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spectrwm vs dwm: catalog facts
spectrwm	dwm
Best for: Linux and BSD users who want a minimal tiling window manager	Best for: Use a small dynamic window manager for X11 with tiling and floating layouts
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	Keeps the core implementation compact Supports keyboard-driven window arrangement
X11 only, no Wayland support Keyboard-centric workflow has a learning curve	Many customizations require editing and recompiling the source.
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: ISC	License not stated
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 dwm dwm.suckless.org Catalog checked September 22, 2026

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