My experience is unlike yours: VSCode with a couple of small files open uses >200MB of RAM--Sublime Text uses 11MB. ST also loads much faster, opens large data files without delay, and does search/find in the blink of an eye--which VSCode cannot match. My time and the RAM usage are both of value to me, so I have no difficulty accepting that those benefits (among others) cost me $80 upgrade every three or four years.