Visual Studio is available in several editions: Standard, Professional, Tools for Office, and Team System. For information about Team System, see Visual Studio Team System.
The core languages included with Visual Studio — Visual Basic, Visual C++, Visual C#, and Visual J# — as well as Visual Web Developer are each also offered in separate Express editions.
The following table lists the different features and tools available with Express editions, Visual Studio Standard and Professional editions, and Visual Studio Tools for Office.
| Feature | Express | Standard | Professional | Visual Studio Tools for Office |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Programming languages included | Visual Basic, Visual C#, Visual C++, and Visual J# are single language. Visual Web Developer includes Visual C# and Visual Basic. | All | All | Visual Basic and Visual C# only. |
| User experience | Simplified menu options and defaults | Simplified menu options and defaults | Full | Full |
| Documentation | 10mb "Getting Started"; Starter Kits targeted at first-time programmers 200mb optional MSDN Express | Full MSDN Library | Full MSDN Library | Full MSDN Library |
| IntelliSense | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Code editor | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Code snippets | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Windows Forms designer | Not available with Visual Web Developer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Web Forms designer | Only available with Visual Web Developer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Device support | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| Database design tools to create and modify tables and stored procedures | Local only | Local and remote | Local and remote | Local and remote |
| Data access designers | Visual Basic, Visual C#, Visual C++, local only. Visual Web Developer includes local and remote. | Local and remote | Local and remote | Local and remote |
| Class Designer | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Object Test Bench | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| XML editor support | XML editing available. Basic XSLT support available only with Visual Web Developer | Full XML and XSLT | Full XML and XSLT | Full XML and XSLT |
| Deployment tools | ClickOnce only | ClickOnce only | All tools | All tools |
| Extensibility | Add external tools to the menu only. Use 3rd party controls. | Consume extensions | Full | Full |
| Server Explorer Servers node | No | No | Yes | No |
| Reporting | SQL Server Reporting Services Add-in available with Visual Web Developer only | SQL Server Reporting Services | SQL Server Reporting Services and Crystal Reports | SQL Server Reporting Services |
| Source Code Control | No | MSSCCI-compatible (Visual SourceSafe sold separately) | MSSCCI-compatible (Visual SourceSafe sold separately) | MSSCCI-compatible (Visual SourceSafe sold separately) |
| Local debugging | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Remote debugging | No | No | Yes | No |
| Office development support | No | No | No | Excel 2003, Word 2003, InfoPath 2003, and Outlook 2003 Includes Microsoft Office Access 2003 Developer Extensions and a license for the Access 2003 Runtime |
| Develop Visual Studio Packages with the Visual Studio SDK | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deploy Visual Studio Packages with the Visual Studio SDK | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Profile Guided Optimization (PoGO) | No | No | Yes | No |
| 64-bit compiler support (Itanium) | No | No | No | No |
| 64-bit compiler support (x64) | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| SQL Server 2005 integration | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| SQL Server 2005 Editions | SQL Server 2005 Express Edition | SQL Server 2005 Express Edition | SQL Server 2005 Developer Edition | SQL Server 2005 Developer Edition |