Dev tools · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to GNU Emacs

An extensible, customizable, free/libre text editor and more

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. GNU Emacs launched in 2016; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

1. 1
   CotEditor▲102

   The free plain-text editor for OS X

   2014 · coteditor.com · its alternatives →

2. 2
   Atom▲145

   A hackable text editor for the 21st Century

   2014 · github.blog · its alternatives →

3. 3
   Brackets 1.0▲190

   An open-source text editor for web designers by Adobe

   2014 · github.com · its alternatives →

4. 4
   A retro terminal text editor for GNU/Linux coded in C (C-edit)▲168

   I set about coding my own version of the classic MS-DOS EDIT.COM for GNU/Linux systems four years ago and it this is where the project is at... still rough around the edges but works well with Termux! :) Demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7bneUX_kVA

   2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

5. 5
   Emacs Anywhere▲248

   Configurable automation + hooks called with application information - zachcurry/emacs-anywhere

   2018 · github.com · its alternatives →

6. 6
   Micro▲88

   A modern and intuitive terminal-based text editor

   2016 · github.com · its alternatives →

7. 7
   Macro▲149

   A super focused image editor for the Mac

   2017 · macroapp.co · its alternatives →

8. 8
   Squire▲123

   The <textarea> of the future. A HTML5 rich text editor.

   2014 · neilj.github.io · its alternatives →

9. 9
   Lime Text▲76

   Open Source code editor

   2014 · limetext.org · its alternatives →

10. 10CL
    “Command line text processing with GNU Coreutils” eBook▲117

    2021 · learnbyexample.github.io · its alternatives →

11. 11
    Medium CLI▲244

    A command line Interface for reading Medium stories

    2016 · github.com · its alternatives →

12. 12
    Monaco Editor▲98

    A browser based code editor

    2016 · microsoft.github.io · its alternatives →

13. 13
    MarkRight▲84

    A minimalistic github flavored markdown editor

    2015 · github.com · its alternatives →

14. 14
    Openemacs – a tiny emacs clone, ≤ 1024 LOC (C), based on kilo (BSD)▲8

    2016 · github.com · its alternatives →

15. 15
    The Fuck▲108

    Automatically corrects your command line mistakes

    2015 · github.com · its alternatives →

16. 16
    Macaw▲90

    A simple code editor for Swift

    2017 · github.com · its alternatives →

17. 17
    Little Ipsum▲102

    The best Latin text generator for OS X

    2014 · littleipsum.com · its alternatives →

18. 18
    A web front end for your Org-files▲92

    emacs-viewer - A web frontend for your Org-files (100% faithful to GNU&#43;Emacs!)

    2022 · codeberg.org · its alternatives →

19. 19
    Katib▲99

    A Markdown Editor for Arabic, Urdu, Farsi and Hebrew

    2014 · katibapp.com · its alternatives →

20. 20
    Glorium▲83

    A contextual filler text generator for Mac

    2015 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

21. 21
    Emacs Lisp▲4

    An Introduction

    2017 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

22. 22
    Crunch 2!▲72

    Write what you want. Save what you need.

    2016 · getcrunch.co · its alternatives →

23. 23
    Devil Mode: A twisted Emacs key translator for modifier-free editing▲50

    Emacs minor mode that intercepts and translates keystrokes to provide a modifier-free non-modal editing experience - susam/devil

    2023 · github.com · its alternatives →

24. 24
    Escriba▲75

    Online text editor

    2014 · 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 →