I Didn't Want to Open Excel Just to Generate Sequential Numbers in VS Code

almiraj Posted on May 30 I Didn't Want to Open Excel Just to Generate Sequential Numbers in VS Code # vscode # sql # programming # tooling While working in VS Code, I occasionally need sequential numbers. Something like this: user_001 user_002 user_003 Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode Or test data for SQL: INSERT INTO users ( id , name , created_at ) VALUES ( 1 , 'testA' , '2026-05-28 10:00:00' ); INSERT INTO users ( id , name , created_at ) VALUES ( 2 , 'testB' , '2026-05-28 10:00:01' ); INSERT INTO users ( id , name , created_at ) VALUES ( 3 , 'testC' , '2026-05-28 10:00:02' ); Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode Of course, I could open Excel and use formulas. But somehow that always felt wrong. I was already in VS Code. I wanted to stay in VS Code. VS Code Is Surprisingly Weak at Sequential Numbers There are workarounds. You can use multiple cursors. You can use find-and-replace tricks. You can generate data elsewhere and paste it back. None of them are particularly difficult. They're just slightly inconvenient. And if you work with SQL, CSV files, or test data regularly, those small inconveniences show up again and again. So I Built a VS Code Extension https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=almiraj.insert-numbers-ex The extension inserts sequential numbers at multiple cursor positions. For example: 001 002 003 004 Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode It supports zero-padding and space-padding. It also supports dates and times. 2026-12-31 23:59:58 2026-12-31 23:59:59 2027-01-01 00:00:00 2027-01-01 00:00:01 Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode The alphabet, too. a b c d Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode Nothing revolutionary. Just something I found myself wanting often enough. My Goal Was Simplicity There are already several extensions that solve similar problems. Instead of adding more features, I focused on a few things: Lightweight Easy to understand Easy to use immediately Minimal configuration Clear docum