Helix Keybindings in the REPL

Enabling Helix Mode

  1. Open the Settings panel in the REPL (click the settings icon or use the keyboard shortcut)
  2. Find the “Keybindings” section
  3. Select “Helix” from the available options

Key Differences from Vim

Helix uses a selection-first approach, which means:

  • Selection → Action (Helix) vs Action → Motion (Vim)
  • For example, to delete a word in Helix: w (select word) → d (delete)
  • In Vim, it would be: dw (delete word)

Common Helix Commands

Normal Mode

  • i — Enter insert mode before selection
  • a — Enter insert mode after selection
  • v — Enter visual/select mode
  • w — Select next word
  • e — Select to end of word
  • b — Select previous word
  • x — Select/extend line
  • d — Delete selection
  • c — Change selection (delete and enter insert mode)
  • y — Yank (copy) selection
  • p — Paste after selection
  • u — Undo
  • U — Redo
  • / — Search
  • n — Select next search match
  • N — Select previous search match

Movement

  • h, j, k, l — Move left, down, up, right
  • gg — Go to start of document
  • ge — Go to end of document
  • { / } — Move to previous/next paragraph
  • % — Match bracket

Multi-cursor

  • C — Duplicate cursor to line below
  • Alt-C — Duplicate cursor to line above
  • , — Remove primary cursor
  • Alt-, — Remove all secondary cursors

Helix

To evaluate code while in Helix mode, use the standard shortcuts:

  • Ctrl+Enter or Alt+Enter — Evaluate code
  • Alt+. — Stop playback

Resources

Notes

  • The codemirror-helix extension is described as an “initial version” and may not implement all Helix features
  • Behavior may differ slightly from the native Helix editor
  • If you encounter issues, you can switch back to other keybinding modes in Settings
  • The keybinding preference is saved in your browser’s local storage

Contributing