22 Neat Code Editors for Windows
Code editors for Windows are numerous, but it seems that only a few of them are really worth using. After all, it can take a while to really get into the groove of an editor and tweak all the settings to your tastes, so you’d better find one you like!
I should mention that the features I’ve called out for each editor are only the prominent ones; obviously, there are many more. Also, just because I’ve mentioned a feature on one editor and not another doesn’t mean the second one doesn’t have the feature. So let’s get to it! I’ve arranged them from least to most expensive.
Notepad++
- http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net
- v 5.3.2 | Free
This is probably the best free text editor for Windows out there; with support for simple things—like syntax highlighting and folding—all the way up to FTP, Notepad++ should tick most of the boxes. I’ve used the editor as my main editor quite a bit, and one of my favourite features is File Status Auto-detection: when NP++ is made the active program, it will check all currently open files for changes and let you know if any file has been updated / deleted. Notepad++ is based on the Scintilla editing component.
JEdit
- http://jedit.org
- v 4.20 | Free
Jedit is rather ugly in my opinion, but it has a decent feature set; as a Java program, it’s actually multi-platform. It offers syntax highlighting for over 130 languages. The website says it supports folding, but I couldn’t get that to work (although it does highlight the opposite bracket). Jedit has a plugin repository, which may give the editor a bit more functionality.
Notepad2
- http://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html
- v 3.0.20 | Free
Notepad2 is also based on the Scintilla editing engine, but it’s much simpler than Notepad++. It bills itself as being fast, light-weight, and Notepad-like, and offers syntax highlighting for a variety of languages. There’s no installation for this editor: just unzip and run. There are a few modified versions (with more features / languages) available.
Programmer’s Notepad
- http://pnotepad.org
- v 2 0.9.926 | Free
Programmer’s Notepad has a similar interface to that of Notepad2, although it does support having multiple files open at once. It supports bookmarking, folding, and highlighting, but other than that, there isn’t too much to mention.
Crimson Editor
- http://www.crimsoneditor.com/
- v 3.7 | Free
Crimson Editor offers macro support and the ability to execute external programs. It has the ability to edit remote files, using a built-in FTP client; there’s also a spell checker and a neat ‘column select’ mode.
ConTEXT
- http://www.contexteditor.org/
- v 0.98.5 | Free
ConTEXT supports many languages, both programming and human; it also gives you the ability to define your own custom languages. It does file comparing and exporting to HTML, and includes some interesting behaviour for projects. Another neat thing: ConTEXT remembers where your cursor is when you close a file, and puts it back there when you re-open the file.
SciTE
- http://gisdeveloper.tripod.com/scite.html
- v 1.77 | Free
SciTE is a really simple text editor, based on Scintilla. It’s quite basic, but it does support syntax highlighting for around 30 languages and regular expression search and replace.
Editra
- http://editra.org/
- v 0.4.88 | Free
Editra claims to be in the early stages of development, but it offers a decent bunch of features: user profiles, auto-completion, session saving, and syntax highlighing for 60+ languages. Plugins can extend the feature set, offering an integrated python console, FTP client, file browser, and calculator, among others.
PSPad
- http://www.pspad.com/en/
- v 4.5.3 | Free
PSPad brings templates, an interesting internal web browser, and a macro recorder to the table. It also supports hex editing, and some degree of code compiling. PSPad offers integration with TopStyle Lite, which may come in handy if you use it for writing CSS.
RJ TextEd
- http://www.rj-texted.se/
- v 5.10 | Free
RJ TextED, too, offers integration with TopStyle Lite; and it does HTML validation and formatting. It sports an FTP client, a file browser, and a code browser, as well as a character map and support for email.
SourceEdit
- http://www.brixoft.net/prodinfo.asp?id=1
- v 4 | Free
SourceEdit includes features such as clipboard history, syntax highlighting and autocompletion for a decent set of languages. A hex editor and FTP client beef this one up a bit, too. Oh, and it does macros, too.
TotalEdit
- http://www.codertools.com/totaledit.aspx
- v 5.2 | Free
TotalEdit does file comparison, RegEx search and replace, and has multiple options for file backup / versioning. For cleanup, it offers (X)HTML and XML customizable formatting, and a spell checker. You can install TotalEdit on a USB drive, making it portable, if you want; you can also easily send the current document as an email.
Emacs
- http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/
- v 22.3 | Free
“Beyond just being able to edit plain text files, Emacs includes special features to help you write in many different programming and markup language. Emacs can compare two files and highlight their differences. Emacs is a file manager. Emacs can read news, mail, and RSS feeds. You can even play tetris in Emacs. You might see now why some people consider Emacs to be not merely a text editor but almost a complete operating system. Some users find that they can do almost all of their work from within Emacs.”
Vim
- http://www.vim.org/
- v 7.2 | Free
Vim is an incredibly complex text editor, more similar to Emacs than any others on our list (although Vim and Emacs users seem to be somewhat at odds ). I don’t think I could do it justice in a few sentences, considering that there have been whole volumes written on it (not to mention that I have only a cursory knowledge of Vim). Suffice it to say that Vim probably has every feature mentioned in this article, and a few hundred more. For starters, check out “Vim in 6K”
Bespin
- http://bespin.mozilla.com
- v 0.2.2 | Free
I know Bespin isn’t really a Windows text editor, and it hardly has the feature set that other editors do, but I thought I’d throw it into the mix just because I really like the concept of an online text editor and because it has one big (obvious) feature that the rest don’t: cloud access to your code. It also offers syntax highlighting for HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
Textpad
- http://www.textpad.com/products/textpad/index.html
- v 5.2.0 | $24.70
TextPad is a rather simplistic editor: it boasts column select, drag-and-drop text between files, and hyperlink support. It also supports large files (based on the size of your virtual memory). That’s it? Well, the feature list also mentions a right-click menu.
E-Text Editor
- http://www.e-texteditor.com/
- v 1.0.30 | $34.96
This is one of the most interesting editors, mainly because of the ‘foreign’ features it brings to Windows:
“Close integration with cygwin [a Linux-like environment for Windows] gives you access to the full range of UNIX shell tools and lets you extend e with your choice of languages like Ruby, Perl, Python and more.”
Another one of e’s strong points is that it accepts TextMate bundles; it also supports revision control, so you don’t have to keep track of multiples versions of a file.
In-Type
- http://intype.info
- v 03.x (alpha) | currently free, to be ~ $25 – $45
Intype is a pretty neat little editor that’s still in development. It currently doesn’t have a whole lot of features (you can’t even drag and drop text), but it looks like it will be pretty slick. It does snippets really well, and already offers a pretty wide selection, as well as supporting about two dozen languages (with support for creating additional ones). Keep an eye on this one; it’s promising.
EditPlus
- http://www.editplus.com/
- v 3.10 | $35.00
EditPlus doesn’t have anything unique, but there are some niceties: it highlights URLs and email addresses, activating them when you ‘crtl + double-click’. It also has a built in browser for previewing HTML, and FTP and SFTP support. Macros and RegEx find and replace are good to have as well.
HippoEDIT
- http://www.hippoedit.com
- v 1.42 | $39.95
HippoEDIT offers something a bit different when it comes to autocomplete: in pops a ‘tooltip’ above your cursor as you type, suggesting words you’ve already typed. It does syntax highlighting for over 2 dozen languages, and includes code templates for many of those languages. HippoEDIT also has customizable keyboard shortcuts and workspace layouts.
UltraEdit
- http://www.ultraedit.com/products/ultraedit.html
- v 15. | $49.95
UltraEdit almost seems more like an IDE than a text editor; there are hundreds (easily thousands) of features packed into this one. Obviously reaching out to more than just web developers, UltraEdit is ultra-customizable, with different ‘environments’ to choose from, depending on what job you’re doing. Supposedly “nearly every editing task” is automatable. UltraEdit also supports FTP and has a built-in SSH/telnet console for accessing your servers.
Sublime Text
- http://www.sublimetext.com
- v 1.05 | $59.00
Sublime Text is probably one of the most fun editors that I looked at, mainly because of its super-cool ‘zoomed out’ view of the file that you can pan around on. One drawback is that the preferences dialog is really just a bunch of text files; this can make it a bit difficult to tweak settings if you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for. I like the option to open a local file when you right-click on its link, and there are a few automation features, so this would make a solid choice of a text editor.
Extras
While reseaching for this article, I found a few other related things. First off, text editors are good for more than coding: they provide an excellent environment for writing content. To that end, you might want to check out WriteMonkey, Q10, or DarkRoom. These editors aren’t very good for coding, but are great for writing copy with minimal distractions.
Then, for some interesting tips on text editing, check out the video “Seven Habits for effective Text Editing 2.0″ by the creator of Vim.
That’s it!
I’d love to hear what text editor you use, and why; chances are, I missed a few good ones. Let me know in the comments!
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I’ve used several apps but i mainly use HomeSite 5 for the extended replace feature. If Aptana studio or some of the others i’ve tried had this feature I would go with them.
Anyone know of an editor with this feature besides HomeSite? If so I’d be willing to give it a shot.
The Homesite feature I can’t live without is “Select Tag” (Select Full Tag in 5, with worse context menu placement). Not only useful for selecting large chunks of deeply nested code, when it fails to select it exposes broken code making debugging easier.
I haven’t found this functionality in any free editor nor have I found references to other non-free editors including it.
I was using PSpad and Notepad++ for a long time, but then I found Intype.. It’s really friendly editor and it’s still “only” 0.3.x . My second favorite is Sublime Text, respect for author ;)
VIM + snippetsEmu + NerdTREE !
You guys should try and persevere !
UltraEdit is the best
HTML Kit…also a nice one.
Awesomesauce!
I’ve been using Editplus since it’s first version, I absolutely adore it!
EDITPLUS > ALL
I am a big fan of the Geany editor. It’s small, lightweight, fast, and works with many languages and multiple platforms (Linux/Windows).
Yes. I must say Geany is one of the best lightweight text editors with very clean and uncluttered UI. and support to most formats.
For anyone checking out Sublime Text, I strongly recommend looking at the current beta version (www.sublimetext.com/beta) – it has project support and an updated interface, among other things.
Well i use notepad++ its great, but i will try this komodo edit…..
notepad++ is really cool but there is something in it that prevents me from using it unlike what I have been using for the past 2 years which is scite.
Why does Intype always get a mention? I don’t understand how people like this editor. It ‘s been in beta since 2006 guys, it’s going no where. Plus it lacks so many basic features in comparison to other editors.
I’ve been using Notepad++ for a long while now, but I’m going to give Komodo a try due to the recommendations in the comments section!
WOw!!
Each IDE / Code editor has it’s own pros and cons. I used a lot of code editors / IDEs (Zend, Visual Studio, PHPDesigner, Eclipse, Dreamweaver, Aptana, CSSEdit, Coda and etc.). I work Dreamweaver/CSSEdit/Coda on mac and only dreamweaver on win. Eclipse and aptana are good too, but i love that 3.
Well.. Don’t forget Boxer! http://www.boxersoftware.com/pgbwin.htm for years and years this has been really great.
Not to jump on what is otherwise a great article, but you forgot Aptana Studio. It’s based on Eclipse and the SWT and offers a good free alternative to Dreamweaver, with project management and other resources.
i used Dreamweaver for PC and AlleyCode HTML Editor for portable. It’s all great. this article is Great … nice jobs
Go for Dreamweaver cs4, you will never go back.
Dreamweaver is great but offers no code highlighting for ruby users.
E-TextEditor is excellent! I use it instead of an IDE (but for not-so-big-projects)
I was looking here to see if there might a new editor worth checking out. If your evaluation of Textpad is an example, you’ve not spent much time looking at these applications.
Textpad includes:
Macros
Clip (snippet) libraries- dozens available
Self configurable document classes
Microsft keystroke compatibility, if you want it
Spell checker
Find in Files – use this to search whole folders for existence of text
Regex search and replace in 2 flavors
Tabbed interface
User-defined syntax highlighting -dozens available
User defined Custom external tools
Bookmarking
I currently use Notepad++, and I like it, except for the fact that it is annoying to customize the colours. After reading this article, I downloaded sublime text and I have to say I am very impressed. The ability to change themes is really nice, and the default theme is nice and dark. The zoomed out view really is something as well, just adds that extra element over text editors such as Notepad++. On the downside, Sublime Text isn’t free and you must edit preferences with a text file not a graphical interface.
test
Do you use Notepad++ for editing xml and css? Thanks.
Komodo Edit, because it’s the best freeware out there.
I have bought the “Sublime Text” and i just have to say that it is worth every single dollar. I recommend this application for those that want a easy, but advanced text editor. Im a happy coder now :-)
At one time or another, since I began writing code using SED on a TOPS-20 machine, I have used most text editors available. In my view, Ultraedit is indeed the best Windows text editor, but it is not cross-platform yet. When I left Windows behind for Linux as my preferred platform for every day use, I settled on jEdit. It has a huge feature set, similar to Ultraedit, but jEdit is open source and runs on everything – a feature I value highly.
I find Komodo severely lacking, and Editra just isn’t ready yet for serious work. Eclipse mentioned above, is well … I don’t understand it – I cannot get used to it. I spent many years living in vi, but left it (and emacs) behind for good.
I presently spend 8 to 12 hours a day coding in jEdit. It puts food on the table:) Ultraedit is coming soon for Linux, but I have gotten so used to jEdit in the meantime, I probably won’t go back now.
good…..
Notepad++ is great, although I now prefer NaviCoder Editor.
I use Aptana studio wich I love!
I use ActiveState Komodo Edit, i like it way better than DreamWeaver
Thanks.
You need to checkout kate on GNU/Linux
you can read more on sublime text features, like multiple selection, python plugins, textmate snippets and theme support and much more.
http://www.virtual-clouds.com/2009/10/64/sublime-text-the-vi-modern-alternative
also see: http://sublime.akalias.net/gettingstarted/index.html for the best place to start with sublime
you forgot IDE’s like Komodo, Zend, Phped, etc…
and fee PHP IDE Codelobster PHP Edition
How about Extreme Editor? It’s super clean and does its job.
http://ufridman.org/extremeeditor.html
(Notepad ++ ) + plugin (NppFTP) = taste like Coda ^^
I have an obsession with text editors. For the last three years I have been looking for the absolute best text editor for windows. Two years ago I started using GNU emacs. But I kept looking for the best editor. There must be a truly great editor out there, but I always come back to emacs. WIth a few minor add-ons, emacs has turned out to be an excellent XHTML/CSS editor. So far, no other editor has even come close. Emacs does take some getting use to, but the time invested has paid off many times over.
Below is a table listing memory usage and load times for each free text editor listed above for those who are coding on resource constrained devices (e.g., netbooks), or those who are just interested in seeing how efficient these text editors are.
Application Blank HTML Load Times (average)
=========================================================================
Notepad 3,352k 7,616k 0.6781 0.6911 0.6520 (0.6737)
Notepad2 3,776k 8,768k 0.7283 0.6559 0.7204 (0.7015)
Notepad++ 12,836k 16,352k 1.8630 1.6716 1.8200 (1.7849)
jEdit 41,068k 48,152k 0.9330 1.0124 1.0193 (0.9882)
Programmer’s Notepad 10,900k 13,400k 8.2224 8.9011 9.0477 (8.7212)
Emerald Editor 8,992k 11,480k 5.6258 5.4294 5.1140 (5.3897)
Crimson Editor 7,944k 11,112k 5.1110 5.3982 5.0401 (5.1831)
ConTEXT 10,860k 14,164k 3.2341 3.4597 3.5085 (3.4008)
SciTE 5,608k 10,808k 0.9352 0.7741 0.9080 (0.8724)
Sc1 6,684k 11,840k 0.9372 0.9675 0.8718 (0.9255)
Editra 51,328k 56,792k 2.6599 2.7653 2.4987 (2.6413)
PSPad 16,788k 20,196k 5.4285 5.4402 4.8799 (5.2495)
RJ TextEd 14,772k 23,000k 3.3982 3.3649 3.8318 (3.5316)
Source Edit 17,704k 19,232k 6.6201 7.3272 7.2811 (7.0761)
TotalEdit 19,480k 23,024k 2.7039 3.0819 2.6701 (2.8186)
Emacs 15,044k 21,044k 1.1003 1.1453 1.1530 (1.1329)
Vim 7,956k 13,088k 1.5798 1.3561 1.5798 (1.5052)
Zeus Lite 10,176k 13,732k 1.9860 1.9274 1.9929 (1.9688)
Methodology:
Each application was installed in a sandbox via Sandboxie (this adds about 0.2 seconds to the load times). I also added the standard Windows Notepad and the Zeus Lite code editor (http://www.zeusedit.com/lite/) to the comparison table.
Each application was installed with default settings, with two exceptions:
all applications were set to open a blank file on load
if there was a splash screen, it was disabled where possible
if there was a welcome screen or tip on startup, it was disabled
Each application was launched and exited two times. On the 3rd load, the memory consumption as displayed under the Mem Usage column in the Windows Task Manager was recorded under the Blank column.
After the 3rd load, I used the mouse to select File / Open to open a 14.2KB HTML file with embedded CSS and JavaScript. Once this file has been opened in the editor, the memory consumption was recorded under the HTML column.
I closed the application again.
The PassMark AppTimer utility (http://www.passmark.com/products/apptimer.htm) was configured to launch and exit the application using the following settings:
Executions: 1 (executions can become unreliable if this is set to more than 1)
Delay: 1000 ms
Window Detection Method: Input Idle, Window Name, Visible
Window Close Method: WM_CLOSE (if this method failed, then I switched to the Alt-F4 method)
Each application was launched and exited by AppTimer four times. The last three times (in seconds) were recorded under the Load Times column.
Test system:
Panasonic Toughbook CF-Y5
Intel Core Duo CPU – L2400 @ 1.66GHz
1.5GB of RAM
Running on AC power
Windows XP Professional SP3
Since most of these text editors are par for the featureset that I care about, I know which one I’ll be using (it’s the same one I’ve been using for the last couple years since “upgrading” from Metapad: Notepad2). I hope the table above will also help you make an informed decision, since as the author suggested, committing to a code editor is like entering into a long-term relationship :-).
hello ,
A good editor for CSS3 by example similar ( CODA for MAC) can help me ?
Thank you RZV
for me i go for notepad++ coz i like its simplicity…. :D
I’m looking for an editor which has a code navigation, or code explorer.
Here’s an exemple :
$arr_acces = $this->User_model->get_acces_array(TRUE, TRUE);
I want to click on “get_acces_array” and that it opens the User_model, focus on the get_acces_array function.
Anyone knows a free editor that does that?
from what i’ve used give Komodo-edit a try, most, if not all IDEs do that
I use Komodo edit
InType has been in development since 2006. I don’t think that’s going anywhere. This list proved useful, but you can seriously do another repost of this article sans the many useless editors posted. That would prove to be a more useful article, where people can compare the most powerful editors out there, instead of having a museum showcase of editors.
One last thing, $25 for Textpad? Give me a break.
I would put phpdesigner 7 in to the list too :)
Thanx For the Info It indeed very useful, I myself was confused as to which editor should I use but you sorted out :)
I prefer UltraEdit and NotePad + +. I saw many interesting from this article. Thank you for sharing. I like this article.
Sublime Text 2 – when you start to realise the value of multiple insertion points you’ll feel crippled using another text editor!
I’m really confused as to how BBedit didn’t make this list.