Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

VS Code VS Fork

Compare VS Code VS Fork and see what are their differences

VS Code logo VS Code

Build and debug modern web and cloud applications, by Microsoft

Fork logo Fork

Fast and Friendly Git Client for Mac
  • VS Code Landing page
    Landing page //
    2024-10-09
  • Fork Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-27

VS Code features and specs

  • 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 of VS Code

  • 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.

Fork features and specs

  • User Interface
    Fork provides a clean, intuitive, and visually appealing user interface which makes it easier for users to navigate and manage their repositories.
  • Performance
    The application is optimized for speed and performance, ensuring smooth and quick operations even with large repositories.
  • Comprehensive Features
    Fork offers a wide array of features such as a built-in merge conflict resolver, interactive rebase, and support for Git Flow, making it a powerful tool for advanced Git users.
  • Cross-Platform Support
    Fork is available for both Windows and macOS, allowing users to have a consistent experience regardless of their operating system.
  • Regular Updates
    The developers of Fork actively maintain and update the software, frequently adding new features and fixing bugs to improve user experience.

Possible disadvantages of Fork

  • Cost
    Unlike some other Git clients, Fork is not free. Users need to purchase a license after a trial period to continue using it.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its intuitive interface, new users might find the plethora of features overwhelming and may require some time to learn how to use the tool effectively.
  • Limited Integrations
    Fork has fewer integrations with other development tools and services compared to some of its competitors, which might limit its usability for developers relying on those integrations.
  • Platform Limitations
    While Fork supports Windows and macOS, it does not have a Linux version, which might be a drawback for developers working in a Linux environment.

VS Code videos

My New Favorite Text Editor - Visual Studio Code

More videos:

  • Review - 7 reasons why I switched to Visual Studio Code from Sublime Text

Fork videos

The Best MTB Suspension Forks | HUGE 10 Fork Mega-Test

More videos:

  • Review - Fox Factory 36 GRIP2 Fork Review | 🔥The Hottest Fork On The Market!
  • Review - Usapang MTB Fork - Suspension Fork Upgrade Guide and Tips

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to VS Code and Fork)
Text Editors
100 100%
0% 0
Git
0 0%
100% 100
IDE
100 100%
0% 0
Git Tools
0 0%
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 VS Code and Fork

VS Code Reviews

  1. dksinden
    · Working at SpeechKit ·

Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
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 Code enhances your coding productivity.
Source: convesio.com
13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
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 check out some tips and tricks and learn all of the Visual Studio Code keyboard shortcuts. Along with a blog, updates page, extensions library and API...
Source: kinsta.com
Jupyter Notebook & 10 Alternatives: Data Notebook Review [2023]
Previously, VS Code was more suited to developers or engineers due to its lack of data analysis capabilities, but since 2020, the VS Code team has collaborated with the Jupyter team to create an integrated notebook within VS Code. The end result is a fantastic IDE workbook for data analysis.
Source: lakefs.io
The Best IDEs for Java Development: A Comparative Analysis
Overview: Although not a traditional IDE, VS Code has gained popularity as a lightweight code editor.
Source: dev.to
20 Best Diff Tools to Compare File Contents on Linux
Visual studio code is a code editor made by Microsoft. It supports several development operations like debugging, task running, and version control. It works on Linux, macOS and Windows operating systems.
Source: linuxopsys.com

Fork Reviews

Boost Development Productivity With These 14 Git Clients for Windows and Mac
This git GUI offers an extremely helpful tab-based navigation so that you can easily organize your git management tasks. Also, if you are looking for git clients that let you open the app or website being developed on the same tool, again, you should pick Fork.
Source: geekflare.com
Best Git GUI Clients for Windows
The distinctive feature of the tool is a tab-based interface that makes the navigation and other organization activities much faster. You can open the websites or applications which you work on directly in Fork. This way, you track your repository-related job results better.
Source: blog.devart.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, VS Code seems to be a lot more popular than Fork. While we know about 1139 links to VS Code, we've tracked only 89 mentions of Fork. 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.

VS Code mentions (1139)

  • An Introduction to TypeScript for JavaScript Developers
    Better Tooling – Enhanced autocompletion, refactoring, and navigation in IDEs like VS Code. - Source: dev.to / 1 day ago
  • Why Understanding, Not Just Generating Code, Still Matters
    To do this, I used VS Code, an extension called Cline configured in Act mode, and Gemini 2.5 Pro Preview 03-25, which is amazing. I made two attempts. The first one using a simple and very generic prompt, and a second one using a more detailed prompt. Let’s talk about them. - Source: dev.to / 5 days ago
  • 🚀 Your First Setup Win: Python and VS Code on Mac (Beginner Friendly)
    I visited code.visualstudio.com and clicked the big, inviting "Download for Mac" button. After downloading, I opened the .zip file, dragged the VS Code app into my Applications folder, and launched it. - Source: dev.to / 8 days ago
  • Vibe coding a GO CLI to extract data from articles
    For this challenge we will use Visual Studio Code and Anthropic Claude (Claude 3.7 Sonnet). Also, Go lang must be installed. I am running Fedora Linux. - Source: dev.to / 11 days ago
  • How to Run and Debug Tests in VS Code (With Keploy Integration)
    VS Code installed on your machine (available from here). - Source: dev.to / 29 days ago
View more

Fork mentions (89)

  • I struggled with Git, so I'm making a game to spare others the pain
    Try Fork, it's still obviously git, but it's the easiest I've found so far: https://git-fork.com/. - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • Rewrite Git history via drag-and-drop
    Agreed. I’d pay for this (I pay for [Fork][1]), but never as a subscription. [1]: https://git-fork.com. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • Ask HN: Why no one as ever build a better GitHub client?
    I find the GitHub Desktop tool to be rather clunky. I use git in various ways; * CLI for most small tasks * GUI for big tasks and getting an overview * Editor UI for small things if I am currently in the editor. * GitHub’s website for collaboration and GH specific tasks The GUI’s I use are: Git-Fork on macOS, Windows. Visually my favorite UI of all. https://git-fork.com Sublime Merge on macOS, Windows and Linux.... - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • Ask HN: What macOS apps/programs do you use daily and recommend?
    Git Fork: a git client with a similar level of polish to Tower, but as a one-time purchase instead of a subscription product. https://git-fork.com/. - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • Tools that keep me productive
    I do most of my "git"ing on the command line, but sometimes I need a graphical user interface (GUI) to really understand what's going on. When I need that, I reach for Fork. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing VS Code and Fork, 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.

GitKraken - The intuitive, fast, and beautiful cross-platform Git client.

Vim - Highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing

GitHub Desktop - GitHub Desktop is a seamless way to contribute to projects on GitHub and GitHub Enterprise.

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

SourceTree - Mac and Windows client for Mercurial and Git.