A developer's job is hard and time-consuming, but equipping yourself with the most advanced tools makes the job both faster and easier. That's why many developers use integrated development environments or IDE software to organize workflows, access a spectrum of development tools from a single dashboard, and avoid errors that can have disastrous repercussions if released without proper oversight.

Some IDEs strive for a clutter-free UI in a compact solution to maximize performance for smaller-scale activities, while others offer cross-platform, multi-language support in robust environments suitable for managing the most demanding development projects. We've compiled a list of the most useful feature-rich IDE top tools, whether you're searching for a basic, language-specific IDE or a full-featured framework to handle most or all of your programming tasks.

1. Php Storm

PhpStorm is a PHP IDE that supports a variety of frameworks, including Symfony, Drupal, WordPress, Zend Framework, Laravel, Magento, Joomla, CakePHP, Yii, and others. PhpStorm is a strong alternative for PHP developers since it provides a thorough knowledge of your code and its structure, as well as support for all PHP language characteristics for both current and older applications.

Key Features:

• It supports all the major front-end technologies

• Remote deployment assistance is available.

• Refactoring that is both quick and safe

• Smart code navigation and code completion

Cost:

The package for this Integrated Development Environment tool starts from $199.

2. PyCharm

PyCharm is a Python IDE that also supports CoffeeScript, TypeScript, Cython, SQL, HTML or CSS, template languages, AngularJS, Node.js, and other programming languages. PyCharm is a full solution for Python developers that need an IDE that supports several languages, with a boatload of built-in, out-of-the-box capabilities.

Key Features:

• Dynamic navigation and intelligent code restructuring

• It's compatible with IPython Notebook.

• Integrated terminal

• Integration with the most popular VCS

• Database Tools Included

Cost:

The package for this Integrated Development Environment tool starts from $199.

3. ShiftEdit

ShiftEdit is an online, browser-based IDE that lets you build web pages right in your browser. You can access project data from any location i.e. FTP, SFTP, and cloud-based services such as Dropbox or Google Drive, clone GitHub and Bitbucket repositories, and more.

Key Features:

• With the help of a gateway, you can link to a local host.

• With a simple step-back, you can see the history of your revisions.

• Compare two files, one with a live diff and the other with two different files.

• With snippets, notes, themes, and the ability to import your own CSS, it's completely customizable.

• GitHub and Bitbucket integration in the Git client

• AWS or Linode can be used to set up servers.

Cost:

This software costs $10 and $20 for the basic and business plan respectively.

4. QT Creator

Qt Creator is a cross-platform IDE for designing linked devices, UIs, and applications, you can go beyond the code to design and build. From a single complex console, create mobile apps, desktop applications, and networked embedded devices.

Key Features:

• Qt Assistant is a document reader that may be customized and distributed.

• Users of Visual Studio can utilize this add-in.

• Popular version control systems are integrated.

• Management of projects and construction

• With multi-screen and multi-platform compatibility, you can quickly switch between build targets.

Cost:

The package for this tool starts from $329 per month for the pro plan.

5. Nuclide

Nuclide, which is based on a single package on top of Atom, combines hackability with the backing of an engaged user community. It's a top-tier development environment for applications using React Native, Hack, and Flow.

Key Features:

• Hack, Buck, and Swift projects can be built, run, tested, and debugged with Task Runner.

• Working Sets minimize noise by focusing your attention on the subsets of Mercurial assistance that you require.

• Debugging for React Native, Hack, Flow, and more is built-in.

• Connect to your external servers and receive full file tree access in Nuclide with external programming.

Cost:

This is a free Integrated Development Environment tool.

6. Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code is a cross-platform, open-source IDE. Visual Studio Code is a robust interface filled with functions and performance, including built-in Git, debugging tools, and a wide range of extensions to increase its capabilities, as well as plenty of other elements like IntelliSense.

Key Features:

• Directly in the editor window, you may debug code.

• Breakpoints, call stacks, and an interaction terminal are used to debug.

• Smart completions based on variable types, function descriptions, and imported modules are provided by IntelliSense.

• Themes, languages, debuggers, and other extensions are available.

Cost:

This is a free Integrated Development Environment tool.

7. Visual LANSA

Visual LANSA is a low-code, cross-platform IDE with recorded data and a high-level coding language for creating and managing online, desktop, and mobile apps. The IDE is accessible on Windows and in the cloud, with deployment platforms. Developers may get a head start on designing advanced capabilities with Visual LANSA's prototyping capabilities in a visual program environment.

Key Features:

• Changes may be made in one place and applied to all apps for easier management.

• To select fields and files, use the point-and-click method.

• To quickly edit and debug, use cut and paste.

• To create UIs, you can use a strong form designer.

Cost:

You can get a quote through their website.

8. Wingware

Wingware was established in 1999 with the goal of creating high-end software services for Python programmers. Wingware's Python IDE is a cross-platform development environment that includes code assistance, debugging tools, version control, and more for serious Python developers.

Key Features:

• Other code aid technologies include auto-completion, error checking, source navigation, and others.

• Auto-editing, refactoring, code folding, and remote editing are just a few of the features available.

• Django, nose, pitest, and other testing frameworks are supported for test-driven development.

• Troubleshooting features that are both quick and strong

• Before committing modifications, double-check them.

Cost:

The plans for this IDE tool start from $179.

9. CodeLite

CodeLite is a compact and quick, free software, cross-platform IDE for C, C++, PHP, and Node.js coding languages. It includes workspaces, folder organization with numerous outline view options, debugging, and more.

Key Features:

• For other languages, syntax highlighting is supported.

• Inbuilt Default debugger

• Virtual files for projects and workspace management

• Plugins can be used to extend the functionality of a website.

• To modify the hierarchy, use outline views.

• When a file is saved, include external tools that are immediately activated

Cost:

This is a free Integrated Development Environment tool.

10. Codefresh

Codefresh is a Docker-based ongoing deployment and automation platform that allows you to build, test, and deploy programs as well as collect feedback on your container-based applications. Codefresh lets you streamline seamless deployments by building and testing your containers on every branch or pull request and sharing them with your team.

Key Features:

• Docker image builds that are the quickest

• Each Docker build is accompanied by unit tests.

• For comments and criticism, share new project prototypes with your team.

• Auto-deployment capability at the completion of every building process

Cost:

Codefresh offers a free plan while their team plan is priced at $49. For the enterprise plan, you can get a quote through their website.

11. Brackets.io

Brackets.io is a contemporary, open-source text editor for web developers and front-end programmers that enables designing in the browser simple and effortless. Brackets is an Adobe project that is licensed under the MIT License. Brackets provide the right amount of assistance when you need it without interfering with your creative process, thanks to its built-in visual tools.

Key Features:

• Inline editors

• A live preview is available.

• Compatibility for preprocessors

• Social media presence on Twitter, GitHub, Facebook, and other platforms

• Trello or Waffle can be used to keep track of your backlog.

Cost:

This is a free Integrated Development Environment tool.

12. BlueJ

BlueJ is a programming environment with a smaller, simpler UI created with learning in mind, allowing beginners to get started fast without getting overloaded with functionality. BlueJ is a component of the Raspbian operating system, and it comes pre-installed on the Raspberry Pi image.

Key Features:

• BlueJ is a software that is used to offer university courses.

• The BlueJ Educators Community has a wealth of educational tools.

• Object bench, code pad, and scope coloring are all original BlueJ capabilities

• Extensions to increase base BlueJ functionality

Cost:

BlueJ is a free IDE software.

13. Zend Studio

Zend Studio is a PHP IDE that offers 3 times quicker speed for better, smarter PHP development. It's the only PHP IDE that combines mobile development and PHP, and it comes with a sample mobile application and source code so you can get started on your next project right away.

Key Features:

• PHP code is quickly indexed, validated, and searched.

• PHP 7 express migration assistant is supported by PHP 7.

• Zend Server 9 connection is seamless.

• PHP applications can be installed on any server.

• AWS and Microsoft Azure cloud support

• Wizards, lessons, and videos are all available.

Cost:

This is free IDE software.

14. Xcode

Xcode IDE lies at the foundation of the Apple development experience. It works with the Cocoa and Cocoa Touch frameworks and provides sophisticated tools for developing programs for Apple's Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Apple TV.

Key Features:

• Errors are immediately identified, and quick-fix options are provided.

• Uses the Apple Developer website to collaborate.

• With a simple click, you may enable Game Center or Passbook in your apps.

• Competent in establishing a remote bot to build, analyze, test, and package your app on a continuous basis.

• Apps are bundled and submitted to the App Store.

• It may be tailored to fit any workflow.

Cost:

This is a free Integrated Development Environment tool.

15. Xamarin

Xamarin Studio helps you develop smarter apps with advanced code assistance that unlocks iOS, Android, and OS X APIs, efficient and useful debugging, and compatibility for tvOS, Apple WatchKit, Android Wear, and interoperability with Microsoft Band's C# SDK.

Key Features:

• Observe how values change in real-time.

• It is available in 14 different languages.

• Modern technologies are fully supported.

• Apps should be packaged and sent to the App Store and Google Play.

• a search that is universal

• Contextual information

• Refactoring using intelligence

• Controlling the versions

• Explore the API's capabilities.

Cost:

You can get a quote through their website.

16. NuSphere

NuSphere PhpED is a powerful IDE for PHP, HTML, CSS, XML, SMARTY, XHTML, and other programming languages. A full IDE solution that suits most programming demands includes a powerful code editor, dbg debugger, database connectivity client, and protected deployment features.

Key Features:

• It can help you save up to 75% of your programming time.

• Highlighting, fast code navigation, and PHP code folding are among the editing capabilities of PhpED 18.0.

• Debug PHP remotely or locally with this powerful PHP debugger.

• The PHP Profiler can help you find and fix inefficiencies in your code.

• Deployment that is secure, quick, and adaptable

Cost:

The packages for this software start from $74.

17. Mono Develop

Mono Develop is a cross-platform IDE for C#, F#, and other languages, allows you to quickly build desktop and web apps on Linux, Windows, and Mac OS. While porting.NET apps created with Visual Studio to Mac OS and Linux, keep a single code source for all platforms.

Key Features:

• User-defined key combinations, completely adjustable window layouts, and outside tools

• C#, F#, Visual Basic.NET, C/C++, and Vala are all supported.

• Mono and native apps include an embedded debugger.

• Integration of Makefiles Unit testing

• Packaging and distribution

Cost:

This is a free IDE software.

18. Monkey Studio

Monkey Studio is a cross-platform IDE developed in C++/Qt 4. It was initially designed to support only Qt 4, but it has since grown to allow Qt development as well as any sort of project. It's a full, quick, and powerful Qt 4 IDE that works on any platform that Qt supports.

Key Features:

• Restyling the code and completing it automatically

• Replace what you've found.

• Categories, procedures, events, and parameters are displayed in the Navigator.

• System of plug-ins that can be expanded indefinitely

Cost:

Monkey Studio is a free IDE software.

19. Microsoft Visual Studio

Microsoft Visual Studio Microsoft's Visual Studio IDE is available in Windows and Mac versions and may be used on either platform. Microsoft Studio 2017 is a full-packed IDE for efficient app development, whereas Visual Studio for Mac is a mobile-first, cloud-first IDE tailored for the Mac. Both have extensive features that make it simple to design, debug, collaborate and extend.

Key Features:

• Without losing file context, write code that is correct and efficient.

• Code issues should be refactored, identified, and fixed.

• Create your own custom extensions.

• Locate and debug issues quickly in several languages, locally or remotely.

• Investigate the history of your code.

Cost:

This software offers a free plan whereas professional and enterprise plans are priced at $45 and $250 respectively.

20. Light Table

Light Table is a next-generation code editor that keeps you connected to your project by providing immediate feedback and displays data values across your code as you work. Light Table has all of the tools you'll need, and they're all simply incorporated into your workflow so you don't have to worry about burdensome processes interfering with your inventive approach.

Key Features:

• Totally free and open source

• Plugin management connects to a central list of plugins, so you won't have to waste time looking for what you need.

• Editing that is effective

• Real-time evaluation

Cost:

This is a free Integrated Development Environement tool.

21. Lazarus

Lazarus is a Delphi-compatible, cross-platform IDE that allows you to create complicated graphical user environments quickly with a selection of ready-to-use elements and a graphical layout designer. With Lazarus, you may make anything from file browsers to picture viewers, database programmes, and any other application you can think of.

Key Features:

• There are almost 200 built-in components.

• In the Lazarus Application Gallery, there are numerous examples of applications.

• Make programs that don't have any platform dependencies

• GPL or LGPL licensing for business applications made for creating object-oriented Pascal code

Cost:

This is a free IDE software.

22. Komodo

Komodo IDE is a multi-platform, polyglot IDE for web and mobile app development. It includes a number of interfaces and components in a single, cross-platform IDE. With over 100 languages supported, including Python, PHP, Go, Perl, Tcl, Ruby, NodeJS, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and more, there's no reason to use multiple IDEs for different coding languages.

Key Features:

• Debug web apps without using Chrome's built-in tools.

• Leading internet frameworks are supported.

• Use or write tutorials for a variety of programming languages

• On every operating system, it accommodates over 100 languages.

Cost:

Komodo offers a free plan whereas its team plan costs $84 per month. For the enterprise plan, you can get a quote through their website.

23. Geany

Geany is a text editor that uses the GTK2 toolkit, yet it has most of the capabilities that an IDE should have. It was created to be a simple, lightweight, and quick IDE with few requirements on other packages and compatibility for a wide range of file types.

Key Features:

• Navigation through the code

• Lists of symbols

• Create a mechanism for building and running code.

• Project management made simple

• A comprehensive list of plugins from the Geany Plugins source

Cost:

This is a free IDE tool.

24. NetBeans

NetBeans helps you create online apps fast and easily with Java, JavaScript, HTML5, PHP, C/C++, and other programming languages. NetBeans is a free and open-source project with a large user and developer community throughout the world.

Key Features:

• Editors, code analyzers, and converters are all useful tools.

• Multiple apps can be searched at the same time.

• Lines are indented, words are matched, and brackets are used by NetBeans Editor.

• Other languages are supported using an extensible editor.

• Multiple data views make project management simple.

Cost:

NetBeans is a free Integrated Development Environment tool.

25. MyEclipse

With MyEclipse, you can unify your programming in a single Java IDE that includes the must-have tools for every full-stack developer. With the same IDE, you can construct both dynamic front ends and sophisticated back ends; MyEclipse allows you to create high-quality apps using the newest technologies.

Key Features:

• Reporting in the workplace

• Spring tooling, including scaffolding and bean tooling

• Interfaces for popular app servers

• Authentication and debugging of TypeScript and JavaScript

• Live Preview and Coding

Cost:

This tool’s package price starts at $48.

Things To Consider While Selecting An Integrated Development Environmental (IDE) Tool

Debugging

The importance of debugging is well known among those who have worked with microcontrollers. When programs fail, they frequently provide little information as to why they failed. Most IDEs feature an error output window that, when combined with Google, can reveal why an issue occurred, however, these mistakes are frequently related to compilation rather than code execution.

This is why debugging is so important; it allows the programmer to go through the program and set breakpoints that cause the program to halt in key locations. Debuggers also let you see variable values, which might help you figure out why a program crashes or generates an unlikely outcome.

Cost

The majority of IDEs on the market are free, but add-ons may not be. Open-source products offer the advantage of cost and community support, but paid-for packages are frequently more feature-rich, well-supported, and provide customer assistance, which can be useful if something goes wrong. Closed-source software, on the other hand, relies on the corporation to resolve faults and release updates on a regular basis. Otherwise, an IDE may be rendered ineffective for an extended period of time.

Easy-to-use Interface

Ease of use, Packages, and Libraries are the three characteristics of IDEs that are related, as IDEs with a large number of packages and libraries might be difficult to use because of an increase in options and other elements. Nevertheless, how those libraries and packages are handled is also a factor. They do, however, have a lot of library support, as well as library managers, which makes adding new libraries a breeze.

Conclusion

Here were the most useful and easy-to-use Integrated Development Tools that can be used by developers easily. Many of this software are free which is a major plus point. When every function is displayed on the same workspace, developers don't have to spend hours learning how to utilize different tools independently. IDE tools have made it very easy for developers to work on new projects. You can choose the most appropriate one for you according to the functions you need.

FAQs

What are Integrated Development Environment Tools?

Integrated development environments, or IDEs, are software platforms that combine a full range of tools for software development into a single package for programmers and developers. IDEs are designed to integrate with certain application platforms and remove hurdles in the software development lifecycle.

In development teams, IDEs are used to create new software, apps, web pages, and services, and they aid by offering a single tool with all of the functionality and eliminating the requirement for integrations. IDEs are used to design code for a certain platform or platforms, and they have built-in features that know how the platform works and how to use its features via compiling, debugging, or correctly finishing programs.

What should you consider while using Integrated Development Environment Tools?

• Analyze all Integrations

Examine how well an IDE connects with the rest of the development tools. The ability to integrate with other components like a Git repository, automated testing scripts, cloud environments, and containers differs greatly between IDEs. Companies are becoming more dedicated to CI/CD, which necessitates a tight integration of programming and the rest of the development cycle.

• Hosting Location

Assess the balance of online and data initiatives to match IDE features to development activity. Web developers use a distinct set of tools and employ a smaller set of languages. Some programmers believe that the differences in tools, languages, and procedures between web and data center development are significant enough that each environment has its own IDE.

How does an IDE work?

An integrated development environment (IDE) often includes a code editor, a compiler or interpreter, and a debugger, all of which can be accessed via a single graphical user interface (GUI). In the code editor, the user enters and edits the source code. The compiler converts source code into a computer-readable language.

This is a tool that makes programming quick and easy. It is a software application that gives complete software development features to computer programmers. An IDE tool typically consists of a debugger, a source code editor, and build automation tools.

What is the purpose of using an IDE tool?

An IDE, or Integrated Development Environment tool, helps developers to put all of the pieces of a computer program together in one place. IDEs increase developer efficiency by combining common software development processes like source code editing, producing executables, and debugging into a single tool.

The IDE tools are intended to cover all programming that aids in the creation of additional applications. Because different utilities do not need to be manually configured, an IDE helps developers to immediately start programming new apps.

What are Clout IDE tools?

When opposed to local development environments, IDEs that are supplied as a cloud-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offer a number of distinct advantages. For starters, there is no need to download software or configure local environments and dependencies, as with any SaaS solution, so developers can get started adding to projects right away. This also ensures that the environments of team members are consistent.

Furthermore, because the development environment is handled centrally, no code is stored on the computers of individual developers, which can help with intellectual property and security problems.