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Nix vs GNU Guix: catalog facts
Nix	GNU Guix
Free Free and open source under the LGPL.	Free Free software from the GNU Project with no paid tier.
macOS, Linux, Command line	Linux, Command line
Atomic upgrades and instant rollback of an entire system or profile Per-project development shells that are identical on every machine	Reproducible shell environments, containers and systems Per-user package management without superuser privileges
The Nix language and concepts are a genuinely steep learning curve The store grows large and needs regular garbage collection	Configuration requires learning Guile Scheme Only free software is packaged, so some proprietary drivers and apps are not included
Downloadable app	Downloadable app, Operating system
Open source	Open source
License: LGPL-2.1	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.