Kate vs BBEdit

Kate9.0Visit BBEdit8.7Visit

Higher score Kate #5 in Text Editors 9.0/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 5 features Visit KDE

vs

BBEdit #8 in Text Editors 8.7/10 Free plan · 30-day trial Free planFree trial✓ 3 of 5 features Visit BBEdit

• Kate fits best

  Free cross-platform coding and text editing

• BBEdit fits best

  Mac users writing and deploying web content

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Side by side

Feature	Kate 9.0/10 Visit ↗	BBEdit 8.7/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.0	8.7
Ranking	#5 in Text Editors	#8 in Text Editors
Best for	Free cross-platform coding and text editing	Mac users writing and deploying web content
Pricing model	Free	Free plan + paid
Starting price	Free plan	$59.99 one-time
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	30 days
Deployment	Desktop	Desktop
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	macOS
Support	Community, Docs	Email, Docs
Integrations	6 integrations	7 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market
Features Kate 4/5 · BBEdit 3/5
Multi-cursor editing	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Macro recording	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Column editing	✓	✓
Large-file handling	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Extension support	✓	✓
Specs
Supported platforms	Linux, BSD, Windows, macOS	macOS
Our review
Pros	Supports syntax highlighting for more than 300 languages Combines multi-cursor editing, macros, projects, and split views Includes terminal, Git, LSP, DAP, plugins, and scripting	Free Mode continues after the 30-day evaluation period Strong multi-file search, regex replacement, HTML, and Markdown tools FTP/SFTP, Git, Subversion, scripting, and LSP support
Cons	Its documented integration surface is narrower than broader editor ecosystems Its programming features may exceed the needs of basic text editing Language and debugging workflows center on LSP and DAP support	Available only on macOS Advanced features require a subscription or license New major releases require an active subscription
Our verdict	Kate is a free, open-source, multi-document text editor developed by KDE for programmers and others working with text files. It runs on Linux, Windows, and macOS, and supports tabs, horizontal or vertical split views, syntax highlighting… Read the review →	BBEdit is a macOS text and code editor for writers, web authors, software developers, and others working with textual data. Its feature set covers core editing, syntax coloring, function navigation, code folding, Markdown, HTML authoring,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Kate — where it wins

  • Supports syntax highlighting for more than 300 languages
  • Combines multi-cursor editing, macros, projects, and split views
  • Includes terminal, Git, LSP, DAP, plugins, and scripting

  Where it doesn't

  • Its documented integration surface is narrower than broader editor ecosystems
  • Its programming features may exceed the needs of basic text editing
  • Language and debugging workflows center on LSP and DAP support

• BBEdit — where it wins

  • Free Mode continues after the 30-day evaluation period
  • Strong multi-file search, regex replacement, HTML, and Markdown tools
  • FTP/SFTP, Git, Subversion, scripting, and LSP support

  Where it doesn't

  • Available only on macOS
  • Advanced features require a subscription or license
  • New major releases require an active subscription

• Kate9.0/10 · Free plan

  A free, open-source editor with broad coding features across Linux, Windows, and macOS.

  Visit KDEFull verdict →
• BBEdit8.7/10 · Free plan · 30-day trial

  A capable Mac editor for web content, code, search-heavy work, and deployment.

  Visit BBEditFull verdict →