Inline Editing

Select code, press Cmd+K, and describe what you want \u2014 Cursor edits it in place.

What's possible

  • Refactor selected code (rename, extract, restructure)
  • Convert between patterns (callbacks to async/await, class to function)
  • Add error handling, validation, or logging to existing code
  • Generate new code at the cursor position from a description
  • Fix bugs in a selected block with a plain-English instruction
  • Translate code between languages

Getting started

  1. 1

    Select code (or place your cursor)

    Highlight the code you want to change. If nothing is selected, Cmd+K generates new code at the cursor position.

  2. 2

    Press Cmd+K

    An inline prompt bar appears. Type your instruction — what to change, how to refactor, or what to generate.

  3. 3

    Review the diff

    Cursor shows a diff preview of the proposed changes inline. Green for additions, red for removals.

  4. 4

    Accept or reject

    Press Enter to accept the changes, or Escape to cancel and revert to the original code.

Example prompts

Refactoring

“Convert this to use async/await instead of .then() chains”

Adding functionality

“Add input validation \u2014 throw if email is empty or invalid”

Bug fix

“Fix the off-by-one error in this loop”

Generating code

“Write a debounce utility function with TypeScript types”

Tips

  • Select only the relevant code. Smaller selections give more focused results.
  • Be specific in your prompt. “Refactor this” is vague; “extract the validation logic into a separate function” is actionable.
  • Use Cmd+K for single-location edits. For changes that span multiple files, use Composer instead.
  • You can chain Cmd+K edits \u2014 make one change, select the result, and refine further.