Plain Text Editor AlternativesOnly apps categorised as IDEs

The best IDE alternative to Plain Text Editor is Vim, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Plain Text Editor and eight of them are IDEs so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting IDE alternatives to Plain Text Editor are TextMate, Aptana Studio, SynWrite and TextPad.

filter to find the best alternatives

Plain Text Editor alternatives are mainly Text Editors but may also be Code Editors or IDEs.  Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Plain Text Editor.
Plain Text Editor iconPlain Text Editor
  1
  • ...

Simple distraction-free text editor without any rich text nonsense. The simplicity is a feature.

More about Plain Text Editor
More about Plain Text Editor
Plain Text Editor alternatives page was last updated Feb 15, 2023
  Suggest Alternatives
  1. Vim icon
    Vim icon

    Vim

     1305 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    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.

    209 Vim alternatives
    Vim screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

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

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Customizable
    3.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions

    Features

    1.  Keyboard focused
    2.  Syntax Highlighting
    3.  Hackable
    4.  Well documented
    5.  Modal editor
    6.  Command line interface
    7.  Works Offline
    8.  Support for MarkDown
    9.  No registration required
    10.  Portable
    11.  Batch Editing
    12.  Terminal-based
    13.  Macro Recording
    14.  Built-in terminal emulation
    15.  Support for Large File
    16.  Dedication to home row
    Vim iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    Vim VS Plain Text Editor

    Is Vim a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     

    • Vim is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to Plain Text Editor.

    • Vim is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Plain Text Editor.

    • Vim is Free and Open SourcePlain Text Editor is Free and Proprietary
    • Vim is Lightweight and CustomizablePlain Text Editor is not according to our users
  2. TextMate icon
    TextMate icon

    TextMate

     268 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    TextMate brings Apple's approach to operating systems into the world of text editors. By bridging UNIX underpinnings and GUI, TextMate cherry-picks the best of both worlds to the benefit of expert scripters and novice users alike.

    161 TextMate alternatives
    TextMate screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    TextMate screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    2.  Support for Themes
    3.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  Support for MarkDown
    3.  Search and Replace
    4.  Automatic Indentation
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  Code Formatting
    8.  Ad-free
    9.  Works Offline
    10.  Snippets Manager
    Discontinued

    Last commit and version is from 2021

    TextMate iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    TextMate VS Plain Text Editor

    Is TextMate a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
  4. Aptana Studio icon
    Aptana Studio icon

    Aptana Studio

     333 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Aptana Studio is a complete web development environment that combines powerful authoring tools with a collection of online hosting and collaboration services that help you and your team do more. Includes support for PHP, CSS, FTP, and more...

    123 Aptana Studio alternatives
    Aptana Studio screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    Aptana Studio Features

    1.  Real time collaboration
    2.  Support for FTP
    Aptana Studio screenshot 1
    Aptana Studio screenshot 2
    +5
    Aptana Studio screenshot 3
    Discontinued

    The last update is from Feb 2021 and the last release is from Jul 2018.

    Aptana Studio iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    Aptana Studio VS Plain Text Editor

    Is Aptana Studio a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
  5. SynWrite icon
    SynWrite icon

    SynWrite

     30 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    SynWrite is a free source code editor and notepad replacement for Microsoft Windows Operating Systems.

    168 SynWrite alternatives
    SynWrite screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Total Commander

    SynWrite Features

    1.  Spell Checking
    2.  Syntax Highlighting
    3.  Portable
    4.  Tree structure
    SynWrite screenshot 1
    SynWrite screenshot 2
    Discontinued

    Last update was on 29-08-2017. Synwrite is continued on CudaText.Only there is no Total Commander plug-in with CudaText.

    SynWrite iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    SynWrite VS Plain Text Editor

    Is SynWrite a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
  6. TextPad icon
    TextPad icon

    TextPad

     57 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    TextPad is designed to provide the power and functionality to satisfy the most demanding text editing requirements. It can edit files up to the limits of virtual memory, and it will work with the 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2000, Server 2003 and 2008.

    127 TextPad alternatives
    Running in Vista

    License model

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows

    TextPad Features

    1.  Search and Replace
    Running in XP
    TextPad iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    TextPad VS Plain Text Editor

    Is TextPad a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
  7. Devpad icon
    Devpad icon

    Devpad

     7 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Notepad-like VB.Net multi-tab source code editor for Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 that supports ASM, ASP.Net, Boo, C#, C++, CSS, HTML, INI, Java, JavaScript, Lua, Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, SQL, VB.Net, XML and plain text files.

    171 Devpad alternatives
    Devpad screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows

    Devpad Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    Devpad iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    Devpad VS Plain Text Editor

    Is Devpad a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
  9. TEA icon
    TEA icon

    TEA

     7 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    TEA is free text editor for Linux, *BSD, OS/2, Windows, Haicu. It depends on Qt 4.6+ or Qt 5 or Qt6, zlib and, optionally, on Aspell or Hunspell. The old (but renewed) branch, TEA-GTK depends on GTK+ 3 and GtkSourceView 3.

    66 TEA alternatives
    TEA screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    TEA Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  C++
    3.  Tabbed interface
    4.  Built-in File Manager
    5.  Built-in Image converter
    6.  Built-in Image viewer
    7.  Built-in archiver
    TEA iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    TEA VS Plain Text Editor

    Is TEA a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
  10. Notepas icon
    Notepas icon

    Notepas

     9 likes
    Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Notepas is a fast portable native multiplatform text editor written in Lazarus and can be compiled for multiple platforms and widget sets using the advanced native Free Pascal Compiler.

    115 Notepas alternatives
    Notepas screenshot 1

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Notepas screenshot 1
    Notepas screenshot 2
    +6
    Notepas screenshot 3

    Notepas Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  Portable
    3.  Search and Replace
    4.  Support for Unicode
    5.  GPLv3
    Discontinued

    Cannot run on macOS Monterey and the last update is from 2016.

    Notepas iconPlain Text Editor Icon

    Notepas VS Plain Text Editor

    Is Notepas a good alternative to Plain Text Editor?
     
8 of 8 Plain Text Editor alternatives