Mousepad Alternatives for Windows

Mousepad is not available for Windows but there are plenty of alternatives that runs on Windows with similar functionality. The best Windows alternative is Notepad++, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Mousepad and loads of them are available for Windows so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Windows alternatives to Mousepad are Visual Studio Code, Sublime Text, VSCodium and Vim.

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Alternatives list

  1. Notepad++ icon

    Notepad++

     4926 likes

    Notepad++ is a free, open-source code editor supporting several languages, offering features like syntax highlighting, plugin support, dark mode, portability, privacy, and efficient resource usage, making it highly customizable and suitable for various programming needs.

    248 Notepad++ alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    Notepad++ screenshot 1
     
    |
    1
    Comments about Notepad++ as an Alternative to Mousepad
    AdinanCenci
    Negative
    0

    Notepad++ is a professional tool for programmers and developers, Mousepad is a bare bones text editor.

    Mousepad Icon
    Notepad++ icon

    • Notepad++ is the most popular Windows alternative to Mousepad.

    • Notepad++ is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Mousepad.

    • Notepad++ is Free and Open SourceMousepad is also Free and Open Source
    • Notepad++ is Privacy focusedMousepad is not according to our users
  2. Visual Studio Code icon

    Visual Studio Code

     1374 likes

    Free and extensible code editor with built-in Git support, smart IntelliSense, integrated debugger, 30,000+ extensions, works offline, supports markdown and syntax highlighting for numerous languages.

    203 Visual Studio Code alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary (MIT)

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Chrome OS
    • Snapcraft
    Visual Studio Code screenshot 1
     
    |
    2
    Comments about Visual Studio Code as an Alternative to Mousepad
    AdinanCenci
    Negative
    1

    Visual Studio Code is a professional tool for programmers and developers, Mousepad is a bare bones text editor.

    Guest
    Negative
    0

    It's heavy-weight while Mousepad is as lightweight as it can possibly get

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Mousepad Icon
    Visual Studio Code icon

    • Visual Studio Code is the most popular Web-based, Mac & Linux alternative to Mousepad.

    • Visual Studio Code is Free and ProprietaryMousepad is Free and Open Source
    • Visual Studio Code is CustomizableMousepad is not according to our users
  4. Sublime Text icon

    Sublime Text

     2042 likes

    Powerful editor blending code, markup, and prose editing with enhanced features like multi-tab selection, side-by-side definition viewing, and multiple selection tools for swift code navigation.

    193 Sublime Text alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Pay once)
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Sublime Text screenshot 1
     
  5. VSCodium icon

    VSCodium

     399 likes

    This repository contains a build file to generate FLOSS release binaries of Microsoft's Visual Studio Code - Open Source ("Code - OSS") project, the open source core of the proprietary Visual Studio Code.

    197 VSCodium alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Electron
    • Snapcraft
    • Homebrew
    • Chocolatey
    VSCodium screenshot 1
     
    |
    1
    Comments about VSCodium as an Alternative to Mousepad
    AdinanCenci
    Negative
    1

    VSCodium is a professional tool for programmers and developers, Mousepad is a bare bones text editor.

    Mousepad Icon
    VSCodium icon
    • VSCodium is Free and Open SourceMousepad is also Free and Open Source
    • VSCodium is Customizable and Privacy focusedMousepad is not according to our users
  6. Vim icon

    Vim

     1343 likes

    Vim ("Vi IMproved") is an advanced text editor that allows syntax highlighting, word completion and has a huge amount of contributed content. It also has a GUI version called GVim.

    214 Vim alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Haiku
    • AmigaOS
    • OpenSolaris
    • MorphOS
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    • Snapcraft
    Vim screenshot 1
     
    |
    3
    Comments about Vim as an Alternative to Mousepad
    Guest
    Negative
    4

    Mousepad is a GUI text editor; Vim is a command line based editor. Both are great in their own ways but they are used in completely different contexts.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    1

    An absolutely beautiful-yet-minimalist hotkey-based editing setup, legendary extensibility, and outstanding community support & extensions.

    ...In other words: it's freakin' awesome!!

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    AdinanCenci
    Negative
    0

    Vim is a professional tool for programmers and developers, Mousepad is a bare bones text editor.

    Mousepad Icon
    Vim icon
    • Vim is Free and Open SourceMousepad is also Free and Open Source
    • Vim is CustomizableMousepad is not according to our users
  7. Zed Editor icon

    Zed Editor

     105 likes

    Blazing fast code editor offering real-time multi-user collaboration, language-aware syntax highlighting, integrated terminal, multi-buffers for tab-free editing, built-in Vim mode, searchable outline, AI coding assistance, advanced keyboard commands, and cross-platform support.

    88 Zed Editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    Zed Editor screenshot 1
     
  9. Geany icon

    Geany

     575 likes

    Geany is a powerful, stable and lightweight programmer's text editor that provides tons of useful features without bogging down your workflow.

    152 Geany alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Flatpak
    • Haiku
    Geany screenshot 1
     
    |
    1
    8
    Comments about Geany as an Alternative to Mousepad
    Guest
    Negative
    -1

    Notepad is a text editor; Geany is an IDE. Recommending it to someone looking for a text editor is like, you ask me for a butter knife and I hand you a chainsaw.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Mousepad Icon
    Geany icon

    • Most users think Geany is a great Mousepad alternative.

    • Geany is Free and Open SourceMousepad is also Free and Open Source
    • Geany is Minimalistic, Customizable and Privacy focusedMousepad is not according to our users
  10. gedit icon

    gedit

     694 likes

    Official text editor of the GNOME desktop environment. Has syntax highlighting and is suitable for programming, with support for several languages. It is extensible with plugins.

    192 gedit alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Chrome OS
    • BSD
    • GNOME
    • OpenSolaris
    • Flathub
    The Default look under GNOME with Adwaita
     
    |
    1
    Comments about gedit as an Alternative to Mousepad
    AdinanCenci
    Positive
    0

    Both are simple text editors, although gedit have more features

    Mousepad Icon
    gedit icon
    • gedit is Free and Open SourceMousepad is also Free and Open Source
    • gedit is Customizable and Privacy focusedMousepad is not according to our users
  11. GNU nano icon

    GNU nano

     289 likes

    GNU nano is a small and friendly text editor. Besides basic text editing, nano offers many extra features like an interactive search and replace, go to line and column number, auto-indentation, feature toggles, internationalization support, and filename tab completion.

    153 GNU nano alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Haiku
    GNU nano screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Comments about GNU nano as an Alternative to Mousepad
    Guest
    Negative
    2

    Notepad is GUI based, Nano is terminal based. I love Nano and use it lots but apples and oranges.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Mousepad Icon
    GNU nano icon
    • GNU nano is Free and Open SourceMousepad is also Free and Open Source
  12. Edit icon

    Edit

     19 likes

    Open-source command-line text editor for Windows with a modern interface inspired by MS-DOS Editor, featuring key bindings, lightweight build under 250KB, multi-file handling with ctrl + P, keyboard-optimized navigation, and direct file editing for developers.

    61 Edit alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Edit screenshot 1
     
  13. Notepad3 icon

    Notepad3

     63 likes

    Notepad3 is a fast and light-weight text editor with syntax highlighting for programming jobs. Auto-completion, Multi-language, Dark mode more.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Supports RTL languages out of the box.
     
12 of 50 Mousepad alternatives