2 minute read

Context

Vim rewards depth over breadth.

You don’t need to know every command—just a small, reliable core that lets you move, edit, and refactor text efficiently without leaving the keyboard.

This cheatsheet focuses on high-value commands that cover the majority of real-world editing tasks.

Modes (The Mental Model)

Vim is modal. Understanding this matters more than memorizing commands.

  • Normal mode: navigation and commands
  • Insert mode: text entry
  • Visual mode: selection
  • Command mode: file and editor commands

If Vim feels confusing, it’s usually a mode issue.

Basic Navigation

Move the cursor:

h  j  k  l

Word movement:

w   next word
b   previous word
e   end of word

Line movement:

0   start of line
^   first non-blank character
$   end of line

File movement:

gg  top of file
G   bottom of file

Insert Mode

Enter insert mode:

i   insert before cursor
a   insert after cursor
o   open new line below
O   open new line above

Exit insert mode:

Esc

Returning to Normal mode quickly is essential.

Editing Text

Delete:

x       delete character
dd      delete line
dw      delete word
d$      delete to end of line

Change:

cw      change word
cc      change line
c$      change to end of line

Undo and redo:

u       undo
Ctrl-r  redo

Copy, Cut, and Paste

Yank (copy):

yy      yank line
yw      yank word

Delete (cut):

dd

Paste:

p       paste after cursor
P       paste before cursor

Vim treats delete as a form of cut.

Visual Mode (Selecting Text)

Enter visual mode:

v       character-wise
V       line-wise
Ctrl-v  block-wise

After selecting:

y       yank
d       delete
>       indent
<       unindent

Visual mode makes structural edits safer.

Searching

Search forward:

/pattern

Search backward:

?pattern

Navigate results:

n       next match
N       previous match

Clear search highlighting:

:noh

Replace

Replace in the current line:

:s/old/new/

Replace globally in file:

:%s/old/new/g

Confirm each replacement:

:%s/old/new/gc

Search and replace is one of Vim’s strongest features.

Working with Files

Save file:

:w

Quit:

:q

Save and quit:

:wq

Quit without saving:

:q!

Open a file:

:e filename

Splits and Windows

Horizontal split:

:split

Vertical split:

:vsplit

Move between splits:

Ctrl-w h
Ctrl-w j
Ctrl-w k
Ctrl-w l

Close a split:

:close

Splits work well for side-by-side comparisons.

Useful Quality-of-Life Commands

Repeat last command:

.

Indent selection:

>>
<<

Auto-indent file:

gg=G

Repeatability is where Vim speed comes from.

Common Mistakes

  • Staying in Insert mode too long
  • Using arrow keys instead of motions
  • Avoiding Normal mode commands
  • Trying to memorize everything at once

Vim improves with gradual adoption.

Practical Tips

  • Learn motions before plugins
  • Optimize for editing, not aesthetics
  • Use Vim where latency matters (SSH, servers)
  • Let muscle memory build slowly

Mastery comes from repetition, not shortcuts.

Takeaways

  • Vim is modal by design—embrace it
  • A small command set covers most tasks
  • Motions + operators unlock power
  • Search and replace are first-class tools
  • Efficiency comes from staying on the keyboard

You don’t need to know Vim—you need to be comfortable in it.

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