Emacs Prelude vs Spacemacs

Struggling to choose between Emacs Prelude and Spacemacs? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Emacs Prelude is a Development solution with tags like emacs, distribution, defaults, bundles, packages.

It boasts features such as Batteries included - Prelude provides a curated set of plugins that enhance the default Emacs experience., Sensible defaults - Prelude configures Emacs to have more ergonomic defaults., Improved UX - Prelude improves the overall Emacs user experience with plugins for themes, keybindings, completion etc., Easy installation - Setting up Prelude is easy with its automated installation script. and pros including Enhances productivity - Prelude comes with many productivity boosting plugins preconfigured., Saves configuration time - Provides a ready to use Emacs configuration out of the box., Improves Emacs UX - Modernizes Emacs with UI improvements, themes etc., Active development - Prelude is actively maintained and updated..

On the other hand, Spacemacs is a Development product tagged with vim, emacs, spacemacs, text-editor, keyboard-shortcuts, autocompletion, syntax-highlighting.

Its standout features include Vim-style key bindings, Evil mode for Vim emulation, Support for many languages and frameworks, Preconfigured with many plugins, Easy customization and extension, Great documentation and community support, and it shines with pros like Very customizable and extensible, Combines the power of Emacs with Vim key bindings, Out of the box configuration for many use cases, Active community and ecosystem, Well documented.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Emacs Prelude

Emacs Prelude

Emacs Prelude is an Emacs distribution that aims to enhance the default Emacs experience. It provides sensible defaults, out-of-the-box experience, and bundles many useful Emacs packages.

Categories:
emacs distribution defaults bundles packages

Emacs Prelude Features

  1. Batteries included - Prelude provides a curated set of plugins that enhance the default Emacs experience.
  2. Sensible defaults - Prelude configures Emacs to have more ergonomic defaults.
  3. Improved UX - Prelude improves the overall Emacs user experience with plugins for themes, keybindings, completion etc.
  4. Easy installation - Setting up Prelude is easy with its automated installation script.

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Enhances productivity - Prelude comes with many productivity boosting plugins preconfigured.

Saves configuration time - Provides a ready to use Emacs configuration out of the box.

Improves Emacs UX - Modernizes Emacs with UI improvements, themes etc.

Active development - Prelude is actively maintained and updated.

Cons

Opinionated - The curated set of packages may not appeal to all users.

Manual update - Prelude needs to be manually updated to get latest packages and features.

Steep learning curve - Emacs and Prelude both have a learning curve for new users.


Spacemacs

Spacemacs

Spacemacs is a popular configuration layer and distribution based on Emacs. It aims to provide an ergonomic and consistent experience by adopting vim-style key bindings and integrating extensions like auto-completion and syntax checking.

Categories:
vim emacs spacemacs text-editor keyboard-shortcuts autocompletion syntax-highlighting

Spacemacs Features

  1. Vim-style key bindings
  2. Evil mode for Vim emulation
  3. Support for many languages and frameworks
  4. Preconfigured with many plugins
  5. Easy customization and extension
  6. Great documentation and community support

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Very customizable and extensible

Combines the power of Emacs with Vim key bindings

Out of the box configuration for many use cases

Active community and ecosystem

Well documented

Cons

Steep learning curve for new users

Complex configuration system can be overwhelming initially

Performance not as fast as vanilla Emacs

Breaking changes between versions