Alternatives to Xfe
A fast, lightweight file manager for X on Linux and Unix with Explorer- and Commander-style layouts. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
Xfe
A fast, lightweight file manager for X on Linux and Unix with Explorer- and Commander-style layouts.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as Xfe.
Thunar
The lightweight default file manager of the Xfce desktop environment for Linux.
Thunar is the Xfce default with fast startup and a bulk renamer, but it is single pane without Xfe's dual-pane Commander layout.
PCManFM
A lightweight, tabbed GTK file manager from the LXDE desktop project for Linux.
PCManFM is a lightweight tabbed GTK manager from LXDE for older machines, with fewer advanced features and slow development activity.
Double Commander
A free dual-pane file manager in the Total Commander tradition, running on Linux and macOS too.
Double Commander provides a dual-pane commander workflow with multi-rename, archives and FTP, and also runs on Windows and macOS.
Krusader
A twin-panel commander-style file manager for KDE Plasma and other Linux and Unix desktops.
Krusader is a twin-panel manager with directory sync, archives and SFTP, but depends on KDE libraries, adding weight outside Plasma.
PCManFM-Qt
A Qt-based file manager and desktop icon manager, the default file manager of the LXQt desktop.
PCManFM-Qt is a light Qt file manager that also handles desktop icons, with no documented dual-pane mode.
Nemo
Cinnamon's file manager, a Nautilus fork with more built-in options.
Nemo is Cinnamon's Nautilus fork with dual panes and extensions, fitting best on Cinnamon and pulling extra dependencies elsewhere.
Caja
The file manager of the MATE desktop, used to browse files and manage the desktop on Linux.
Caja is the MATE desktop file manager with an extension interface, integrated with MATE rather than a standalone lightweight tool.
Midnight Commander
Two-panel file manager for the terminal, with an editor and remote access.
Midnight Commander moves to a terminal two-panel interface with an editor and remote filesystem access, usable over a plain SSH session.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
GNOME Files
The default GNOME desktop file manager, also called Nautilus, for browsing local and network files.
far2l
A port of the Far Manager v2 dual-panel console file manager to Linux and macOS.
muCommander
An open-source, cross-platform dual-pane file manager with remote filesystem, cloud storage and archive support.
Pantheon Files
The file manager designed for elementary OS and its Pantheon desktop.
COSMIC Files
The Rust-based file manager of System76's COSMIC desktop environment for Linux.
Konqueror
KDE's combined web browser and file manager, using Qt WebEngine for pages.
