Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

PortableApps.com VS Chocolatey

Compare PortableApps.com VS Chocolatey and see what are their differences

PortableApps.com logo PortableApps.com

PortableApps.com is a website offering many free, commonly used Windows applications that have been...

Chocolatey logo Chocolatey

The sane way to manage software on Windows.
  • PortableApps.com Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-02-02
  • Chocolatey Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-22

PortableApps.com features and specs

  • Portability
    PortableApps.com allows users to carry their software and settings on a USB drive, enabling them to work on different computers without needing to install software anew.
  • No Installation Required
    Applications from PortableApps.com do not require installation on the host machine, which simplifies software management and avoids modifying system files and settings.
  • Privacy and Security
    Since applications run from a portable drive, users can ensure their personal data and app settings are not left on public or shared computers.
  • Space Efficiency
    Many portable apps are designed to be lightweight, consuming less disk space compared to their installed counterparts.
  • Ease of Updates
    PortableApps.com offers a built-in updater that keeps all portable applications current, streamlining the maintenance process.

Possible disadvantages of PortableApps.com

  • Performance Issues
    Running applications from a USB drive can be slower compared to running them from a local hard drive, especially if the USB drive is of low quality or an older standard.
  • Compatibility Limitations
    Not all software can be made portable due to dependencies or performance requirements, limiting the selection of available portable apps.
  • Less Integration
    Portable applications may lack deep system integration, affecting some features and functionality that depend on tight coupling with the operating system.
  • Data Corruption Risk
    Using a USB drive intensively has a higher risk of data corruption or loss, especially if the drive is improperly ejected during read/write operations.
  • User Dependency
    If the portable drive is lost, damaged, or stolen, the user loses access to their applications and settings, creating a dependency on the portable medium.

Chocolatey features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Chocolatey simplifies software installation with easy-to-use commands. You can quickly install, update, and uninstall software packages using simple commands in the command line.
  • Wide Range of Packages
    Chocolatey has a large repository of software packages, making it easier to find and install a wide range of applications without having to navigate through individual installer websites.
  • Automation and Scripting
    Chocolatey allows for the automation of software management tasks through scripting, which can save a lot of time, especially in enterprise environments where multiple machines need to be managed.
  • Integration with Configuration Management Tools
    Chocolatey integrates smoothly with popular configuration management tools like Ansible, Puppet, and Chef, making it a good choice for infrastructure as code (IaC) approaches.
  • Version Control
    Chocolatey provides version control options, allowing users to specify which version of a software package they wish to install.

Possible disadvantages of Chocolatey

  • Potential Security Risks
    Since Chocolatey packages can be created by anyone, there is a potential security risk if you're not careful about which packages you install. It is recommended to only use trusted sources.
  • Limited GUI
    Chocolatey is primarily a command-line based tool, which might not be user-friendly for those who prefer graphical user interfaces.
  • Commercial Licensing Costs
    While Chocolatey is free for personal use, advanced features and commercial use require a paid license, which might be a constraint for some organizations.
  • Dependency Issues
    Sometimes, packages may have dependency issues that need to be manually resolved, which can complicate what is otherwise a straightforward process.
  • Learning Curve
    For users unfamiliar with command-line tools or package managers, there may be a steep learning curve initially in understanding how to use Chocolatey effectively.

PortableApps.com videos

PortableApps.com Review

Chocolatey videos

Chocolatey - The Package Manager For Windows Review

More videos:

  • Review - Chocolatey: A Windows Package Manager?
  • Review - Chocolatey Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to PortableApps.com and Chocolatey)
Note Taking
100 100%
0% 0
Windows Tools
10 10%
90% 90
LMS
100 100%
0% 0
Package Manager
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using PortableApps.com and Chocolatey. 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 PortableApps.com and Chocolatey

PortableApps.com Reviews

We have no reviews of PortableApps.com yet.
Be the first one to post

Chocolatey Reviews

Comparing Package Managers
Chocolatey is more established and easier to host a custom repository (plus it runs in the system context). The deployment of applications and especially updating is not as easy as some of the other options, but if cost is an issue, it’s always a safe bet (I tend to include it as standard on an AVD build and then use Azure Runbooks to deploy and update applications by...
5 Best Windows package manager to use via command line
Chocolatey works for both Windows 10 and 7, it released in 2011, thus it has been around for quite some time now. This makes it one of the largest online repository to download and install various open source and closed source software packages for Windows OS. It offers both community and enterprise solutions. The best thing, one can easily visit the official website of...
6 Best Windows Package Manager to Auto-Update Apps (2020)
The name sounds amusing but you better take this app seriously. Chocolatey has the largest app repository and it supports PowerShell, command line, and even GUI. You name it and Chocolatey has that app. To install, you just need to type the following in command prompt and hit enter.
Source: techwiser.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Chocolatey should be more popular than PortableApps.com. It has been mentiond 253 times since March 2021. 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.

PortableApps.com mentions (150)

  • Ask HN: What tools do you recommend for working on Windows?
    Always put all your portable programs in the "A:\MyPC\Programs\" folder. Always put all your documents in the "A:\MyPC\Documents\" folder. Put driver files and runtime libraries in the "A:\MyPC\Install\" folder. For all three, feel free to create subfolders as needed, either per topic, per group, or however your brain envisions data trees. You can find plenty of portable windows software in the links provided... - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Ask HN: Recommended lightweight apps like Paint.NET, Notepad++, SumatraPDF etc.
    If I'm on windows I like portable applications. I always have: https://portableapps.com/ "Installed" and if I'm looking for a program I tend to go here: https://www.portablefreeware.com/ first. There's also sysmenu: https://www.ugmfree.it/ Which has way more programs, and let's not forget nirsoft: https://www.nirsoft.net/ Someone's already mention sysinternals. Much as I like Linux over windows, portable app have... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • I wanna switch browsers, any recommendations
    Until you can makeup your mind about a different browser, do what I normally do & check out this site: https://portableapps.com/ by utilizing this platform the ONLY software that actually gets installed to a users computer is the portableapps setup file so you can utilize the application itself. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Is there a way to package a desktop app so that it can run in "any" environment?
    I would ask over at portableapps.com. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Why do people still use VBA?
    >no software install... https://portableapps.com I think there's even a Lazarus IDE available for every company user who. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
View more

Chocolatey mentions (253)

  • Create Your Custom WSL from any Linux Distribution (Part-1)
    While the ArchWSL and Fedora WSL at MS Store may seem great at first before installing, these distros have often showed compatibility issues and sometimes very weird bugs; even conflicts with scoop or chocolatey apps. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • Let’s build AI-tools with the help of AI and Typescript!
    Chocolatey Windows software management solution, we use this for installing Python and Deno. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Giving Kyma a little spin ... a SpinKube
    Authenticating with Kyma is a (in my opinion) unnecessary challenge as it leverages the OIDC-login plugin for kubectl. You find a description of the setup here. This works fine when on a Mac but can give you some headaches on a Windows and on Linux machine especially when combined with restrictive setups in corporate environments. For Windows I can only recommend installing krew via chocolatey and then install the... - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Effective Neovim Setup. A Beginner’s Guide
    On a Windows machine, you can use Chocolatey by running the command. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Need Help with getting Haskell onto my Windows Laptop
    I've used WSL2 and GHC/Nix--worked without any issues. However, there is Chocolatey: https://chocolatey.org/. Source: over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing PortableApps.com and Chocolatey, you can also consider the following products

SyMenu - SyMenu is a portable menu launcher and Start Menu replacement to organize your applications quickly...

Ninite - Ninite is the easiest way to install software.

The Portable Freeware Collection - One of the largest collections of free, portable software on the web.

Scoop - A command-line installer for Windows

PStart - PStart is a simple tray tool to start user defined applications.

Homebrew - The missing package manager for macOS