• Steam icon
  • GOG.com icon
  • Godot Engine icon
  • Vortex icon
  • r2modman icon
  • +127

phant's software list

phantomfancy132 appsUpdated
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my software list, mostly open-source.I have used the vast majority of the software listed there myself for a long time.

This software list open-source/free/freemium apps for Windows 10/11 that I would recommend.This also includes tools for CS/EE background developer.

This list is designed to highlight excellent software in a particular area, so you don’t need to install all the software on the list. You should only consider installing the software I’ve selected when you have a need that falls under a specific section of the list.

game

  1. Steam icon
     Like

    Steam is a digital distribution, digital rights management, multiplayer and communications platform developed by Valve Corporation. It is used to distribute a wide range of games and related media entirely over the internet, stretching from one-man independent efforts to some of...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • Windows Phone
    • iPad
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • SteamOS
    Steam screenshot 1
    Steam screenshot 1
    Steam screenshot 2
    +4
    Steam Store
    phantomfancy’s note

    The most popular PC digital distribution platform, the one and only.BUY GABE A NEW YACHT LOL

  2. GOG.com icon
     Like

    Digital store offering DRM-free classics and new PC titles with no client needed, 30-day returns, curated content, regular updates, and extra downloadable items.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    GOG.com screenshot 1
    GOG.com screenshot 1
    GOG.com screenshot 2
    phantomfancy’s note

    a DRM-free game platform created by CDPR.

  3. Godot Engine is a feature-packed, cross-platform game engine to create 2D and 3D games from a unified interface. It provides a comprehensive set of common tools, so that users can focus on making games without having to reinvent the wheel.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • Epic Games Store
    • Flathub
    • F-Droid
    • Haiku
    • Steam
    • FreeBSD
    • Flatpak
    • itch.io
    • Meta Quest
    Godot Engine screenshot 1
    Fully-dedicated 2D engine
    XR (VR and AR) support
    +6
    Gorgeous 3D graphics
    phantomfancy’s note

    Popular open-source engine, alternative to unity.However the Godot community is rather small.

  4. Vortex icon
     Like

    Vortex is the new, modern mod manager from Nexus Mods icon Nexus Mods. It is designed to make modding your game as simple as possible for new users, while still providing enough control for more experienced veterans of the modding scene.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Vortex screenshot 1
    Vortex screenshot 1
    Vortex screenshot 2
    +1
    Vortex screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    Open-source mod manager presented by Nexusmod.

  5. r2modman icon
     Like

    A simple and easy to use mod manager for several games using Thunderstore.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    Game selection
    Installed mod view
    Downloadable mods
    +2
    Config editor
    phantomfancy’s note

    Yet another good open-source mod manager.

  6. Magpie icon
     Like

    Magpie is a lightweight window scaling tool that comes equipped with various efficient scaling algorithms and filters. Its primary purpose is to enhance game graphics and enable non-fullscreen games to display in fullscreen mode.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Magpie screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    A game window upscaling tool on Windows.Very Useful to non-fullscreen games, and low resolution games like old games and visual novels.

  7. Open source tool for modifying single player games with memory scanning and debugging, featuring a speedhack, trainer maker, and more.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Wine
    Cheat Engine screenshot 1

dev tools

  1. EasyEDA icon
     Like

    Schematic capture, Ngspice based simulation, PCB layout, custom PCB manufacturing, for electronic engineers, educators, students and hobbyists.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    EasyEDA screenshot 1
    EasyEDA screenshot 1
    EasyEDA screenshot 2
    +1
    EasyEDA screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    Free EDA created by JLC.It's similar to Altium Designer, but have a friendly learning curve.It also includes a large component library service with online and offline support.Great choice for personal projects or small production.

  2. KiCad icon
     Like

    KiCad is an open source software suite for electronic design automation (EDA) - designing schematics of electronic circuits and printed circuit boards (PCB). KiCad is developed by Jean-Pierre Charras. And features an integrated environment between schematic capture, bill of...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Docker
    PcbNew - Editor
    PcbNew - 3D Viewer
    Eeschema - Component Options
    +5
    Eeschema - Footprint Picker
    phantomfancy’s note

    An useable 3d-CAD for personal projects or small-scale production.Giant companies always use SW, NX or Creo.

  3. FreeCAD icon
     Like

    A versatile open-source 3D CAD modeler with modular architecture, suitable for engineering applications across multiple platforms, supporting Python scripting.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Flatpak
    • Docker
    • Steam
    Part Design WB
    FEM
    Assembly
    +12
    BIM
    phantomfancy’s note

    Yet an alternative, you still need AutoCAD.

  4. Wireshark icon
     Like

    Foremost network protocol analyzer with multi-platform support, deep protocol inspection, VoIP analysis, and extensive file format compatibility.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • Arch Linux
    • Flathub
    • Fedora
    • FreeBSD
    • Homebrew
    • Chocolatey
    Wireshark screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    Probably the best open-source protocol analyzer.

  5. Ghidra icon
     Like

    Ghidra is a software reverse engineering (SRE) framework created and maintained by the National Security Agency Research Directorate. This framework includes a suite of full-featured, high-end software analysis tools that enable users to analyze compiled code on a variety of...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Ghidra screenshot 1
    Ghidra screenshot 1
    Ghidra screenshot 2
    +1
    Ghidra screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    SRE/decompiler created by NSA.

  6. ILSpy icon
     Like

    ILSpy is the open-source .NET assembly browser and decompiler.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • .NET Framework
    ILSpy screenshot 1
    ILSpy screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    dotnet(.NET/.NET Core) IL code decompiler.

  7. Docker icon
     Like

    Docker is an open-source engine that automates the deployment of any application as a lightweight, portable, self-sufficient container that will run virtually anywhere.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    • TrueNAS
    Docker screenshot 1
    Docker screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    container is great.

  8. Podman icon
     Like

    Podman is a daemon-less container runtime for managing containers, pods, and container images. It is intended as a counterpart to CRI-O, to provide low-level debugging not available through the CRI interface used by Kubernetes.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Red Hat
    Manage containers. Part 1 of 3. Supported engines and orchestrators include Podman, Docker, Lima, kind, Red Hat OpenShift, Red Hat OpenShift Developer Sandbox.
    Manage containers. Part 2 of 3.
    Manage containers. Part 3 of 3. Using Terminal.
    +5
    Build, pull, and push images. Part 1 of 3.

Build containers from a Dockerfile / Containerfile, or pull images from remote repositories to run.

Manage accounts for and push your images to multiple container registries.
    phantomfancy’s note

    A docker alternative created by redhat.

  9. VMware Workstation Pro Lets You Run Multiple Operating Systems as Virtual Machines (including Windows VMs) on a Single Windows or Linux PC. VMware Workstation Pro is the industry standard for running multiple operating systems as virtual machines (VMs) on a single Linux or...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    VMware Workstation Pro screenshot 1
    VMware Workstation Pro screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    Become free for personal use shortly after Broadcom acquired VMware.

  10. Open source virtualization tool supporting x86/AMD64, runs on Windows, Linux, Mac, Solaris. Offers portable, lightweight, ad-free use.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Oracle Solaris
    VirtualBox Manager
    Create Virtual Machine
    Setting of an OS
    +5
    Instaling Windows 10 as Virtual Machine

CLI tools

  1. The uutils project reimplements ubiquitous command line utilities in Rust. Our goal is to modernize the utils, while retaining full compatibility with the existing utilities.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Linux
    phantomfancy’s note

    offer cross-platform unix commands written in Rust.

  2.  Like

    ripgrep is a command line search tool that combines the usability of The Silver Searcher (an ack clone) with the raw speed of GNU grep.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    ripgrep screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    greq written in Rust.

  3. fd icon
     Like

    A simple, fast and user-friendly alternative to 'find'.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
  4. fzf icon
     Like

    A command-line fuzzy finder written in Go.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Vim
    fzf screenshot 1
    fzf screenshot 1
  5. jq icon
     Like

    jq is like sed for JSON data - you can use it to slice and filter and map and transform structured data with the same ease that sed, awk, grep and friends let you play with text.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    jq screenshot 1
    jq screenshot 1
    jq screenshot 2
    phantomfancy’s note

    json query

  6. yq icon
     Like

    yq is a portable command-line YAML, JSON, XML, CSV, TOML, HCL and properties processor

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Mac
    phantomfancy’s note

    yaml/xml query

  7. eza icon
     Like

    A modern alternative to ls.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Linux

shell

  1. Git Bash icon
     Like

    Git for Windows provides a BASH emulation used to run Git from the command line. *NIX users should feel right at home, as the BASH emulation behaves just like the "git" command in LINUX and UNIX environments.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Git Bash screenshot 1
    Git Bash screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    bash is the standard!!!

  2. PowerShell (including Windows PowerShell and PowerShell Core) is a task automation and configuration management framework from Microsoft, consisting of a command-line shell and associated scripting language built on the .NET Framework.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Snapcraft
    PowerShell screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    Windows' cross-platform shell, built with dotnet and C#.

  3. Nushell icon
     Like

    This project has reached a minimum-viable product level of quality. While contributors dogfood it as their daily driver, it may be unstable for some commands. Future releases will work fill out missing features and improve stability.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    Nu pipelines use structured data so you can safely select, filter, and sort the same way every time.
    Out-of-the-box support for JSON, YAML, SQLite, Excel, and more.
    Detailed error messages.
    phantomfancy’s note

    yet another useable Niche shell.

  4. fish icon
     Like

    Fish is a user-friendly command line shell for UNIX-like operating systems such as Linux

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Rust
    • Linux Mobile
    fish screenshot 1
    fish screenshot 1
    fish screenshot 2
    +1
    fish screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    Considered as the "next-gen" bash.

  5. Starship icon
     Like

    Starship is the minimal, blazing fast, and extremely customizable prompt for any shell! Shows the information you need, while staying sleek and minimal. Quick installation available for Bash, Fish, ZSH, Ion, and Powershell.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    Starship screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    Cross-shell prompt customization tool, way more faster and rich-featured than oh-my-posh/zsh/* series tools.

terminal

  1. Alacritty icon
     Like

    Alacritty is a blazing fast, GPU accelerated terminal emulator. It’s written in Rust and uses OpenGL for rendering to be the fastest terminal emulator available. Alacritty is available on GitHub in source form.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Linux Mobile
    Alacritty screenshot 1
    Alacritty screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    cross-platform high speed term written in Rust.Uses OpenGL for rendering.

  2. Windows Terminal is a new, modern, feature-rich, productive terminal application for command-line users. It includes many of the features most frequently requested by the Windows command-line community including support for tabs, rich text, globalization, configurability...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    White and dark theme showcase
    Windows Terminal screenshot 1
    Windows Terminal screenshot 2
    +3
    Windows Terminal screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    windows' default term. It's actually a great product.

  3. Ghostty icon
     Like

    Cross-platform terminal emulator combining fast GPU acceleration, native UI, and modern features for interactive CLI environments, fully compliant.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Linux Mobile
    • Nix Package Manager
    • Homebrew
    Ghostty screenshot 1
    Ghostty screenshot 1
    Ghostty screenshot 2
    +1
    Ghostty screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    one of the best term on *nix platform.

  4. Warp is a blazingly fast, Rust-based terminal that makes you and your team more productive at coding and DevOps.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Homebrew
    Warp Terminal screenshot 1
    Warp Terminal screenshot 1
    Warp Terminal screenshot 2
    +13
    Warp Terminal screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    agentic terminal wirtten in Rust.recently changed to open-source.

  5. MobaXterm icon
     Like

    MobaXterm is an enhanced terminal app that brings the advanced features of a Unix-like command-line to Windows. It takes the power of Cygwin icon Cygwin and wraps it in a sleek, visual interface that's super easy to use, lightweight and portable.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    MobaXterm tabbed terminal
    Graphical SFTP browser
    Multi-execution
    +7
    Remote Unix desktop (XDMCP)
    phantomfancy’s note

    useful in embedding dev.

  6. tmux icon
     Like

    tmux is a terminal multiplexer: it enables a number of terminals (or windows), each running a separate program, to be created, accessed, and controlled from a single screen. tmux may be detached from a screen and continue running in the background, then later reattached.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Cygwin
    tmux screenshot 1
    tmux screenshot 1
    tmux screenshot 2
  7. Zellij icon
     Like

    Zellij is a workspace aimed at developers, ops-oriented people and anyone who loves the terminal. Similar programs are sometimes called "Terminal Multiplexers".

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Windows
    Zellij screenshot 1
    Zellij screenshot 1
    Zellij screenshot 2
    +1
    Zellij screenshot 3

editor

  1. Free, extensible code editor with Git integration, AI-driven IntelliCode, and 30,000+ extensions, supporting various languages like Python, Java.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Chrome OS
    • Snapcraft
    • Chocolatey
    Visual Studio Code screenshot 1
    Visual Studio Code screenshot 1
    Visual Studio Code screenshot 2
    +2
    Visual Studio Code screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    goat editor, even stronger than most IDEs in development.Supports EVERY software development, even some hardware development using plugins to interact with other tools or IDEs. 40k+ plugins in the market.numerous maintainers.

  2. Blazing fast, collaborative code editor with real-time multi-user support, built-in Vim mode, language-aware syntax trees, integrated terminal, and multi-buffers.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    Zed Editor screenshot 1
    Zed Editor screenshot 1
    Zed Editor screenshot 2
    +6
    Zed Editor screenshot 3
    phantomfancy’s note

    a next-gen editor, with blazing speed and first-class AI support as its strengths. Still has multiple feature flaws and bugs in 2026, such as horrible git and debug experience.Recommended using Zed as your second editor. Active but development is rather slow?(my own opinion)

  3. Gram icon
     Like

    Gram is a powerful and modern source code editor. It features solid performance and is highly configurable, yet comes with batteries included out of the box. Gram supports many popular programming languages and file formats, and can use Zed extensions to support additional...

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Gentoo
    • Homebrew
    • Windows
    Gram screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    Gram is a hard fork of the Zed Editor created by Kristoffer Grönlund.Gram is to Zed what VSCodium was meant to be for VSCode.It removes corporate trash in Zed: AI, Telemetry, Proprietary server components, third-party service integrations, Contributor Licenses, Terms of Service or subscription fees.Libre project, libre tools, that's the way it is.

  4. Notepad++ icon
     Like

    Free open-source code editor and Notepad replacement supporting multiple languages, featuring high speed, low resource usage, privacy focus, and plugin extensibility.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    Notepad++ screenshot 1
    Notepad++ screenshot 1
    Notepad++ screenshot 2
    +10
    TextFX plugin menu
  5. Vim icon
     Like

    Advanced text editor with multiple modes, syntax highlighting, word completion, plugin support, built-in help, command-line tools, cross-platform and open source.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • Haiku
    • Flatpak
    • AmigaOS
    • OpenSolaris
    • MorphOS
    Vim screenshot 1
    GVim with netrw+airlines+ctrlspace+xkb-switch+monokai theme+Source Pro font
    Plugin Gitgutter shows added lines as '+' and altere as '~'.
  6. GNU Emacs icon
     Like

    GNU Emacs is an extensible, customizable text editor—and more. At its core is an interpreter for Emacs Lisp, a dialect of the Lisp programming language with extensions to support text editing. The features of GNU Emacs include:

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • F-Droid
    • Haiku
    • Debian
    • MacPorts
    • Homebrew
    The GNU Emacs Manual calls Emacs the extensible, customizable, self-documenting real-time display editor
    Beyond just being able to edit plain text files, Emacs includes special features to help you write in many different human languages and programming/markup languages
    GNU Emacs screenshot 2
    +6
    GNU Emacs screenshot 3
  7. Helix icon
     Like

    Helix is a fast text editor for the terminal inspired by modal editors like Kakoune icon Kakoune and Neovim icon Neovim. Built as a native app using .

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Helix screenshot 1
    phantomfancy’s note

    Niche, but it's actually good!

  8. Edit icon
     Like

    Edit is a new command-line text editor in Windows. Edit is open source, so you can build the code or install the latest version from GitHub.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Mac
    Edit screenshot 1
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