Microsoft Visual Studio Alternatives for Mac
Microsoft Visual Studio is not available for Mac but there are plenty of alternatives that runs on macOS with similar functionality. The best Mac alternative is Visual Studio Code, which is free. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Microsoft Visual Studio and many of them are available for Mac so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Mac alternatives to Microsoft Visual Studio are Eclipse, VSCodium, MonoDevelop and Apache NetBeans.
filter to find the best alternatives
Microsoft Visual Studio alternatives are mainly IDEs, but if you're looking for Code Editors or Text Editors you can filter on that. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Microsoft Visual Studio.- IDE
- Free Personal • Proprietary
- 201 Visual Studio Code alternatives
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.
License model
- Free • Proprietary
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Online
- Chrome OS
Comments about Visual Studio Code as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
Comment summary: There is a consensus that Visual Studio Code (VS Code) is primarily a code editor rather than a full-fledged IDE like Microsoft Visual Studio. While it is lighter and more nimble, several users point out that it lacks certain capabilities of an IDE. However, others highlight its strengths, like being open-source and offering numerous extensions, making it versatile for smaller projects. Despite disagreements, some appreciate its plugin system which can expand its functionality significantly.Top Positive CommentTop Negative CommentVisual Studio Code is a text editor based on electron.js just like Atom.
Most Recent CommentSome Random GuyVSCode is a code editor, Visual Studio is a full-fledged IDE. Sure, it's a good program, but not a good alternative.
- 148 Eclipse alternatives
Eclipse is an extensible development platform with runtimes and application frameworks for building, deploying and managing software across the entire software lifecycle. Many people know Eclipse as a Java IDE, but it is much more than that- Eclipse actually consists of over 60...
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- BSD
Top Eclipse Features
Comments about Eclipse as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
Most Recent Commentmaurosoft391hard to use and poorly designed
Eclipse supports multiple languages, looks good too
One is for Java and the other is for C#
- 192 VSCodium alternatives
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.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Flathub
- Electron
Comments about VSCodium as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
its the same but without the useless features that cause more harm than good
MonoDevelop enables developers to write desktop and web applications on Linux, Windows and Mac OS X. It also makes it easy to port .NET applications created with Visual Studio to Linux and Mac OS X maintaining a single code base for all platforms.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- .NET Framework
- Xamarin Studio
DiscontinuedAs of October 2021, the GitHub repository README has been updated to say "This project has not been built nor maintained since January 2020 and has been archived".
MonoDevelop Features
Comments about MonoDevelop as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
Top Positive CommentI've used MonoDevelop extensively for C# work in Linux. It can work with Visual Studio projects, and much of the shortcut key mappings match Visual Studio. Support for WinForms is available, but there is no viable GUI layout tool/functionality available. A pity that there's no XAML/WPF support under Linux....
Top Negative CommentHas to be built from source before it'll run on Windows.
Most Recent CommentgnusenseiMonoDevelop's GUI designer is admirable, I've tried it and impressed immediately with how easy and straightforward it to design a window by drag and drop. Try to compare it with Netbeans', Eclipse's or CodeBlocks' GUI designer you will know what I mean.
- 100 Apache NetBeans alternatives
A free, open-source Integrated Development Environment for software developers. You get all the tools you need to create professional desktop, enterprise, web, and mobile applications with the Java language, C/C++, and even dynamic languages such as PHP, JavaScript, Groovy, and...
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- BSD
Top Apache NetBeans Features
Comments about Apache NetBeans as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
Top Positive CommentbrandomettoutFree and Open Source Software. Changing leadership from Oracle to Apache Foundation.
Top Negative CommentKris ReginaIt's not for dotNET languages.
Most Recent CommentgnusenseiNetbeans includes built-in GUI designer with drag and drop ability to create desktop applications and they can run on Windows as well as GNU/Linux and macOS.
- 130 Qt Creator alternatives
Qt Creator is a cross-platform integrated development environment (IDE) built for the maximum developer experience. Qt Creator runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS desktop operating systems and allows developers to create software across desktop, mobile, and embedded platforms.
License model
- Paid • Open Source
Application type
Country of Origin
Finland
EU
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- BSD
Qt Creator Features
Comments about Qt Creator as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
Top Positive CommentFound everything in Qt Creator for Linux that is in VS for Windows.
Most Recent CommentIt has A lot of really use full tools and you can install many extensions and even support for other programming languages then python,c++ etc
ichimitchDoes not support C# as they believe "it is not widely used enough" pfft
- 13 JetBrains Rider alternatives
JetBrains Rider is a powerful integrated development environment (IDE) designed specifically for developing .NET applications. With its intuitive and feature-rich interface, Rider provides developers with a seamless coding experience across multiple platforms, including Windows...
License model
- Free Personal • Proprietary
Application types
Country of Origin
Czechia
EU
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
Comments about JetBrains Rider as an Alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio
Most Recent CommentOla JohanssonThe most similar to VS. Actually better at many things, and real cross-platform.
Rider is Resharper... but as a standalone IDE. It is a full blown IDE voor C# and .NET, complete with extensive code completion, peek (decompile) and refactoring
Though Rider costs money it has been a great development tool for my team.
It's maybe not as capable as the real VS. But it's still a great environment and with a couple of extensions it can do a lot of things VS can.