useTabs

UseTabs is a boolean configuration option found in several code formatting and linting tools that controls whether indentation uses tab characters or spaces. When set to true, the formatter inserts tabs for each indentation level; when false, it uses spaces. The visible width of a tab depends on the editor’s tab size, which means the same file can look differently in different tools if editor settings diverge. Many tools also provide a separate tabWidth or indentSize setting to influence how indentation is displayed or counted when spaces are used.

In practice, useTabs is most commonly encountered in JavaScript and TypeScript tooling, such as code formatters that offer a useTabs option. Other ecosystems commonly expose similar preferences via EditorConfig, which uses indent_style to specify tabs or spaces and tab_width to indicate indentation width. Some linters enforce the chosen style through rules that require tabs or insist on spaces, complementing or enforcing the formatter’s behavior. It is generally important to align formatter, linter, and editor settings to avoid conflicts and surprises in Team environments.

Pros and cons of using tabs depend on context. Tabs allow individual developers to set their preferred display width in their editors, potentially reducing file size and enabling per-developer readability preferences. However, tabs can cause alignment inconsistencies across tools and editors that render tab widths differently, leading to misalignment in code blocks. Therefore, switching to useTabs should be accompanied by coordinated editor configurations, project conventions, and, ideally, automated formatting checks to maintain consistency across the codebase.