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Coder VS ActivityWatch

Compare Coder VS ActivityWatch and see what are their differences

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Coder logo Coder

The Cloud IDE, Solved

ActivityWatch logo ActivityWatch

Log what you do on your computer. Simple (yet powerful), extensible, no third parties.
  • Coder Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-08
  • ActivityWatch Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-11-03

Coder features and specs

  • Cloud-based Development
    Coder allows developers to write, run, and deploy code entirely in the cloud, providing access from any device without local environment dependencies.
  • Collaboration
    Team collaboration is enhanced with shared development environments, making it easier to work together on code in real-time.
  • Environment Consistency
    Ensures that all team members are using the same development environment, reducing issues related to different local setups.
  • Scalability
    Easily scale resources and manage workloads without the need for physical hardware, suitable for growing teams and projects.
  • Security
    Offers robust security features, including role-based access control and isolated environments, to protect sensitive code and data.
  • Automatic Backups
    Automated backup solutions ensure that code is regularly saved and protected against data loss.
  • Access to Powerful Resources
    Leverages cloud computing resources to provide powerful and flexible development environments that can handle heavy workloads.

Possible disadvantages of Coder

  • Cost
    Cloud development environments can be more expensive than local development, especially for small teams and individual developers.
  • Internet Dependency
    Requires a stable and fast internet connection, which can be a limitation in areas with poor connectivity.
  • Learning Curve
    Developers need to familiarize themselves with the platform and its features, which might take time and training.
  • Performance Variability
    Performance can fluctuate based on cloud service provider reliability and latency issues, affecting development speed and efficiency.
  • Limited Offline Access
    Being a cloud-based solution, it offers limited or no functionality when offline, posing a challenge during internet outages.
  • Data Privacy Concerns
    Storing code and sensitive information on the cloud can raise privacy and compliance issues depending on the jurisdiction and data sensitivity.
  • Vendor Lock-in
    Relying on a specific cloud service provider might make it challenging to switch providers or migrate back to local environments without significant effort and cost.

ActivityWatch features and specs

  • Open Source
    ActivityWatch is an open-source project, which means its code is publicly available for review and contributions. This promotes transparency and security.
  • Cross-Platform
    ActivityWatch works on multiple operating systems including Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it versatile and accessible for users on different platforms.
  • Privacy-Focused
    Being an open-source project, ActivityWatch places a strong emphasis on user privacy, ensuring data is stored locally rather than in the cloud unless the user chooses otherwise.
  • Customizable
    The tool provides various frameworks and APIs for customization, allowing users to create custom trackers and reports to better fit their needs.
  • Detailed Analytics
    ActivityWatch provides comprehensive data and visualizations on how users spend their time on their devices, aiding in productivity analysis and improvement.

Possible disadvantages of ActivityWatch

  • Complex Setup
    For non-technical users, the initial setup and configuration may be complex and challenging compared to more polished, commercial solutions.
  • Resource Usage
    ActivityWatch can consume a notable amount of system resources, particularly on lower-end hardware, which might impact device performance.
  • Feature Limitations
    Compared to some commercial alternatives, ActivityWatch may lack certain advanced features like automated focus time recommendations or built-in integrations with other productivity tools.
  • UI/UX
    The user interface and user experience may not be as polished or intuitive as some of its proprietary competitors, potentially affecting user friendliness.
  • Maintenance
    Since it’s an open-source project, ongoing maintenance and updates depend on community contributions, which might result in slower development cycles for new features and bug fixes.

Analysis of Coder

Overall verdict

  • Coder is a strong choice for teams looking to streamline their development workflow, especially in scenarios where remote collaboration is essential. Its ability to provide scalable and consistent development environments can enhance productivity. However, its effectiveness might depend on the specific requirements of the project and the technical proficiency of the user in configuring cloud-based solutions.

Why this product is good

  • Coder (coder.com) provides a platform for developers to set up development environments in the cloud. It allows users to leverage powerful cloud-based computing resources, enabling faster processing and better scalability for large projects. The platform supports a variety of development environments and integrates well with other tools in the developer's tech stack. It promotes collaboration and reduces the overhead of maintaining local setups.

Recommended for

  • Development teams requiring remote collaboration
  • Organizations seeking improved scalability and resource management
  • Developers interested in leveraging cloud-based technology for development
  • Companies wanting to minimize the overhead of local environment maintenance

Analysis of ActivityWatch

Overall verdict

  • ActivityWatch is a good choice if you are looking for a privacy-respecting, customizable, and open-source solution for tracking your digital activities. Its detailed reports and ability to track various aspects of productivity make it a valuable tool for individuals interested in optimizing their time management.

Why this product is good

  • ActivityWatch is an open-source time-tracking tool that helps you understand how you spend your time across different activities and applications. It is designed to provide detailed insights and reports on your computer usage patterns, making it a good choice for productivity analysis. The tool is privacy-focused, as it stores data locally by default, ensuring that personal information is not shared without permission. Additionally, its extensible nature allows for customization and integration with other tools.

Recommended for

    ActivityWatch is recommended for remote workers, freelancers, productivity enthusiasts, and anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of their computer usage patterns without compromising on privacy. It is also suitable for developers and tech-savvy users who want to customize or extend its functionality.

Coder videos

+ Add

Coder Foundry Coding Bootcamp Review (In-person and Remote)

More videos:

  • Tutorial - IS A MEDICAL CODING CAREER RIGHT FOR YOU? How to tell if you can handle a career as a medical coder

ActivityWatch videos

No ActivityWatch videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Coder and ActivityWatch)

Coder

ActivityWatch

Text Editors
100 100%
Text Editors
0% 0
Time Tracking
0 0%
Time Tracking
100% 100
IDE
100 100%
IDE
0% 0
Invoicing
0 0%
Invoicing
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Coder and ActivityWatch

Coder Reviews

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ActivityWatch Reviews

49 Best Timesheet Alternatives - Features, pros & cons, pricing | Remote Tools
ActivityWatch tracks how you spend time on your devices. It can help you keep track of time spent on different projects, kick bad screen habits, or just understand how you spend your time.
Source: www.remote.tools

Social recommendations and mentions

ActivityWatch might be a bit more popular than Coder. We know about 55 links to it since March 2021 and only 55 links to Coder. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Coder mentions (55)

  • Ask HN: Who is hiring? (August 2025)
    Coder | https://coder.com/ | Multiple roles | Multiple locations | Full-time Coder is an AI software development company leading the future of autonomous coding. We empower teams to build software faster, more securely, and at scale through the collaboration of AI coding agents and human developers. Our mission is to make agentic AI a safe, trusted, and integral part of every software development lifecycle.... - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • Ask HN: Who is hiring? (May 2025)
    Coder | https://coder.com/ | Multiple roles | Multiple locations | Full-time unless specified otherwise Coder is on a mission to build enterprise software that makes software developers’ lives easier and keeps them in flow. Our cloud development environment enables customers to securely spin up ephemeral workspaces where developers and AI coding agents can do real work together. Across our open-source portfolio,... - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • Remote Development at Woovi
    Our initial foray into remote development was with Coder. We set it up using Docker within a large Linux container (LXC). However, as more developers spun up new environments, performance began to degrade. - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • Ask HN: Who is hiring? (January 2025)
    Coder | https://coder.com/ | Multiple roles | Multiple locations in North America | Full-time Coder is an open-source, remote-first software company. Our product moves development from local machines to cloud infrastructure, reducing onboarding time while speeding up builds, tests, and workspace configuration for individuals and large dev teams. The developers that we support work at companies like Discord,... - Source: Hacker News / 9 months ago
  • Shared remote development environment in our research group
    As I was looking for a solution to the problems we faced with the shared workstations, I found Coder (https://coder.com), an open-source platform that allows you to create and manage development environments in the cloud or using your own servers. At that moment, I started building an infrastructure to solve the problems we faced with the shared workstations. At the end, the infrastructure looked like the... - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
View more

ActivityWatch mentions (55)

  • Everyone knows all the apps on your phone
    > How hard would it be for an app to monitor all of your web traffic based on the title alone? Although not terribly accurate (because of the high variability of page titles), tools like ManicTime and ActivityWatch use windows titles to track your browser history if you don't install the browser plugin. https://www.manictime.com/ https://activitywatch.net/. - Source: Hacker News / 6 months ago
  • RemotePulse – Boost your remote work productivity with effortless tracking
    Try https://activitywatch.net/ Plus extensions for Chrome and VSCode: https://docs.activitywatch.net/en/latest/watchers.html It will give track how much time you spend per file, URL, window. - Source: Hacker News / 12 months ago
  • Ask HN: Windows Recall / Rewind.ai Alternatives?
    Are there any good alternatives? I know about OpenRecall and ActivityWatch but what are some other options? https://github.com/openrecall/openrecall https://activitywatch.net/ I remember there was an older Windows desktop app too (proprietary paid) which was linked here but I forgot to save the link... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Basic computer logon tracking/monitoring tools?
    But have a look at https://activitywatch.net/. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • I am looking for an Ubuntu tool to keep track of time spent actively using the computer
    I have used a tool called Activity Watch, an open source project. But this is kind of too much for me. Source: about 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Coder and ActivityWatch, you can also consider the following products

CodeLobster PHP Edition - CodeLobster - Free portable PHP IDE with support Drupal, Smarty, Twig, WordPress, Joomla, JQuery, CodeIgniter, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, AngularJS, CakePHP, Facebook, Laravel, Phalcon, Symfony, Yii

RescueTime - Time management software that shows you how you spend your time & provides tools to help you be more productive.

NuSphere PhpEd - PhpED - PHP IDE integrated development environment for developing web sites using PHP, HTML, Perl, JScript and CSS that combines a comfortable editor, debugger, profiler with the MySQl, PostrgeSQL database support based on easy wizards and tutorials.

ManicTime - Track your computer usage and use collected data to accurately tag time.

Kodiak PHP - Kodiak PHP can run any PHP code directly (offline) on your iPad, no need for an internet connection.

Toggl - Toggl is an online time tracking tool. It features 1-click time tracking and helps you see where your time goes. Free and paid versions are available.

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