GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio — May update

Microsoft released the May 2026 update for GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio 2026, introducing a Plan agent that collaborates with developers on implementation plans before code is written. The update also adds a Skills panel for managing agent capabilities, a multi-file summary diff view for reviewing Copilot changes, and a context window usage indicator. These features aim to streamline planning, reviewing, and managing development work within the IDE.

GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio — May update May 2026 brought sharper tooling for planning, reviewing, and managing your work with GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio 2026. Highlights highlights Here’s what’s new for all GitHub Copilot users in Visual Studio 2026. Check the Insiders channel for the latest: Plan before you build with the Plan agent : The new Plan agent labeled Plan in the agent picker lets you collaborate with Copilot on an implementation plan before any code is written. Copilot explores your codebase with read-only tools, asks clarifying questions, and drafts a detailed plan saved as a markdown file at .copilot/plans/plan-{title}.md . When you’re ready, click Implement plan to hand it off to Agent mode. View and manage agent skills : A new Skills panel in the chat window lists every agent skill discovered from your workspace and user profile. You can edit a skill, open its file location, or search across skills by name or keyword, all from a single place. Multi-file summary diff for Copilot changes : After Copilot edits multiple files, click Open change summary view in the working set to see all changes in one tab. Accept or undo at the all-files, per-file, or per-chunk level, with controls to collapse files or step through diff chunks. Manage context window usage : A new ring icon at the top right of the Copilot Chat prompt shows how much of the context window you’ve used. Click to see a detailed breakdown and use Summarize conversation to compact earlier turns and free up space. Add commit to Copilot Chat : Right-click a commit in Git History , File History , or the Annotate Blame view and attach it directly as context in Copilot Chat. Multi-select is supported, so you can attach several commits at once. Commit message instructions moved : Commit message custom instructions now live in your repository’s Copilot custom instructions file instead of the old GitHub Copilot Source Control Integration setting, keeping all Copilot guidance in one place. Improved optimizations for iterative C++ builds : When @BuildPerfCpp detects a regression in full rebuild analysis, it now reruns a comparable incremental build. This better reflects the day-to-day gains from optimizations such as precompiled headers and header refactoring, which can look slower in rebuilds. Download Visual Studio 2026 https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads to experience all the new Copilot features today. To learn more about what’s new, check out the Visual Studio blog https://devblogs.microsoft.com/visualstudio/visual-studio-may-update-plan-review-refine and release notes https://learn.microsoft.com/visualstudio/releases/2026/release-notes . What’s next for Copilot in Visual Studio whats-next-for-copilot-in-visual-studio Stay up to date on the latest Copilot features by following the Visual Studio blog https://devblogs.microsoft.com/visualstudio , where you’ll find roadmap updates and opportunities to share feedback. For the latest news, release notes, videos, and community conversations, visit the Visual Studio Hub https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/hub/ , your central resource for all things Visual Studio.