Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Wayland VS Openbox

Compare Wayland VS Openbox and see what are their differences

Wayland logo Wayland

Wayland is intended as a simpler replacement for X, easier to develop and maintain.

Openbox logo Openbox

Openbox is a highly configurable, next generation window manager with extensive standards support.
  • Wayland Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-10-30
  • Openbox Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-06

Wayland features and specs

  • Improved Performance
    Wayland provides a more efficient and direct communication between applications and the display server, reducing latency and improving performance by minimizing protocol overhead.
  • Reduced Complexity
    Wayland simplifies the graphical stack by eliminating the need for an X server, reducing the overall complexity and potential for bugs or errors that can arise from more complex architectures.
  • Security Enhancements
    Wayland offers better isolation and security by design, as applications only have access to their own buffers and cannot snoop on input events from other applications.
  • Modern Features
    Wayland supports contemporary features such as high-DPI displays and fractional scaling, providing a better experience on modern devices and screens.
  • Consistency
    Wayland ensures more consistent rendering across different applications, as it standardizes the rendering pipeline and reduces inconsistencies caused by different toolkits trying to work with X11.

Possible disadvantages of Wayland

  • Compatibility Issues
    Wayland is not backward compatible with X11, so older applications that rely on X11-specific features may not work correctly without modification or through compatibility layers like XWayland.
  • Limited Customization
    Some users may find Wayland's reduced ability to configure and customize the windowing system compared to X11 to be a disadvantage, as X11 provides extensive customization options.
  • Driver Support
    Wayland's functionality can be limited by the availability and maturity of graphics drivers, as driver support is crucial for optimal performance and features.
  • Adoption and Maturity
    While many applications and environments are moving towards Wayland, it is still relatively newer and may lack the maturity and extensive ecosystem of X11, affecting its adoption in some distributions.
  • Feature Parity
    As Wayland continues to develop, some advanced features available in X11 might not be fully implemented yet, possibly affecting power users who rely on them for their workflows.

Openbox features and specs

  • Lightweight
    Openbox is a highly efficient window manager that requires minimal system resources, making it an excellent choice for older hardware or systems with limited resources.
  • Customizable
    Openbox offers extensive customization options, allowing users to tailor the look and feel of their desktop environment to their specific preferences.
  • Fast Performance
    Due to its lightweight nature, Openbox provides fast and responsive performance, resulting in quicker application launches and smoother overall desktop experience.
  • Comprehensive Keybindings
    Openbox supports complex keybindings, enabling power users to create efficient workflow setups through keyboard shortcuts.
  • Extensible
    Openbox can work seamlessly with other tools and additional software, allowing users to extend its capabilities with tools like panels, widgets, and additional plugins.

Possible disadvantages of Openbox

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Openbox requires a more hands-on approach and can be challenging for beginners to set up and configure due to its extensive customization options.
  • Limited Out-of-the-box Features
    Unlike full desktop environments, Openbox does not come with many built-in features, requiring users to install and configure additional software to achieve a fully functional desktop.
  • No Desktop Icons by Default
    Openbox does not support desktop icons natively, so users need to rely on additional tools like 'xfdesktop' or 'pcmanfm' to add this functionality.
  • Minimalistic Appearance
    While some users appreciate the minimalistic look, others might find it too bare-bones compared to more feature-rich environments like GNOME or KDE.
  • Manual Configuration
    Most customizations in Openbox require editing configuration files manually, which can be time-consuming and error-prone for users unfamiliar with text-based configurations.

Analysis of Openbox

Overall verdict

  • Openbox is a great choice for users seeking a lightweight and highly customizable window management solution. Its performance benefits on lower-end hardware and flexibility make it a valuable tool for power users and enthusiasts alike.

Why this product is good

  • Openbox is a highly configurable and lightweight window manager for the X Window System. It's known for its speed and simplicity, allowing users to control their desktop environment efficiently. It provides a blank canvas for users wanting to customize their workspace, making it ideal for those who prefer a minimalist setup or have limited system resources. The configuration is done through plain text files, offering flexibility for advanced users who wish to personalize their user experience meticulously.

Recommended for

  • Advanced users looking for customization options
  • Users with older or less powerful hardware
  • Minimalists who prefer a robust yet simplistic interface
  • Linux enthusiasts who enjoy configuring their desktop environment
  • Developers and programmers who want a distraction-free workspace

Wayland videos

WAYLAND: what is it, and is it ready for daily use?

More videos:

  • Review - Testing Wayland & Weston desktop experience in 2020!
  • Review - Wayland vs Xorg | Learn which one to choose

Openbox videos

Get Rid Of That Bloated Desktop Environment And Install Openbox

More videos:

  • Review - Manjaro Openbox: First Impressions and Review
  • Tutorial - Openbox V8S Review- How to get Free TV!!!
  • Review - Open Box Review (Bx8 M-Audio Speakers) #Openbox #SpeakerReview
  • Review - Openbox A1 - Review
  • Review - OPEN BOX - @ikmultimedia TONEX #fyp #opening #openbox #review #guitar

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Wayland and Openbox)
Window Manager
37 37%
63% 63
Linux
29 29%
71% 71
OS & Utilities
100 100%
0% 0
Utilities
19 19%
81% 81

User comments

Share your experience with using Wayland and Openbox. 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 Wayland and Openbox

Wayland Reviews

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

Openbox Reviews

Top 10 Best Desktop Environments in 2020
People whoโ€™re deep into Linux, love Openboxโ€™s simplicity. Itโ€™s extremely lightweight, and comes with only a text-based right-click menu that lists all your applications. The menu is customizable too, and you can add scripts or functions within the menu as a link.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Wayland seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 24 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.

Wayland mentions (24)

  • Debian KDE: Right Linux distribution for professional digital painting in 2024
    Wayland is flawless for what it claims to do. The issue is you can't replace X Org with Wayland, you can only use Wayland combined with other software to replace X Org. This is the biggest issue with Wayland: "Wayland is a replacement for the X11 window system protocol,"[0] but you can't actually replace x11 with it. What they should have done is make sure all the features that x11 had were supported by Wayland.... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Session manager Anbox
    Waydroid is rebuilding the original idea behind Anbox with explicit focus on modern Wayland powered desktop environments. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Asahi Linux To Users: Please Stop Using X.Org
    Checkout out the wayland site.( https://wayland.freedesktop.org/ ) The gist is wayland is a protocol that describes how compositor implementations need to behave for clients to use them and clients need to behave according to the waylaid protocol to use the compositor. There are many different compositors. The wayland contributors have a full usable implementation. Gnome has one and I believe KDE has one. So if... Source: over 2 years ago
  • Swingland: Recreating Java Swing for Wayland
    More recently I switched away from X11 & Budgie to pure Wayland for my desktop on the assumption that it's over 10 years old now, and is the default technology underlying current Gnome and KDE desktops.. Everything will be fine right? Kind of.. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • Linux is Making Apple Great Again
    Wayland is not a WM. https://wayland.freedesktop.org Wayland is the thing "underneath" a Window Manager. For example you can run KDE on top of X or Wayland. There are a few blurry boundaries in all this but that largely covers it. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
View more

Openbox mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Openbox yet. Tracking of Openbox recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Wayland and Openbox, you can also consider the following products

Mir - The purpose of Mir is to enable the development of user interfaces shells.

i3 - A dynamic tiling window manager designed for X11, inspired by wmii, and written in C.

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.

Y Window System - Y Window System is a platform that allows you to improve the speed, working, and efficiency of the application in your operating system and helps you to increase the responsiveness of applications similar to any locally based app.

Fluxbox - Fluxbox is a window manager for X that was based on the Blackbox 0.61.1 code.

Hyprland - Hyprland is a dynamic tiling Wayland compositor that doesn't sacrifice on its looks. - GitHub - vaxerski/Hyprland: Hyprland is a dynamic tiling Wayland compositor that doesn't sacrifice on ...