GNU Emacs vs. Notepad++

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
GNU Emacs
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
GNU Emacs is described as a free extensible and customizable text editor for the Lisp programming language.N/A
Notepad++
Score 9.3 out of 10
N/A
Notepad++ is a popular free and open source text editor available under the GPL license, featuring syntax highlighting and folding, auto-complete, multi-document management, and ac customizable GUI.N/A
Pricing
GNU EmacsNotepad++
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
GNU EmacsNotepad++
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
GNU EmacsNotepad++
Considered Both Products
GNU Emacs
Chose GNU Emacs
Emacs can be easier to use than Vim as it is more similar to modern text editors. Its graphical interface is also better than anything Vim has to offer. Emacs also has better syntax highlighting and recognition of coding languages. Interestingly, Emacs handles clipboard copy …
Chose GNU Emacs
While Notepad++ is a very capable editor, it is not nearly as customizable and extendable as GNU Emacs.
Microsoft Onenote is a nice, easy-to-use note-taking and organization tool. Its advantages are that it is GUI based, and it is easy to embed images, audio, and other media. …
Chose GNU Emacs
I have used several different IDEs and editors, but I keep coming back to Emacs. I guess my fingers are wired for Emacs and I find that I can do pretty much anything in the tool that I can with other tools. Some other tools are more polished, but are specific to certain …
Chose GNU Emacs
Of course, Vim is a good contender for comparison as well, so I'll include it. I find Emacs much easier to learn, which will help speed up productivity for newer users. It seems much faster than VIM and VSCode, especially under load. It's highly highly customizable, in ways …
Notepad++
Chose Notepad++
Especially the encoding option helps me a lot to convert to ANSI. Its very easy to use and user-friendly. And can also plugins like converters and MIME tools etc., can also run some programming languages using Notepad++. I selected Notepad++ because it has lot of features that …
Chose Notepad++
VSCode is also a text editor and in many ways is more powerful than Notepad++. Notepad++ is simpler, faster and less busy. VSCode is nicer for more complicated things, such as working with multiple files that are related (say a complex set of python scripts) or in a project …
Chose Notepad++
If you're looking for a free and feature-rich option with an active plugin ecosystem, extensive language support, and regular expression capabilities, Notepad++ is a strong choice.If you prefer a straightforward, user-friendly interface and don't require as many advanced …
Chose Notepad++
Notepad++ is way ahead of Editplus since the latter was developed quite a few years ago and it lacks the intuitive language detection which is a major positive for Notepad++
Chose Notepad++
Compared to Evernote, Notepad++ is much lighter in terms of resource usage. In addition, the tabs in Notepad++ are arranged horizontally above the text box, which is my preferred way of accessing open files. Evernote does not have tabs. We continue to use Evernote for long-term …
Chose Notepad++
In comparison to VS Code, Notepad is less complexed solution with maybe less testing or implementation options but also with better script edition control thanks to the code formatting options. It depends on the task we have but for less complexed scripting that doesn't require …
Chose Notepad++
Notepad++ has a simple GUI.
I use it when needed to take quick notes or come up with a rough logic to any problem.
Even though Sublime text is a lot sleekier tha Notepad++, the search capabilities of Notepad++ makes it a winner.
Chose Notepad++
Notepad++ is easy to use, its simple user interface makes your coding more relaxed and joyful. You can use Notepad++ for many other works like saving text messages or text files or email-related work for a company. Notepad++ is easy to understand, and coding and debugging in …
Chose Notepad++
Since my engineering days, I have used this software. Notepad++ has to be one of the most powerful text editors available. It is lightweight and easy to use. It can identify the programming language based upon the extension of the file. It can also open various attachments, …
Chose Notepad++
Notepad++ is not available for macOS. So I am using TextWrangler, it is not having features like find and replace with regular expression, it is a simple replacement. Also, color coding for a programming language is also not available. The third multiple tab opening is an issue …
Chose Notepad++
I have used Notepad++ before. I started using Notepad++ as it is had a lot more features which made my work easier.
Chose Notepad++
UltraEdit was offered as a licensed product by my organization, however, because there was a cost to it, I had to obtain manager's approval for the yearly license required to keep it working. This was a hassle for something as simple as an editor. It was a convenient need to …
Chose Notepad++
I have used Java the most at other companies, I think we had a design deal with them. Notepad++ was more affordable with my current company.
Chose Notepad++
I didn’t care for the way some things were handled in other programs I tried, and I’ve stuck with Notepad++ since.
Chose Notepad++
I prefer Notepad++ to both UltraEdit and VSCode. The fact that it is freely available gives it a leg up on UltraEdit, and the feature set is at least comparable and in some ways better. VSCode is more useful if you are using your text editor to code and want to tie into …
Chose Notepad++
Notepad that comes with Windows is not an acceptable tool.
I use TextWrangler on my Mac. It's not quite as good as Notepad++, but Notepad++ is not available for MacOS.
Notepad++ is the best text editor I have found.
Chose Notepad++
Atom is a nice little notepad and editor, but it's a bit overkill for a simple note-taking app and doesn't quite compare to Visual Studio Code for more robust tasks like software development. It does have more polish than Notepad++, but the experience is somehow more clumsy. …
Chose Notepad++
I like Notepad++ over others because of its ease of use and its many available features. The nearly unlimited plugins pretty much let you do anything you can think of related to text based files.
Chose Notepad++
I mainly use Notepad++ on windows. Editplus was very good at regular expressions. I felt it was better than Notepad++. On Mac, sublime is a good tool for the same purpose.
Chose Notepad++
Both visual studio code and Notepad++ are powerful code editors/text editors. So it is hard to pick a favorite as they both have upsides and downsides. In this case Notepad++ I love the plugins that come with it and the ability to get more from other open sources. In general …
Chose Notepad++
Visual studio code has more testing capabilities but Notepad++ is easier to use for day to day text and scripting operations.
Chose Notepad++
I have never looked for other applications to replace or compare to Notepad++. That is how delighted I am to use it no matter where I am at in the working world. It is always one of the first programs that I install on my computer when I start at a new company.
Chose Notepad++
Notepad++ provides Macro Record and PlayBack. This option helps in formatting or adding the same type of information multiple times. Support multiple programming languages with proper syntax validation and highlighting.
Chose Notepad++
When I have to quickly review code or open a file to review something, opening Visual Studio is overkill. It takes time for the full-fledged IDE to open and initialize. When I need to get something done quickly, I use Notepad++ because nothing can compare to its speed. I also …
Chose Notepad++
Notepad++ has many advanced plugins whereas the other applications do not have as many as this. It supports many programming languages and takes low storage and gives faster outputs. Syntax auto complete and syntax highlight is also a plus when compared to that of other …
Best Alternatives
GNU EmacsNotepad++
Small Businesses
BBEdit
BBEdit
Score 9.1 out of 10
BBEdit
BBEdit
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Vim
Vim
Score 8.3 out of 10
Vim
Vim
Score 8.3 out of 10
Enterprises
Vim
Vim
Score 8.3 out of 10
Vim
Vim
Score 8.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
GNU EmacsNotepad++
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
8.2
(0 ratings)
8.1
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
GNU EmacsNotepad++
Likelihood to Recommend
If you are willing to put in a little time to learn how GNU Emacs works, it can be an extremely powerful and versatile editing tool, as well as being used for almost any kind of text searching, replacing, or processing. Using Org-mode alone is worth learning Emacs. Once you learn the basics, they can be applied and used in all areas that you would use Emacs for. If you want a text editor and information tool that you can use for almost everything, then the learning curve is worth it. If you want simple text editor for editing small files, then Emacs may be overkill.
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I believe Notepad++ will meet the needs of the vast majority of Microsoft Windows users looking for a more robust (and free) text editor than Notepad, which comes bundled with the Windows operating system. Notepad++ is packed with features, frequently updated, and consumes little resources. And incredibly, this software is free of charge
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Pros
  • Readily available: Emacs is available on almost all operating systems. You can use it for free, and even use it for remote editing. It has a nice desktop application that anyone can use, even the ordinary user.
  • Lightweight application: Although it hasn't always been, Emacs is now a very lightweight, efficient editor that isn't going to demand much CPU power. This can be crucial for large-scale applications.
  • Easy learning curve: for complex editors, Emacs is one of the easier to get a handle on. There's good documentation, and an easy layout that makes figuring out how it works much easier than others.
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  • Persistent tabs that save content even when shutting down the program or dreaded BSOD
  • Vertical selection for multi-line deletes and edits
  • Regular expression search & replace
  • Quick conversion of encoding and newline characters
  • Toggle word wrap and hidden characters
  • Lots of plugin support
  • Notifies if a file has been changed on disk by another app
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Cons
  • Shortcuts are not standard.
  • Sometimes certain key combinations puts it into an unfamiliar state.
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  • It is only available for Windows (sorry, Linux and Mac users!).
  • It lacks some of the features of higher-order integrated development environments or code editors like Visual Studio Code, such as integration with Git or other versioning tools.
  • It works best for small text files and lighter tasks such as indenting text blocks you copy and paste from elsewhere. You could use this for all your programming needs, but there are better options out there for a primary tool for that purpose.
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Likelihood to Renew
No answers on this topic
I use it every day for 13 years already and it never disappointed me
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Usability
No answers on this topic
There are lot of features to talk about. Especially the usability is good. Everyone can easily to use and user-friendly. Can also update easily. Can also write and execute the programming languages like C, C++ etc. Encoding is also the major feature that helps me a lot and converter as well.
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Support Rating
Since Emacs is free software, support comes from online forums, and online searches. I have always been able to find an answer to any question I've had, as well as "How do I do XXX in Emacs?". I've found Emacs users in general are very willing to help others who are learning Emacs and to share what they have already done with Emacs.
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I haven't needed to utilize any support related to Notepad++. I guess this is a good thing because I found it to be quite intuitive. There are almost infinite features you can tweak and plugins you can download but I haven't had to do that because Notepad++ is really good right out of the box.
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Alternatives Considered
Emacs can be easier to use than Vim as it is more similar to modern text editors. Its graphical interface is also better than anything Vim has to offer. Emacs also has better syntax highlighting and recognition of coding languages. Interestingly, Emacs handles clipboard copy and pasting into other programs a lot better than Vim does. Overall, if you know how to use Emacs, it is often preferred over Vim.
Read full review
If you're looking for a free and feature-rich option with an active plugin ecosystem, extensive language support, and regular expression capabilities, Notepad++ is a strong choice.If you prefer a straightforward, user-friendly interface and don't require as many advanced features, TextPad could be a good fit. TextPad is also an option if you're comfortable with its licensing terms. I use Notepad++ as its free and open source with lot of plugins to play with and modify your code
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Return on Investment
  • Overall, the ROI of Emacs has stemmed around its nature as a free, open source product. Usability is high, so when you use it you are more productive, but if you are unfamiliar with it, you will be less productive to start.
  • Emacs is more than just an IDE. It includes IDE-like functionality, but it is really much more than an IDE.
  • Emacs makes it easy for me to work in my environment, in a fashion to which I have become accustomed over the last 30+ years. It is more suited to the professional who has used it before.
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  • Productivity has increased for developers.
  • It's free so instead of buying a piece of software, you can use this to replace many of them that may only specialize in one thing.
  • It gives our developers confidence knowing they have such a reliable, free tool at their disposal.
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