VS Code VS awesome

Compare VS Code VS awesome and see what are their differences

Rating: 5.0 · 1 review
Pricing: Open source

Rating: 0 reviews
Pricing: Open source

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Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, VS Code seems to be more popular. It has been mentioned 1219 times since March 2021.

social mentions: 1,219 vs 0
Text Editors popularity: 100% vs 0%
alternatives listed: 240+ vs 79

Base details

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

	VS Code	awesome
Website	code.visualstudio.com	awesome.naquadah.org
Pricing	Open source	Open source
Company	Startup from the United States	—
Listed in	Text Editors IDE Software Development Developer Tools +1	Linux Window Manager Open Source Utilities +1

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

VS Code 8 features

awesome 5 features

Cross-platform
VS Code works on Windows, macOS, and Linux, providing a consistent development experience across different operating systems.
Extensibility
A vast library of extensions allows users to add functionalities like debuggers, linters, and themes, making it highly customizable.
Integrated Git
Built-in Git integration makes it easy to manage version control tasks directly within the editor.
Performance
Lightweight compared to full-fledged IDEs, ensuring good performance even on systems with limited resources.
IntelliSense
Advanced code completion and refactoring tools help improve coding efficiency and reduce errors.
Community Support
A strong and active community provides extensive support, tutorials, and third-party extensions.
Debugging
Robust debugging tools for various languages and frameworks are available out of the box.
Free and Open-Source
VS Code is completely free to use and open-source, which is beneficial for both individual developers and organizations.

Possible disadvantages

Limited IDE Features
While extensible, it may lack some advanced features found in dedicated IDEs out of the box.
Extension Management
Managing and configuring a large number of extensions can become cumbersome and sometimes lead to performance issues.
Learning Curve
Although user-friendly, it has a steeper learning curve for beginners due to its numerous features and customization options.
Memory Usage
Despite being lightweight, it can consume a significant amount of memory when multiple extensions are installed.
Update Frequency
Frequent updates may sometimes introduce bugs or require users to adapt to new changes quickly.
Internet Dependency
Some features and extensions may require an internet connection to function optimally.
Telemetry
By default, VS Code collects usage data, which might be a concern for users sensitive about data privacy. However, this can be disabled.

Highly Configurable
Awesome is extremely configurable, allowing users to customize their environment to fit their specific workflow.
Lightweight
As a tiling window manager, Awesome is very lightweight and consumes minimal resources, which is ideal for older hardware or minimal setups.
Lua Scripting
Configuration is done through Lua scripting, which provides powerful and flexible customization options.
Tiling and Dynamic Layouts
Awesome offers both tiling and floating window management with dynamic layouts that adjust based on user preference.
Active Community
The Awesome community is active and supportive, providing ample documentation and user-contributed modules and configurations.

Possible disadvantages

Steep Learning Curve
Due to its extensive configurability and scripting-based setup, Awesome can be challenging for newcomers to get accustomed to.
Limited Graphical Configuration Tools
Configuration is done mainly through text files and scripts, which can be daunting for users who prefer graphical interfaces.
Sparse Default Configuration
The default configuration of Awesome is fairly minimal, requiring significant setup time to create a personalized environment.
Performance Overhead with Complex Scripts
While Lua scripting is powerful, highly complex scripts can introduce performance overhead, potentially impacting the system's responsiveness.
Compatibility Issues
Certain applications that are designed with floating window managers in mind may not function optimally with Awesome's tiling system.

Analysis

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

VS Code

awesome

Overall verdict

Yes, VS Code is generally considered a good choice for developers due to its flexibility, efficiency, and strong community support. It is lightweight, fast, and user-friendly, catering to both novice and experienced developers.

Why this product is good

VS Code, developed by Microsoft, is a widely popular and versatile code editor. It offers a robust extension ecosystem, which allows developers to customize their workflow and coding environment extensively. Additionally, VS Code supports numerous programming languages right out of the box and provides features like IntelliSense, debugging, Git integration, and a built-in terminal, making it a powerful tool for developers.

Recommended for

Web developers looking for a comprehensive yet lightweight coding environment.
Software developers who need an editor with extensive language support and customization options.
Beginner programmers who would benefit from a feature-rich editor that can grow with their skills.
Developers interested in an open-source tool with continuous updates and community-driven enhancements.

Overall verdict

Yes, awesome (awesome.naquadah.org) is good.

Why this product is good

Awesome is a highly configurable and extensible window manager for the X Window System. It is designed to be fast, with minimal system resource usage, and to provide a powerful and flexible environment for managing windows. Users appreciate its customizability and scripting capabilities, making it suitable for advanced users who enjoy tweaking their setup.

Recommended for

Users who prefer a minimalist desktop environment for efficiency and speed.
Advanced users who enjoy customizing their workflow with Lua scripting.
Users seeking a tiling window manager to enhance productivity.
Developers and power users who appreciate a high degree of control over their window management.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

VS Code 2 videos + Add

awesome 4 videos + Add

My New Favorite Text Editor - Visual Studio Code

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

VS Code

awesome

100% 100%

Text Editors

0% 0%

Window Manager

100% 100%

IDE

0% 0%

Linux

100% 100%

User comments

Share your experience with using VS Code and awesome. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

Reviews and articles

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

VS Code 5.0 · 1 review

awesome no reviews yet

Choosing the Best SQL Server Tool in 2026
www.linkedin.com · Aug 2026

If you're a Windows DBA who mainly manages servers, SSMS is still hard to beat. SQL Server Data Tools makes the most sense for teams building database projects in Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code with the MSSQL...
Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
convesio.com · Nov 2023

Visual Studio Code, commonly known as VS Code, is a powerful and extensible code editor developed by Microsoft. With its rich ecosystem of extensions and features like IntelliSense, debugging, and Git integration, VS...
13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
kinsta.com · Sep 2023

Finally, the Visual Studio Code website has numerous tabs for you to learn about the software. The documentation page walks you through steps like the setup and working with different languages. You’re also able to...

Top 13 Best Tiling Window Managers For Linux In 2022
www.hubtech.org · May 2022

Awesome is a free & open-source next-generation tiling manager for X that is designed to be fast and adaptable, with a focus on developers, power users, and anyone who wants to have more control over their graphical...
13 Best Tiling Window Managers for Linux
www.tecmint.com · Jun 2020

awesome is a free and open-source next-generation tiling manager for X built to be fast and extensible and it is primarily aimed at developers, power users, and anyone who would like to control their graphical...
5 Great Tiling Window Managers for Linux
www.maketecheasier.com · Oct 2014

Awesome has a unique take on the concept of a tiling window manager. It is probably the most user-friendly on the list. Much like i3, it claims to have well-documented code to make it very easy to dig right into for...

Social recommendations and mentions

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

VS Code 1219 mentions

awesome 0 mentions

How to Install Python 3.14 on Mac and Set Up VS Code (2026 Beginner Guide)
Download VS Code from code.visualstudio.com, unzip it, and drag it into Applications. Running it from the Downloads folder causes update problems later. - Source: dev.to / 7 days ago
AI Coding Tips I Actually Use Every Day (Cursor + Angular)
Coming from VS Code, the editor feels familiar, and I like having the AI features right there alongside my code. - Source: dev.to / 13 days ago
A developer's guide to eSignature API integration
A code editor. VS Code with the Python extension is a good default; any editor works. - Source: dev.to / 26 days ago

Tracking awesome since Mar 2021.

Alternatives to VS Code and awesome

When comparing VS Code and awesome, you can also consider the following products.

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.

Compare Sublime Text to VS Code or awesome:

Sublime Text vs VS Code Sublime Text vs awesome
i3
A dynamic tiling window manager designed for X11, inspired by wmii, and written in C.

Compare i3 to VS Code or awesome:

i3 vs VS Code i3 vs awesome
Vim
Highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing

Compare Vim to VS Code or awesome:

Vim vs VS Code Vim vs awesome
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Openbox
Openbox is a highly configurable, next generation window manager with extensive standards support.

Compare Openbox to VS Code or awesome:

Openbox vs VS Code Openbox vs awesome
Notepad++
A free source code editor which supports several programming languages running under the MS Windows environment.

Compare Notepad++ to VS Code or awesome:

Notepad++ vs VS Code Notepad++ vs awesome
dwm
dwm is a dynamic window manager for X. It manages windows in tiled, monocle and floating layouts. All of the layouts can be applied dynamically, optimising the environment for the application in use and the task performed.

Compare dwm to VS Code or awesome:

dwm vs VS Code dwm vs awesome