robotcode

What it is and what it does

RobotCode is a comprehensive development toolkit for Robot Framework that bridges the gap between writing tests in an IDE and running them in CI. It provides a language server (LSP) that powers native extensions for VS Code and JetBrains IDEs, offering real-time code completion, hover documentation, go-to-definition, refactoring, debugging via the Debug Adapter Protocol, and live test discovery and execution. The package also includes a command-line interface that reads the same `robot.toml` configuration as the IDE, ensuring consistency between local development and CI pipelines.

The core value proposition is unified configuration and tooling: instead of scattering Robot Framework settings across command-line flags, IDE preferences, and CI scripts, RobotCode centralizes everything in a single `robot.toml` file with support for named profiles (dev, staging, CI, OS-specific) that can be layered and inherited. The CLI includes commands for test filtering, failure analysis, static diagnostics, documentation lookup, and interactive keyword exploration—all aware of your project's Python paths, custom libraries, and resources the same way the IDE is.

Use it for:

• Write Robot Framework tests in VS Code or PyCharm with real-time keyword completion, error checking, and inline documentation.
• Debug failing tests by setting breakpoints in keywords and stepping through execution with the Debug Adapter Protocol.
• Run the same test suite locally and in CI without duplicating configuration, using named profiles to switch between environments.
• Explore and filter tests by tags, documentation, or keyword calls, then run a narrowed subset without manual test selection.
• Analyze test failures across runs and compare results between builds to identify regressions without parsing output.xml by hand.
• Integrate RobotCode diagnostics into CI gates to catch static errors and linting issues matching what the IDE shows while typing.

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

RobotCode is a language server and IDE toolkit for Robot Framework that provides code completion, debugging, test discovery, and a unified configuration model across VS Code, JetBrains IDEs, and the command line.

Yes. RobotCode is actively maintained, has low install friction, carries a permissive Apache-2.0 license, and no known vulnerabilities. It is a production-stable (Development Status 5) toolkit backed by the Robot Framework Foundation. Install it if you use Robot Framework and want IDE-grade tooling (completion, debugging, refactoring) plus a unified configuration model for local and CI workflows. The CLI extras model lets you install only what you need (runner, analyze, debugger, languageserver, repl).

Install

robotcode on PyPI

pip install robotcode

uv add robotcode

poetry add robotcode

Installing robotcode

Before you install

Low install friction with a pure Python wheel. Actively maintained with a release 31 days old and recent commits. Depends on three internal robotcode packages (robotcode-core, robotcode-plugin, robotcode-robot) that are part of the same ecosystem.

License in practice

Licensed under Apache-2.0 (permissive), which allows commercial and private use with minimal restrictions — suitable for most development workflows.

Quickstart

# For VS Code: install the RobotCode extension from the Visual Studio Marketplace.
# For CLI and other editors:
pip install robotcode[runner,analyze]

# Then run tests with your project's robot.toml configuration:
robot --version

Requires Python 3.10 or newer and Robot Framework 5.0 or newer. VS Code requires version 1.108.0 or newer; PyCharm/IntelliJ IDEA requires 2025.3 or newer.

Verify before relying

• Whether the robotcode-core, robotcode-plugin, and robotcode-robot dependencies are bundled or must be installed separately from PyPI.
• Whether the LSP server can be used standalone in editors other than VS Code and JetBrains without additional setup.
• Performance characteristics when working with large multi-team test suites or deeply nested project structures.

Package facts

Evidence: robotcode-2.7.0-py3-none-any.whl

Keywords: Acceptance Test Driven Development, Acceptance Testing, BDD, BDT, Behavior Driven Testing, Data Driven, Debug Adapter Protocol, Keyword Driven, Language Server Protocol, RPA, RobotFramework, Robotic Process Automation, Test, Testing, Visual Studio Code

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Further reading