Vim is a modal text editor descended from Vi, with Neovim serving as a modern, extensible fork that adds built-in LSP support, Lua scripting, and a robust plugin ecosystem. Unlike traditional editors, Vim operates through distinct modes—Normal, Insert, Visual, and Command-line—enabling rapid text manipulation through composable commands. The core philosophy is editing at the speed of thought: operators combine with motions and text objects to form a grammar (ciw = change inner word), making complex edits concise and repeatable. Neovim 0.12 (released March 2026) added a built-in plugin manager (vim.pack), native insert-mode auto-completion, expanded LSP defaults, and the :lsp command—reducing the need for third-party plugins significantly.
What This Cheat Sheet Covers
This topic spans 31 focused tables and 321 indexed concepts. Below is a complete table-by-table outline of this topic, spanning foundational concepts through advanced details.
Table 1: Modes and Mode Switching
| Mode | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|
<Esc> or <C-[> | • Default mode for navigation and commands • no text is inserted directly. Press <Esc> from any mode to return here. | |
i | • Enters insert before cursor • a appends after cursor• o opens a new line below. Type text normally in this mode. | |
v | • Character-wise selection • V selects entire lines• <C-v> enters Visual Block mode for rectangular column selection. | |
: | • Execute Ex commands like :w (write), :q (quit), :s (substitute)• prefix with : from Normal mode. |