Profile preferences

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• Tier: Free, Premium, Ultimate
• Offering: GitLab.com, GitLab Self-Managed, GitLab Dedicated

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You can update your preferences to change the look and feel of GitLab.

Change the mode

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• Introduced in GitLab 13.1.
• Changed from experiment to beta in GitLab 17.11.
• Changed from Appearance to Mode in GitLab 18.1.

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You can change the color mode of the interface to be light, dark, or automatically update based on device preferences.

To change the appearance:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. In the Mode section, select an option.
4. Select Save changes.

Change the navigation theme

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• Changed from Color theme to Navigation theme in GitLab 18.1.
• Themes: Light Indigo, Light Blue, Light Green, and Light Red removed in GitLab 18.4.

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You can change the navigation theme of the GitLab UI. These colors are displayed in the left sidebar. Using individual navigation themes might help you differentiate between your different GitLab instances.

To change the navigation theme:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. In the Theme section, select a theme.

Change the syntax highlighting theme

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• Changing the default syntax highlighting theme for authenticated and unauthenticated users Introduced in GitLab 15.1.

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Syntax highlighting is a feature in code editors and IDEs. The highlighter assigns a color to each type of code, such as strings and comments.

To change the syntax highlighting theme:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. In the Syntax highlighting section, select a theme.
4. Select Save changes.

To view the updated syntax highlighting theme, refresh your project's page.

To customize the syntax highlighting theme, you can also use the Application settings API. Use default_syntax_highlighting_theme and default_dark_syntax_highlighting_theme to change the syntax highlighting colors on a more granular level.

If these steps do not work, your programming language might not be supported by the syntax highlighters. For more information, view Rouge Ruby Library for guidance on code files and Snippets. View Monaco Editor and Monarch for guidance on the Web IDE.

Change the diff colors

Diffs use two different background colors to show changes between versions of code. By default, the original file is in red, and the changes are in green.

To change the diff colors:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Go to the Diffs section.
4. Select a color or enter a color code.
5. Select Save changes.

To change back to the default colors, clear the Color for removed lines and Color for added lines text boxes and select Save changes.

Behavior

Use the Behavior section to customize the behavior of the system layout and default views. You can change your layout width and choose the default content for your homepage, group and project overview pages. You have options to customize appearance and function, like whitespace rendering, file display, and text automation.

You can also use this section to set a default namespace for GitLab Duo.

Change the layout width on the UI

You can stretch content on the GitLab UI to fill the entire page. By default, page content is fixed at 1280 pixels wide.

To change the layout width of your UI:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Under Layout width, choose Fixed or Fluid.
5. Select Save changes.

Set the default text editor

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• Introduced in GitLab 17.7.
• Default for new users set to rich text editor in 18.2.

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By default, all new users see the Rich text editor when editing content. You can change the default editor for editing content in GitLab.

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Under Default text editor, ensure the Enable default text editor checkbox is selected.
5. Choose either Rich text editor or Plain text editor as your default.
6. Select Save changes.

Choose your homepage

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• Homepage options changed in GitLab 17.9 with a flag named your_work_projects_vue. Disabled by default.
• Homepage option changes generally available in GitLab 17.10. Feature flag your_work_projects_vue removed.
• Personal homepage introduced in GitLab 18.1 with a flag named personal_homepage. Disabled by default.
• Personal homepage enabled on GitLab.com in GitLab 18.4 for a subset of users.
• Personal homepage enabled on GitLab.com, GitLab Self-Managed, and GitLab Dedicated in GitLab 18.5.

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Control what page you view when you select the GitLab logo ({{< icon name="tanuki" >}}). You can set your homepage to be Personal homepage (default), Your Contributed Projects, Your Groups, Your Activity, and other content.

To choose your homepage view:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. From the Homepage dropdown list, select an option.
5. Select Save changes.

Customize default content on your group overview page

You can change the main content on your group overview page. Your group overview page is the page that shows when you select Groups in the left sidebar. You can customize the default content for your group overview page to the:

• Details Dashboard (default), which includes an overview of group activities and projects.
• Security Dashboard, which might include group security policies and other security topics.

For more information, view Groups.

To change the default content on your group overview page:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. From the Group overview content dropdown list, select an option.
5. Select Save changes.

Customize default content on your project overview page

Your project overview page is the page you view when you select Project overview in the left sidebar. You can set your main project overview page to the Activity page, the README file, and other content.

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. From the Project overview content dropdown list, select an option.
5. Select Save changes.

Set a default GitLab Duo namespace

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• Introduced in GitLab 18.3 with a flag named ai_user_default_duo_namespace. Disabled by default.
• Enabled in GitLab 18.4.
• Removed ai_user_default_duo_namespace feature flag in GitLab 18.7.

{{< /history >}}

Set a default GitLab Duo namespace to ensure GitLab Duo is available to use with your project. Your default GitLab Duo namespace determines your available AI models and GitLab Duo features, and your consumption of GitLab Credits.

Your default GitLab Duo namespace determines feature availability and credit consumption in the following scenarios:

• You're not a member of the project you're working in.
• You belong to multiple GitLab Duo namespaces.
• You work in your IDE with a project that does not have a GitLab remote configured.
• You use GitLab Duo in the CLI.

When you work in a project or group where you're a direct or inherited member, the top-level group of that project or group is used instead for feature availability and credit consumption:

• If you use GitLab Duo features in a project you're a member of, usage is billed to the top-level group of that project.
• If you use GitLab Duo features outside a project (for example, in your IDE without an open project or in the CLI), usage is billed to your default namespace.
• If you use GitLab Duo features in a project you're not a member of, usage is billed to your default namespace.

If you do not set a default namespace, GitLab Duo Agentic Chat and the GitLab Duo Agent Platform are disabled.

To set a default GitLab Duo namespace:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. From the Default GitLab Duo namespace dropdown list, select the namespace you want to set as your default.
5. Select Save changes.

Namespace resolution in your local environment

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• Access to user default namespaces for IDEs introduced in GitLab 18.10.
• Access to user default namespaces introduced in GitLab for VS Code 6.71.7.
• Access to user default namespaces introduced in GitLab Duo CLI 8.76.0.

{{< /history >}}

When you use GitLab Duo in an IDE or the CLI, the first available namespace determines feature availability and credit consumption. GitLab Duo checks for a namespace in this order:

1. The project namespace, if your project is linked to a remote repository in GitLab.
2. The default namespace set in your user preferences.
3. For IDEs, the default namespace set in the editor extension's settings:
   • For VS Code, under Extensions > GitLab > GitLab Duo > GitLab › Duo Agent Platform: Default Namespace.
   • For JetBrains IDEs, under Settings > Tools > GitLab Duo > GitLab Duo Agent Platform.
   • For Visual Studio, under Tools > Options > GitLab > General.

If the first namespace identified does not have access to the requested feature or available credits, the feature is not available. GitLab Duo does not fall back to the next namespace in the list.

Hide shortcut buttons

Shortcut buttons precede the list of files on a project's overview page. These buttons provide links to parts of a project, such as the README file or license agreements.

To hide shortcut buttons on the project overview page:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Clear the Show shortcut buttons above files on project overview checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

Show whitespace characters in the Web IDE

Whitespace characters are any blank characters in a text, such as spaces and indentations. You might use whitespace to structure content in code. If your programming language is sensitive to whitespaces, the Web IDE can detect changes to them.

To render whitespace in the Web IDE:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Select the Render whitespace characters in the Web IDE checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

You can view changes to whitespace in diffs.

To view diffs on the Web IDE, follow these steps:

1. In the left sidebar, select Source Control ({{< icon name="branch" >}}).
2. Under the Changes tab, select your file.

Show whitespace changes in diffs

View changes to whitespace in diff files. For more information on whitespaces, view the previous task.

To view changes to whitespace in diffs:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Select the Show whitespace changes in diffs checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

For more information on diffs, view Change the diff colors.

Show one file per page in a merge request

The Changes tab lets you view all file changes in a merge request on one page. Instead, you can choose to view one file at a time.

To show one file per page on the Changes tab:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Select the Show one file at a time on merge request's Changes tab checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

Then, to move between files on the Changes tab, below each file, select the Previous and Next buttons.

Auto-enclose characters

Automatically add the corresponding closing character to text when you type the opening character. For example, you can automatically insert a closing bracket when you type an opening bracket. This setting works only in description and comment boxes and for the following characters: **", ', ```, (, [, {, <, *, _**.

To auto-enclose characters in description and comment boxes:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Select the Surround text selection when typing quotes or brackets checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

In a description or comment box, you can now type a word, highlight it, then type an opening character. Instead of replacing the text, the closing character is added to the end.

Automate new list items

Create a new list item when you press <kbd>Enter</kbd> in a list in description and comment boxes.

To add a new list item when you press the <kbd>Enter</kbd> key:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Select the Automatically add new list items checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

Maintain cursor indentation

Maintain the indentation when you press <kbd>Enter</kbd>. The cursor on the new line is automatically indented the same as the previous line. This setting works only in description and comment boxes.

To add a new list item when you press the <kbd>Enter</kbd> key:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. Select the Maintain cursor indentation checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

Change the tab width

Change the default size of tabs in diffs, blobs, and snippets. The Web IDE, file editor, and Markdown editor do not support this feature.

To adjust the default tab width:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Scroll to the Behavior section.
4. For Tab width, enter a value.
5. Select Save changes.

Localization

Change localization settings such as your language, calendar start day, and time preferences.

Change your display language on the GitLab UI

GitLab supports multiple languages on the UI.

To choose a language for the GitLab UI:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Go to the Localization section.
4. Under Language, select an option.
5. Select Save changes.

You might need to refresh your page to view the updated language.

Customize your contribution calendar start day

Choose which day of the week the contribution calendar starts with. The contribution calendar shows project contributions over the past year. You can view this calendar on each user profile. To access your user profile:

• In the upper-right corner, select your avatar, and select your name or username.

To change your contribution calendar start day:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Go to the Localization section.
4. Under First day of the week, select an option.
5. Select Save changes.

After you change your calendar start day, refresh your user profile page.

Show exact times instead of relative times

Customize the format used to display times of activities on your group and project overview pages and user profiles. You can display times in a:

• Relative format, for example 30 minutes ago.
• Absolute format, for example September 3, 2022, 3:57 PM.

To use exact times on the GitLab UI:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Go to the Time preferences section.
4. Clear the Use relative times checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

Customize time format

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• Introduced in GitLab 16.6.

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You can customize the format used to display times of activities on your group and project overview pages and user profiles. You can display times as:

• 12 hour format. For example: 2:34 PM.
• 24 hour format. For example: 14:34.

You can also follow your system's setting.

To customize the time format:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Go to the Time preferences section.
4. Under Time format, select either the System, 12-hour, or 24-hour option.
5. Select Save changes.

User identities in CI job JSON web tokens

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• Introduced in GitLab 16.0.

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CI/CD jobs generate JSON web tokens, which can include a list of your external identities. Instead of making separate API calls to get individual accounts, you can find your user identities in a single authentication token.

External identities are not included by default. To enable including external identities, see Token payload.

Control follower engagement

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• Introduced in GitLab 16.0.

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Turn off the ability to follow or be followed by other GitLab users. By default, your user profile, including your name and profile photo, is public in the Following tabs of other users. When you deactivate this setting:

• GitLab deletes all of your followers and followed connections.
• GitLab automatically removes your user profile from the pages of each connection.

To remove the ability to be followed by and follow other users:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Clear the Enable follow users checkbox.
4. Select Save changes.

To access your Followers and Following tabs:

• In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
• Select Followers or Following.

Integrate your GitLab instance with third-party services

Give third-party services access to enhance the GitLab experience.

Integrate your GitLab instance with Ona

Configure your GitLab instance with Ona when you want to launch and manage code directly from your GitLab browser. Ona automatically prepares and builds development environments for your projects.

To integrate with Ona:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Find the Integrations section.
4. Select the Enable Ona integration checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

Integrate your GitLab instance with Sourcegraph

GitLab supports Sourcegraph integration for all public projects on GitLab.

To integrate with Sourcegraph:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Find the Integrations section.
4. Select the Enable integrated code intelligence on code views checkbox.
5. Select Save changes.

You must be the administrator of the GitLab instance to configure GitLab with Sourcegraph.

Integrate with the extension marketplace

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• Offering: GitLab.com, GitLab Self-Managed, GitLab Dedicated

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• Introduced as a beta in GitLab 17.0 with flags named web_ide_oauth and web_ide_extensions_marketplace. Disabled by default.
• web_ide_oauth enabled on GitLab.com, GitLab Self-Managed, and GitLab Dedicated in GitLab 17.4.
• web_ide_extensions_marketplace enabled on GitLab.com in GitLab 17.4.
• web_ide_oauth removed in GitLab 17.5.
• Enabled by default for workspaces in GitLab 17.6. Workspaces do not require any feature flags for the extension marketplace to be available.
• Introduced the vscode_extension_marketplace_settings feature flag in GitLab 17.10. Disabled by default.
• web_ide_extensions_marketplace enabled on GitLab Self-Managed, and vscode_extension_marketplace_settings enabled on GitLab.com and GitLab Self-Managed in GitLab 17.11.
• Generally available in GitLab 18.1. Feature flags web_ide_extensions_marketplace and vscode_extension_marketplace_settings removed.

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The VS Code Extension Marketplace provides access to extensions that enhance the functionality of the Web IDE and workspaces.

Prerequisites:

• For GitLab Self-Managed and GitLab Dedicated, a GitLab administrator must enable the extension registry.
• For enterprise users, a group Owner must enable the Extension Marketplace for the associated group.

To integrate with the Extension Marketplace:

1. In the upper-right corner, select your avatar.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Go to the Integrations section.
4. Select the Enable extension marketplace checkbox.
5. In the third-party extension acknowledgment, select I understand.
6. Select Save changes.