Alternatives to IntelliJ IDEA logo

Alternatives to IntelliJ IDEA

Eclipse, PhpStorm, Android Studio, PyCharm, and WebStorm are the most popular alternatives and competitors to IntelliJ IDEA.
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What is IntelliJ IDEA and what are its top alternatives?

IntelliJ IDEA is a popular integrated development environment (IDE) developed by JetBrains, designed for programming in Java, Kotlin, and other languages. It offers features such as code completion, refactoring tools, code analysis, and built-in version control support. However, IntelliJ IDEA can be resource-intensive and may have a steep learning curve for beginners.

  1. Eclipse: Eclipse is a widely-used open-source IDE with a strong focus on Java development. It offers a wide range of plugins and extensions for different programming languages and frameworks. Pros include its flexibility and large community support, but it can be less user-friendly than IntelliJ IDEA.
  2. Visual Studio Code: Visual Studio Code is a lightweight and versatile IDE developed by Microsoft, supporting a wide range of programming languages. Key features include a built-in terminal, Git integration, and extensive customization options. Pros include its speed and ease of use, but it may lack some advanced features found in IntelliJ IDEA.
  3. NetBeans: NetBeans is an open-source IDE primarily used for Java development, but supports other languages as well. It offers features such as smart code editing, project management tools, and support for multiple languages. Pros include its ease of use and comprehensive toolset, but it may be slower than IntelliJ IDEA in some cases.
  4. Atom: Atom is a modern and customizable IDE developed by GitHub, ideal for web development and other programming tasks. It features a sleek interface, built-in package manager, and support for multiple programming languages. Pros include its extensive plugin ecosystem and cross-platform compatibility, but it may lack some advanced features compared to IntelliJ IDEA.
  5. PyCharm: PyCharm is an IDE specifically tailored for Python development, offering advanced features such as code analysis, debugging tools, and support for web development frameworks. Pros include its strong support for Python development and integration with other JetBrains products, but it may be less versatile than IntelliJ IDEA for multi-language projects.
  6. Sublime Text: Sublime Text is a popular text editor with IDE-like features, known for its speed and simplicity. It supports customizations through plugins and themes, making it suitable for various programming tasks. Pros include its performance and extensive plugin ecosystem, but it may lack some advanced IDE features found in IntelliJ IDEA.
  7. Code::Blocks: Code::Blocks is an open-source IDE primarily used for C, C++, and Fortran development, featuring a simple and intuitive interface. It offers features such as project management tools, code completion, and syntax highlighting. Pros include its lightweight nature and multi-platform support, but it may have a less polished user experience compared to IntelliJ IDEA.
  8. CLion: CLion is an IntelliJ IDEA-based IDE specifically designed for C and C++ development, offering advanced features such as refactoring tools, code analysis, and integrated debugger. Pros include its strong support for C and C++ development and seamless integration with other JetBrains products, but it may have a steeper learning curve for beginners.
  9. Xcode: Xcode is an IDE developed by Apple for macOS and iOS development, featuring a comprehensive suite of tools for building and debugging apps. It offers features such as Interface Builder, storyboards, and integration with Apple's developer ecosystem. Pros include its seamless integration with Apple platforms and strong support for iOS development, but it may be limited in its applicability compared to IntelliJ IDEA.
  10. CodeLite: CodeLite is an open-source IDE primarily used for C, C++, and PHP development, offering features such as code completion, refactoring tools, and built-in debugger. Pros include its lightweight nature, cross-platform support, and extensive plugin support, but it may lack some advanced features found in IntelliJ IDEA for other programming languages.

Top Alternatives to IntelliJ IDEA

  • Eclipse
    Eclipse

    Standard Eclipse package suited for Java and plug-in development plus adding new plugins; already includes Git, Marketplace Client, source code and developer documentation. Click here to file a bug against Eclipse Platform. ...

  • PhpStorm
    PhpStorm

    PhpStorm is a PHP IDE which keeps up with latest PHP & web languages trends, integrates a variety of modern tools, and brings even more extensibility with support for major PHP frameworks. ...

  • Android Studio
    Android Studio

    Android Studio is a new Android development environment based on IntelliJ IDEA. It provides new features and improvements over Eclipse ADT and will be the official Android IDE once it's ready. ...

  • PyCharm
    PyCharm

    PyCharm’s smart code editor provides first-class support for Python, JavaScript, CoffeeScript, TypeScript, CSS, popular template languages and more. Take advantage of language-aware code completion, error detection, and on-the-fly code fixes! ...

  • WebStorm
    WebStorm

    WebStorm is a lightweight and intelligent IDE for front-end development and server-side JavaScript. ...

  • NetBeans IDE
    NetBeans IDE

    NetBeans IDE is FREE, open source, and has a worldwide community of users and developers. ...

  • Visual Studio
    Visual Studio

    Visual Studio is a suite of component-based software development tools and other technologies for building powerful, high-performance applications. ...

  • GoLand
    GoLand

    Cross-platform IDE focused on Go development. It makes it very easy to read, write and change the code. Out of the box support it supports technologies and databases such as Javascript, TypeScript, React, PostgresSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, etc. ...

IntelliJ IDEA alternatives & related posts

Eclipse logo

Eclipse

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IDE for Java EE Developers
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PROS OF ECLIPSE
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    Does it all
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    Integrates with most of tools
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    Easy to use
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    Java IDE
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    Best Java IDE
  • 9
    Open source
  • 3
    Hard for newbews
  • 2
    Great gdb integration
  • 2
    Professional
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    Good Git client allowing direct stage area edit
  • 2
    True open source with huge contribution
  • 2
    Great code suggestions
  • 2
    Extensible
  • 2
    Lightweight
  • 0
    Works with php
CONS OF ECLIPSE
  • 14
    2000 Design
  • 9
    Bad performance
  • 4
    Hard to use

related Eclipse posts

christy craemer

UPDATE: Thanks for the great response. I am going to start with VSCode based on the open source and free version that will allow me to grow into other languages, but not cost me a license ..yet.

I have been working with software development for 12 years, but I am just beginning my journey to learn to code. I am starting with Python following the suggestion of some of my coworkers. They are split between Eclipse and IntelliJ IDEA for IDEs that they use and PyCharm is new to me. Which IDE would you suggest for a beginner that will allow expansion to Java, JavaScript, and eventually AngularJS and possibly mobile applications?

See more
Dean Stringer

Have been a Visual Studio Code user since just after launch to the general public, having used the likes of Eclipse and Atom previously. Was amazed how mature it seemed off the bat and was super intrigued by the bootstrapped nature of it having been written/based on Electron/TypeScript, and of course being an open-source app from Microsoft. The features, plugin ecosystem and release frequency are very impressive. I do dev work on both Mac and Windows and don't use anything else now as far as IDEs go.

See more
PhpStorm logo

PhpStorm

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Professional IDE for PHP and Web Developers
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PROS OF PHPSTORM
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    Best ide for php
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    Easy to use
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    Functionality
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    Plugins
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    Code analysis
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    Integrated version control
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    Great php ide for mac
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    All-round php ide
  • 62
    Local history
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    Themes
  • 18
    Best PHP IDE
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    Database control
  • 10
    Easy to find anything and everything in your code
  • 9
    Best bebugging
  • 9
    Best inspection variable
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    Command line integration
  • 7
    Great frameworks integration
  • 7
    PHPUnit integration
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    Getting Better
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    UX
  • 6
    Composer integration
  • 6
    Performance
  • 6
    Coolest IDE
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    Real time code validation
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    Easy to use and github interaction
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    Neat does the job and easy
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    Best ide for advanced php and symfony
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    Best ide for php
  • 4
    TypeScript support
  • 4
    Code indexing
  • 4
    It has no match. it filled one of the biggest void
  • 4
    Fast and relevant auto-complete
  • 4
    Great refactoring support
  • 4
    Cross platform
  • 3
    Integration with Vagrant and Docker
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    Debugger for Javascript
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    Good
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    Very good
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    Debugging in the Just-In-Time Mode
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    Perfect locahost / host sync
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    Awesome debugging features
CONS OF PHPSTORM
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    Uses a lot of memory
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    Does not open large files
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    Slow
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    Uses Java machine
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    No way to change syntax highlight for files without ext
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    No save prompt or asterisk on file change

related PhpStorm posts

Johnny Bell

I've been in the #frontend game for about 7 years now. I started coding in Sublime Text because all of the tutorials I was doing back then everyone was using it. I found the speed amazing compared to some other tools at the time. I kept using Sublime Text for about 4-5 years.

I find Sublime Text lacks some functionality, after all it is just a text editor rather than a full fledged IDE. I finally converted over to PhpStorm as I was working with Magento and Magento as you know is mainly #PHP based.

This was amazing all the features in PhpStorm I loved, the debugging features, and the control click feature when you click on a dependency or linked file it will take you to that file. It was great.

PhpStorm is kind of slow, I found that Prettier was taking a long time to format my code, and it just was lagging a lot so I was looking for alternatives. After watching some more tutorial videos I noticed that everyone was using Visual Studio Code. So I gave it a go, and its amazing.

It has support for everything I need with the plugins and the integration with Git is amazing. The speed of this IDE is blazing fast, and I wouldn't go back to using PhpStorm anymore. I highly recommend giving Visual Studio Code a try!

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Denys
Software engineer at Typeform · | 13 upvotes · 1.9M views
  • Go because it's easy and simple, facilitates collaboration , and also it's fast, scalable, powerful.
  • Visual Studio Code because it has one of the most sophisticated Go language support plugins.
  • Vim because it's Vim
  • Git because it's Git
  • Docker and Docker Compose because it's quick and easy to have reproducible builds/tests with them
  • Arch Linux because Docker for Mac/Win is a disaster for the human nervous system, and Arch is the coolest Linux distro so far
  • Stack Overflow because of Copy-Paste Driven Development
  • JavaScript and Python when a something needs to be coded for yesterday
  • PhpStorm because it saves me like 300 "Ctrl+F" key strokes a minute
  • cURL because terminal all the way
See more
Android Studio logo

Android Studio

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Android development environment based on IntelliJ IDEA
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PROS OF ANDROID STUDIO
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    Android studio is a great tool, getting better and bet
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    Google's official android ide
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    Intelligent code editor with lots of auto-completion
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    Its powerful and robust
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    Easy creating android app
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    Amazing Layout Designer
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    Great Code Tips
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    Great tool & very helpful
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    Easy to use
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    Built in Emulator
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    Keyboard Shortcuts are Amazing Out of the box
CONS OF ANDROID STUDIO
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    Slow emulator
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    Huge memory usage
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    Using Intellij IDEA, while Intellij IDEA have too
  • 2
    Complex for begginers
  • 2
    No checking incompatibilities
  • 1
    Lags behind IntelliJ IDEA
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    Slow release process

related Android Studio posts

Julien DeFrance
Principal Software Engineer at Tophatter · | 8 upvotes · 445.4K views

As a Engineering Manager & Director at SmartZip, I had a mix of front-end, back-end, #mobile engineers reporting to me.

Sprints after sprints, I noticed some inefficiencies on the MobileDev side. People working multiple sprints in a row on their Xcode / Objective-C codebase while some others were working on Android Studio. After which, QA & Product ensured both applications were in sync, on a UI/UX standpoint, creating addional work, which also happened to be extremely costly.

Our resources being so limited, my role was to stop this bleeding and keep my team productive and their time, valuable.

After some analysis, discussions, proof of concepts... etc. We decided to move to a single codebase using React Native so our velocity would increase.

After some initial investment, our initial assumptions were confirmed and we indeed started to ship features a lot faster than ever before. Also, our engineers found a way to perform this upgrade incrementally, so the initial platform-specific codebase wouldn't have to entirely be rewritten at once but only gradually and at will.

Feedback around React Native was very positive. And I doubt - for the kind of application we had - no one would want to go back to two or more code bases. Our application was still as Native as it gets. And no feature or device capability was compromised.

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Gustavo Muñoz
Senior Software Engineer at JOOR · | 8 upvotes · 445.4K views

In my modest opinion, Flutter is the future of mobile development. The framework is as important to mobile as React is to the web. And seeing that React Native does not finish taking off, I am focusing all my efforts on learning Flutter and Dart. The ecosystem is amazing. The community is crazy about Flutter. There are enough resources to learn and enjoy the framework, and the tools developed to work with it are amazing. Android Studio or Visual Studio Code has incredible plugins and Dart is a pretty straight forward and easy-to-learn language, even more, if you came from JavaScript. I admit it. I'm in love with Flutter. When you are not a designer, having a framework focused on design an pretty things is a must. And counting with tools like #flare for animations makes everything easier. It is so amazing that I wish I had a big mobile project right now at work just to use Flutter.

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PyCharm logo

PyCharm

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The Most Intelligent Python IDE
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PROS OF PYCHARM
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    Smart auto-completion
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    Intelligent code analysis
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    Powerful refactoring
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    Virtualenv integration
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    Git integration
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    Support for Django
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    Multi-database integration
  • 7
    VIM integration
  • 4
    Vagrant integration
  • 3
    In-tool Bash and Python shell
  • 2
    Plugin architecture
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    Docker
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    Django Implemented
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    Debug mode support docker
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    Emacs keybinds
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    Perforce integration
CONS OF PYCHARM
  • 10
    Slow startup
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    Not very flexible
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    Resource hog
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    Periodic slow menu response
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    Pricey for full features

related PyCharm posts

christy craemer

UPDATE: Thanks for the great response. I am going to start with VSCode based on the open source and free version that will allow me to grow into other languages, but not cost me a license ..yet.

I have been working with software development for 12 years, but I am just beginning my journey to learn to code. I am starting with Python following the suggestion of some of my coworkers. They are split between Eclipse and IntelliJ IDEA for IDEs that they use and PyCharm is new to me. Which IDE would you suggest for a beginner that will allow expansion to Java, JavaScript, and eventually AngularJS and possibly mobile applications?

See more

I am a QA heading to a new company where they all generally use Visual Studio Code, my experience is with IntelliJ IDEA and PyCharm. The language they use is JavaScript and so I will be writing my test framework in javaScript so the devs can more easily write tests without context switching.

My 2 questions: Does VS Code have Cucumber Plugins allowing me to write behave tests? And more importantly, does VS Code have the same refactoring tools that IntelliJ IDEA has? I love that I have easy access to a range of tools that allow me to refactor and simplify my code, making code writing really easy.

See more
WebStorm logo

WebStorm

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The smartest JavaScript IDE
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PROS OF WEBSTORM
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    Intelligent ide
  • 128
    Smart development environment
  • 108
    Easy js debugging
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    Code inspection
  • 95
    Support for the Latest Technologies
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    Created by jetbrains
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    Cross-platform ide
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    Integration
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    Spellchecker
  • 24
    Language Mixing/Injection
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    Debugger
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    Local History
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    Web developer can't live without this
  • 7
    Fast search
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    Git support
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    Angular.js support
  • 6
    Sass autocompletion
  • 5
    Better refactoring options
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    FTP
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    There is no need to setup plugins (all from the box)
  • 5
    Show color on the border next to hex string in CSS
  • 5
    Smart autocompletion
  • 5
    JSON Schema
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    Awesome
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    Built-in js debugger
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    Running and debugging Node.js apps remotely
  • 4
    Easy to use
  • 4
    A modern IDE stuck in the 90s
  • 4
    TypeScript support
  • 4
    Smart coding assistance for React
  • 4
    Node.js integration
  • 4
    111
  • 4
    Protractor support out of the box
  • 4
    Intelligent
  • 4
    Paid but easy to crack
  • 3
    Dart support
  • 3
    Solid intelligent features
  • 3
    Great app
  • 3
    Integrated terminal
  • 3
    Vagrant and SSH Console
  • 3
    Free for students
  • 3
    Unused imports inspection
  • 3
    Docker intergration
  • 2
    Remote Files Syncronization
  • 2
    Grate debug tools for React Apps
  • 2
    Easier to keep running than eclipse
  • 1
    Auto imports
  • 1
    Vim support
  • 1
    Rename helpers
  • 1
    Auto refactoring helpers
  • 1
    Less autocompletion
  • 1
    GIT partial commits
CONS OF WEBSTORM
  • 4
    Paid
  • 1
    Expensive

related WebStorm posts

Johnny Bell

When I switched to Visual Studio Code 12 months ago from PhpStorm I was in love, it was great. However after using VS Code for a year, I see myself switching back and forth between WebStorm and VS Code. The VS Code plugins are great however I notice Prettier, auto importing of components and linking to the definitions often break, and I have to restart VS Code multiple times a week and sometimes a day.

We use Ruby here so I do like that Visual Studio Code highlights that for me out of the box, with WebStorm I'd need to probably also install RubyMine and have 2 IDE's going at the same time.

Should I stick with Visual Studio Code, or switch to something else? #help

See more
Russel Werner
Lead Engineer at StackShare · | 7 upvotes · 587.7K views

We use Prettier because when we rebooted our front-end stack, I decided that it would be an efficient use of our time to not worry about code formatting issues and personal preferences during peer review. Prettier eliminates this concern by auto-formatting our code to a deterministic output. We use it along with ESLint and have 1st-class support in our WebStorm and Visual Studio Code editors.

See more
NetBeans IDE logo

NetBeans IDE

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Quickly and easily develop desktop, mobile and web applications with Java, HTML5, PHP, C/C++ and more
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PROS OF NETBEANS IDE
  • 76
    Rich features
  • 69
    Crossplatform
  • 49
    Plugins(Git, SVN)
  • 38
    Easy to use
  • 38
    Extensible
  • 35
    PHP Support
  • 34
    Java support
  • 28
    File History
  • 21
    Code analysis
  • 18
    MySQL support
  • 14
    Free
  • 14
    Open source
  • 10
    Code completion
  • 9
    Strong Maven Support
  • 8
    NodeJs support
  • 6
    Webdev king
  • 6
    Easy maven project start
  • 6
    Best
  • 4
    Jira Plugin
  • 4
    Foss
  • 3
    Out of the box integration with maven, git, svn
  • 3
    History of changes, friendly tabs
  • 3
    Mandatory
  • 2
    Intuitive ui
  • 2
    Chrome plugin to live update javascript from browser
  • 2
    Groovy support
  • 2
    Native Nette support
  • 2
    I don't like NetBeans
  • 2
    Smarty support
  • 2
    Visual GUI Builder for Swing / AWT
  • 2
    Custom html tags support
  • 1
    Powerful refactoring
  • 1
    Composer commands inside IDE
CONS OF NETBEANS IDE
  • 2
    PHP debug doesn't support conditional breakpoints

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Visual Studio logo

Visual Studio

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State-of-the-art tools and services that you can use to create great apps for devices, the cloud, and everything...
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PROS OF VISUAL STUDIO
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    Intellisense, ui
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    Complete ide and debugger
  • 165
    Plug-ins
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    Integrated
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    Documentation
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    Fast
  • 35
    Node tools for visual studio (ntvs)
  • 33
    Free Community edition
  • 24
    Simple
  • 17
    Bug free
  • 8
    Made by Microsoft
  • 6
    Full free community version
  • 5
    JetBrains plugins (ReSharper etc.) work sufficiently OK
  • 3
    Productivity Power Tools
  • 2
    Vim mode
  • 2
    VIM integration
  • 1
    I develop UWP apps and Intellisense is super useful
  • 1
    Cross platform development
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    The Power and Easiness to Do anything in any.. language
  • 1
    Available for Mac and Windows
CONS OF VISUAL STUDIO
  • 16
    Bulky
  • 14
    Made by Microsoft
  • 6
    Sometimes you need to restart to finish an update
  • 3
    Too much size for disk
  • 3
    Only avalible on Windows

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Shared insights
on
C#C#JavaJavaVisual StudioVisual Studio

I use C# because of the ease of designing user interfaces compared to Java. Using Visual Studio makes C# a breeze for prototyping and creating apps and I really appreciate how quickly I can turn an idea into reality. I was first introduced to C# in a special topics course and quickly started preferring it over Java. The similarities between the two made the switch easy while the added benefits C# offers made it very worth it.

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Andrey Kurdyumov

I use TypeScript because it greatly simplify my refactoring efforts. I regularly re-validate my assumption about application architecture, and strictness of types allow me write make changes safely using just Visual Studio tooling. Integration with existing JavaScript libraries very simple and fast. If I have no time, I could just use any type as output of JS module. When I have more time, I could just submit PR to DefinitelyTyped and it would be quickly accepted. Overall it gives less ambiguity for my code.

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GoLand logo

GoLand

554
352
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Integrated Development Environment for Go
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PROS OF GOLAND
  • 4
    Auto-completion that is fast and comprehensive
  • 4
    Refactoring is efficient and has a simple UI
  • 2
    Git interaction becomes very simple and fast
CONS OF GOLAND
  • 2
    Not free

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Jakub Olan
Node.js Software Engineer · | 4 upvotes · 310K views

YouTrack feels much more lightweight than Jira and additionally have all of features that Jira have, of course lacks at some analytics features, but it's more powerful at permission management and agile workflow. Additionally YouTrack have awesome integration with other JetBrains products such as incoming JetBrains Space and all other IDEs such as GoLand.

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