Life & fun · alternatives · 2026

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. A .Net Lisp interpreter with First Class Macros, Continuations launched in 2012; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

1. 1AV
   A very simple Lisp interpreter in 250 lines of literate Python▲5

   2017 · khamidou.com · its alternatives →

2. 2
   Compiler using Lisp’s macro system for metaprogramming C-like languages▲80

   Next-level syntax for C-like languages :). Contribute to kiselgra/c-mera development by creating an account on GitHub.

   2018 · github.com · its alternatives →

3. 3
   Lisp in C#▲144

   a custom Lisp. Contribute to codr7/sharpl development by creating an account on GitHub.

   2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

4. 4IW
   I wrote a technical history book on Lisp▲252

   The book page links to a blog post that explains how I got about it (and has a link to sample content), but the TL&DR is that I could not find a lot of books that were on "our" history _and_ were larded with technical details. So I set about writing one, and some five years later I'm happy to share the result. I think it's one of the few "computer history" books that has tons of code, but correct me if I'm wrong (I wrote this both to tell a story and to learn :-)). My favorite languages are Smalltalk and Lisp, but as an Emacs user, I've been using the latter for much longer and for my…

   Feb 2026 · berksoft.ca · its alternatives →

5. 5
   A Lisp interpreter in C# 7▲30

   A Lisp interpreter in C# 7. Contribute to nukata/lisp-in-cs development by creating an account on GitHub.

   2018 · github.com · its alternatives →

6. 6
   Emacs Lisp▲4

   An Introduction

   2017 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

7. 7AA
   Awl, a toy Lisp language written in C and transpiled to JavaScript▲8

   2014 · skepsi.me · its alternatives →

8. 8
   Maybe Haskell▲60

   See what it’s like to program in a language without null.

   2015 · books.thoughtbot.com · its alternatives →

9. 9
   Interactive Common Lisp: An Enhanced REPL▲101

   I created this because sometimes I want more than rlwrap but less than emacs. icl aims to hit that middle sweet spot. It's a terminal application with context-aware auto-complete, an interactive object inspector, auto-indentation, syntax colouring, persistent history, and much more. It uses sly to communicate with the child lisp process and aims to be compatible with any sly-supporting implementation. I hope others find it useful!

   Dec 2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

10. 10
    A modernized and annotated code companion to Paul Graham's “On Lisp”▲93

    A modernized and annotated code companion to Paul Graham's "On Lisp". - DalekBaldwin/on-lisp

    2015 · github.com · its alternatives →

11. 11
    Minimal Lisp in ~70 lines of Haskell▲76

    GitHub Gist: instantly share code, notes, and snippets.

    2011 · gist.github.com · its alternatives →

12. 12
    Julius, a New Lisp Implementation▲14

    This is a new and very preliminary Lisp implementation that is based on Common Lisp. The main goals are to minimize external dependencies. Currently only sbcl is supported. The only other dependency is on Quicklisp, which should strictly be necessary only for testing.

    May 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

13. 13
    Eslisp – Minimal JavaScript S-expression syntax and macro system▲51

    un-opinionated S-expression syntax and macro system for JavaScript - anko/eslisp

    2015 · github.com · its alternatives →

14. 14FA
    Ferret – A Hard Real-Time Clojure for Lisp Machines▲7

    2016 · nakkaya.com · its alternatives →

15. 15
    Snigl – Forth with a Lisp in C▲6

    2018 · gitlab.com · its alternatives →

16. 16
    a minimal Lisp with closures, macros and gc in 1400 lines of C▲11

    KISS My Lisp - an implementation in pure C99 of a minimal Lisp language. - kototama/kml

    2012 · github.com · its alternatives →

17. 17
    A Tiny Compiler for a Tiny Functional Language▲8

    Compiler Backend for LSTS (High-Level Typed Macro Assembler) - andrew4328/lambda-mountain

    2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

18. 18
    Common Lisp tutorials with OpenGL graphics▲7

    2023 · youtube.com · its alternatives →

19. 19
    A small Clojure-like Lisp on top of R▲5

    Lisp-like-R: A clojure inspired lisp that compiles to R in R - dirkschumacher/llr

    2021 · github.com · its alternatives →

20. 20IA
    Implementing a Lispy Language in Haskell: Part 1▲6

    Software Engineer in New York specializing in Apple platforms

    2015 · harlanhaskins.com · its alternatives →

21. 21
    Snigl – a Forth with a Lisp in C▲6

    2018 · gitlab.com · its alternatives →

22. 22
    Bad Language: A lisp-looking language with interpreter and JS compiler▲6

    A lisp-looking language with interpreter and compiler to JS - mcapodici/badlanguage

    2018 · github.com · its alternatives →

23. 23
    Kvist – a Lisp for systems programming that compiles to Odin▲34

    A native, statically typed Lisp with a REPL that compiles to Odin. - kvist-lang/kvist

    Aug 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

24. 24IJ
    Interactive JavaScript tutorial on closures and continuations▲6

    2011 · nathansjslessons.appspot.com · its alternatives →

Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →