Notepad++ Alternatives for Windows, Mac and Linux

Notepad++ still works. Version 8.9.9 is the current download on notepad-plus-plus.org, it is free under the GPL, and it still runs only on Windows. In February 2026 the project disclosed that its update service had been hijacked from June to December 2025 to serve malicious updates to a small set of targeted users, according to The Register. Version 8.8.9 added installer signature checks and 8.9 dropped the self-signed certificate.

Mac and Linux users make up most of the people looking elsewhere. A community port for macOS appeared in April 2026. Don Ho called it a trademark violation in May, and its old domain now redirects to Nextpad++.

The nine picks below run from small Notepad-style tools to full code editors. Prices come from each vendor's own page as of November 6, 2026.

Our method is on How we review tools.

Quick comparison

Visual Studio Code

Most people leaving Notepad++ for a Mac or Linux machine end up here. Microsoft's FAQ says VS Code is free for private and commercial use, and the same editor runs on Windows, macOS, Linux and in the browser at vscode.dev. Language support arrives through extensions, so Python, Go or a Markdown preview is one install away.

The trade is weight. VS Code works best when you open a folder as a project, which is more ceremony than double-clicking a .txt file. If Microsoft's product licence or telemetry is the problem, VSCodium builds the same source with MIT-licensed binaries and telemetry disabled.

Best for: Developers who want one free editor on every OS and expect to add language extensions.

Pricing:

• Free for private and commercial use
• The download uses a Microsoft product licence; the source code is MIT

Watch out for:

• Telemetry is on by default. The FAQ shows how to set telemetry.telemetryLevel to off, and notes that extensions keep their own data settings.
• A GitHub issue reports 2.2 to 2.5 GB of memory use for a two or three file Python project with every extension disabled.

Official site: Visual Studio Code. Our listing: Visual Studio Code.

Sublime Text

Sublime Text gives Notepad++ fans a quick, keyboard-driven editor that also runs on macOS and Linux. Build 4215 shipped on September 25, 2026. The download page lists Windows 10 and later, macOS 10.13 and later, and Linux packages for x64 and ARM64, plus a portable Windows build.

One personal key covers all of your computers and operating systems, according to the store page. You can evaluate it for free, but the store says a licence is needed for continued use.

Best for: Coders who want a fast editor on all three systems and prefer to pay once instead of monthly.

Pricing:

• Personal: $99 one-time, includes 3 years of updates
• Business: $65 per seat per year for seats 1 to 10, falling to $50 per seat beyond 50
• Free evaluation; a licence is required for continued use

Watch out for:

• Updates stop after 3 years unless you upgrade. When build 4180 arrived in August 2024, a Sublime Forum thread filled up with users surprised by a "LICENSE UPGRADE REQUIRED" message in the title bar.

Official site: Sublime Text. Our listing: Sublime Text.

Notepad3

Built on Scintilla 5.5.8, the same editing component Notepad++ uses, Notepad3 is a free Windows editor under the BSD 3-Clause licence. Version 7.26.602.1 came out on June 2, 2026. Regex find and replace runs on PCRE2, and Ctrl+M opens MiniPath, a small file browser.

The installer can swap out Windows Notepad through a registry entry, or install next to it. A portable build runs from a USB drive and writes nothing to the registry, per Rizonesoft.

Best for: Windows users who want a quick Notepad replacement for config files and notes.

Pricing:

• Free, open source (BSD 3-Clause)
• Optional donations

Watch out for:

• No tabs. Each file opens in its own window, as the author of the Deskmodder post on 7.26.602.1 confirms in the comments.
• Windows only, in 32-bit and 64-bit builds.

Official site: Notepad3.

Kate

KDE's Kate sits between Notepad++ and a full IDE. The project site lists an embedded terminal, split views, a project sidebar, multi-cursor editing and LSP-based completion, with syntax highlighting for more than 400 languages.

Linux users usually already have it. On Windows it installs from the Microsoft Store. The code is licensed LGPL-2.0-or-later and MIT, according to Wikipedia.

Best for: Linux and Windows users who want an open source editor with a terminal and language servers built in.

Pricing:

• Free, open source (LGPL-2.0-or-later and MIT)

Watch out for:

• Mac support is thin. The download page offers only nightly macOS builds and says they are recommended for testing.

Official site: Kate.

Nextpad++

Nextpad++ is a community port of Notepad++ to macOS and Linux, compiled from the official source code. Its first stable release landed in early April 2026 under a Notepad++ name. After Don Ho objected, the old notepad-plus-plus-mac.org domain started redirecting to nextpad.org.

The Mac app is a Universal Binary for Apple Silicon and Intel, signed and notarized by Apple. Linux gets .deb and .rpm packages for x86 and ARM64. Plugin Admin is included, and the site lists the Windows plugins ported so far.

Best for: Mac and Linux users who want the menus and shortcuts they already know from Notepad++.

Pricing:

• Free, open source (GPL v3), no ads or subscriptions

Watch out for:

• It is independent of the Windows project, and Don Ho has said Notepad++ "has never released a macOS version". Support comes from the port's own team.
• Not every Windows plugin is available yet. Check the plugin list before you rely on one.

Official site: Nextpad++.

Geany

Version 2.1 of Geany came out in July 2025 with a Windows installer and separate macOS builds for Intel and Apple Silicon. It is a small GPL v2 IDE that still opens like a text editor. Built-in support covers more than 50 languages.

The plugin pack adds Git and SVN, spell checking and a project organizer. Geany-Plugins 2.1, released July 6, 2025, added a Language Server Protocol plugin.

Best for: People on older or low-spec PCs who want IDE features in a small download.

Pricing:

• Free, open source (GPL v2)

Watch out for:

• No multi-caret editing. GitHub issue #1141, which asks for multiple carets and selections, has been open since July 2016.

Official site: Geany. Our listing: Geany.

Zed

Zed draws its interface with GPUI, its own GPU-accelerated UI framework for Rust, and the editor is open source. The stable Windows release arrived in October 2025, so it now covers all three systems.

AI is optional. The free Personal plan works with your own API keys or external agents such as Claude Agent and Codex CLI. Pro adds unlimited edit predictions and $5 of tokens each month.

Best for: Developers who want a native, fast code editor and may add AI later.

Pricing:

• Personal: $0 forever
• Pro: $10 per month, includes $5 of tokens, extra usage at API list price plus 10%
• Business: $30 per seat per month

Watch out for:

• It needs a GPU. The docs require DirectX 11 on Windows and Vulkan on Linux, and warn that performance may drop inside a VM.

Official site: Zed.

BBEdit

Bare Bones Software sells BBEdit for the Mac only, and its store says there are no Windows or Linux versions. BBEdit 16.1 is the current download, built for Intel and Apple silicon.

After the 30-day trial it keeps working in free mode with no nag screens, per the product page. Buying a licence or a Mac App Store subscription turns the paid-only features back on.

Best for: Mac users who want a native Mac text editor they can use free and pay for later.

Pricing:

• New licence: $59.99
• Upgrade from 15.x: $29.99; from 14.x or earlier: $39.99
• Free mode after the 30-day trial
• Multi-user licences: request a quote

Watch out for:

• BBEdit 16 requires macOS 14.0 or later, so Macs that cannot run Sonoma cannot install it.

Official site: BBEdit. Our listing: BBEdit.

EmEditor

EmEditor is aimed at files most people would never try to open in Notepad. The homepage claims files up to 16 TB, and Professional adds CSV tools such as sort by column, pivot tables and CSV joins. Version 26.4 shipped on November 5, 2026.

The buy page lists only subscriptions. After the 7-day Professional trial it turns into EmEditor Free automatically, with no charge.

Best for: Windows users who open multi-gigabyte logs, exports or CSV files.

Pricing:

• Professional monthly: $6 per month
• Professional annual: $60 for the first year, then $45 per year
• Volume pricing down to $24 per licence at 1,000+ licences
• EmEditor Free: personal use only

Watch out for:

• EmEditor Free is for home or school use only, and it lacks plug-ins, scripting, CSV tools and the Large File Controller.
• Windows only.

Official site: EmEditor.

How to choose

When to stay with Notepad++

Stay on Notepad++ if you work on Windows and depend on its plugins, macros or Find in Files. It is free, open source and still updated. Download it from notepad-plus-plus.org and stay on a current 8.9.x build, since that series hardened the update path abused in 2025.

Frequently asked questions