A text editor is/are a computer program that allows users to create, change, or edit a plain text file. Mostly Free Text Editors are used to create computer programs, edit the source code of programming languages, edit hypertext markup language (HTML), and creating web pages or web design templates and more. However, in recent times they have achieved great prominence in the world of software programming or editorial publishing on the Internet. Do you want to know the best text editors at no cost and that is of your preference? Here we have collected a list of popular and best free text editors for windows and mac.
A text editor is program that allows you to open, view, and edit plain text files. Unlike word processors, text editors do not add formatting to text, instead focusing on editing functions for plain text.
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Best Freeware Text Editors
Both Windows and macOS have a default program that will help you start with basic text editing.In the case of Windows, this could not be other than the classic Notepad, while in the case of macOS, its counterpart would be TextEdit. But in the case of both, they will fall somewhat short when you want to do a more complex task. Today there are many solutions to undertake larger tasks, and the best at no cost. And this would be the ideal solution whether you are one of those who prefer a text editor to edit your content on the internet, avoiding existing office packages or if you are like me who avoids as much as possible the “heavy” Integrated Development Environments (IDE ) and expensive to program software.
Instead of indicating which one we prefer, we will show you a list that we have prepared for you so that you can choose the one that best suits your needs:
Notepad++
One of most used free Text editors for windows users and its popular for simplicity of its use, however, it has several advanced features. Its compact design and the ease of use offered by its tabbed navigation are features that are highly appreciated by users. Once inside the program, you will be able to establish comparisons between text documents or establish the format you need for each one of them. The search functionality is quite advanced in this editor, and you can even customize it to replace content.
You can practically open any file using Notepad++, which is integrated into the Windows context menu once it is installed. Another of its best aspects is the large number of plugins that it incorporates by default, allowing programming in multiple languages or exporting content to many formats such as TXT, CSS, ASM, AU3, BASH, BAT, HPP, CC, DIFF, HTML, REG, HEX, JAVA, SQL and VBS.
Other features include bookmarks, macros, automatic backup, multi-page search, resumed sessions, read-only mode, encoding conversions, Wikipedia word search, and opening the document in your web browser.
Notepad++ is only available for Windows in 64 and 32 bit versions, although its portable version can also be found, all these versions can be downloaded from its official page.
Pros
- Tabbed interface
- Automatically restores recently opened and unsaved files
- Includes tons of really useful features like macros, syntax highlighting and plugins
- Open basically any file as a text document
- There is a portable version available
Cons
- Runs only on Windows
brackets text editor
Oriented to web design Brackets offers a minimalist and aesthetically pleasing work environment. Of course, you will be able to do many more things with this interesting text editor. To begin with, we must bear in mind that this “minimalism” is achieved by hiding most of the functions that it has, which could be an inconvenience if you get involved in its daily use.
But as you get to know it better, you realize that you are dealing with an advanced tool for editing texts. Those of us who program frontend code love the option that has brackets to split the screen and work on several documents at the same time. Also much appreciated is the “Distraction Free” mode which allows you to focus solely on the code.
Like many other free text editors, it has keyboard shortcuts, snippets, indent options, duplicate, move between lines, toggle line and block comments, show or hide code hints, change encoding, syntax highlighting and more.
The “preview” option will make it easy for us to see the page update in real-time in your web browser as you make changes to the file. Through plugins you can, for example, use Git in a simple way or perform validations according to the W3C.
Tired of the same old look?
There are many themes that can be applied to Brackets, although the default ones (Dark and Light) are quite attractive. If you want to use others you can do it through the Extension Manager.
Pros
- Minimalist atmosphere.
- Support split screen editing
- Includes code-specific syntax highlighting
- You can see updates for some files live in your web browser
- Allows you to use keyboard shortcuts
- Works on Windows, Linux and macOS
- Plugins are supported to add additional features
Cons
- Mainly built for people with code development in mind, so most of the features are focused on project files, code visualization, etc.
An interesting aspect is that Brackets is cross-platform and can be installed on Windows, MacOS or Linux. To get the version for the operating system of your choice, you can always go to the download page.
Komodo Edit
Komodo Edit is one of the Best Free Text Editors, which also shares many similarities with Brackets, it is cross-platform, with a polished and clean design, is free and with advanced features that do not immediately stand out.
The work area includes various display modes including “focus” mode an analogy of Brackets’ “distraction-free” mode. Navigating the editor is extremely easy with a folder tree on the right side of the editor and paths at the top.
Other features:
- You can connect to a remote FTP server to open or save files
- Supports bookmarking of specific areas of the document
- Allows you to switch to a large number of file types to highlight syntax differently and save under that format
- The “Go to Anything” search box allows you to find files to open, install plugins, run scripts and commands, open menus, install other languages, change the color scheme and much more
- Recently closed tabs and files are easy to reopen
- Allows you to preview files in a web browser
- Templates can be created from existing files
- A “View File” option can open a document in a new reference window without adding itself to the tabbed list of files you are editing
- Record replayable macros to repeat things
This text editor works with Windows, Mac and Linux and you can download its different versions here.
Pros
- Very attractive and modern interface
- You can do virtual projects to gather files from multiple locations
- Supports unique features not found in similar text editors
- Changing interface settings is easy with one click
- Tabbed interface is easy to work with
- Runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows
Cons
- It’s a bit complex, even with its minimal user interface, for people who want a simple text editor
Visual Studio Code
Over the years Visual Studio Code has become one of the main references in terms of text editors. Despite being sponsored by Microsoft, this powerful tool is free and offers features and resources beyond the reach of most text editors on the market.
To begin with, Microsoft has learned from the best and the minimalist design that is a trend among the best text editors is present in VS Code. The “ZEN” mode has even been included here, which hides practically everything in the editor, leaving only the code on the screen for greater concentration. It also has tabbed and file tree browsing.
It must be said that this editor is practically oriented towards programming and code debugging, so it won’t be as useful for other things. One aspect that is growing daily is the large number of extensions and existing documentation to work with this powerful editor. Microsoft has really put a lot of effort into supporting this tool in such a way that it has managed to maintain a large community of programmers working and improving every day.
Other features:
- You will be able to open entire folders at once from the right-click context menu.
- “Change All Occurrences” option makes it easy to select and edit the text you want to change throughout the entire document in a single swipe.
- Similar is the “Refactor Rename” option to rename a symbol in every instance of it in all project documents.
- Possibility to open recently closed documents in an easy way, since they appear in the same place.
- The “IntelliSense” feature helps auto-fill code based on surrounding text and cursor location in the document.
- Files can be saved automatically if you enable the option.
- A document can be quickly returned to the state it was in the last time you saved it.
- The editing space can be divided into multiple windows for parallel reading and editing.
- Dozens of keyboard shortcuts are supported and fully editable, such as one to copy/paste an entire line of code directly above or below the current position.
- You can change the color theme of the program as well as the icon theme.
- Extensions can be installed to add more features to Visual Studio Code, such as one for debugging JavaScript code in the Google Chrome browser and one for running programming code directly from the text editor.
- When searching for text strings, you can define whether you want to match the case or the whole word.
Visual Studio Code runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux computers. You can download this text editor here.
Pros
- Entire folders can be opened at once to open all text files
- A minimal interface is just a click away
- Supports tabs for easy file tracking
- Includes a debugger; perfect for source code editing
Cons
- Mainly focused on code editing and debugging, so might be too much for the average user
- Settings are difficult to change
Atom Text Editor
We want to end this selection with Atom. Atom is sponsored by Github which influences the way this great text editor works and integrates seamlessly with this platform. The slogan of the Atom developers is as follows: “A hackable editor for the 21st century.” This basically describes one of its most accomplished features, customization. It is so customizable that you can edit all its features from the text editor itself. Amazing!
We could safely say that Atom is among the top 3 best text editors on the market. The community of users who contribute themes and plugins is huge. This is reflected in the thousands of packages you have to improve and customize the editor. It should be mentioned that Atom joins the family of attractive text editors focused on simplicity and usability.
Projects can be shared and edited in real-time, helping teams that are distant from each other to work collaboratively. But the number of features of this editor is so great that we will show you several of them below.
Other features:
- It is an open-source text editor with a large community of developers. This means that you will get new updates, themes and packages on a consistent basis.
- It is a multi-platform or cross-platform solution that works on the vast majority of operating systems.
- It is useful not only for programming, although its true potential is seen when you need to collaborate with other people. All edits and creations can be done in real-time.
- It provides a GitHub package to integrate and do things like pull requests and resolve join conflicts.
- You can also search for new packs and themes directly from the text editor.
- It’s a snap to edit your code with its smart autocompletion, a system file browser, and a find and replace feature.
- It offers multiple panels to compare and edit code side by side.
If you want to obtain this magnificent tool, you can do so through its official page.
Pros
- It is multiplatform
- Integration with Git for collaborative work
- High level of customization
- Lots of extensions
- Great community of collaborators.
Cons
- Software development oriented.
These are some of the best free text editors for Windows and Mac to help precisely and correctly write your code while avoiding formatting difficulties. Let us know if you’ve used any of these options and what your favorite feature is.
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