Sublime Text

Fast, minimal text editor with a one-time license.

Verified facts: 3 of 3
Alternatives ranked: 7
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 1

About Sublime Text

Sublime Text is a lightweight, cross-platform text and code editor known for speed, its Goto Anything command palette and powerful multiple-cursor editing. It opens huge files quickly and uses very little memory compared with Electron-based editors. Packages installed through Package Control add language support, linters and themes, and recent versions include GPU rendering and improved language indexing. Sublime Text can be evaluated for free without a time limit, and a paid personal license covers three years of updates, which appeals to developers who dislike subscriptions.

Best for: Developers who want a fast editor without a subscription.

What works

Very fast, even with huge files
Excellent multi-cursor editing
One-time license

Why people leave

Fewer built-in IDE features
Smaller modern AI integration

Top Sublime Text alternatives

See all 7

1
Zed
Similarly fast and native, open source, with collaboration.
76.3
2
Visual Studio Code
Free with a huge extension ecosystem and built-in debugging.
68.8
3
Cursor
AI-first editing if you want help writing code.
66.3
4
Nova
A native Mac editor with Git, terminal and debugging built in.
40.0
5Bb
BBEdit
A native Mac editor with excellent multi-file search and a free mode.
40.0

Why people left Sublime Text

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

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Reviews

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Sublime Text: common questions

Is Sublime Text free?

No, Sublime Text is a paid product.

Is Sublime Text open source?

No, Sublime Text is not open source. Open-source alternatives include Zed, Visual Studio Code and Notepad++.

What platforms does Sublime Text run on?

Sublime Text is available for Windows, macOS and Linux.

What are the best alternatives to Sublime Text?

The highest-ranked Sublime Text alternatives right now are Zed, Visual Studio Code and Cursor. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 7 Sublime Text alternatives

Sublime Text facts

3 of 3 verified

Pricing model: Paid license, free evaluation; Checked Oct 24, 2026sublimehq.com(opens source in a new tab); “Text may be downloaded and evaluated for free, however a license must be purchased for continued use.”
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux; Checked Oct 24, 2026sublimetext.com(opens source in a new tab); “Support News Forum Text Editing, Done Right Download for Windows Download for Windows Install for Linux Download for Mac”
Multiple cursors: Yes; Checked Oct 24, 2026sublimetext.com(opens source in a new tab); “Use Multiple Selections to rename variables quickly Here Ctrl + D ⌘ + D is used to”