Meld AlternativesOnly apps categorised as File Comparison Tools

The best File Comparison alternative to Meld is WinMerge, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 25 alternatives to Meld and many of them are File Comparison Tools so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting File Comparison Tool alternatives to Meld are Beyond Compare, KDiff3, P4Merge and Araxis Merge.

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Meld alternatives are mainly File Comparison Tools, but if you're looking for Diff Tools or Folder Comparison Tools you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Mac + Free. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Meld.
Meld iconMeld
  414
  • ...

Open-source tool for dynamic file and folder comparisions, syntax highlighting, offline functionality, and version control integration.

More about Meld
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Meld alternatives page was last updated May 6, 2025
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  1. WinMerge icon

    WinMerge

     546 likes
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    WinMerge is an open source differencing and merging tool for Windows. WinMerge can compare both folders and files, presenting differences in a visual text format that is easy to understand and handle.

    64 WinMerge alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    • Wine
    File Comparison

    WinMerge Features

    1.  Folder Comparison
    2.  Diff detection
    3.  Image-Diff
    4.  Shell integration
    5.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    6.  Ad-free
    7.  Portable
    8.  Directory sync
    9.  Compare Text

    WinMerge VS Meld

     

    • Almost everyone thinks WinMerge is a great Meld alternative.

    • WinMerge is the most popular Windows alternative to Meld.

    • WinMerge is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Meld.

    • WinMerge is Free and Open SourceMeld is also Free and Open Source
  2. Beyond Compare icon

    Beyond Compare

     321 likes
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    File and folder comparison tool offering source control integration, 3-way merge support, and selective synchronization. Supports FTP, cloud, runs offline, uses simple commands for files, customization, and scripting for reporting. Lightweight, portable with CLI and built-in viewer.

    65 Beyond Compare alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Folder compare

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Folder Comparison
    2.  File Sync
    3.  Folder Sync
    4.  Support for FTP
    5.  Full-Text Search
    6.  Syntax Highlighting
    7.  Works Offline
    8.  Portable
    9.  Built-in viewer
    10.  Command line interface
    11.  Selective Synchronization
    12. File Explorer icon  Windows Explorer Extension

    Beyond Compare VS Meld

     
    Comments about Beyond Compare as an Alternative to Meld
    Most Recent Comment
    ghos3t
    Positive •Dec 28, 2022
    0

    It's one of the most polished and featurefull diff tool, you can do both file and folder diffing, I think there was also a 3 way diff functionality.

    Guest
    Negative •Aug 9, 2022
    -1

    Only good in my opinion, that I can load it in App Store. First impression was that I can only compare folders, not files.

    Guest
    Positive •Sep 24, 2019
    1

    Much more configurable than any other alternatives. Faster to compare large directories. Brilliant color coded illustration of differences. Affordable pricing, even for personal use.

    Show more comments
    3 of 4 comments
    Meld Icon
    Beyond Compare icon

    • Most users think Beyond Compare is a great Meld alternative.

    • Beyond Compare is the most popular Mac & Linux alternative to Meld.

    • Beyond Compare is the most popular commercial alternative to Meld.

    • Beyond Compare is Paid and ProprietaryMeld is Free and Open Source
    • Beyond Compare is LightweightMeld is not according to our users
  4. KDiff3 icon

    KDiff3

     117 likes
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    KDiff3 is a file and directory diff and merge tool.

    56 KDiff3 alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    KDiff3 screenshot 1

    KDiff3 Features

    1.  3 way merge
    2.  Side-by-Side Comparison
    3.  Text Wrapping

    KDiff3 VS Meld

     
    Comments about KDiff3 as an Alternative to Meld
    Guest
    Positive •Oct 23, 2016
    0

    better identification of the modifications

    Meld Icon
    KDiff3 icon

    • Almost everyone thinks KDiff3 is a great Meld alternative.

    • KDiff3 is Free and Open SourceMeld is also Free and Open Source
  5. P4Merge icon

    P4Merge

     26 likes
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    P4Merge uses color coding to allow users to visualize the differences between file or images. It allows three-way merging among files, and shows side-by-side file/image comparison.

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    P4Merge screenshot 1

    P4Merge Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  Works Offline
    3.  No registration required
    4.  Command line interface
    5.  Side-by-Side Comparison
    6.  Image Comparison

    P4Merge VS Meld

     
  6. Araxis Merge icon

    Araxis Merge

     43 likes
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    Merge is the visual file comparison (diff), merging and folder synchronization application from Araxis. Use it to compare and merge source code, web pages, XML and other text files with native application performance.

    58 Araxis Merge alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • GB flagUnited Kingdom

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    Overview

    Araxis Merge Features

    1.  Compare Text
    2.  Folder Sync

    Araxis Merge VS Meld

     
  7. Meld for OSX icon

    Meld for OSX

     11 likes
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    Meld is a visual diff and merge tool targeted at developers. Meld helps you compare files, directories, and version controlled projects. It provides two- and three-way comparison of both files and directories, and has support for many...

    42 Meld for OSX alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    Meld for OSX screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Portable
    3.  No registration required
    4.  Works Offline
    5.  Syntax Highlighting

    Meld for OSX VS Meld

     
  9. Diffinity icon

    Diffinity

     23 likes
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    Diffinity is a diff and merging tool with focus on accurate and easy to read source code diffs. It will compare the content of two files and present the differences in an easy to read line by line and char by char basis.

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • SE flagSweden
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Diffinity screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Intuitive Interface

    Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  Portable
    3.  Readability
    4.  XAML

    Diffinity VS Meld

     
    Comments about Diffinity as an Alternative to Meld
    TBayAreaPat
    Positive •Jun 11, 2024
    0

    Diffinity is very similar to WinMerge. Diffinity, like WinMerge, can access files from context menu in Explorer. That's a big convenience.

    Meld Icon
    Diffinity icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Diffinity is a great Meld alternative.

    • Diffinity is Free and ProprietaryMeld is Free and Open Source
  10. SemanticDiff icon

    SemanticDiff

     5 likes
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    SemanticDiff is a programming language aware diff for Visual Studio Code and GitHub. It helps software developers understand code changes faster by hiding irrelevant changes, detecting moved code, and highlighting refactorings.

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    Moved code blocks are highlighted.

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1. Git icon  Git Support
    2.  Dark Mode
    3.  Syntax Highlighting
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  Portable
    6.  VSCode
    7.  Compare Source Code
    8.  Side-by-Side Comparison
    9.  Text Wrapping
    10. GitHub icon  GitHub Integration
    11.  Version Control Integration

    SemanticDiff VS Meld

     

    • SemanticDiff is the most popular Web-based alternative to Meld.

    • SemanticDiff is Free and ProprietaryMeld is Free and Open Source
    • SemanticDiff is LightweightMeld is not according to our users
  11. Kaleidoscope icon

    Kaleidoscope

     21 likes
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    Use Kaleidoscope to spot the differences in text and image files. Review changes in seconds with the worlds most advanced file comparison application.

    41 Kaleidoscope alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • iPad
    Kaleidoscope screenshot 1

    Kaleidoscope Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Command line interface
    3.  Works Offline

    Kaleidoscope VS Meld

     

    • Kaleidoscope is the most popular iPad alternative to Meld.

    • Kaleidoscope is Paid and ProprietaryMeld is Free and Open Source
  12. ExamDiff Pro icon

    ExamDiff Pro

     14 likes
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    ExamDiff Pro is a powerful, intuitive, and easy to use visual side-by-side comparison tool for comparing and merging text and binary files, and directories.

    48 ExamDiff Pro alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Windows
    File comparison

    ExamDiff Pro Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  Side-by-Side Comparison

    ExamDiff Pro VS Meld

     
10 of 38 Meld alternatives