niri review

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

niri is a free, open-source Wayland compositor for Linux, designed for people who want a keyboard-driven tiling workflow organized around horizontally scrolling columns. Opening a new window adds to the arrangement rather than resizing existing windows. Dynamic and named workspaces, monitor-specific workspaces, and an overview help users navigate across windows and displays. It is a focused window-management component, not a complete desktop environment, so it suits Linux users comfortable choosing and configuring a compositor as part of their desktop setup.

Its standout idea is scrollable tiling, backed by controls for column tabs, configurable gaps, borders, struts, window sizes, animations, and effects. Application-specific rules can control placement, sizing, floating, maximization, and fullscreen behavior. Touchpad and mouse gestures provide another navigation path, while built-in screenshot UI and screencasting controls cover capture tasks. Configuration can reload live, which can make iterative changes less disruptive. The documented integrations include xdg-desktop-portal-gnome and xwayland-satellite.

There is no paid tier: niri is free and open source. The trade-off is scope and grouping: although it supports tabs, its documentation does not describe named or persistent window groups, nor reusable saved window-layout presets. Choose niri if scrollable columns and per-monitor workspace control are more important than a packaged desktop environment or saved layouts. Users looking for a complete desktop environment, or for documented persistent groups and reusable layouts, should consider a different fit.

niri pros and cons

• Where it wins
  • Scrollable columns keep new windows from resizing existing ones.
  • Monitor-specific workspaces, tabs, overview, and application window rules.
  • Live-reloading configuration plus built-in screenshot and screencasting controls.
• Where it doesn't
  • Linux-only, and it does not provide a complete desktop environment.
  • No documented named or persistent window groups.
  • No documented reusable saved window-layout presets.

niri fact sheet, pricing and score →

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Last updated 7 Oct 2026 · How we research and update