The :Bclose command deletes a buffer without changing the window layout. For each window where the buffer is currently displayed: * Show the alternate buffer (:buffer #), if any. * Otherwise, show the previous buffer (:bprevious), if any. * Otherwise, show an empty buffer. :Bclose Close buffer in current window. :Bclose N Close buffer number N (as shown by :ls). :Bclose Name Close buffer named Name (as shown by :ls). Assuming the default backslash leader key, you can also press \bd to close (delete) the buffer in the current window (same as :Bclose). Like the :bdelete command, :Bclose will fail if the buffer has been modified. You can append ! to discard all changes (for example, :Bclose! will delete the buffer in the current window; any changes to the buffer are lost). By default, :Bclose will close a buffer even if it is displayed in multiple windows (the windows are not closed). Put the following in your vimrc if you would prefer that a buffer is not closed if it is displayed more than once: :let bclose_multiple = 0