Thanks to remarkable execution speed, syntax highlighting, multi-view, macro reading, and customization options, Notepad++ is easily one of the top text and source code editors out there. However, it’s only available on the Windows platform. Thankfully, there is no shortage of Notepad++ alternatives for macOS users. You can pick one based on your preferences, budget, and features on offer. Continue reading to learn the top Notepad++ equivalents for Mac.
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Best productivity apps for Mac in 2023
There are so many great third-party and Apple-branded productivity apps for Mac and here, we highlight 10 of the best.
5 Brackets
Source: Brackets
Maintained by Adobe and aimed at web designers and front-end developers, Brackets is a free, open-source, and one of the top alternatives to Notepad++ on Mac. Developers primarily use it for web design and development, and the software is written in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
One of the useful features of Brackets is Live Preview. As the name suggests, when you tweak CSS and HTML, you shall see changes live on your browser tab. Simply use the cmd + Alt + P keys to enable live preview. Aside from live preview, it supports inline editors, preprocessor support, color, gradient, and image preview.
You can also head to the Extension Manager in Brackets and download some of the popular add-ons like Auto Close Tag, Color Highlighter, Autoprefixer, Beautify, Emmet, and more (make sure to check extension compatibility with your Brackets version).
Brackets
4 CodeRunner 4
Source: CodeRunner
CodeRunner 4 is a solid, lightweight IDE (Integrated Development Environment) programming editor for Mac. The latest CodeRunner 4 has native support for Apple Silicon and comes with a bunch of useful features to complete your project like a pro. It supports 25 languages, including the likes of AppleScript, C, C++, JavaScript, HTML, jQuery, Node.js and more. That said, the code completion and debugger support do vary from one language to another. Make sure to check the company’s language overview page before hitting the buy button.
Other features include a code tokenizer for Swift, a sidebar search option, improvements to printing, macOS compatibility, debugging, and more. It supports dark mode, too. CodeRunner 4 is priced at $20 and it’s available from the Mac App Store.
CodeRunner
3 Nova 3
Nova 3 is another feature-rich native Notepad++ alternative on Mac. The built-in text editor is the heart and soul of Nova 3. It’s a flexible text editor with useful functions like autocomplete, tag pairs, brackets, a Minimap, and more.
Nova also has built-in debugging support for popular programming languages like PHP, Python, Node.js, Deno, and Chrome. It is huge time-saver for developers. You can also dig Nova’s extensions library to add support for more languages or create your own using the company’s extensions API.
Some of the popular extensions are Beautify, Ashokai, Rust, Python, TypeScript, Deno, Copilot for Nova, and more. The built-in tools like a local file browser, text clips, Git, task reports, file tracking, and publishing improve your workflow and boost productivity. You can also split the sidebar to check multiple tools simultaneously. Nova costs $99 as a one-time purchase.
Nova
2 Visual Studio Code
Source: Visual Studio Code
Speaking of the top Novapad++ alternatives on Mac, how can we leave Microsoft’s Visual Studio Code out of the list? Thanks to its long list of features and extensibility, Visual Studio Code is quite popular among developers.
Its IntelliSense is a useful add-on to suggest smart completions based on variable types and function definitions. Like other tools, Visual Studio Code also has a robust extension gallery to streamline your workflow in no time. Some of the popular titles include GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Tabnine, Bookmarks, CodeSnap, GitHistory, and more.
VS Code is quite customizable, too. You can play with different themes, keyboard shortcuts, and other preferences. It supports debugging for Node.js, JavaScript, and Typescript by default. Visual Studio Code is free to download and use. The software is available on Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Visual Studio Code
1 Sublime Text
Source: Sublime Text
Sublime Text is a capable programming text editor on Mac. Many developers prefer Sublime Text due to its minimalistic UI, useful features, and solid performance. The company also revamped the UI with dark theme support.
The Goto Anything feature can be a huge timesaver for developers. You can simply press the command + P keys and jump to symbols, lines, or words in seconds. You can also multi-select and change several lines simultaneously. Other features include plugin support, quick project switch, split editing, auto-complete, and more.
Sublime Text is a cross-platform solution with native apps on Windows, Linux, and Mac. It’s free to download and use. You do receive frequent pop-ups to buy the software for $99.
Sublime Text
Continue your projects on Mac
The unavailability of Notepad++ on Mac shouldn’t discourage you from exploring Apple’s desktop operating system. Thanks to some of the robust text editors on Mac, we are sure you won’t miss Notepad++ on your new shiny Mac. If you are new to macOS, check out the first things to do on your Mac. You can also glance over our separate post to find the top Mac apps.