How do I auto-indent an entire file in Vim?

Explanation

The gg=G command re-indents every line in the current file according to Vim's indentation rules. It is the fastest way to fix inconsistent indentation across an entire file.

How it works

• gg moves the cursor to the first line of the file
• = is the indent operator — it adjusts indentation based on filetype rules
• G is a motion to the last line of the file

Together, gg=G tells Vim: "from the first line to the last line, fix the indentation."

Example

Given the poorly indented code:

function greet() {
const name = "Vim";
    if (name) {
console.log(name);
}
}

Pressing gg=G reformats it to:

function greet() {
    const name = "Vim";
    if (name) {
        console.log(name);
    }
}

Tips

• The indentation style depends on your filetype, shiftwidth, and expandtab settings
• Use == to auto-indent just the current line
• Use =ap to auto-indent the current paragraph
• In visual mode, select a range of lines and press = to re-indent only the selection
• Use =i{ to auto-indent everything inside the current curly brace block
• Make sure filetype detection is enabled with :filetype indent on for best results