How do I use PCRE-style regex in Vim without escaping every special character?

Explanation

Vim's default regex mode ("magic") requires backslashes before many special characters: \(, \|, \+, \{. Prefixing your pattern with \v activates very magic mode, where all characters except [0-9A-Za-z_] are treated as regex operators — no extra escaping needed. This makes patterns much more readable, especially if you're accustomed to PCRE or grep ERE syntax.

How it works

• \v — enable very magic mode for the rest of the pattern
• In very magic mode: (, |, +, {n}, ? all work without backslashes
• Without it (normal magic): same characters require \(, \|, \+, \{n\}, \?

The switch applies immediately and affects the entire pattern that follows.

Example

Match lines containing either error or warning followed by a colon:

" Normal magic (default) — cluttered with backslashes:
/\(error\|warning\):/

" Very magic — clean and readable:
/\v(error|warning):/

Match a UUID-like pattern:

" Very magic makes grouping and quantifiers readable:
/\v[0-9a-f]{8}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{12}/

Use in substitutions too:

:%s/\v(\w+)=(\w+)/\2=\1/g

Tips

• \V (very NOmagic) does the opposite — almost all characters are treated literally, useful for searching for strings with many special chars like file paths
• You can mix modes mid-pattern: \v and \m (magic), \M (nomagic) are all valid atoms that switch mode at their position
• Map a shortcut for faster invocation: :nnoremap / /\v to always start searches in very magic mode