Poly-Glot — AI Code Comments, JSDoc Generator & Code Documentation

The fastest way to generate JSDoc, Javadoc, PyDoc, Doxygen, KDoc, rustdoc, and "why" comments — powered by OpenAI (GPT-4.1, GPT-4o, o3), Anthropic (Claude Sonnet 4, Claude Opus 4, Claude Haiku 4), or Google (Gemini 2.5 Flash, Gemini 2.5 Pro). Works in VS Code, CLI, MCP, and Copilot Chat. 100% client-side. Your API key never leaves your machine.

💻 Also available on Open VSX Registry — install directly in Cursor, Windsurf, and other VS Code-compatible editors.

🎬 See It In Action

Click to watch the full demo on YouTube — see JSDoc, Javadoc, PyDoc, why-comments and Copilot Chat in action.

✨ What is Poly-Glot?

Poly-Glot is a VS Code extension that uses AI to write your code documentation for you — in seconds. Select a function, press a shortcut, and get perfect, language-native comments inserted directly into your file.

• 🗂 JSDoc / TSDoc for JavaScript & TypeScript
• 📖 Javadoc for Java
• 🐍 PyDoc / Google-style docstrings for Python
• ⚙️ Doxygen for C / C++
• 📝 XML doc comments for C#
• 🦀 rustdoc for Rust
• 🐹 GoDoc for Go
• 🐘 PHPDoc for PHP
• 💎 YARD for Ruby
• 🍎 Swift markup for Swift
• 🎯 KDoc for Kotlin
• 🗃 SQL header blocks for SQL

Powered by OpenAI (GPT-4.1, GPT-4o, o3), Anthropic (Claude Sonnet 4, Claude Opus 4, Claude Haiku 4), and Google (Gemini 2.5 Flash, Gemini 2.5 Pro, Gemini 2.5 Flash Lite). You bring your own API key — no middleman, no markup, no data collection.

🆓 Free vs 💎 Pro vs 👥 Team vs 🏢 Enterprise

💎 Upgrade

👉 View plans → poly-glot.ai/#pg-pricing-section

📧 Enterprise & Team inquiries: hwmoses2@icloud.com

After subscribing, open the Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P) → Poly-Glot: Configure License Token to activate instantly.

🚀 Getting Started in 60 Seconds

1. Install Poly-Glot from the VS Code Marketplace
2. Add your API key → Command Palette → Poly-Glot: Configure API Key
   • Choose OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google as your provider
   • Pick your preferred model (we recommend gpt-4.1-mini, claude-sonnet-4-5, or gemini-2.5-flash) — or enter any custom model ID
   • Paste your API key (stored securely in the OS keychain — never in settings.json)
3. Select any function or block of code in the editor
4. Press Cmd+Shift+/ (Ctrl+Shift+/ on Windows/Linux) → comments appear inline instantly

That's it. No backend, no account required for the Free tier, no telemetry.

🛠 Features

📝 Generate AI Comments — Cmd+Shift+/ / Ctrl+Shift+/ (Free)

Select code (or leave nothing selected for the whole file) and Poly-Glot writes perfectly formatted, language-native documentation comments and inserts them directly into your file.

What gets generated:

• Function/method summaries in plain English
• @param / @returns / @throws tags (JSDoc, Javadoc, KDoc…)
• Type annotations where applicable
• Edge-case and exception notes
• Language-appropriate formatting — always

No more manually writing boilerplate Javadoc or hunting for the correct JSDoc syntax.

💡 Why-Comments — Cmd+Shift+W / Ctrl+Shift+W (Pro)

AI inserts inline comments that explain why the code exists — not just what it does.

Captures:

• Trade-offs and design decisions
• Non-obvious algorithmic choices
• Performance or security considerations
• Historical context that would otherwise live only in a developer's head

Why-Comments give AI assistants (GitHub Copilot, Cursor, etc.) the context they need to give you better suggestions. They make PRs self-reviewing and onboarding dramatically faster.

🔀 Both Mode — Cmd+Shift+B / Ctrl+Shift+B (Pro)

Generates doc-comments AND why-comments in a single API call. One shortcut, full documentation coverage. Use this on any function you want fully documented before a code review.

🔍 Explain Code — Cmd+Shift+E / Ctrl+Shift+E (Free)

Select any code and open a rich side panel that shows:

📚 Templates Sidebar (Free)

Browse a curated library of comment templates for all 12 supported languages. One-click copy to clipboard for:

• Class/module headers
• Function doc-comment skeletons
• License headers
• TODO / FIXME / HACK / DEPRECATED blocks
• API endpoint documentation stubs

💰 Real-Time Cost Tracking (Free)

Every generation displays the exact token cost in the status bar. A typical function documentation costs < $0.001. Document an entire file for pennies.

⌨️ All Commands & Shortcuts

⚙️ Settings

🤖 Supported AI Models

Poly-Glot accepts any valid model ID from OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google — including models not listed here. Just type the model ID into the polyglot.model setting.

OpenAI Models

Get an OpenAI API key at platform.openai.com/api-keys.

Anthropic Models

Get an Anthropic API key at console.anthropic.com/settings/keys.

Google Gemini Models 🆕

Get a Google AI key (free) at aistudio.google.com/app/apikey.

* Estimates based on ~200-token input / 400-token output (a typical small function). Costs scale with file size. Check platform.openai.com/pricing, anthropic.com/pricing, and ai.google.dev/pricing for current rates.

Using a custom or unlisted model

Set polyglot.model in VS Code settings to any model ID your provider supports:

// settings.json — OpenAI
{
  "polyglot.provider": "openai",
  "polyglot.model": "gpt-4o-2024-11-20"
}

// Anthropic
{
  "polyglot.provider": "anthropic",
  "polyglot.model": "claude-3-7-sonnet-20250219"
}

// Google
{
  "polyglot.provider": "google",
  "polyglot.model": "gemini-2.5-flash"
}

🌍 Supported Languages

🔌 MCP Server — Use Poly-Glot from Goose, Claude Desktop & Cursor

poly-glot-mcp is now live on npm — use Poly-Glot's full feature set from any MCP-compatible AI client without leaving your chat interface.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "poly-glot": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "poly-glot-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "POLYGLOT_PROVIDER": "openai",
        "POLYGLOT_API_KEY": "sk-your-key-here",
        "POLYGLOT_MODEL": "gpt-4.1-mini"
      }
    }
  }
}

6 MCP tools available:

Compatible with: Goose · Claude Desktop · Cursor · Windsurf · any MCP client

Full MCP docs on npm →

🤖 GitHub Copilot Chat Integration

Prerequisite: The Poly-Glot VS Code Extension must be installed and configured with an API key before using Poly-Glot in Copilot Chat. Requires VS Code v1.95+ and an active GitHub Copilot subscription.

Poly-Glot registers itself as a Copilot Chat participant (@poly-glot), so you can generate comments, explain code, and get documentation analysis directly inside the Copilot Chat panel — no switching tabs, no copy-paste.

🔧 Setup (3 steps)

1. Install the Poly-Glot extension from the VS Code Marketplace
2. Configure your API key → Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P) → Poly-Glot: Configure API Key → choose provider, paste key, pick model
3. Open Copilot Chat → Cmd+Shift+I (Mac) / Ctrl+Shift+I (Windows/Linux) → type @poly-glot to activate

That's it. No extra config. The participant is registered automatically when the extension is active.

💬 Commands

🗣 Prompt Examples

Generate doc-comments for a function:

@poly-glot /comment

Select the function in the editor first, then send the command. Poly-Glot generates JSDoc, Javadoc, PyDoc, etc. and shows an Apply to Editor button to insert inline.

Explain what a block of code does:

@poly-glot /explain

Returns a plain-English summary, complexity score (1–10), function-by-function breakdown, potential bugs, refactoring suggestions, and a documentation quality score (0–100).

Add WHY-comments to explain decisions (Pro):

@poly-glot /why

Inserts inline comments explaining why the code is written the way it is — trade-offs, algorithm choices, business constraints. Makes PRs self-reviewing and helps Copilot give you better suggestions.

Document everything in one shot (Pro):

@poly-glot /both

Runs two passes — first generates doc-comments, then adds WHY-comments — and delivers both in a single response with an Apply to Editor button.

Ask a follow-up question after /explain:

@poly-glot /explain
Why is the time complexity O(n²) here? Can it be improved?

Poly-Glot uses the same AI context window as your configured model, so you can follow up with natural language questions after any command.

❓ Copilot Chat FAQ

Does @poly-glot use my API key? Yes — Poly-Glot uses whichever OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google key you configured in the extension. GitHub Copilot and Poly-Glot are completely separate; Poly-Glot does not use your Copilot subscription's token budget.

Why doesn't @poly-glot appear in chat? The participant only registers if the extension is active and VS Code v1.95+ is installed. Try: Command Palette → Developer: Reload Window.

Can I use /why and /both without Pro? No — WHY-comments and Both mode are Pro features. Upgrade at poly-glot.ai to unlock all languages, why-comments, and unlimited files for $12/mo.

Does it work with VS Code Insiders? Yes — any VS Code build ≥ 1.95 with Copilot Chat enabled works.

🔒 Privacy & Security

Your code and API keys are 100% private:

• 🔑 API keys stored in OS keychain — VS Code SecretStorage (macOS Keychain, Windows Credential Manager, Linux libsecret). Never written to settings.json or any log file.
• 📡 Direct API calls only — requests go from your machine straight to OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google. Poly-Glot has no backend server, no relay, no proxy.
• 🚫 Zero telemetry — no usage data, no error reporting, no analytics are ever collected.
• 🏠 Your code never touches our servers — because we don't have any.

OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google may use API request data per their own privacy policies. If you're working with sensitive code, check your provider's data-handling settings (all three offer zero-data-retention options for API users).

💎 Unlock Pro — $12/mo

If you've tried the Pro features and want to unlock them permanently:

1. Visit poly-glot.ai/#pg-pricing-section
2. Choose Pro Monthly and complete checkout at $12/mo
3. Copy your license token from your account dashboard
4. In VS Code: Command Palette → Poly-Glot: Configure License Token → paste token → Pro activates instantly

Pro unlocks:

• ✅ Why-Comments (Cmd+Shift+W)
• ✅ Both Mode (Cmd+Shift+B)
• ✅ All 12 language support (C++, C#, Go, Rust, Ruby, PHP, Swift, Kotlin, SQL)
• ✅ Unlimited file generations per month

❓ FAQ

Do I need a Poly-Glot account? No account is required for the Free tier. Just bring your own OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google API key.

Does Poly-Glot work offline? No — it needs to reach the OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google API. But no other internet connection is required.

Can I switch between OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google? Yes — switch providers any time via Poly-Glot: Configure API Key. Only one provider is active at a time.

Do I need a paid Google account? No — Google AI Studio API keys are free to create at aistudio.google.com/app/apikey. Free-tier rate limits apply; enabling billing in Google Cloud unlocks higher quotas.

Will comments be inserted into my file or shown in a panel? By default, comments are inserted inline at the correct position in your file. Set polyglot.insertInline: false to open a diff panel instead.

What if I select nothing? Poly-Glot documents the entire active file — great for batch documentation.

Is there a team or enterprise plan? Email support@poly-glot.ai for team licensing.

🗺 Roadmap

• [ ] Auto-comment on save
• [ ] Bulk comment entire workspace / folder
• [ ] GitHub Actions integration
• [ ] Custom comment templates editor
• [ ] Team shared templates

Have a feature request? Open an issue on GitHub or email support@poly-glot.ai.

🌐 Get It Everywhere

📦 About

Version: 1.4.14
Publisher: poly-glot-ai
Marketplace: poly-glot-ai.poly-glot
Open VSX: open-vsx.org/extension/poly-glot-ai/poly-glot
Website: poly-glot.ai
License: MIT © Harold Moses

Keywords: AI code comments, JSDoc generator, Javadoc generator, PyDoc generator, Doxygen, KDoc, rustdoc, GoDoc, PHPDoc, YARD, Swift markup, code documentation, why comments, code explainer, OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Gemini, Gemini 2.5, Claude, GPT-4, GPT-4o, GPT-4.1, o3-mini, Claude Sonnet, Claude Opus, AI documentation, automatic comments, VS Code AI, code commenting tool