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herbstluftwm vs StumpWM: catalog facts
herbstluftwm	StumpWM
Best for: X11 users who want scriptable, manually controlled tiling	Best for: Lisp users who want a tiling window manager they can reprogram while it runs
Free Free and open source.	Free Free and open source.
Linux	Linux
Settings change live without restarting Tiling and floating layers on every tag All 3 strengths for herbstluftwm Settings change live without restarting Tiling and floating layers on every tag Virtual monitors for splitting large screens	Can be reconfigured live from Common Lisp Fully keyboard-driven tiling All 4 strengths for StumpWM Can be reconfigured live from Common Lisp Fully keyboard-driven tiling Module collection in stumpwm-contrib Versioned manuals in several formats
X11 only Manual tiling means arranging frames yourself	X11 only, no Wayland support Customisation requires learning Common Lisp All 3 limitations for StumpWM X11 only, no Wayland support Customisation requires learning Common Lisp Minimal look with no built-in decorations
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License not stated	License: GPL-2.0
No account needed	No account needed
Offline features available	Offline features available
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for herbstluftwm herbstluftwm.org Catalog checked September 23, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for StumpWM stumpwm.github.io Catalog checked September 24, 2026

“Not stated” means we have not confirmed it. Features can vary by device and plan.