Alternatives to Theia IDE

An open-source IDE for desktop and browser from the Eclipse Foundation that runs VS Code extensions. 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 Theia IDE.

  • 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 gives access to the Microsoft extension marketplace and a larger community, but it is not open source and collects telemetry.

  • VSCodium

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

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    VSCodium is the MIT-licensed VS Code build without telemetry that also uses Open VSX, but it runs as a desktop app only.

  • code-server

    Use a VS Code-based workspace through your browser.

    FreeOpen sourceLinuxmacOSSelf-hostedWeb

    code-server runs a VS Code-based workspace in the browser on a machine you control, requiring a configured host with WebSocket support.

  • OpenVSCode Server

    Upstream VS Code packaged to run on a remote machine and be used from a web browser.

    FreeOpen sourceLinuxWebSelf-hosted

    OpenVSCode Server packages upstream VS Code for browser use on your own server, which you must run and secure yourself.

  • Eclipse IDE

    Long-established open-source IDE with a very large plugin marketplace.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Eclipse IDE is the Eclipse Foundation's older desktop IDE with a very large plugin marketplace, but its workspace model feels dated.

  • 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 native Rust editor with collaboration and AI features using your own key, but it has a smaller extension ecosystem and no VS Code extension support.

  • Pulsar

    Community-maintained continuation of the Atom text editor.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Pulsar is an open-source continuation of Atom with its own package registry, Electron-based and desktop only.

Also worth comparing

These listings name Theia IDE as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.

  • Android Studio

    Google's official IDE for building Android apps, based on IntelliJ.

    FreeProprietaryWindowsmacOS

    Theia IDE is a vendor-neutral Eclipse Foundation IDE for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX, without built-in Android tooling.

  • Apache NetBeans

    An open-source IDE for Java, PHP, JavaScript, HTML and other languages from Apache.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Theia IDE is an open-source Eclipse Foundation IDE for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX, with a smaller community than VS Code.

  • Cursor

    An AI code editor built on VS Code, with coding agents that plan and carry out tasks.

    FreemiumProprietarymacOSCommand line

    Theia IDE is an open-source, vendor-neutral IDE for desktop and browser with built-in AI features and control over data, using VS Code extensions from Open VSX.

  • Eclipse Che

    A self-hostable, Kubernetes-native platform that runs browser-based development workspaces for your team.

    FreeOpen sourceWebSelf-hosted

    Theia IDE is an Eclipse Foundation open-source IDE for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX, without Che's Kubernetes-based shared workspaces.

  • IntelliJ IDEA

    Java and Kotlin IDE with deep code analysis and refactoring.

    FreemiumOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Theia IDE is an open-source, vendor-neutral IDE for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX, with a smaller community.

  • KDevelop

    A cross-platform open-source IDE from KDE for C, C++, Python, QML/JavaScript and PHP.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Theia IDE is an Eclipse Foundation editor for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX, rather than a C++-focused IDE.

  • StackBlitz

    A browser-based IDE that runs full-stack Node.js web projects entirely inside the browser tab.

    FreemiumProprietaryWeb

    Theia IDE is an open-source Eclipse Foundation IDE for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX, covering more than web projects.

  • Trae

    An AI-powered code editor with built-in chat and agent modes for writing and changing code.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindowsmacOS

    Theia IDE is an open-source Eclipse Foundation editor with built-in AI features and control over data, running VS Code extensions.

  • Visual Studio

    Microsoft's integrated development environment for .NET, C++ and Windows development, with a free Community edition.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindows

    Theia IDE is an open-source Eclipse Foundation IDE for desktop and browser that runs VS Code extensions from Open VSX.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.