i3
5.8#37 in window management softwareFree planFree planLinuxSelf-hosted
Visiti3 vs spectrwm
What both publish
| Fact | i3 | spectrwm |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration | Users can customize key bindings, application startup, workspace assignments, and colors through a configuration file. | It uses a human-readable text configuration file and does not require users to learn a programming language. |
| Installation | The project recommends using packages provided by the user's distribution and also provides Debian and Ubuntu repositories. | The official installation guide provides source-build instructions and package commands for Debian/Ubuntu, Arch, NixOS and NetBSD, with a separate macOS guide. |
| License | The project describes its software as free and open source under the BSD license. | The code is released under the permissive ISC license, with patches required to use the same license. |
| Workspaces | Users can group windows into workspaces and associate workspaces with multiple screens. | Windows can be moved between workspaces and user-defined screen regions. |
i3 plans
- i3Free
spectrwm plans
- spectrwmFree
Pick i3 if…
i3 suits advanced users and developers who want to configure window layouts, key bindings, and workspaces through a file. It is for people using GNU/Linux or BSD with X11.
Pick spectrwm if…
spectrwm suits people using X11 who want configurable tiling layouts and keyboard- or mouse-based window navigation. It may also fit users who want to define workspaces, regions, and application-launch shortcuts without learning a programming language for configuration.