Microsoft Visual Studio AlternativesOnly apps categorised as Text Editors

The best Text Editor alternative to Microsoft Visual Studio 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 12 are Text Editors so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Text Editor alternatives to Microsoft Visual Studio are VSCodium, Eclipse, PyCharm and WebStorm.

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Most Microsoft Visual Studio alternatives are Code Editors, but you can also narrow the list to Text Editors or IDEs. Other popular filters are Linux, Mac, Open Source, Android and iPad. You can also filter for EU-based alternatives if you prefer software from the European Union.
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Alternatives
Microsoft Visual Studio alternatives page was last updated

Alternatives list

  1. Visual Studio Code icon
     1536 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.

    256 Visual Studio Code alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2015

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Chrome OS
    • Snapcraft
    • Chocolatey
    Good alternative?
     
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    14
  2. VSCodium icon
     469 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.

    229 VSCodium alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2018

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Electron
    • Snapcraft
    • Homebrew
    • Chocolatey
    Good alternative?
     
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    2
  3. Eclipse icon
     1160 likes

    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...

    153 Eclipse alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2009

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    Good alternative?
     
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    4
  4. PyCharm icon
     305 likes

    Cross-platform IDE for Python and Django with refactoring capabilities, code completion, VCS integration, deployment, issue tracking, remote debugging, and Community Edition, though lacking database support and web technologies.

    60 PyCharm alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2012

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    Good alternative?
     
    |
    1
  5. WebStorm icon
     136 likes

    JetBrains WebStorm is a commercial IDE for JavaScript, CSS & HTML built on JetBrains' IntelliJ IDEA platform.

    58 WebStorm alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free Personal
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2011

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Good alternative?
     
  6. Phoenix Code icon
     12 likes

    Phoenix Code is a text editor designed to make coding as intuitive and fun as playing a video game - specially crafted for web developers, designers, and students.

    45 Phoenix Code alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2023

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    • Windows
    • Mac
    • Linux
    Good alternative?
     
  7. Wing Python IDE icon
     11 likes

    Wing is a highly customizable Python IDE that uses both static and runtime code analysis to provide auto-completion, call tips, code documentation, goto-definition, find uses, refactoring, and many other features.

    35 Wing Python IDE alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2012

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Good alternative?
     
  8. Graviton Editor icon
     16 likes

    Graviton Code Editor is a minimalist, cross-platform editor focused on speed, customization and productivity.

    186 Graviton Editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2019

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Good alternative?
     
  9. Code Writer icon
     2 likes

    Code Writer is a free text and code editor app for the Windows platform, downloadable from the Windows Store. Use it as a replacement for Notepad and other quick edit apps.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2018

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Good alternative?
     
  10. scriptcs icon
     3 likes

    scriptcs makes it easy to write and execute C# with a simple text editor.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Since

    • Since 2014

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Good alternative?
     
  11. NVU icon
     30 likes

    Nvu (pronounced N-view, for a "new view") is a complete Web Authoring System that combines web file management and easy-to-use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) web page editing. Nvu is designed to be extremely easy to use, making it ideal for non-technical...

    41 NVU alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Since

    • Since 2009

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • PortableApps.com
    Good alternative?
     
  12. DrPython icon
     3 likes

    DrPython is a highly customizable text editor geared towards writing programs in Python quickly and easily. It is written in Python using the wxPython toolkit (which makes use of the Scintilla text control internally).

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Since

    • Since 2012

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Good alternative?
     
12 of 12 Microsoft Visual Studio alternatives