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A text editor may sound boring to some, but it’s the lifeblood of so many organizations around the world. From development teams to publishers, text and code editors are intertwined with almost everyone’s workflows. Many of us bounce in and out of them all day long. Whether you’re writing PHP, or simply taking notes for a project, there are plenty of great tools to make this task a little easier. Today we’ll outline the absolute best text editor solutions.

Some of the text editors are excellent for experienced developers, while others are more for beginners or writers. You’ll also find some great editors for collaboration, real-time code sharing, and much more.

Collection of the Best Text Editors (And Some IDEs)

Here’s a collection of our favorite text editors. Some of these are also considered IDEs, which stands for “integrated development environment.” Meaning you can do a lot more with them than simply write code. We highly recommend testing each one to see which one works best for your own workflow.

1. Sublime Text
2. Atom
3. Notepad++
4. CoffeeCup – The HTML Editor
5. TextMate
6. Vim
7. UltraEdit
8. Coda
9. BBEdit
10. Komodo Edit
11. Visual Studio Code
12. Brackets
13. CodeShare

1. Sublime Text

The Sublime Text editor is definitely one of our favorites! It offers a free version for testing, but all continual users are required to pay $80 to keep it active. While $80 might sound steep for a text editor, it’s important to note that the licenses are per-user, rather than per-machine, so you can enjoy Sublime Text on as many computers and operating systems as you wish with your license.

As for the features, Sublime Text has an advantage in that it’s extremely lightweight (low resource usage), but still keeps around some of the more advanced features you would expect out of a top text editor. The primary benefit is that Sublime Text offers shortcuts and search tools for immediately finding certain functions and making changes to multiple lines at once. Jumping to specific symbols or words takes only a few seconds.

In addition, Sublime Text automatically creates an index of all functions and methods so that you can work with the shortcuts and customize it for locating bits of code while working.

Going along with the trend of shortcuts in Sublime Text, the text editor lets you type in a few keystrokes to move directly to menu items. So, if you wanted to sort something in your document, you wouldn’t be required to sift through the entire menu to find that functionality.

Sublime Text has a Python API, meaning that a wide variety of plugins can be integrated with the text editing solution. This includes the thousands of plugins that are consistently created by the Sublime Text community.

Which Features Make This One of the Best Text Editor Tools?

• Sublime Text lets you test out the text editor before committing to the investment. Although it’s a bummer you have to pay for this text editor, you at least get to try it out–and the pricing isn’t that expensive.
• The text editor runs on multiple platforms such as Mac, Windows, and Linux. It’s also cross-platform, so one license will work on all of your devices–no need to purchase more.
• Sublime Text provides split editing for managing and editing files next to each other. You can also open multiple windows and place them on different monitors.
• The Python API opens up opportunities to upgrade Sublime Text with plugins you, or other people, create.
• Sublime Text has extremely user-friendly and powerful shortcuts. From finding and modifying multiple lines to locating certain functions in the menu, Sublime Text should make shortcut lovers happy.
• You can also customize just about anything in Sublime Text. This is especially true when talking about shortcuts and menus. We recommend tweaking the settings to open files in the same window (new tab).
• Has some great community themes available. Check out the Dracula Sublime theme.

Sublime Text makes the most sense for heavy coders. These developers will enjoy the shortcut functionality and the high level of customization. The cross-platform abilities are also nice for launching the same text editor on all machines.

2. Atom

With Atom, you gain access to an open source text editor with developers in mind. In fact, the creators of Atom state that they made it just for developers. Also, there’s a community of developers who contribute themes and plugins, much like WordPress or some other opensource tools. An experienced developer should have no problem working with Atom, since it offers clean collaboration tools, a sleek editor, and some great organization tools for keeping your projects in check.

All of your projects can be shared and edited in real-time, helping out teams that are far away from each other or simply those teams that want a more dedicated workspace. Furthermore, Atom has a GitHub package already included with the text editor. This way, your team can create everything from branches to stages in one interface.

Another great thing about Atom is that it’s a cross-platform system, working on operating systems like Linux, OS X, and Windows. The smart autocompletion is one of my favorite features, and the multiple panes should make you feel right at home with several panes open to edit code between files. Much like an iPhone (or WordPress,) Atom has extras that you can install called packages. These are offered to expand the functionality of the basic text editor. You can also install themes to make your editor look prettier and easier on the eyes.

Which Features Make This One of the Best Text Editor Tools?

• Atom is an opensource text editor with a large community of developers. This means you get consistent updates and new themes and packages. Check out the Dracula theme for Atom.
• It’s a cross-platform solution that works on the major operating systems.
• The editor is useful for coding alone, but its true strengths come into play when you need to collaborate with other people. All of the editing and creation can be done in real-time.
• Atom provides a GitHub package for integrating and doing things like pull requests and resolving merge conflicts.
• You can search for new packages and themes right from the text editor.
• It’s fairly easy to edit your code with smart autocompletion, a file system browser, and a find and replace feature.
• Atom offers multiple panes for comparing and editing code side by side.

I would recommend Atom for those developers who want a collaboration tool in addition to the text editor. You can manage projects with other developers and see changes right in front of your eyes. Atom is also nice since it’s opensource–meaning you get it for free, the community is solid, and you can choose from packages and themes. In short, if you like working with WordPress, Atom seems to present itself in a similar fashion.

3. Notepad++

Debatably the most popular advanced text editor on the market, Notepad++ comes in a compact package with no fees and powerful editing components. It is given away for free on a General Public License, meaning that all developers and content creators are able to take advantage of the text editor right after a quick download. Notepad++ runs on Microsoft Windows, and it strives to use less computing power than the average text editor.

One of the things that makes Notepad++ stand out is the fact that it’s already been translated into over 80 languages, allowing access to people all over the world. Furthermore, you’re able to translate Notepad++ into your native language if you don’t find your language on the list of translations.

Writing code and manipulating text in Notepad++ comes easy, as it utilizes syntax highlighting and folding. There’s also a wonderful search and replace tool, along with an entirely customizable user interface. For instance, you might want a vertical tab or a document list–all are possible with the Notepad++ text editor.

Which Features Make This One of the Best Text Editor Tools?

• Notepad++ is completely free for everyone to use.
• The text editor is already translated into dozens of languages, and it provides the documentation needed to translate into more languages.
• You receive a multi-view editor with syntax highlighting and folding.
• The customization tools are easy to understand and powerful enough for the most advanced developer.
• The auto-completion settings ensure that you can finish functions, parameters, and words without having to type them in over and over.
• It offers a multi-document interface for switching between tabs and managing multiple projects at once.
• Notepad++ provides a list of plugins to improve the functionality of the text editor or integrate with other programs.
• You can open a function list, which reveals an outline of all functions found in the current file. This also includes a search engine for quickly locating functions in large documents.

If you’re a beginner who needs a text editor, Notepad++ is far easier to understand than some of the other options on this list. Not only that, but you’ll enjoy the ability to locate words and replace them all, while also revealing certain bits of code with highlighting. As for advanced users, Notepad++ also does the trick, with its syntax highlighting for HTML, PHP, and JavaScript. The plugins also help out when trying to connect via FTP or integrate with other text editors.

4. CoffeeCup – The HTML Editor

CoffeeCup’s HTML Editor provides extremely advanced text editing for coding and overall web design management. The editor has a free trial, but in order to continue, you must pay the $49 one-time fee. There’s also a fully free version, but the features are pretty watered down.

We like CoffeeCup for creating HTML documents, but you might consider avoiding it for many other code languages. However, it makes sense to take advantage of CoffeeCup if you’re simply learning a language like HTML or PHP.

As mentioned, creating and editing HTML is fairly simple with CoffeeCup. This takes your web design to the next level, especially with the tools for tag references and code completion. There are plenty of components to take advantage of that instantly update various elements across your entire website.

What’s more is that the CoffeeCup text editor comes with several responsive website themes. You may want to start from scratch if you’re trying to learn more about coding, but the themes expedite the process for when you need to generate client websites by a deadline.

Which Features Make This One of the Best Text Editor Tools?

• CoffeeCup has a free version and free trial. Also, the premium version is affordable.
• This is one of the best text editor options with themes. These aren’t completed websites, but it gets you close to some designs that might look appealing for some of your clients. Why reinvent the wheel when you can start further into the process?
• The FTP connection allows you to go live with your website with the click of a button. Publish your website anywhere you want by selecting a server or web host.
• CoffeeCup is one of the more visual text editors, with a standard split-screen view, but also a live preview to see what your code creates on the frontend.

CoffeeCup is a great choice for those interested in learning HTML, CSS, and PHP. The components library, combined with the theme selection, delivers a good starting point for those who are on a time crunch or don’t feel like beginning from scratch.

5. TextMate

TextMate comes offered as a free download, but you can also decide to upgrade to the premium version for $59. Keep in mind that this payment only gets you one license, so you would have to pay for multiple seats if you have a whole team of people in need of the text editor.

To get started, TextMate strictly works on the macOS. It seems like a simple editor at first, but it actually has quite a bit of functionality crammed into a small package. Some of the standards you would expect from a text editor include find search and replace tools, autocompletion, and board management. All programming languages are supported by TextMate, and it does have a tool for Xcode projects.

TextMate lets you create multiple insertion points for editing and swapping out pieces of code in bulk. You also receive a list of all version modifications. So, the list includes file changes and allows you to jump back in time if needed.

Which Features Make This One of the Best Text Editor Tools?

• TextMate comes with free and paid versions, both of which provide excellent features.
• It’s a lightweight text editor with a clean interface.
• TextMate offers bundles so that you can customize almost every element in the text editor. Want to change languages? That’s possible. Want to adjust your workflows? Go for it.
• You have the option to generate macros to speed up your production processes. All of your repetitive work is eliminated with these macros.
• An advanced file searching tool is included, along with multiple carets for swapping and adjusting multiple lines of code all at once.

If you’re using a Mac, and would like a text editor that supports all coding languages, TextMate is a solid choice for you. It also appears to be a nice solution for those who like bundles and macros.

6. Vim

With support for Windows, Linux, and Mac, the Vim text editor is a stable, reliable editor that integrates with many popular tools. It’s designed for use both from a command-line interface (CLI) and as a standalone application in a graphical user interface (GUI).

Vim was created in 1991. Back then, it was considered one of the most prominent text editors, which allowed developers to generate updates and scripts with a series of commands. This makes it one of the oldest text editors, and it’s quite impressive that Vim is still being used by developers around the world.