BBEdit vs CotEditor: What are the differences?

Key Differences between BBEdit and CotEditor

BBEdit and CotEditor are both text editors used for coding and editing text files, but they have several key differences.

1. Pricing and Platform Compatibility: BBEdit is a commercial text editor available only for macOS, with a paid license. On the other hand, CotEditor is an open-source editor that is free to use and works on macOS only.

2. Features and Functionality: BBEdit is a feature-rich text editor that offers advanced functionalities such as code folding, syntax highlighting, smart completion, and extensive search and replace options. It also provides built-in support for Git and Subversion. CotEditor, though lightweight, supports features like syntax highlighting, line numbers, multiple tabbed documents, and customizable themes. However, it lacks some of the advanced features of BBEdit.

3. Extensibility and Plugin Support: BBEdit supports AppleScript, Unix scripting, and Automator, allowing for extensive customization and automation. It also has a wide range of plugins available for various purposes. In contrast, CotEditor has limited extensibility options and does not support plugins.

4. Interface and User Experience: BBEdit has a traditional, professional interface with a comprehensive set of menus, toolbars, and keyboard shortcuts. It offers a wide range of customization options, including window layout and syntax coloring. CotEditor, on the other hand, has a minimalistic and clean interface, focusing on simplicity and ease of use. It offers limited customization options compared to BBEdit.

5. Advanced Text Manipulation: BBEdit excels in handling large files and provides powerful text manipulation tools like GREP pattern matching and multi-file search and replace. Additionally, it supports various encodings and can convert text between different formats. CotEditor, while capable of editing large files, lacks some of these advanced text manipulation features.

6. Community and Support: BBEdit has a long-standing reputation and a dedicated user community. It offers extensive documentation, tutorials, and responsive technical support. CotEditor, being an open-source project, has a smaller user community and may have limited resources for support and documentation.

In summary, BBEdit is a comprehensive and feature-rich text editor favored by professional developers, while CotEditor is a lightweight and free alternative that offers a simple and user-friendly interface but lacks some advanced functionalities and customization options.