Software Alternatives & Startups

Vim VS Spacevim

Compare Vim VS Spacevim and see what are their differences

Vim

Highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Open source
Spacevim

SpaceVim is a distribution of the Vim editor that’s inspired by Spacemacs.

Rating
0 reviews

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Spacevim should be more popular than Vim. It has been mentioned 39 times since March 2021.

social mentions
10 vs 39
Text Editors popularity
90% vs 10%
alternatives listed
240+ vs 53

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

Vim
Spacevim
Website vim.org spacevim.org
Pricing
Open source
—
Listed in

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

Vim 6 features
Spacevim 5 features
  • 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

  • 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.
  • Pre-configured
    SpaceVim provides a pre-configured setup which makes it easier for users to get started with minimal setup time compared to vanilla Vim.
  • Customizability
    It offers high customizability enabling users to tailor the editor to their specific needs with easily configurable layers and plugins.
  • Community-driven
    Developed and improved upon by a large community, providing good support and documentation, as well as numerous plugins and features based on user feedback.
  • Layer System
    SpaceVim employs a layer system that allows for modular and organized configuration, simplifying the process of adding or removing features.
  • Multi-language support
    Supports different programming languages, offering features like enhanced syntax highlighting, autocompletion, and language-specific tools.

Possible disadvantages

  • Learning Curve
    Despite being easier to set up than Vim, SpaceVim still has a steep learning curve, especially for users unfamiliar with Vim's modal editing.
  • Performance
    SpaceVim can be slower than a bare Vim setup due to its additional features and plugins which can affect startup times and overall performance.
  • Complex Configuration
    While it offers great customizability, configuring SpaceVim can become complex and overbearing, especially for users needing fine-tuned custom setups.
  • Dependency Overhead
    Relies on several external plugins and dependencies, which might complicate the setup and management process, particularly in environments without access to package managers.
  • Incompatibility with Some Plugins
    Certain Vim plugins and scripts may not be compatible with SpaceVim or require additional configuration to work correctly.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

Vim
Spacevim

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.

No analysis of Spacevim yet.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

Vim 3 videos + Add
Spacevim 1 video + Add

What Vim Is and Why You Should Learn It

More videos

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

SpeceVim First Impressions

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
Vim
Spacevim
90% 90%
10% 10%
88% 88%
IDE
12% 12%
81% 81%
19% 19%
100% 100%
0% 0%

User comments

Share your experience with using Vim and Spacevim. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

Vim no reviews yet
Spacevim no reviews yet
  • Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
    convesio.com · Nov 2023

    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, you’ll be amazed at the speed and productivity it brings to your...

  • 13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
    kinsta.com · Sep 2023

    It’s tough to say which developers would enjoy Vim as a text editor. It’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...

  • 12 Best LaTeX Editors You Should Use
    beebom.com · Dec 2021

    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...

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

Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

Vim 10 mentions
Spacevim 39 mentions
  • 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... Source: almost 4 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... Source: about 4 years ago

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  • How to start using Vim
    SpaceVim is a ready—to—use configuration that also provides an interface for configuring the editor and installing plugins. A similar project, Spacemacs, exists on the Internet, which they were inspired by. - Source: dev.to / about 2 years ago
  • Micro – A Modern Alternative to Nano
    I don't know how much you actually care, and I'm the nano OP of this comment chain/thread but there are some vims (and emacs) with plugins and what not built in. Only one I can think of off the top of my head is https://spacevim.org/ but... - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • Is it possible to use VIM as an ide?
    On the vim side, you can try https://spacevim.org. Source: over 3 years ago

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Alternatives to Vim and Spacevim

When comparing Vim and Spacevim, you can also consider the following products.