A Developer’s Guide to Taming Your IDE

Imports example

Because nobody wants to review a PR where half the diff is just import reshuffling.

Have you ever proudly submitted a pull request, only for your reviewer to come back with: “Why did all the imports change?” You didn’t touch them. Or did you? Your IDE did. Silently. Ruthlessly. Without asking.

Fear not — In this blog post, I will show you how to configure IntelliJ IDEA and Eclipse so that your imports always follow a clean, consistent, agreed-upon layout across the whole team. One setup, no more import wars. 🕊️

*You can thank me with a coffee here if this helped you saved time for you and your team ! * 😄

📐 The Target Import Layout

This is the structure we all agree on. Tattoo it on your brain:

// ✅ Block 1 — JDK standard libraries
import java.sql.Timestamp;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.Map;

// ✅ Block 2 — Third-party libraries (org.*)
import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
import org.apache.commons.lang3.math.NumberUtils;
import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
import org.springframework.util.CollectionUtils;

// ✅ Block 3 — Internal / company packages (com.*)
import com.archyoshi.db.read.CommonOperations;
import com.archyoshi.db.read.FlatJsonBlob;
import com.archyoshi.db.write.GenericWriteOperation;

// ✅ Block 4 — Static imports (always last)
import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.assertThat;
import static org.mockito.ArgumentMatchers.anyString;
import static org.mockito.Mockito.doCallRealMethod;

🧠 IntelliJ IDEA Setup

Step 1 — Open Import Layout Settings

Go to: Settings (Ctrl + Alt + S / Cmd + ,) → Editor → Code Style → Java → Imports tab

Step 2 — Configure the Import Layout

Scroll down to the Import Layout section and set it up in this exact order. Use the + button to add entries and the blank line button to add separators:

Order Entry Type
1 java. Import
2 javax. Import
3 (blank line) Separator
4 org. Import
5 (blank line) Separator
6 com. Import
7 (blank line) Separator
8 <All other imports> Import
9 (blank line) Separator
10 <All static imports> Static Import

Step 3 — Recommended Supporting Settings

Still in the Imports tab, make sure these are configured:

  • Class count to use import with ‘*’: Set to a high number like 999 to disable wildcard imports.
  • Names count to use static import with ‘*’: Set to 999 as well.
  • Uncheck “Layout static imports separately” — we handle static placement ourselves via the layout above.

Step 4 — Apply & Run

Hit OK, then run Optimize Imports (Ctrl + Alt + O / Cmd + Option + O) on any file to see the magic. ✨

🌑 Eclipse Setup

Eclipse doesn’t have a native drag-and-drop import layout UI like IntelliJ, but it can be done cleanly via its Code Formatter and Organize Imports settings.

Step 1 — Open Import Order Settings

Go to: Window → Preferences → Java → Code Style → Organize Imports

Step 2 — Configure the Import Order

You will see an Import Order list. Clear the existing entries and recreate them in this order using the New button:

Order Entry
1 java
2 javax
3 org
4 com
5 (leave blank for “all others”)
6 static (tick the Static checkbox on this entry)

ℹ️ Eclipse automatically adds a blank line between each top-level group — no manual separator needed.

Step 3 — Disable Wildcard Imports

On the same screen, set:

  • Number of imports needed for .*: 99
  • Number of static imports needed for .*: 99

Step 4 — Apply & Run

Hit Apply and Close, then trigger Organize Imports (Ctrl + Shift + O) on any file to validate.

🤝 Sharing the Config With the Team

Rather than having every developer set this up manually (and inevitably someone getting it wrong), both IDEs support config export:

  • IntelliJ: File → Manage IDE Settings → Export Settings → select Code Style schemes → share the .zip.
  • Eclipse: File → Export → General → Preferences → select Java Code Style → share the .epf.

Import the file on your end, done. No excuses. 🎯

Don’t hesitate to comment with another subject you would like to see me post about !

If after reading this guide your imports are still scrambled — that’s on you (or your teammates). At least, I tried. 😄