Alternatives to Lite XL

Edit text and code in a lightweight Lua-based editor. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

Replacements

Listings that take over the same core job as Lite XL.

  • Sublime Text

    A fast native editor for code and prose, paid for but with an evaluation that never stops working.

    PaidProprietaryWindowsmacOSLinux

    Sublime Text is a fast native editor with multiple cursors and goto-anything, but it is closed source and paid with a nagging evaluation.

  • Geany

    A small, fast IDE built on GTK that starts instantly and does not depend on a heavy desktop environment.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Geany is a small GTK IDE that adds symbol lists and a configurable build command, with plugins written against its C interface instead of Lua.

  • Visual Studio Code

    Microsoft's code editor, free to use but shipped under a Microsoft licence rather than an open one.

    FreeProprietaryWindowsmacOSLinux

    Visual Studio Code has extensions for nearly every language and an integrated debugger, but it is Electron-based, heavier and not open source.

  • VSCodium

    Visual Studio Code built from the same source without Microsoft’s branding, telemetry or licence.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    VSCodium is an MIT-licensed VS Code build without telemetry, with a larger extension ecosystem but a heavier Electron runtime.

  • Zed

    A Rust editor from the people who built Atom, written for speed and for two people editing one file.

    FreemiumOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Zed is a GPU-rendered Rust editor with language servers and tree-sitter built in, adding collaboration at the cost of a larger application.

  • Lapce

    A code editor written in Rust with GPU rendering, built-in LSP support, optional modal editing and remote development.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Lapce is a native Rust editor with built-in LSP and remote development, with plugins compiled to WASI rather than written in Lua.

  • Pulsar

    Community-maintained continuation of the Atom text editor.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Pulsar continues the hackable Atom editor with its own package registry, but it is Electron-based with higher memory use and slower startup.

  • Kate

    KDE's text editor: syntax highlighting for over 400 languages, split views, multi-cursor editing and an embedded terminal.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsLinux

    Kate adds an embedded terminal, split views and live Markdown preview, but it pulls in KDE Frameworks and has no macOS build.

Also worth comparing

These listings name Lite XL as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.

  • Bluefish

    A lightweight open-source code and text editor for programmers and web developers.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Lite XL is an MIT-licensed lightweight editor for Windows, macOS and Linux extended through Lua plugins and themes, without Bluefish's built-in web development tools.

  • CudaText

    A fast, cross-platform open-source code editor written in Object Pascal and extensible with Python.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Lite XL is a lightweight MIT-licensed editor for Windows, macOS and Linux that is extended with Lua plugins instead of Python add-ons.

  • ecode

    A lightweight multi-platform code editor built on a hardware-accelerated GUI, focused on responsiveness and performance.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Lite XL is an MIT-licensed lightweight editor for Windows, macOS and Linux extended through Lua plugins and themes, with some older Lite plugins needing adaptation.

  • Notepad++

    The fast Windows text and source code editor that replaced Notepad for a generation of users.

    FreeOpen sourceWindows

    Lite XL is a lightweight cross-platform MIT-licensed editor extended through Lua plugins and themes.

  • Notepads

    Use a lightweight Windows text editor with tabs and Markdown preview.

    FreeOpen sourceWindows

    Lite XL is a lightweight MIT-licensed editor for Windows, macOS and Linux, extended through Lua plugins and themes.

  • Textadept

    A fast, minimalist programmer's text editor that can be scripted and extended with Lua.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinuxCommand line

    Lite XL is also a lightweight Lua-extensible editor under the MIT license, without Textadept's terminal interface.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.