --type-title-large-tracking: -0.025em;
  --type-title-small: 18px; /* Title Small, weight 600 */
  --type-title-small-leading: 25.7143px;
  --type-body-large: 16px; /* Body Large, weight 500 */
  --type-body-large-leading: 25.6px;
  --type-body-small: 14px; /* Body Small, weight 400 */
  --type-body-small-leading: 21px;
  --type-label-1: 13px; /* Label 1, weight 400 */
  --type-label-1-leading: 18.85px;
  --type-label-2: 12px; /* Label 2, weight 400 */
  --type-label-2-leading: 17.1429px;
  --type-label-3: 11.7px; /* Label 3, weight 400 */
  --type-label-3-leading: 17.55px;
  --type-label-4: 11px; /* Label 4, weight 400 */
  --type-label-4-leading: 16.5px;
  --type-label-5: 10.8px; /* Label 5, weight 400 */
  --type-label-5-leading: 15.4286px;
  --type-label-6: 10px; /* Label 6, weight 700 */
  --type-label-6-leading: 14.2857px;
  --type-label-6-tracking: 0.05em;
  --space-4: 4px;
  --space-8: 8px;
  --space-12: 12px;
  --space-16: 16px;
  --space-20: 20px;
  --space-24: 24px;
  --space-32: 32px;
  --space-36: 36px;
  --space-40: 40px;
  --space-48: 48px;
  --space-60: 60px;
  --space-92: 92px;
  --space-96: 96px;
  --radius-xs: 1px;
  --radius-sm: 2px;
  --radius-md: 3px;
  --radius-lg: 4px;
  --radius-xl: 5px;
  --radius-2xl: 6px;
  --radius-3xl: 8px;
  --radius-10: 10px; /* component radius */
  --elevation-1: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.08) 0px 0px 6px 0px;
  --elevation-2: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.18) 0px 8px 32px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.08) 0px 2px 8px 0px;
  --duration-1: 0.08s;
  --duration-2: 0.15s;
  --duration-3: 0.2s;
  --duration-4: 0.25s;
  --ease-1: ease-in;
  --ease-2: ease-in-out;
  --ease-3: linear;
}
```
Tailwind CSS v4 (the default for new projects): put this after `@import "tailwindcss";`. It removes Tailwind's own palette, so only these colours exist as utilities:
```css
@theme {
  --color-*: initial;
  --color-background: #FFFFFF;
  --color-surface: #F0F1F2;
  --color-text: #000000;
  --color-text-muted: #242424;
  --color-action: #0078D4;
  --color-on-action: #FFFFFF;
  --color-link: #005FB8;
  --color-positive: #388A34;
  --color-negative: #A31515;
  --color-warning: #795E26;
  --color-fafafd: #FAFAFD;
  --color-1e1e1e: #1E1E1E;
  --color-eef4fb: #EEF4FB;
  --font-body: "Menlo", monospace;
  --font-code: "Source Code Pro", monospace;
  --text-display: 62px;
  --text-display--line-height: 74.4px;
  --text-display--letter-spacing: -0.013em;
  --text-headline: 30px;
  --text-headline--line-height: 45px;
  --text-headline--letter-spacing: -0.017em;
  --text-title-large: 20px;
  --text-title-large--line-height: 30px;
  --text-title-large--letter-spacing: -0.025em;
  --text-title-small: 18px;
  --text-title-small--line-height: 25.7143px;
  --text-body-large: 16px;
  --text-body-large--line-height: 25.6px;
  --text-body-small: 14px;
  --text-body-small--line-height: 21px;
  --text-label-1: 13px;
  --text-label-1--line-height: 18.85px;
  --text-label-2: 12px;
  --text-label-2--line-height: 17.1429px;
  --text-label-3: 11.7px;
  --text-label-3--line-height: 17.55px;
  --text-label-4: 11px;
  --text-label-4--line-height: 16.5px;
  --text-label-5: 10.8px;
  --text-label-5--line-height: 15.4286px;
  --text-label-6: 10px;
  --text-label-6--line-height: 14.2857px;
  --text-label-6--letter-spacing: 0.05em;
  --radius-xs: 1px;
  --radius-sm: 2px;
  --radius-md: 3px;
  --radius-lg: 4px;
  --radius-xl: 5px;
  --radius-2xl: 6px;
  --radius-3xl: 8px;
  --shadow-e1: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.08) 0px 0px 6px 0px;
  --shadow-e2: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.18) 0px 8px 32px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.08) 0px 2px 8px 0px;
  --ease-1: ease-in;
  --ease-2: ease-in-out;
  --ease-3: linear;
}
```
Tailwind CSS v3 only: extend the theme with these instead, and use no other palette:
```js
// tailwind.config — theme.extend
{
  colors: { "background": "var(--color-background)", "surface": "var(--color-surface)", "text": "var(--color-text)", "text-muted": "var(--color-text-muted)", "action": "var(--color-action)", "on-action": "var(--color-on-action)", "link": "var(--color-link)", "positive": "var(--color-positive)", "negative": "var(--color-negative)", "warning": "var(--color-warning)" },
  fontFamily: { "body": ["var(--font-body)"], "code": ["var(--font-code)"] },
  borderRadius: { "xs": "var(--radius-xs)", "sm": "var(--radius-sm)", "md": "var(--radius-md)", "lg": "var(--radius-lg)", "xl": "var(--radius-xl)", "2xl": "var(--radius-2xl)", "3xl": "var(--radius-3xl)" },
  boxShadow: { "e1": "var(--elevation-1)", "e2": "var(--elevation-2)" },
}
```

2. BASE STYLES
```css
html { background: var(--color-background); }
body { margin: 0; font-family: var(--font-body); font-size: var(--type-body-large); line-height: var(--type-body-large-leading); color: var(--color-text); -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -moz-osx-font-smoothing: grayscale; }
h1, h2, h3 { font-family: var(--font-body); margin: 0; }
a { color: var(--color-link); }
:focus-visible { outline: 2px solid var(--color-action); outline-offset: 2px; }
```

3. COMPONENTS — MATCH THESE EXACTLY
```css
.card { /* Default */
  background: var(--color-fafafd);
  border-radius: var(--radius-3xl);
  min-height: 520px;
  box-shadow: var(--elevation-2);
  color: #333333;
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-body-small);
  font-weight: 400;
  line-height: 20px;
}
.card-2 { /* Alternative 1 */
  background: var(--color-background);
  border-radius: 0px 0px 8px 8px;
  min-height: 485px;
  color: #333333;
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-body-small);
  font-weight: 400;
  line-height: 20px;
}
.card-3 { /* Alternative 2 */
  background: var(--color-background);
  border-radius: 0px 0px 0px 8px;
  min-height: 485px;
  color: #333333;
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-body-small);
  font-weight: 400;
  line-height: 20px;
}
.link-2 { /* Inline 2 */
  background: transparent;
  border: 1px solid #000000;
  border-radius: var(--radius-3xl);
  padding: var(--space-16);
  color: var(--color-link);
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-body-large);
  font-weight: 500;
  line-height: 22.8571px;
  /* recorded states: hover, focus, focus-visible */
}
.link-3 { /* Inline 3 */
  background: transparent;
  border-radius: var(--radius-sm);
  color: var(--color-1e1e1e);
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-label-2);
  font-weight: 500;
  line-height: 19.2px;
  /* recorded states: hover, focus, focus-visible */
}
.nav { /* Default */
  background: transparent;
  min-height: 58px;
  color: #333333;
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-body-large);
  font-weight: 400;
  line-height: 22.8571px;
}
.button { /* Primary */
  background: var(--color-action);
  border-radius: var(--radius-lg);
  padding: 8px 16px 8px 16px;
  min-height: 32px;
  color: var(--color-on-action);
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-body-large);
  font-weight: 600;
  line-height: 16px;
  /* recorded states: hover, focus, focus-visible, active */
}
.button-2 { /* Secondary */
  background: var(--color-1e1e1e);
  border-radius: var(--radius-10);
  padding: 12px 16px 12px 16px;
  min-height: 52px;
  color: #FFFFFF;
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-title-small);
  font-weight: 600;
  line-height: 25.7143px;
  /* recorded states: focus-visible, hover */
}
.button-3 { /* Icon */
  background: var(--color-background);
  border-radius: var(--radius-lg);
  padding: 1px 6px 1px 6px;
  min-height: 32px;
  color: #333333;
  font-family: "system-ui";
  font-size: var(--type-title-large);
  font-weight: 600;
  line-height: 28.5714px;
  /* recorded states: hover, focus-visible */
}
```
Where a component lists recorded states, write those states using only the colours above; the capture saw that the state exists, not its values. Never invent a state colour.

4. PAGE COMPOSITION
- Light interface on #FFFFFF. Keep that ground; do not add a dark mode or alternate section backgrounds the system does not have.
- The opening screen carries a large image or video on the middle. Leave a [content: hero image or video] slot there, at least half the screen wide; the opening is not text alone.
- #0078D4 is the action colour. Fill the primary action with it and little else — at most one #0078D4-filled element per screen; other accents keep to the uses listed above.
- Type: Menlo for body; Source Code Pro for code. Hierarchy comes from size and weight, not colour or decoration.
- Corner radii are 1px, 2px, 3px, 4px, 5px, 6px, 8px — nothing else.
- Body text uses Menlo at around 16px, weights 400.
- Headings use system-ui; the largest heading is 62px.
- Primary buttons are #0078D4, 4px radius, weight 600.
- Cards use 8px corners with a soft shadow.
- Corner radii in use: 4px, 2px, 8px, 3px, 10px.

HOW THE ORIGINAL PACES ITS PAGE (BORROW THE RHYTHM — THE OPENING, THE COLOURED BANDS, THE CARD GRIDS — NOT THE LIST; BUILD THE SECTIONS YOUR PRODUCT NEEDS)
1. Hero — 981px tall, split 5 / 7, centred 62px heading (weight 700), image centred, on #FFFFFF.
2. Split — 730px tall, split 4 / 8, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600), image on the right.
3. Cards — 458px tall, 3 equal columns, 48px gap, left-aligned 20px heading (weight 600).
4. Split — 270px tall, 2 equal columns, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600), image behind the content.
5. Split — 686px tall, split 4 / 8, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600), image on the right.
6. Cards — 539px tall, 3 equal columns, 16px gap, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600) set mid-band.
7. Split — 325px tall, split 4 / 8, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600).
8. Split — 551px tall, split 4 / 8, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600), image on the right.
9. Split — 570px tall, split 4 / 8, left-aligned 30px heading (weight 600), image on the right.
10. Grid — 659px tall, 8 items in 4 columns with 16px gaps, centred 30px heading (weight 600).
11. Footer — 289px tall, left-aligned 12px heading (weight 500), on #FFFFFF.
- Content sits in a 900px container, 100px from the edge at 1440px wide.
- A 58px header scrolls away, transparent over the first section.
- The hero is 981px (1.1 screens): split 5 / 7, centred 62px heading (weight 700), image centred, on #FFFFFF.
- Column splits on a 12-column grid: 4/8 (5×), thirds (2×), 5/7, halves; gaps of 16px.
- Headings align left (9 of 11 sections); centre only the occasional statement.
- Sections share one background; they are separated by space and lines, not colour bands.
- A typical section is about 551px tall.

COPY SHAPE (MATCH THE LENGTH AND CASE; WRITE YOUR OWN WORDS)
- The main heading is 6 words long.
- Section headings are medium length: typically 4 words.
- Headings are in sentence case (only the first word capitalised).
- The page describes itself in about 32 words; keep your intro paragraph to about that length.

5. MOTION
Interactive elements change colour, background, border and opacity with the measured timing. Animate nothing else.
```css
a, button, [role="button"], input { transition: color var(--duration-1) var(--ease-1), background-color var(--duration-1) var(--ease-1), border-color var(--duration-1) var(--ease-1), opacity var(--duration-1) var(--ease-1); }
@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
  *, *::before, *::after { animation-duration: 0.01ms !important; animation-iteration-count: 1 !important; transition-duration: 0.01ms !important; scroll-behavior: auto !important; }
}
```
No scroll-triggered fade-ins, parallax, typewriter text or bouncing elements.

6. RESPONSIVE
- The design was measured at 1440px wide. Lay it out for that width first, then let it reflow down to 360px.
- Content sits in a column at most 1090px wide, centred, with var(--space-16) (16px) side padding on small screens.
- The largest heading scales fluidly: font-size: clamp(30px, 4.3vw, 62px). Every other size stays fixed.
- Break on composition, not device names: a row of columns drops a column when any column would be narrower than 240px; side-by-side splits stack when either side would be narrower than 320px.
- Spacing steps never change between sizes; use smaller steps from the same list where space is tight.
- On touch screens, every link and button has a hit area of at least 44 × 44px without changing its drawn size.

7. ACCESSIBILITY
- Text pairs that pass for body copy: Text on Background (21:1), Text muted on Background (15.5:1), Action on Background (4.5:1), Link on Background (6.3:1), Negative on Background (7.8:1), Text on Surface (18.6:1), Text muted on Surface (13.7:1), Link on Surface (5.6:1), Negative on Surface (6.9:1) and On action on Action (4.5:1).
- Only for text 24px and up, or 18.66px bold: Positive on Background (4.3:1), Action on Surface (4:1) and Positive on Surface (3.8:1).
- Use no other text-on-background pairing.
- One h1 per page, headings in order, landmarks (header, nav, main, footer), real buttons and links, a label on every field, alt text on every image, an aria-label on icon-only buttons.
- Every interactive element shows the :focus-visible outline above.

8. DO NOT (THESE ARE WHAT MAKE AI-BUILT SITES LOOK GENERIC)
- Only the two shadows in the tokens, on the components that use them. (2 shadow values were measured; inventing softer ones changes the depth of the page.)
- No gradients: not in backgrounds, text, buttons or borders. (No gradient was measured.)
- Only these colours: #FFFFFF, #FAFAFD, #475569, #202020, #1E1E1E, #242424, #EEF4FB, #000000, #001080, #333333, #F0F1F2, #606060, #C49B1E, #0078D4, #005FB8, #388A34, #A31515, #795E26. No new tints, no Tailwind defaults (slate, indigo, violet). (They are every colour that covers a measurable part of the page, and the colours its lines and drawings use.)
- #001080 only for text — never as a section background or a large panel. (It covers 0.4% of the page.)
- #A31515 only for text — never as a section background or a large panel. (It covers 0.3% of the page.)
- Only the fonts in the tokens: Menlo for body; Source Code Pro for code. No other typeface, and no Inter, Roboto or system UI font unless it is one of these. (The page is set in system-ui and Menlo and Source Code Pro; the tokens carry what stands in for them.)
- Headings and large text never heavier than weight 700. Do not make headlines bold to add emphasis. (Every size from 24px up is set at weight 700 or lighter.)
- Large headlines tracked tight (letter-spacing -0.013em), not at the browser default. (The 62px headline is set at -0.013em.)
- No icon above every feature, no emoji, no decorative blobs, sparkles or glows. (None of these is part of the captured design; they are a coding model's defaults.)
- Build the sections your product needs, not the original's list. Give each one this system's look: its kinds of section (hero, split, cards, grid, footer), its colours, type, shapes and spacing. (The style carries to any kind of site; the original's page was for a different product.)
- No glassmorphism, backdrop blur, glowing orbs, noise blobs or neon outlines.
- No row of three identical feature cards as the default section. Vary the layout from section to section: a split, a list, a single large statement, a table.
- No centred-everything hero with a pill badge, a gradient headline and two buttons. Lead with the most specific thing about the product.
- No filler copy: no "Unlock your potential", "Revolutionize", "Seamless", "Elevate", "Supercharge", "Next-gen" or lorem ipsum. Write plain, specific sentences a real company would publish.
- No made-up statistics, testimonials or customer logos. Leave a clearly marked [content: …] slot instead.
- No radius larger than the largest one listed.
- Do not use code.visualstudio.com's name, logo, copy or images. This is its design system, not its content.

BEFORE YOU FINISH
- Search your code for every colour, font size, spacing value, radius, shadow and easing, and replace anything that is not a variable above.
- Check that no [content: …] slot has been filled with invented facts.
- Search your CSS for gradient(. There should be none.
- Every colour value in your CSS is one of the allowed colours. Nothing else, including in hover states.
- #001080 covers about 0.4% of the page or less, as on the original.
- #A31515 covers about 0.3% of the page or less, as on the original.
- No text 24px or larger has a font-weight above 700.
- The largest headline uses letter-spacing -0.013em.
- Every section, including ones the original does not have, uses only this system's colours, type, shapes and spacing.
- Content sits in a 900px container with 100px side margins at 1440px.
- There is no placeholder copy (lorem ipsum, "Feature one", "Your headline here"). Every word is real.
- Take a screenshot at 1440px and put it beside the original. List every difference in colour, weight, spacing, alignment and imagery, and fix each before finishing. Then check 390px wide: nothing scrolls sideways and no heading runs off the screen.