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KDE Plasma vs COSMIC: catalog facts
KDE Plasma	COSMIC
Best for: Use a full Linux desktop with configurable panels, widgets and window behavior	Best for: Use System76's desktop environment with configurable workspaces and window tiling
Free Free and open source. Hosting, hardware and any external services are separate.	Free Free and open source. Hosting, hardware and any external services are separate.
Linux	Linux
Offers extensive desktop appearance settings Integrates with KDE applications and system settings	Combines desktop panels with workspace controls Supports tiling and floating workflows
Availability and default configuration depend on the Linux distribution.	Requires a distribution and graphics stack that support the current COSMIC release.
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License not stated	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for KDE Plasma kde.org/plasma-desktop Catalog checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for COSMIC github.com/pop-os/cosmic-epoch Catalog checked September 22, 2026

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