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Create a new project in Visual Studio

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In this article, we'll show you how to quickly create a new project in Visual Studio from a template.

Open the "Create a new project" dialog

There are multiple ways to create a new project in Visual Studio. When you first open Visual Studio, the start window appears, and from there, you can select Create a new project.

Screenshot of the 'Create a new project' dialog from the start window in Visual Studio 2019

If the Visual Studio development environment is already open, you can create a new project by choosing File > New > Project on the menu bar. You can also select the New Project button on the toolbar, or press Ctrl+Shift+N.

Screenshot of the New Project button in Visual Studio 2019.

Open the "Create a new project" dialog

There are multiple ways to create a new project in Visual Studio. When you first open Visual Studio, the start window appears, and from there, you can select Create a new project.

Screenshot of the 'Create a new project' dialog from the start window in Visual Studio 2022.

If the Visual Studio development environment is already open, you can create a new project by choosing File > New > Project on the menu bar. You can also select the New Project button on the toolbar, or press Ctrl+Shift+N.

Screenshot of the New Project button in Visual Studio 2022.

Select a template type

On the Create a new project dialog, a list of your recently selected templates appears on the left. The templates are sorted by most recently used.

If you're not selecting from the recently used templates, you can filter all available project templates by Language (for example, C# or C++), Platform (for example, Windows or Azure), and Project type (for example, Desktop or Web). You can also enter search text into the search box to further filter the templates, for example, asp.net.

Screenshot of the project template filters in Visual Studio 2019.

The tags that appear under each template correspond to the three dropdown filters (language, platform, and project type).

Tip

If you don't see the template you're looking for, you might be missing a workload for Visual Studio. To install additional workloads, for example, Azure Development or Mobile Development with .NET, select the Install more tools and features link to open Visual Studio Installer. From there, select the workloads you want to install, and then select Modify. After that, additional project templates will be available to choose from.

Screenshot of the 'Install more tools and features' link in Visual Studio 2019.

Select a template and then select Next.

Screenshot of the project template filters in Visual Studio 2022.

The tags that appear under each template correspond to the three dropdown filters (language, platform, and project type).

Tip

If you don't see the template you're looking for, you might be missing a workload for Visual Studio. To install additional workloads, for example, Azure Development or Mobile Development with .NET, select the Install more tools and features link to open Visual Studio Installer. From there, select the workloads you want to install, and then select Modify. After that, additional project templates will be available to choose from.

Screenshot of the 'Install more tools and features' link in Visual Studio 2022.

Select a template and then select Next.

Configure your new project

The Configure your new project dialog has options to name your project (and solution), select a disk location, and select a Framework version (if applicable to the template you chose).

Screenshot of the 'Configure your new project' dialog in Visual Studio 2019.

Note

If you create a new project when you already have a project or solution open in Visual Studio, an extra configuration option is available. You can choose to create a new solution or add the new project to the solution that's already open.

Screenshot of the 'Create new solution' or 'Add to solution' dialog in Visual Studio 2019.

Select Create to create the new project.

Configure your new project

The Configure your new project dialog has options to name your project (and solution), select a disk location, and more.

Screenshot showing the Configure your new project dialog in Visual Studio 2022 and the options to set, including the project name and project location.

The Additional information dialog includes options to select a Framework version, an authentication type, and more.

Screenshot of the Additional Information dialog in Visual Studio 2022 showing the selected .NET Framework version for the new project.

Select Create to create the new project.

Add another project to a solution

If you want to add another project to a solution, right-click the solution node in Solution Explorer and then select Add > New Project.

Tip

For an example of a project and solution created from scratch, complete with step-by-step instructions and sample code, see Introduction to projects and solutions.

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