RDi vs VS Code for IBM i in 2026: which should you use?

The RDi vs VS Code debate for IBM i development has a clear answer in 2026: for the first time in the history of the Fortra IBM i Marketplace Survey, more developers are using Visual Studio Code than RDi. The 2026 results show 58% on VS Code, 57% on RDi. Two years ago, RDi led 56% to 37%. The gap has closed and flipped. If you’re still treating this as a future decision, it isn’t anymore.

This article covers what each IDE actually does in 2026, where the remaining gaps are, and how to think about migration for your team.

The 2026 survey data and what it signals

The Fortra IBM i Marketplace Survey has tracked IDE usage for years. The 2026 numbers tell a clear story:

2024 survey (2023 data): RDi 56%, VS Code 37%
2025 survey (2024 data): RDi 54%, VS Code 53%, a statistical dead heat
2026 survey (2025 data): VS Code 58%, RDi 57%, the first time VS Code leads

IBM i chief architect Steve Will confirmed that IBM is investing in VS Code precisely because developers entering the workforce already use it. “We are investing in the open source tool base of Visual Studio Code because there are so many clients out there who have programmers who are using VS Code, developers who came from the world of doing VS Code,” he said at the 2026 survey webcast.

The signal from the tooling vendors is just as clear. PTC announced today (June 15, 2026) that Implementer 12.7, their change management system used by thousands of IBM i shops, will ship with full VS Code support in Q3 2026. PTC’s development manager said “everything that the RDi extension does today is available in the VS Code extension now.” PTC still supports RDi 9.9, but the company is openly treating VS Code as where younger developers will land.

What VS Code + Code for IBM i can do in 2026

A year ago, VS Code had meaningful gaps. In 2026, the gaps are much smaller.

The Code for IBM i extension, now at 82,928 installs on the VS Code Marketplace, covers the core development workflow:

Edit and compile RPGLE, CL, COBOL, C, and C++ directly on IBM i over SSH
Inline error display as you compile (no toggling to a separate output pane)
Content assist for RPGLE and CL
Source date support
Member-level and IFS-level file browsing and transfer
DB2 query history per LPAR, organized by week and month

Debugging was the longest-standing gap and it’s now closed. IBM decoupled their RPG/COBOL debugger from RDi and published it as a standalone IBM i Debug extension for VS Code. It works with the IBM i Debug Service on the server and supports interactive debugging (breakpoints, watch variables, step-through) of both RPG and COBOL programs. This is the same debug capability RDi provides, available in VS Code for free.

Git integration is native in VS Code. This matters more than it sounds: IBM i source members were historically managed by change management tools (Implementer, Turnover, ALDON) that had no concept of Git. If your shop is moving toward Git-based workflows, VS Code is the natural fit. RDi has Git support through a plugin, but it’s an afterthought in an IDE designed for a pre-Git era.

IBM keeps shipping updates to Code for i alongside every Technology Refresh, not just on its own schedule. The July 2026 refresh added SSH key passphrase support and a better schema browser to the database extension, on top of the RPG and CL language changes developers get from the TR itself.

AI assistant integrations (GitHub Copilot, Claude, IBM’s own Bob) exist in VS Code and not in RDi. If your team is starting to use AI assistance for RPG generation or COBOL documentation, VS Code is the only viable platform for that workflow right now.

What RDi still does better

RDi isn’t dead, and there are legitimate reasons some shops won’t move off it this year.

Object management depth. RDi’s Remote System Explorer has mature tooling for browsing and managing IBM i objects: libraries, data queues, data areas, spooled files, message queues. The Code for IBM i extension handles source members and IFS, but if your workflow relies on object-level operations (particularly non-source objects), RDi gives you more without needing to drop back to green screen.

Mature debugging for legacy programs. RDi’s integrated debugger has years of edge-case handling for fixed-format RPG and old-style COBOL. The VS Code debug extension works well for modern ILE code; shops running ancient OPM RPG or deeply nested call stacks on V7R3 systems may find edge cases.

Existing investment. If your team has years of RDi workflows, key bindings, templates, and muscle memory, the migration cost is real. Not switching has a cost too, but it isn’t free.

Some change management tools still require it. This is shrinking fast. Implementer 12.7 adds VS Code support later this year, and most other major vendors have already moved. Verify your change management stack before committing.

How to think about team migration

The practical approach most IBM i shops are taking in 2026 is not a hard cutover. It’s parallel adoption followed by gradual default shift.

Start new developers on VS Code. They’ll be faster to onboard, their instincts already match the toolchain, and they won’t push back on the change. Existing developers who want to move should be encouraged but not forced. The IBM i Developer Pack (the VS Code extension bundle) takes about 30 minutes to set up and is documented well.

A reasonable migration path for a shop on RDi today:

Install VS Code + IBM i Development Pack on one developer’s machine
Run it alongside RDi for 2-4 weeks on active work
Identify which workflows still require RDi (usually: object management, legacy OPM debugging, change management if your vendor hasn’t added VS Code support yet)
Address those gaps before moving the full team

There’s no reason to delay the evaluation. The extension is free, the install is low-risk, and the survey data is not ambiguous about where the ecosystem is headed.

The toolchain is catching up

The ecosystem around VS Code for IBM i has grown substantially over the past two years. IBM’s own IBM i Testing extension brings unit testing support directly into VS Code. ARCAD extensions bridge VS Code with ARCAD’s DevOps and modernization tools for shops already in that ecosystem. Git-based workflows via Bob (IBM’s build tool for IBM i) integrate natively with VS Code terminals, which is a core part of modernizing IBM i applications with AI tools. And Implementer 12.7, expected Q3 2026, brings full VS Code parity for PTC shops, removing the last major change management holdout.

The green screen development tools (SEU, PDM) are still at 74% usage according to the 2026 survey, and they will not disappear soon. But Steve Will’s observation holds: developers using those tools are doing small, quick changes. Nobody is starting a new module in SEU in 2026.

None of this replaces the tool most shops already have open for day-to-day SQL work, data transfer, and 5250 access. Our review of what IBM i Access Client Solutions still does well in 2026 covers where it earns a permanent spot in your workflow no matter which IDE you land on.

Who should still stay on RDi

If any of these apply, RDi remains the better primary tool for now:

Your change management vendor does not yet support VS Code (check your specific vendor’s roadmap)
Your team has heavy object management workflows in Remote System Explorer with no near-term plan to change them
You’re debugging OPM RPG programs on older OS releases where the VS Code debug extension hasn’t been stress-tested
Your entire team is senior developers who are productive in RDi and you have no hiring plans. The migration cost outweighs the benefit for a stable team on a stable codebase

In all other cases, the case for VS Code is stronger in 2026 than it has ever been.

Bottom line

VS Code passed RDi in usage for the first time in 2026, and the ecosystem is following: IBM is investing in it, PTC just added Implementer support, and the debug gap that held back VS Code adoption is closed. If you’re choosing an IDE for new IBM i development today, start with VS Code and the Code for IBM i extension. If you’re on RDi, run the parallel evaluation before the end of this year. The remaining gaps are shrinking and the window for a clean migration is right now, not after the ecosystem has moved further.

If your team is also looking at AI tools for IBM i work (documenting RPG, generating CL programs, or modernizing legacy code), we’ve covered using AI to document RPG IV code as a starting point, and the IBM i AI Field Guide goes deeper with 35 IBM i-specific prompts and workflows.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can VS Code replace RDi for IBM i development?

For most development tasks in 2026, yes. VS Code with the Code for IBM i extension handles editing, compiling, and debugging RPG, CL, and COBOL. The remaining gaps are in object management and some administrative workflows where RDi or green screen tools are still faster.

Is Code for IBM i free?

Yes. Code for IBM i is a free, open-source VS Code extension maintained by Liam Allan and contributors. IBM contributes the separate IBM i Debug extension and the Db2 for i extension, also free.

What is the latest version of RDi?

IBM released RDi 9.9 on January 27, 2026. It requires a full reinstall and cannot be applied as an update to an existing RDi 9.8 installation.

Does VS Code support RPG debugging on IBM i?

Yes. IBM decoupled their debugger from RDi and released it as a standalone IBM i Debug extension for VS Code. It works with the IBM i Debug Service on the server and supports interactive debugging of RPG and COBOL programs.