Windows Notepad AlternativesOnly apps from the EU

The best alternative to Windows Notepad is Notepad++, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Windows Notepad and many of them are so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting alternatives to Windows Notepad are Vim, Kate, Notepad2 and PSPad.

filter to find the best alternatives

Windows Notepad alternatives are mainly Text Editors, but if you're looking for Code Editors or IDEs you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Text Editors, Open Source, Linux, Windows + Free, Windows and Windows + Lightweight. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Windows Notepad.
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Alternatives
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Alternatives list

  1. Notepad++ icon

    Notepad++

     5020 likes

    Notepad++ is a free, open-source code editor supporting several languages, offering features like syntax highlighting, plugin support, dark mode, portability, privacy, and efficient resource usage, making it highly customizable and suitable for various programming needs.

    271 Notepad++ alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU
    Notepad++ screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
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    6
  2. Vim icon

    Vim

     1370 likes

    Advanced text editor with syntax highlighting, word completion, multiple editing modes for efficiency, plugin and script extensibility, GUI and command-line operation, a thorough help system, and cross-platform support across various operating systems.

    235 Vim alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • Haiku
    • Flatpak
    • AmigaOS
    • OpenSolaris
    • MorphOS
    • NL flagNetherlands
    • European Union flagEU
    Vim screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
  4. Kate icon

    Kate

     335 likes

    The Kate project develops two main products: KatePart, the advanced editor component which is used in numerous KDE applications requiring a text editing component, and Kate, a MDI text editor application.

    165 Kate alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • KDE Plasma
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    • Snapcraft
    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU
    Kate screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
  5. Notepad2 icon

    Notepad2

     291 likes

    Notepad2 is a fast and light-weight Windows Notepad like text editor with syntax highlighting. Simple as possible, but yet powerful. Has full Unicode support. Can be run out of the box without installation, and does not touch your system's...

    117 Notepad2 alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU
    Notepad2 screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
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    2
  6. PSPad icon

    PSPad

     203 likes

    PSPad is a freeware programmers editor in 8 languages for Microsoft Windows operating systems. Some features are highlighted syntax, ftp, projects and so on. Code explorer for Pascal, C/C++, INI, HTML, XML, PHP and more in development, internal web browser with APACHE support.

    185 PSPad alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • CZ flagCzechia
    • European Union flagEU
    Main Window - Project Settings
    Good alternative?
     
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    2
  8. Xed icon

    Xed

     22 likes

    A text editor forked from Pluma and Gedit. Xed is the default text editor of Linux Mint. It can be customized and is available in multiple languages.

    165 Xed alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • IE flagIreland
    • European Union flagEU
    Xed screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
  9. Mousepad icon

    Mousepad

     35 likes

    A simple text editor for the Xfce desktop environment. Mousepad aims to be an easy-to-use and fast editor for quickly editing text files, not a development environment or an editor with a huge bunch of plugins.

    80 Mousepad alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Flathub
    • Xfce
    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU
    Mousepad screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
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    2
  10. Text Editor Pro icon

    Text Editor Pro

     10 likes

    Text Editor Pro (formerly EditBone) is a powerful text editing tool that comes with syntax highlighting, support for over 50 languages and scripts, 22 different styles, a handy file comparison feature and support for multiple directories and search results.

    73 Text Editor Pro alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • HU flagHungary
    • European Union flagEU
    Text Editor Pro screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
  11. Smultron icon

    Smultron

     71 likes

    Smultron is a text editor for Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 which is both easy to use and powerful. It is designed to neither confuse newcomers nor disappoint advanced users. It should work perfectly for a whole variety of needs - like web programming, script editing, making a to do...

    71 Smultron alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • SE flagSweden
    • European Union flagEU
    Smultron screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
  12. NFOPad icon

    NFOPad

     22 likes

    NFOPad is a small, fast and flexible combined text editor and nfo viewer. It is a clone of Microsoft's Notepad but much more customizable and with some additional features. NFOPad fully supports Unicode as well as nfo files with ASCII art.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • SE flagSweden
    • European Union flagEU
    NFOPad screenshot 1
    Good alternative?
     
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    1
  13. TwistPad icon

    TwistPad

     8 likes

    Twistpad is a fully featured text and code editor for Windows. Twistpad can be used as a simple notepad replacer, or a featured packed editor targeting web and software developers.

    89 TwistPad alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU
    Twistpad editing a PHP\HTML file, with split editing, with the clipboard and the file browser window visible. Notice that the search for 'updated' is highlighted automatically
    Good alternative?
     
  14. Notes (PFA) icon

    Notes (PFA)

     3 likes

    Privacy Friendly Notes allows you to take and manage notes on Android devices. It belongs to the Privacy Friendly Apps group developed by the research group SECUSO at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. More information can be found an secuso.org/pfa

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • F-Droid
    • Android
    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU
    Notes (PFA) screenshot 1
    Notes (PFA) screenshot 2
    Notes (PFA) screenshot 3
    Good alternative?
     
12 of 28 Windows Notepad alternatives