Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups
Register | Login

Notepad++ VS Vim

Compare Notepad++ VS Vim and see what are their differences

JackHamr
AI agents that spec, build, test, and ship code โ€” with voice chat, deep GitHub integration, and zero LLM markup. featured
Contents:
  1. ยป Base Details
  2. ยป Videos
  3. ยป Reviews
  4. ยป Alternatives

Notepad++ logo Notepad++

A free source code editor which supports several programming languages running under the MS Windows environment.

Vim logo Vim

Highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing
  • Notepad++ Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-07
  • Vim Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-23

Notepad++ features and specs

  • Free and Open Source
    Notepad++ is completely free to download and use, and its source code is open for anyone to review, modify, and contribute to.
  • Lightweight and Fast
    Notepad++ is lightweight, meaning it uses fewer system resources compared to more complex IDEs, allowing for quick loading times and responsiveness.
  • Syntax Highlighting
    Supports syntax highlighting for over 80 programming languages, making it easier to read and write code.
  • Plugin Support
    Offers a wide range of plugins to extend its functionality, including customization options, code analyzers, and more.
  • Tabbed Interface
    Allows multiple documents to be opened in the same window through a tabbed interface, which greatly improves productivity.
  • Regular Updates
    Frequently receives updates and patches, improving its features and fixing bugs.

Possible disadvantages of Notepad++

  • Limited Advanced Features
    Lacks some of the advanced features and integrations of full-fledged IDEs, which might be necessary for professional software development.
  • Windows Only
    Natively available only on Windows, although it can be run on other systems using compatibility layers like Wine, which might affect performance.
  • Manual Plugin Management
    Managing plugins can be cumbersome, as users often need to download and install them manually.
  • Occasional Stability Issues
    Although generally stable, users sometimes encounter crashes or bugs, particularly when using many plugins.

Vim features and specs

  • Efficiency
    Once learned, Vim can significantly speed up text editing with its modal editing, keyboard shortcuts, and commands that allow for quick navigation and manipulation of text.
  • Lightweight
    Vim is a very lightweight editor, consuming minimal system resources, making it highly performant even on systems with lower specifications.
  • Customizability
    Vim is highly configurable and extensible through plugins and user-defined settings, allowing users to tailor the editor to their specific needs.
  • Ubiquity
    Vim is available on almost every Unix-like system and even on Windows, making it a ubiquitous tool that you can rely on being available in most environments.
  • Support for Multiple Programming Languages
    Vim supports a wide range of programming languages out of the box and offers syntax highlighting, which can be enhanced through plugins.
  • Powerful Search and Replace
    Vim offers robust searching and replacing functionalities, including support for regular expressions, which can be a powerful tool for developers.

Possible disadvantages of Vim

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Vim's modal editing and extensive set of commands can be daunting for new users, requiring significant time and effort to master.
  • Minimal Default Config
    The default configuration of Vim is quite minimalistic, which may necessitate additional setup and customization to meet modern development needs.
  • Limited GUI
    Vim primarily operates in a terminal, and while there are graphical variants like GVim, they are not as feature-rich or user-friendly as modern GUI editors.
  • Plugin Management
    While Vim is highly extensible, managing and configuring plugins can be cumbersome compared to more modern editors that offer integrated plugin management.
  • Inconsistent Behavior Across Platforms
    There may be inconsistencies in behavior or available features of Vim across different operating systems, which can complicate its use in certain environments.
  • Lack of Integrated Modern Features
    Vim lacks some modern IDE features like integrated debugging, advanced code introspection, and refined autocompletion, which often require third-party plugins to achieve.

Analysis of Notepad++

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Notepad++ is considered a good editor for both programmers and general users who need a reliable and feature-rich text editing tool.

Why this product is good

  • Notepad++ is a popular text and code editor due to its lightweight design, wide array of features, and support for numerous programming languages. It offers syntax highlighting, macro recording, customizable interfaces, and plugin support, making it highly versatile for various coding and text editing tasks. Its open-source nature allows for community-driven improvements, and it runs efficiently on Windows systems without consuming significant resources.

Recommended for

    Notepad++ is recommended for programmers, developers, and writers who need a robust text editor with advanced features. It's ideal for anyone using Windows who wants a free, efficient, and customizable editing solution capable of handling a wide range of file types and coding languages.

Analysis of Vim

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Vim is a good text editor, especially for users who invest the time to learn its powerful commands and features. Its steep learning curve may be challenging initially, but once mastered, it significantly enhances productivity.

Why this product is good

  • Vim is considered a powerful text editor because of its efficiency and versatility. It offers extensive features, such as syntax highlighting, a robust plugin system, and support for numerous programming languages. Vim is highly configurable, enabling users to customize its environment to fit their needs. It is particularly appreciated for its speed and the ability to perform complex text manipulations using simple commands.

Recommended for

    Vim is recommended for programmers, developers, and system administrators who require a highly efficient and customizable text editing experience. It is especially useful for those who work extensively in terminal environments or need a quick, resource-light text editor for remote systems.

Notepad++ videos

+ Add

Notepad++ Review

More videos:

  • Review - Notepad++ Review
  • Review - Notepad++ Text Editor: Intro for Beginners

Vim videos

+ Add

What Vim Is and Why You Should Learn It

More videos:

  • Review - JAC Vapour VIM Review - JAC does a side by side mod...
  • Review - Jac Vapour VIM - Quick Look

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Notepad++ and Vim)

Notepad++

Vim

Text Editors
53 53%
Text Editors
47% 47
IDE
52 52%
IDE
48% 48
Software Development
69 69%
Software Development
31% 31
IDEs And Text Editors
36 36%
IDEs And Text Editors
64% 64

User comments

Share your experience with using Notepad++ and Vim. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Notepad++ and Vim

Notepad++ Reviews

  1. andreew
    the best assistant at work

    I've been using it for a long time, I can say that it has become my main tool in my work. First, you need to get used to using it and look at all the functionality. Overall, it's useful for me!

Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
Notepad++ provides a tabbed interface, allowing you to work on multiple files simultaneously. Its intuitive user interface makes it easy to navigate and edit your code efficiently. With features like syntax highlighting, code folding, and auto-completion, Notepad++ helps you write clean and error-free code.
Source: convesio.com
13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
If youโ€™re a beginner who needs a text editor, Notepad++ is far easier to understand than some of the other options on this list. Not only that, but youโ€™ll enjoy the ability to locate words and replace them all, while also revealing certain bits of code with highlighting. As for advanced users, Notepad++ also does the trick, with its syntax highlighting for HTML, PHP, and...
Source: kinsta.com
Top 10 Free CSV Readers in 2023!
Notepad++: A popular text editor for Windows that has a CSV plugin for viewing and editing CSV files.
Source: www.retable.io
Top 10 Notepad++ Alternatives for Mac in 2022
First, you can get a better version of Notepad++ Mac. For instance, Setapp caters to your own Notepad++ Mac. You can also Notepad++ Mac using an emulator. Typically, the emulator is a form of creating a layer of compatibility where you can run the Notepad++ Mac on your operating system. Another thing you can do t enjoy Notepad++ Mac is by using Wine. This can help you have e...
Source: www.imymac.com
The Top 7 Notepad++ Alternatives for You
I have provided you with mainly free Notepad++ alternatives here. This is not that surprising because Notepad++ is free also. When choosing a Notepad++ alternative you need to consider what you are going to use it for and your level of programming experience.
Source: www.technize.com

Vim Reviews

Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
Vim offers a variety of features like split windows, macros, and extensive customization options. It has a steep learning curve, but once you master it, youโ€™ll be amazed at the speed and productivity it brings to your coding workflow. Vim is a favorite among experienced developers who value speed and efficiency above all else.
Source: convesio.com
13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
Itโ€™s tough to say which developers would enjoy Vim as a text editor. Itโ€™s an old system with an outdated interface. Yet, it still has the charm and powerful feature-set that the average developer needs. I would recommend it to more advanced developers who enjoy using open source software and being a part of a communityโ€“like the one you can find behind Vim.
Source: kinsta.com
12 Best LaTeX Editors You Should Use
The entire installation process is perfectly documented on their Sourceforge page, which you must definitely pay a visit. There is another standalone Vim software, known as the gVim that brings a GUI-based interface to the Vim document editor. Vim-LaTeX has been developed specifically for the programmers and it is so highly configurable that it can function anyway, ranging...
Source: beebom.com
The Top 7 Notepad++ Alternatives for You
Vim is a totally free Notepad++ alternative. It is available to use on Windows, Mac and Linux computers and it is very powerful. I was able to customize Vim to get it to look and function just how I want it. There is really good help support with Vim so if you are new to programming it will get you through most issues.
Source: www.technize.com
10 Best Notepad++ Alternatives in 2020
Vim is an advanced text editor open source tool which is also considered to be an IDE in its way. This tool allows managing your text editing activities with vim editors and UNIX System which can be used on-premise or online.
Source: www.guru99.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Notepad++ seems to be a lot more popular than Vim. While we know about 176 links to Notepad++, we've tracked only 10 mentions of Vim. 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.

Notepad++ mentions (176)

  • Microsoft dumps AI into Notepad as 'Copilot all the things' mania takes hold
    I would like to recommend notepad++. It does the job and I especially like it for multi-document and the other feautures like regex replace and plugins, etc... https://notepad-plus-plus.org. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • How to Run Windows Applications on Linux Using Bottles: A Step-by-Step Guide
    Are you transitioning from Windows to Linux but struggling to replace tools like Notepad++ or WinMerge? Thanks to Wine and Bottles, you can now run Windows-only applications natively on Linux. This guide will show you how to install Windows apps on Linux effortlessly, perfect for .NET developers or anyone needing Windows tools in a Linux environment. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Currency converter in Rust + WebAssembly
    Then we need to modify Cargo.toml file located in your folder that you created with the above command, right click and edit I use notepad++ (to download notepad++ use this link (https://notepad-plus-plus.org/) so you will get the option to edit file directly. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • What I learned from my NodeJS course (part 1)
    Always working in the js-fundamentals.js file Open the file with any text editor. For now, use Notepad++. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • 6 free Markdown (.md) WYSIWYG desktop Editors โ€“ Part3
    Where to get it: Https://notepad-plus-plus.org/ Plugin: inside Plugin Admin. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

Vim mentions (10)

  • regular Vim has lua?!
    Lua is quite small, encouraging distros to include it. The ubuntu gvim has, and the gvim AppImage linked from vim.org does. The default Makefile from github is set up to not include it, but you can uncomment one line there to get it. Source: over 3 years ago
  • is there a way to make highlighted text persistent after quit when using something like [match Search /\%'.line('.').'l/] ?
    I've not used vimwiki locally (tho I'm old enough to remember the Vim wiki on vim.org :), but I think what you are wanting to do is extend vimwiki's syntax file. I presume it installs one at $VIMRUNTIM/syntax or or ~/.vim/syntax. If this sounds right, then create a ~/.vim/after/syntax/vimwiki.vim file and place your match command in there. Then everytime you open a vimwiki file it should apply your... Source: over 3 years ago
  • vim.org - Is there a reason for this 1800s-esque design?
    Vim.org has 242k total visitors, tailwindcss.com has 4.4m, planetscale.com has 412k, jpl.nasa.gov has 2.6m, all built with Tailwind, all several years younger than Vim's website. Unnecessary comparison, unnecessary defence. It's a valuable tool, fine, but a complete disregard for anyone who doesn't love a crappy website and would like to navigate a website like a normal human is not something to be defended. Maybe... Source: almost 4 years ago
  • What is YOUR process of writing ?
    I write in Vim with some customizations in my vimrc to gear it more towards prose writing than code editing. It's not pretty, but Normal Mode and Ex commands are the most powerful text editing tools out there, so that means I spend less time on making corrections and other edits. Source: over 4 years ago
  • Why developers need to know about Vim
    If you are open minded and would like to try it out, click me for more information! Cheers. - Source: dev.to / over 4 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Notepad++ and Vim, you can also consider the following products

VS Code - Build and debug modern web and cloud applications, by Microsoft

Sublime Text - Sublime Text is a sophisticated text editor for code, html and prose - any kind of text file. You'll love the slick user interface and extraordinary features. Fully customizable with macros, and syntax highlighting for most major languages.

GNOME - An easy and elegant way to use your computer, GNOME is designed to put you in control and get things done.

GNU Emacs - GNU Emacs is an extensible, customizable text editorโ€”and more.

UltraEdit - UltraCompare is the name of an advanced level of file and folder comparison platform that is loaded with an advanced level of features and functions.

Microsoft Visual Studio - Microsoft Visual Studio is an integrated development environment (IDE) from Microsoft.

Loading...