The 10 Packages Every New Emacs User Should Install

The Emacs package ecosystem is vast — MELPA alone has over 5,000 packages. That’s exciting but also overwhelming. Here are the 10 packages that give you the most value for the least configuration. 1. Vertico Modern, minimal vertical completion UI. Replaces the default minibuffer completion with something you’d actually want to use. ...

February 8, 2026 · 2 min · Jonathan Chu

Your First Hour in Emacs — Skip the Tutorial, Do This Instead

Most Emacs tutorials start the same way: “Run the built-in tutorial with C-h t.” We’re going to skip that entirely. Instead, let’s get you productive in Emacs in under an hour with a modern setup. Install Emacs 29+ Make sure you’re running Emacs 29 or later — it includes tree-sitter support, eglot for LSP, and a much better default experience. ...

February 7, 2026 · 2 min · Jonathan Chu