Visual Studio Code vs GNU Emacs

Struggling to choose between Visual Studio Code and GNU Emacs? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Visual Studio Code is a Development solution with tags like code-editor, microsoft, open-source, lightweight, extension-ecosystem, debugging, syntax-highlighting, intelligent-code-completion, git-control.

It boasts features such as Code editing, IntelliSense, Debugging, Git integration, Extensions and pros including Lightweight and fast, Free and open source, Great for web development, Customizable via extensions, Built-in Git support, Available on multiple platforms.

On the other hand, GNU Emacs is a Development product tagged with text-editor, emacs-lisp, extensible, open-source.

Its standout features include Text editing, Customizable and extensible, Built-in programming language (Emacs Lisp), Supports many programming languages, Cross-platform - runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, Plugin ecosystem (packages), Keyboard-focused interaction, Code browsing, Version control integration, Email, IRC, news clients, and it shines with pros like Powerful and customizable, Great for programmers, Open source and free, Active community, Supports many languages, Extensible with Lisp plugins.

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.

Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code is a free, open-source, lightweight code editor developed by Microsoft. It supports debugging, syntax highlighting, intelligent code completion, and Git control. VS Code has a large extension ecosystem allowing developers to add new languages, themes, debuggers and tools.

Categories:
Development Code Editors
code-editor microsoft open-source lightweight extension-ecosystem debugging syntax-highlighting intelligent-code-completion git-control

Visual Studio Code Features

  1. Code editing
  2. IntelliSense
  3. Debugging
  4. Git integration
  5. Extensions

Pricing

  • Free
  • Open Source

Pros

Lightweight and fast

Free and open source

Great for web development

Customizable via extensions

Built-in Git support

Available on multiple platforms

Cons

Not as fully-featured as full IDEs

Extensions can affect performance

Limited refactoring capabilities

No built-in terminal on Windows

Steep learning curve for some features

GNU Emacs

GNU Emacs

GNU Emacs is a popular, open source text editor and computing environment. It runs on most operating systems and provides extensibility through an Emacs Lisp interpreter.

Categories:
Development Text Editors
text-editor emacs-lisp extensible open-source

GNU Emacs Features

  1. Text editing
  2. Customizable and extensible
  3. Built-in programming language (Emacs Lisp)
  4. Supports many programming languages
  5. Cross-platform - runs on Linux, Windows, macOS
  6. Plugin ecosystem (packages)
  7. Keyboard-focused interaction
  8. Code browsing
  9. Version control integration
  10. Email, IRC, news clients

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Powerful and customizable

Great for programmers

Open source and free

Active community

Supports many languages

Extensible with Lisp plugins

Cons

Steep learning curve

Complex interface

Not beginner friendly

Heavy resource usage

Limited WYSIWYG capabilities