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spectrwm vs bspwm: catalog facts
spectrwm	bspwm
Best for: Linux and BSD users who want a minimal tiling window manager	Best for: Manage X11 windows as the leaves of a binary tree
Free Free and open source.	Free Free and open source. Hosting, hardware and any external services are separate.
Linux	Linux
Small and lightweight with few dependencies Single plain-text configuration file All 3 strengths for spectrwm Small and lightweight with few dependencies Single plain-text configuration file Runs on Linux and the BSDs	Separates window management from keyboard bindings Can be controlled through shell commands
X11 only, no Wayland support Keyboard-centric workflow has a learning curve	Requires separate tools for key bindings and desktop panels.
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: ISC	License: BSD-2-Clause
No account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Offline features available	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for spectrwm github.com/conformal/spectrwm Catalog checked September 23, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for bspwm github.com/baskerville/bspwm Catalog checked September 22, 2026

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