Open Source File Explorer Alternatives for Windows

There are many alternatives to File Explorer for Windows if you are looking for a replacement. The best open source Windows alternative is Double Commander. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to File Explorer and many of them are open source and available for Windows so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source Windows alternatives to File Explorer are Files, Spacedrive, Dolphin File Manager and Explorer++.

filter to find the best alternatives

File Explorer alternatives are mainly File Managers, but if you're looking for File Search Utilities or File Archivers you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Open Source, Windows + Open Source, Windows, Free, Windows + Free, File Management and Mac. 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 File Explorer.
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Alternatives list

  1. Double Commander icon

    Double Commander

     593 likes
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    Open-source file manager with dual-panel interface, inspired by Total Commander. Supports plugin use, advanced search, tabbed browsing, and runs smoothly with background operations. Unicode and multi-platform compatibility enhance its versatility.

    129 Double Commander alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    Double Commander screenshot 1
     
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    3
    41
    Comments about Double Commander as an Alternative to File Explorer
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    It tries too hard to be just a Total Commander replacement. Ultimately it feels like a console interface file manager rather than a GUI file manager with a lot of simple mechanisms in modern GUI-based file managers (not just Windows Explorer!) incredibly hard to replicate.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Negative
    -12

    not contain columns for video settings (video length)

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    RemovedUser
    Negative
    -83

    Why 2 windows in one? I just want a directory tree with a pane showing the contents of that directory.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    Double Commander icon

    • Most users think Double Commander is a great File Explorer alternative.

    • Double Commander is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to File Explorer.

    • Double Commander is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to File Explorer.

    • Double Commander is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
    • Double Commander is Privacy focusedFile Explorer is not according to our users
  2. Files icon

    Files

     158 likes
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    Advanced Windows file manager offers tabbed browsing, dual-pane drag-and-drop, column navigation, built-in archive creation and extraction, file tagging, QuickLook previews, context menu integration, quick search, and customizable appearance for streamlined organization.

    120 Files alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Files screenshot 1
     
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    21
    Comments about Files as an Alternative to File Explorer
    Top Positive Comment
    cardinal4
    3

    One of the slowest file managers, taking seconds to navigate between directories.

    On the plus side, its UI is the closest to Windows Explorer, making it easy to get used to Context Menu navigation, Dropbox on-demand sync, navigational side bar etc.

    Qwak66
    Negative
    -5

    It is not free. You have to pay to use it. First "open source" program I found that is not free.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    drtech
    Positive
    0

    I like the clean look and feel of the application. In addition, there is a lot of work being done on it (open source community) which is improving performance and adding features regularly.

    Show more comments
    3 of 5 comments
    File Explorer Icon
    Files icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Files is a great File Explorer alternative.

    • Files is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
    • Files is Privacy focused and CustomizableFile Explorer is not according to our users
  4. Spacedrive icon

    Spacedrive

     146 likes
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    Organize files across many devices in one place. From cloud services to offline hard drives, Spacedrive combines the storage capacity and processing power of your devices into one personal distributed cloud, that is both secure and intuitive to use.

    76 Spacedrive alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Spacedrive screenshot 1
     
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    1
    6
    Comments about Spacedrive as an Alternative to File Explorer
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    Because it lacks a lot of features. For exemple, it doesn't handle network shares.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    Spacedrive icon

    • Most users think Spacedrive is a great File Explorer alternative.

    • Spacedrive is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
    • Spacedrive is Privacy focusedFile Explorer is not according to our users
  5. Dolphin File Manager icon

    Dolphin File Manager

     224 likes
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    Dolphin is a file manager for KDE focusing on usability. Has three view modes: Icon, Detail and it used to have Column View like in Finder (it is not available in current version due to problems with maintaibility). Supports FTP, SCP and other protocols. Highly configurable.

    78 Dolphin File Manager alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • KDE Plasma
    • Flathub
    • Windows
    Dolphin File Manager screenshot 1
     
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    13
    Comments about Dolphin File Manager as an Alternative to File Explorer
    tibi97427
    Negative
    2

    Dolphin is for linux, not for Windows.

    aronkvh
    Positive
    0

    It's amazing on Linux and pretty good on Windows. It's pretty, fast, customizable and has a lot of features.

    stevem109
    Positive
    0

    Dolphin is one of my favorite file managers. The negative comment above is incorrect. "Dolphin is for Linux.............", there is also a Windows version, just not as full featured.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    Dolphin File Manager icon

    • Most users think Dolphin File Manager is a great File Explorer alternative.

    • Dolphin File Manager is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
    • Dolphin File Manager is Privacy focusedFile Explorer is not according to our users
  6. Explorer++ icon

    Explorer++

     113 likes
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    Explorer++ is a free file manager for Windows. Available on Windows XP and above, it features the same familiar interface as Windows Explorer, while introducing several enhancements and improvements for a much richer file browsing experience.

    90 Explorer++ alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    details view
     
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    2
    36
    Comments about Explorer++ as an Alternative to File Explorer
    Guest
    Positive
    1

    Explorer++ has better features than Windows built-in file manager. Xplorer2 and XYplorer are both better than Explorer++.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    I enjoy this Explorer. I would say it's the best Explorer who exist.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    Explorer++ icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Explorer++ is a great File Explorer alternative.

    • Explorer++ is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
  7. Sigma File Manager icon

    Sigma File Manager

     31 likes
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    Sigma File Manager is a free, open-source, quickly evolving, modern file manager (explorer / finder) app for Windows and Linux.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    Sigma File Manager screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Comments about Sigma File Manager as an Alternative to File Explorer
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Amazing alternative to explorer.exe sleek and full featured. Certainly worth trying out!

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    Sigma File Manager icon
    • Sigma File Manager is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
    • Sigma File Manager is Privacy focusedFile Explorer is not according to our users
  9. Far Manager icon

    Far Manager

     179 likes
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    Far Manager is a program for managing files and archives in Windows operating systems. Far Manager works in text mode and provides a simple and intuitive interface for performing most of the necessary actions:

    105 Far Manager alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    UI language selection
     
  10. Tablacus Explorer icon

    Tablacus Explorer

     39 likes
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    Tablacus Explorer is a tabbed file manager with Add-on support.

    Tabbed interface Add-on support Customizable association, menus, keys, mouse gestures, alias Completely Portable, No installation required Multiple language and Unicode support Open source .

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Tablacus Explorer screenshot 1
     
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    2
    16
    Comments about Tablacus Explorer as an Alternative to File Explorer
    Guest
    Positive
    2

    Very customizable and responsive. It has preloaded layouts such as dual pane, four pane, one pane layouts and layouts with tab titles at different places. You can create customized bars, etc. Although not as good as Linux alternatives, it's quite above the average for Windows file managers. However, customization is a bit complicated, it's something for power users.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    It has multiple panes to be viewed at the same time. These can be extend to the number desired, by extensions.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    Tablacus Explorer icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Tablacus Explorer is a great File Explorer alternative.

    • Tablacus Explorer is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
    • Tablacus Explorer is Privacy focusedFile Explorer is not according to our users
  11. muCommander icon

    muCommander

     124 likes
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    muCommander is a lightweight, cross-platform file manager with a dual-pane interface. It runs on any operating system with Java support (Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, *BSD, Solaris...).

    107 muCommander alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • BSD
    • Java
    muCommander screenshot 1
     
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    1
    Comments about muCommander as an Alternative to File Explorer
    RemovedUser
    Negative
    -8

    Forced to have 2 panes open, neither one is wide enough. Open the "tree view" and you've lost a lot of screen real estate. Neither pane follows the tree view either, so there's no point having it.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    File Explorer Icon
    muCommander icon

    • Some users think muCommander is a great File Explorer alternative, some don't.

    • muCommander is the most popular Web-based alternative to File Explorer.

    • muCommander is Free and Open SourceFile Explorer is Free and Proprietary
  12. Cairo Shell icon

    Cairo Shell

     52 likes
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    Cairo is a desktop environment for Windows. Its goal is to develop a desktop experience that increases productivity and advances current technology standards.

    38 Cairo Shell alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Cairo Shell screenshot 1
     
  13. trolCommander icon

    trolCommander

     54 likes
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    trolCommander - fork of the free and opensource muCommander filemanager.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    trolCommander screenshot 1
     
  14. FileExplorer icon

    FileExplorer

     5 likes
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    File Explorer is a Windows file manager application that has an interface similar to Windows Explorer. However, it browses and indexes folders faster than the default Explorer. It also has many features that are not available in Windows Explorer, such as tabs and bulk file...

    5 FileExplorer alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    FileExplorer screenshot 1
     
12 of 30 File Explorer alternatives