Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Zed VS OpenVSCode Server

Compare Zed VS OpenVSCode Server and see what are their differences

Zed logo Zed

Zed is a high-performance, multiplayer code editor from the creators of Atom and Tree-sitter.

OpenVSCode Server logo OpenVSCode Server

Run the latest VS Code on a remote machine accessed through a modern web browser - from any device, from anywhere.
  • Zed Landing page
    Landing page //
    2024-06-20
  • OpenVSCode Server Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-03

Zed features and specs

  • Collaborative Editing
    Zed offers real-time collaborative editing features, allowing multiple developers to work on the same codebase simultaneously, enhancing team productivity and communication.
  • Minimalist Interface
    The interface is designed to be distraction-free and minimalist, which helps developers focus on coding without unnecessary clutter and distractions.
  • Speed and Performance
    Zed is built with performance in mind, offering fast loading times and a smooth user experience, making coding more efficient.
  • Cross-Platform Support
    Zed is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it accessible to a wide array of users regardless of their operating system.
  • Innovative Features
    Zed includes several innovative features such as advanced search and navigation capabilities, which can significantly enhance the coding experience.

Possible disadvantages of Zed

  • Limited Extensions
    Compared to more established editors like VS Code, Zed currently has a more limited library of extensions and plugins, which might restrict customization and functionality.
  • Learning Curve
    New users coming from other development environments may face a learning curve due to Zed's unique interface and features.
  • Early Development
    As a relatively new tool, Zed may still be in its early stages of development, with potential bugs and missing features that could affect stability and user experience.
  • Community Size
    The community and user base for Zed is still growing, which can mean less community support, tutorials, and shared resources compared to more mature editors.

OpenVSCode Server features and specs

  • Remote Development
    OpenVSCode Server enables developers to use VSCode in a remote environment, allowing for seamless development without worrying about local setup.
  • Lightweight
    The server doesn't require a complex setup, making it relatively lightweight in terms of resource usage compared to full IDE installations.
  • Collaborative Editing
    It facilitates collaborative coding with multiple developers accessing the same workspace, similar to Live Share features.
  • Access from Any Device
    Developers can access their development environment from any device with a web browser, providing flexibility and mobility.
  • Consistent Development Environment
    Offers a consistent development environment across devices, reducing the 'works on my machine' problem.

Possible disadvantages of OpenVSCode Server

  • Network Dependency
    Since it is server-based, a stable internet connection is necessary. Performance may be affected by network latency.
  • Limited Extensions Support
    Some VSCode extensions may not work optimally or be supported in the server environment compared to the desktop version.
  • Security Concerns
    Hosting your development environment on a server exposes it to potential security risks if not configured properly.
  • Performance Constraints
    The performance may not be as high as locally-installed VSCode, especially when running resource-intensive tasks.
  • Setup Complexity
    Although lightweight, setting up and managing a server environment may require more initial setup and maintenance effort.

Analysis of Zed

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Zed is considered a good code editor by many developers.

Why this product is good

  • Zed offers a modern and efficient code editing experience with features such as real-time collaboration, a clean interface, and high performance. It is built to be fast and responsive, making it suitable for developers who value speed in their editing tools.

Recommended for

    Developers looking for a collaborative and fast code editor with a modern interface would benefit from using Zed. It is especially suited for teams that require real-time collaboration capabilities.

Zed videos

Zed โ€œkillsโ€ VSCode

More videos:

  • Review - Zed - The 'Visual Studio Code Killer' - Now on Linux!

OpenVSCode Server videos

Launching OpenVSCode server ๐Ÿ’ป

More videos:

  • Review - Let's talk OpenVSCode Server!
  • Review - VS Code in the browser with OpenVSCode Server from Gitpod

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Zed and OpenVSCode Server)
Developer Tools
88 88%
12% 12
Open Source
0 0%
100% 100
Text Editors
87 87%
13% 13
Productivity
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Zed should be more popular than OpenVSCode Server. It has been mentiond 93 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.

Zed mentions (93)

  • Elevated error rate across multiple models
    With Agent Client Protocol (ACP) you can keep the same UI and switch not models, but entire agents, that means using tools/prompts/compaction/etc that are tailored for the model. Try Zed[1] for GUI and pool[2] for TUI. [1] https://zed.dev/ [2] https://github.com/poolsideai/pool. - Source: Hacker News / 27 days ago
  • Ask HN: What is your (AI) dev tech stack / workflow? (June 2026)
    Devcontainers + Claude + Pi [1] Zed https://zed.dev/ [2] Terminal threads https://zed.dev/blog/terminal-threads As sort of byproduct also replaced Alacritty + Zellij (i just don't have the need to use more, 3 weeks of new setup). - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • Ask HN: What is your (AI) dev tech stack / workflow? (June 2026)
    The simplest mainstream options for tools: 1) Claude Desktop which includes Claude Code for Anthropic: https://claude.com/product/claude-code (alternatively the terminal based version; either way get the subscription) 2) Codex for OpenAI: https://developers.openai.com/codex/app (same as above, subscription preferred instead of paying per token) 3) OpenCode for a variety of models: https://opencode.ai/ (they also... - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • Tools I'm Using in 2026 (and what I've stopped using from 2025)
    That said, sometimes you do just want an editor, not a full blown IDE, and for that for the last few months I've been experimenting with Zed. It's okay. I've had some weird issues with their terminal emulator; I don't know what they are doing but my ZSH config doesn't load right so it sometimes gets stuck in what looks like an infinite loop, and then my PATH is all messed up... IDK, I expect my editors to kinda... - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Building a native terminal for AI coding agents in Rust + GPUI
    This is a post-mortem, not a launch post. Paneflow is a native terminal workspace, splits, panes, branch-aware workspaces, session restore, built in pure Rust on top of Zed's GPUI framework and the upstream alacritty_terminal crate. It started as a port of cmux, a macOS-only Swift/AppKit project, and the Rust rewrite forced a string of decisions I had no good intuition for at the start. I want to walk through the... - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
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OpenVSCode Server mentions (15)

  • Turning VS Code into a Product Framework
    Despite being made to allow an app to be built with web technologies, most Electron apps become quite coupled to Electron and Node.js. When people started building cloud IDEs where Electron didn't make sense and you could just view the frontend in your browser, they couldn't use VS Code because of this coupling. Eventually, thanks to projects like openvscode-server, which patched VS Code to run as a normal web app... - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
  • 10 (or so) Things Youโ€™ll Love about RestlessIDE
    We use the brilliant OpenVSCode Server from Gitpod.io to power our editor workspaces. This project pulls directly from Microsoftโ€™s VS Code repository and makes it work within a container, accessed via a web browser. Everything will immediately feel familiar to you because itโ€™s what youโ€™ve been coding in for the last decade. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • ๐Ÿš€ Exciting News for Developers: Run VS Code on Any Browser! ๐ŸŒ
    If youโ€™ve ever wanted the flexibility of running VS Code directly in your browser, nowโ€™s the time to give it a try. After experimenting with various solutions, Iโ€™ve found a standout option: openvscode-server by github.com/gitpod-io/openvscode-server โ€“ a fork of Microsoftโ€™s VS Code. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Self-hosted alternative to Codespaces? (With .devcontainer support)
    Not sure what .devcontainer means, but you can take a look to https://github.com/gitpod-io/openvscode-server or https://github.com/coder/code-server. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Does anyone have a solution to replace my laptop?
    I am using this project (https://github.com/gitpod-io/openvscode-server/) to run on my Linux box, then I can access it's server through my web browser. Source: over 3 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Zed and OpenVSCode Server, you can also consider the following products

VS Code - Build and debug modern web and cloud applications, by Microsoft

Productivity Power Tools - Extension for Visual Studio - A set of extensions to Visual Studio 2012 Professional (and above) which improves developer productivity.

Cursor - The AI-first Code Editor. Build software faster in an editor designed for pair-programming with AI.

replit - Code, create, andlearn together. Use our free, collaborative, in-browser IDE to code in 50+ languages โ€” without spending a second on setup.

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

VS Code Theme Studio - Create your own VS Code theme easily, within your browser