7 Open‑Source VS Code Alternatives You Can Start Using Today

Visual Studio Code (VS Code) is a cross‑platform code editor for Linux, Windows and macOS that can edit plain text and, like an IDE, manage entire codebases; its functionality can be extended with plugins and it is widely regarded as a reliable editor.

Although Microsoft open‑sourced the VS Code codebase, the binary released from Microsoft’s website is not fully open source. Below are several open‑source alternatives that provide similar capabilities.

1. VSCodium

VSCodium offers pre‑built binaries of the upstream Code‑OSS project without Microsoft’s proprietary additions. It disables telemetry by default and provides the cleanest VS Code experience available.

Project address: https://vscodium.com/

2. Code‑OSS

If you prefer to build the editor yourself, you can compile VS Code from source to obtain the “Code‑OSS” binary, which is subject to the same license as VSCodium and runs identically.

When building from source, verify that all telemetry features are disabled on first launch.

3. Atom

Acquired by Microsoft when it bought GitHub, Atom is a cross‑platform editor that can be extended with plugins and includes built‑in GitHub integration. Like VS Code, it ships with telemetry that can be disabled.

Project address: http://atom.io/

4. GNOME Builder

GNOME Builder is a Linux‑focused IDE that supports many languages (Python, Rust, C/C++, Java, Go, JavaScript, TypeScript, etc.) and is suitable for building Linux applications with good compatibility handling.

Project address: https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Builder

5. Geany

Geany is a lightweight, fast editor that supports around 50 programming and scripting languages, offering features such as bracket matching and syntax highlighting. Plugins can add project view, debugging, terminal, etc., making it a viable VS Code alternative on low‑resource machines.

Project address: https://www.geany.org/

6. Brackets

Brackets is a web‑focused editor/IDE with strong support for HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP and even Python. It has an extensive extension ecosystem that lets you tailor it to any programming language.

Project address: http://brackets.io/

7. Che

Che is a cloud‑native, open‑source IDE that runs as a SaaS service on Kubernetes. It can use a Git server as its file system and allows you to develop directly in the cloud, with the option to download files for local backup.

Project address: https://www.eclipse.org/che/extend/