Best Notepad++ Alternatives For Mac OS X

Notepad++, a traditional Windows code editor, is not available for Mac OS. Notepad++ features a customizable interface, macro recordingsyntax highlighting and the general search and replace function. The Notepad++ application is easy to use and especially useful for even the longest documents.

However, as said, Mac users do not have access to Notepad++ on Mac OS. But, there are some alternative text editors for Mac that render most, if not all, of the Notepad++ features on Mac OS. So, what are the best replacement text editors for Mac?

Sublime Text

First on the list of best Notepad++ alternatives for Mac is Sublime Text. Sublime Text, as a Notepad++ alternative, offers great functionality. However, unlike Notepad ++, Sublime Text is not free. It costs $70. You may try the program for free for a limited time.

Some similarities between Sublime Text and Notepad ++ include syntax highlighting, expert customization, and the  Goto Anything search. The latter, perhaps, being an extremely useful feature. According to their website, users can use Goto Anything to open files with only a few keystrokes, and instantly jump to symbols, lines or words.

Moreover, other useful features are batch editing, split editing, and a distraction free mode. What’s more, the application is cross platform. Available for Windows, OS X, Ubuntu. The only caveat? It cost money. For your reference, you may check out the videos below to see how the program works.

Video: Sublime Text Tutorials

Brackets

After an expensive start here is some freeness. Brackets. This Notepad Plus Plus alternative, developed by Adobe, offers visual tools and preprocessor support. Brackets is lightweight. Optimized for speed. However, despite being lightweight, it is still very powerful.

The interface is clean and has a modern look. The bracket web page claims that it is crafted from the ground up for web designers and front-end developers. Furthermore, Brackets supports several extensions. It is open source after all.  Recent features include text folding, instant search, and CSS hints.

Although, many users speak to Extract function. With Extract, obtain color, font, gradient, and measurement information from a PSD file automatically and turn it into CSS. Brackets’ extract feature that reduces the time spent coding a website.

Check out our list of must-have Brackets’ extensions or check out the entire inventory at Brackets ExtensionTweebot. Also, take a look at the video below for a brief intro to Brackets.

Video: Brackets: A Free Open Source Code Editor for the Web

UltraEdit

Continuing the list of the best alternative for Notepad ++ is UltraEdit. Another paid program. It costs $80. However, with functions like multi-caret editing, column/block editing, multi-select, cross-file Regex search, syntax highlighting for hundreds of languages, scripting, and the ability to edit expansive text files, it is well worth the price.

There are also other add-ons that you can purchase to extend UltraEdit’s functions. For example, UltraCompare, helps you monitor changes made to your documents. However, it is not free. It cost $100 for the pair. But, there is the option of a yearly subscription. The subscription costs $100 per year and allows you to use the entire suite of applications.

As per the website, UltraEdit’s text editing features make editing lists and columns an intuitive experience, not the exercise in tedium it used to be. It’s a simple text editor when you want it to be, and a multi-cursor power editor when you need it to be.

Video: UltraEdit Features To Know

TextMate | Notepad ++ Alternative For Mac OS X

TextMate is a Mac OS X code editor. It costs $58. If you’re familiar with Emacs and OS X, TextMate combines features from both into one. The most notable features range from syntax highlighting and folding, auto-pairing of brackets, Regex and Grep support, the ability to run shell commands from within a document, visual bookmarks for jumping between locations in a document, and the expansion of trigger words into code blocks. TextMate is a good Notepad++ alternative for Mac.

TextMate is not an IDE but by using its powerful snippets, macros, and unique scoping system, it can often provide features that even a language specific IDE lacks. It has enough project management features to keep most users happy but is otherwise kept lightweight with a clean and minimalistic GUI. TextMate Creators.

Video: Simple TextMate Tips

Atom

Atom, a GitHub project, touts itself as the “hackable editor.” The program is highly configurable. All one needs is a bit of HTML and Javascript knowledge. Atom comes equipped with cross-platform editing, a built-in package manager, smart autocompletion, find and replace, as well as other features.

The built-in package manager allows you to search for and install custom packages made by members of the community. Or, you can also make your package to contribute to the community. Some notable packages include git conflict management, modal control, color display, and project management. Oh, it’s free to use.

Video: Top 5 Features: Atom Code Editor

Visual Studio Code

Another free editor is Visual Studio Code. A Microsoft product that surprising made it to both Mac and Linux. Git commands built-in, debug code from the editor, and extensions to add new languages, themes, and debuggers. These are a few features of Visual Studio Code.

Video: Best of Visual Studio Code: Tips and Tricks

BBEdit

BBEdit is a professional HTML and text editor. They offer a 30-day evaluation period, during which its full feature set is available. At the end of the review period, you can continue to use BBEdit for free, forever, with no nag screens or unsolicited interruptions. However, there are various purchasing options available on the website. $40 is the price of the individual package. It runs on Mac OS X 10.9.5 or later.

Video: BBEdit, An Introduction

MacVim Text Editor For Mac (Free)

How To Choose The Best Notepad++ Alternative For Mac OS X?

There are many programs that may appeal to you on this list. However, you must consider the features, price, and functionality of each program before making your choice. For the most part, many of the free options offer enough to get most jobs done. Although, more advance word requires a paid program.

Is your favorite Mac editor on the list? Let us know what you think and share some tips. We may consider adding your suggestions to the post. Thanks for reading Best Notepad++ Alternatives For Mac OS X | Top Notepad++ Alternatives on ORDUH!

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