What is the best OS for gaming?

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697

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Here’s the Deal

The 1 must play gameWhy?

Best OS for gaming	Price	Based On	Package Manager
90 Gentoo Linux	-	N/A	Portage
84 SteamOS	-	Debian	Debian Package Manager, Steam
80 Manjaro Linux	-	Arch Linux	Pacman
76 Windows 10	-	Windows 8.1	winget, MS Store, Windows Installer
-- Recalbox	-	NA	Kodi

See Full List

20 Other Games Considered

SteamOS

Top Pro

Free

Like the most Linux Distributions it is available for free. See More

Top Con

Extensive use of shared libraries

Shared libraries allow better performance if everything goes well, however if there are some issues or systemwide updates to some essential libraries, the whole system could either fail or some dirty hacks are required to make older applications/games work again. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

For entertainment, it just works

What media center software do for videos, it does for games (and later videos). See More

Top Con

Closed Source

Steam is closed software, the whole OS is also tied to Valves closed and commercial Steam platform. See More

Top Pro

Linux Powered

SteamOS had Powered by Linux. Linux is a Lightweight or high performance Operating System. Which OS is Customizeful, and once you have linux technic, you can modify at kernel. See More

Top Con

Hard to Using at Windows Users

If you are using macOS, this SteamOS is familiar with certain systems and shell systems. However, Linux (macOS Modify Version) and Windows are completely wrong. You will also face difficult situations. If this happens, you need enough knowledge of Linux that you can fix it yourself. So I would not recommend this if you have never touched Linux. See More

Top Pro

Native graphics processor support

The OS has pre-installed drivers for nVidia, Intel and AMD graphics processors. See More

Top Con

Old base

Some parts of the OS, like the kernel, are not up-to-date which can give your trouble if you have the latest hardware. See More

Top Pro

Gamer-oriented development model

It is made to work and feel like a Console OS. See More

Top Con

Not universal

It is only made for Steam and it is a pain to add non-steam games to. See More

Top Pro

Can now run some Windows Games

Like Steam for Linux It has now a vulkan-based fork of WINE included that allows to run Windows games, with a tiny performance drop, on SteamOS. See More

Top Con

Not built around the desktop experience

SteamOS is, first and foremost, meant to act as a gaming console - it doesn't ship with even some of the most basic applications, such as a file manager or image viewer. As a result, using SteamOS as your primary operating system would require a fair bit of work. See More

Top Pro

Linux Powered

SteamOS had Powered by Linux. Linux is a Lightweight or high performance Operating System. Which OS is Customizeful, and once you have linux technic, you can modify at kernel. See More

Top Con

Still in beta

Top Pro

Vulkan oriented instead of DX12

Vulkan is a low-overhead, cross-platform 3D graphics and compute API. See More

Top Con

Still lacking many AAA games

The most game developers still focus PCs with the Windows OS. See More

See All

Manjaro Linux

Top Pro

Stable and consistently up to date

Manjaro receives regular updates, but more importantly these updates are stable. The updates are rolled out, which means you can easily update the software without needing to re-install. See More

Top Con

Bad way of handling dependencies

Manjaro is based on Arch Linux. Arch Linux and its derivatives have a bad way of handling dependencies. To handle dependencies, it installs a whole another program which contains the required dependencies. See More

RobustBorlung's Experience

It's as user-friendly as Ubuntu, high praise from me, and the AUR has let me install apps I had been using a long time on Ubuntu, which disappeared from the repos. I especially need Aqualung, the gapless music player, and several other apps (exfalso, pypar2, avidemux) on which I depend. I only wish I had moved over to Manjaro a few years ago. I have had problems running a couple of Steam games, CIV:BE and Torchlight II, but there were solutions for both. I do dual-boot with Ubuntu MATE 20.04 alpha, for those Steam games, and I might even try Arch on it! Ubuntu used to use the slogan, "Linux for human beings." Manjaro is "Arch for the rest of us." See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Steam installed by default

Steam application added, making easy to find games See More

Top Con

Nothing new

There is nothing new in Manjaro compared to any other Arch based distribution. See More

Top Pro

Based on Arch and user friendly

Manjaro is an Arch-based distribution with all the benefits of the Arch ecosystem and community but with the added benefit of being much more user-friendly than Arch. See More

Top Con

You can't change the default theme in certain applications

Although it is possible to change the default dark theme, this has no effect on Firefox, which appears to have the dark theme "hard coded". Hardened Linux pros may find a way to change this, but for the rest, it renders an otherwise nice distro a no-go. See More

Top Pro

Good documentation and forum

The Manjaro community is very helpful, and there are lots of tutorials. See More

Top Con

Can still be unstable

Here are the details of it. See More

Top Pro

Very good looking desktops

All desktops look good by default. See More

Top Con

The Manjaro unstable repository is slow to sync with the Arch stable repository

The Manjaro unstable repository syncs with the Arch stable repository and if any package has moved, it gets moved to stable. Manjaro gets package updates a bit than Arch. See More

Top Pro

Excellent graphical package manager (Pamac)

Features include: providing notifications of available updates; mirror management; AUR support (with the option to suppress unnecessary confirmations during the install process); update settings (frequency, whether to check for updates from the AUR, packages to ignore updates for); and a history of packages installed, updated, or removed (from the official repositories - AUR packages are not currently tracked). See More

Top Con

Installation is extremely buggy

There's no easy way to switch from local keyboard layout if non-Latin installer language is selected. See More

Top Pro

Installation is a breeze

Calamares installer and MHWD is the reason why this distribution is good for desktop user- friendliness! Audio codecs, latest packages,latest kernel and easy upgrade to the latest build makes it the best choice for new users. See More

Top Con

Bad Dependencies

This is similar to the mac0S experience in that you're not allowed to remove plank. See More

Top Pro

Friendly community

If you ask questions of users in their forums or on other platforms, they are willing to help you. Also according to the developers, they are open to new ideas in order to make the distro better. See More

Top Con

Slightly bloated

Top Con

Calls itself "stable," but actually just holds Arch Linux repositories back for a week

Top Con

Weekly manual updates

Since it is rolling release, it needs updates nearly every week, which (though are checked for automatically) must be manually downloaded, confirmed and installed. That may annoy or scare off many new users. See More

Top Con

New packages and security updates are held for testing longer

Packages are usually about two weeks behind Arch's stable repository. While some urgent security updates are released as soon as they become available, other security updates are held for testing longer. See More

See All

Windows 10

Top Pro

Supports all major Game APIs

DirectX, OpenGL, Vulkan, PhysX and OpenCL everything is available if your Hardware supports it. See More

Top Con

Comes with bloatware preinstalled

It has many MS Store apps installed by default. See More

Maciej Wakula's Experience

You need to pay a lot of money to be allowed to use it - and you are not buying this forever (I have a dozen of Windows XP disks which are no longer usable as the OS can be no longer activated). It supports many applications and is continuously being improved - new features from other OSes are being added. I avoid this OS whenever I can. Unfortunately it has a locked ecosystem and under some circumstances you would need to use it or, at least, use multiple operating systems. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Widest range of games available

Almost all PC games are available on Windows. See More

Top Con

Closed source

Developers don't have access to the source and Microsoft can't fix all the problems. See More

CuriousSarruma's Experience

Its lite version is best for gaming but security is very low which is a huge problem See More

Top Pro

Game Mode

(Introduced in Creators Update) Dedicates games more GPU cycles and CPU threads. Works for all games. See More

Top Con

It advertises MS Store Apps in the start menu

However you can simply turn it off. See More

Hanike's Experience

Undeniably the platform with the widest range of games available today and also the best integration and adaptability. See More

Top Pro

Good compatibility with Windows 7 software

Both applications and drivers created for Windows 7 work well on Windows 10. See More

Top Con

Forced updates on Home and Pro versions

Since Microsoft has a checkered past in regard to Windows updates, many people worry that a bad patch might break applications, drivers, peripherals or even brick their computers. See More

BrightKisshoten's Experience

Windows 10 Home/Pro is the best for gaming! Especially when paired with a GeForce GTX and a Intel Core i3 or better. See More

Top Pro

Rolling

It will always update to the latest versions. See More

Top Con

Collects a lot of user data and sends it Microsoft by default

By default Windows 10 gathers information related to contacts, location, calendar and input (text and touch). The process for opting out of all data collection efforts is both time consuming and requires a reasonable amount of technical know-how. See More

Nash Lab's Experience

Windows 10 is the most widespread software, so, allot of apps and other things are mainly made for Windows. If you were to get a Mac, already there, many games are no longer available. If you have linux, close to no games are for it, HOWEVER, Steam is placing in a software to run ANY steam game on Linux. So, Windows is diffinately better since it is the most used for gaming, and there is allot for it. See More

Top Pro

Steam's best buddy

The best place & integration for your Steam library of games & software and SteamOS is still under development. See More

Top Con

Start menu lacks expected customization options

It's not possible to cascade menus, pin files, locations or apps to the list (it's possible to pin apps to the live tile section) or add custom menus. See More

DynamicTantalus's Experience

Every update breaks something Windows 10 October Update version 1809 File deleting bugs, unable to set win32 apps as defult, Intel HD Graphics drivers are losing their sound. And windows media player broken in last cumulative update! Don't Roll the Dice. See More

Top Pro

Xbox App for Windows 10 allows you to play with Xbox users

Windows 10 allows you to seamlessly play with Xbox gamers - not all games, but enough. See More

Top Con

No guest accounts

Windows 10 lacks the ability to set up guest accounts. See More

Top Pro

Better than all the other Windows versions

Iv'e tried Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, Xp and I'll choose Windows 10 every time. It's better than all the previous versions (yes even Windows 7, which is overrated in my opinion). See More

Top Con

Tablet mode is a pain to use

The tablet mode of Windows 10 has many issues compared to other major tablet operating systems like Android, for example: 1.) In the tablet mode the desktop is replaced by the Windows 10 start menu 1.1.) As there is no Desktop there is no proper launcher to start your apps so you always have to open that windows 10 start menu... 2.) Virtual keyboard often don't come up automatically(you need to click on the keybord icon near the systray to bring it up) 2.1.) If the keyboard is docked and comes up it will lay over the window and if(like here on slant) the entry box is on the bottom of the page it will lay over that box so you have to manually undock the keyboard and move it to any other border which of course breaks other options like scrolling a page etc. 2.2.) Virtual keyboard and virtual touchpad have no customization options so you can't make them bigger or smaller etc. See More

Top Pro

Returns to a more familiar style start bar unlike Windows 8

Top Con

Gamer black screen of death and game blocking

Older games do not work due to the black screen, some older games are blocked by an update. Remove update and restart PC, the game will then load and work fine (securerom issue). if you google this issue it will tell you what update to remove then just block it from updates. See More

Top Pro

Free upgrade for users on older Windows versions

Top Con

Expensive

License costs a lot and it won't grant you a lifetime product - you would receive only a limited time license that allows you to activate and use it. See More

Top Pro

All games are supported

Every game that uses Windows is well supported, as there is no variation between one OS and another. Supporting one OS that uses the same framework and libraries across all devices is easier than developing for a fragmented OS, where the variation between one and another changes rapidly. Games developed for Linux usually follow a strict requirement for an old LTS and proprietary driver. If you don't, you're basically on your own. See More

Top Con

Certain games don't run well

Some games have differences here. Most notable is Minecraft, Minecraft here is "Bedrock" edition, instead of "Java". Which means more paying involved, and other stuff that isn`t as good as playing on a different OS. See More

Top Pro

Built-in support for VPNs

A VPN connection can be established from the "Change Virtual Private Network" panel. Quickest way to access the panel is by searching for "VPN" in the start menu. See More

Top Con

Installs bloatware

It installs many Windows Store apps by default. Moreover, it updates them automatically even after you uninstalled them, then they come back when you install a bigger update or service pack, eg: the creator's update. See More

Top Pro

Latest version of Windows.

Top Con

Reset on major update

On every major update it would remove/overwrite some customization settings. See More

Top Pro

Free (kind of)

There is no time limit if you don't activate it, the watermark will also never be visible if you replace the explorer shell with the cairo shell or steam big picture. See More

Top Con

They spy on you with telemetry

Top Pro

user freandly

Top Con

AMD64 only

The 32-bit version is not available anymore since 2020, however, it is not really a big deal since all CPUs of the last decade were based on AMD's 64-bit architecture (AMD64/x86_64). See More

Top Pro

Closed Source

The Security issues stay hidden since nobody is able to inspect the code, MS rewards people or companies who find a security issues. See More

Top Pro

Great backwards compatibility

It is possible to run applications that were created 25 years ago. See More

Top Pro

DirectX 12

The newest version of Microsoft’s DirectX application programming interface, which handles visual and other multimedia tasks on Windows-based systems. See More

See All

Recalbox

Top Pro

Easy user interface

It has a simple and easy to use UI. See More

Top Con

Needs the whole disk

There is no option to install the system in dual-boot with another OS on one hard disk drive. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Easy to configure

Almost all configuration are done via user interface. See More

Top Con

CON

Average performance. See More

Top Pro

Custom Emulationstation built for recalbox

EmulationStation is customized to fit recalbox features, making the configuration a lot easier. See More

Top Con

Slow development

Development is slow and stability focused. See More

Top Pro

Stable

Focuses stability over performance/latest software versions. See More

See All

Debian GNU/Linux

Top Pro

A lot of ways to install software

You can either use aptitude, apt or apt-build to install software from the Debian package archives. See More

Top Con

No default support for non-free hardware

Non-free hardware will not work upon install of Debian and the user will need to search out the correct non-free software to install in order to make them work. This can be difficult if one of the things not working is the WiFi connection. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Install and forget

Once installed you can almost forget about it and start to use your desktop for your daily tasks. See More

Top Con

Ridiculous package splitting

Even though it makes sense to split devel and the actual binary of an application, the splitting has become as mess in debian and its derivates: for example the nvidia driver is splitted into over 40 different packages: https://packages.debian.org/en/source/sid/nvidia-graphics-drivers See More

Top Pro

Rolling or Release based

Every Debian release can either use a Rolling or Release based model. See More

Top Pro

Great for gaming

As Debian is the base for SteamOS and because Ubuntu is based on it, it's almost certain that all Linux games will run properly and require no hacks like creating symbolic links because of some hardcoded paths. See More

Top Pro

Big open-source project

The Debian project is the biggest open source project with over 5000 active contributors. See More

Top Pro

Easy to find help with any problem

Debian is one of the oldest and most popular distros out there. Debian's popularity means that you will always be able to find a solution for your problem just by searching on Google, or if by chance nobody has had the problem you are having it's very easy to ask the community and quickly get a solution. See More

Top Pro

Standard vanilla Linux desktop

Debian runs standard Gnome, XFCE, KDE - it doesn't use its own special desktop environment, which means that users benefit from the work of the whole Linux community, Debian developers can focus on the distribution itself, and any support for your desktop environment on other distributions should work on Debian as well. See More

Top Pro

Wide choice of hardware platforms

Debian has the widest choice of hardware platforms, including: amd64, armel, armhf, i386, ia64, kfreebsd-i386, kfreebsd-amd64, mips, mipsel, powerpc, sparc, s390, s390x, source, multi-arch. See More

Top Pro

Unique release cycle

The most Linux distros have one or two stages before a release, but Debian has five before a new stable version is released (experimental > unstable > testing > code-freeze/bug hunting > stable). See More

Top Pro

Wide choice in desktop environments

Debian offers stable and testing CD images specifically built for GNOME (the default), KDE Plasma Workspaces, Xfce and LXDE. Less common window managers such as Enlightenment, Openbox, Fluxbox, GNUstep, IceWM, Window Maker and others can also be installed. See More

Top Pro

Supports SecureBoot

You don't have to disable SecureBoot if you use it, which is useful for LiveUSB or dualboot setups. See More

Top Pro

Debconf

Depending how it is configured debconf does the most of the hard work for you and only asks you with configuration /file conflicts. See More

Top Pro

Widely supported

Almost any software that is available for Linux provides a Debian package. See More

Top Pro

The Debian Social Contract

Guaranteed commitment to adherence to values, principles, priorities, requirements and guidelines by the Debian project. See More

Top Pro

Comes with over 37,500 packages

Because of its popularity, Debian has a lot of applications available which range from productivity programs to business software, games and development tools. It comes with over 37,500 packages (software that is precompiled and ready to be installed on a local machine) -- all of them for free. See More

Top Pro

Very stable

Debian has a Stable branch, where packages are thoroughly tested before release. Furthermore Debian is know to be the definition of stable when it comes to production systems. See More

Top Pro

Live install images for CDs, DVDs and USB thumb drives

Debian releases live install images for CDs, DVDs and USB thumb drives, for the i386 and amd64 architectures, and with a choice of desktop environments. These Debian Live images allow the user to boot from a removable media and run Debian without affecting the contents of their computer. See More

Top Pro

Well-working team

The developer works very well so the code is one of the best written out there. See More

Top Pro

Highly secure system

Known for being consistent in maintaining a highly secure system. Several other popular distros use Debian as a base or core for their own Linux OS, the security being one of the main factors why it's so commonly used. See More

Top Pro

Strict separation of non-free software

Debian is one of the few distros that let the user choose if he wants a free system or not. See More

Top Pro

TUI installer

The Debian installer can still be launched as text/curses-like installer which is more compatible and keyboard-friendly than the graphical version. See More

Top Pro

Standard archives

Debs are normal ar and tar archives with shell scripting and additional gz, bz, lzma or xz compression. See More

Top Pro

A real installer

Unlike other distributions that just extract their Live image, Debian offers a real traditional and modular installer to customize the installation. See More

Top Pro

Apt-build

It is possible to rebuild the entire system and optimize it for your hardware (of course it is not as detailed as Gentoo's USE flags). See More

Top Pro

Comes with over 55.500 packages

Because of its popularity, Debian has a lot of applications available which range from productivity programs to business software, games and development tools. It comes with over 55.500 packages (software that is precompiled and ready to be installed on a local machine) -- all of them for free. See More

Top Pro

Many ports

Debian supports almost any Kernel maintained CPU instructions set. It has also a few non Linux Ports. See More

See All

Hardened Gentoo

Add Video or Image

Android

Top Pro

Open source

The AOSP (Android Open Source Project) is the software stack for the Android OS. It is led by Google. The fact that Android is an open source software has led to many custom Android variants. It also is a big assurance of Android's safety in terms of privacy. See More

Top Con

Fragmentation and security flaws due to negligence

Most Android phones seem to be released on a "Let's release a few software updates until we release the next phone, and never push out an update again." For example, In May 2014, 8.5% of phones were Kitkat, 60.8% were spread out between three versions of jellybean (with bias towards older versions), and the another 20% spread out over ICS, Honeycomb, Gingerbread, and Froyo. Google no longer maintains Android 4.3 or prior and serious security exploits remain in those versions. Device manufacturers are also taking no action, which leaves almost a billion Android users exposed. You may also encounter lingering and unfixed bugs, glitches, etc. as a result of the manufacturer's and Google's lack of interest in older versions. Some flagship phones are well supported into the future, but the fact that your phone won't be supported by its manufacturer and/or Google is a consideration you must make when purchasing an Android phone. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Allows the user to easily turn off system wide notifactions

This is great for all those free to play games that constantly send notifications to the notification bar nagging users to play the game as all notifications can be turned off on a per app basis. See More

Top Con

Android does not have the best reliability

Android products might appeal to the more technically capable, people prepared to invest in considering their product, who like a particular device form factor and / or who already use a lot of Google’s online product suite. See More

Top Pro

Customize what apps perform what actions

Android gives users the ability to define which apps perform which action. For example, if an Android device has several browsers installed, the user can choose a default one which will start every time a link is for example opened from another app. See More

Top Con

You can't play most of the Windows games

Top Pro

Console gaming with available set top boxes

Google, Nvidia and a few other manufacturers have created TV set top boxes powered by Android Lollipop that allow one to game on their telivisions. Basically an Android console with a wide selection of games. See More

Top Con

Difficult to find quality games

Due to the surge of in-app purchased filled games that are low quality efforts it can be troublesome to find worthwhile hardcore games. See More

Top Pro

Great user experience right out of the box

Top Con

Outdated

Latest is Android Pie See More

Top Pro

Customizable multiple "desktops"

Can customize the home screens with widgets (not just a grid of apps like iOS). See More

Top Con

Difficult to use for pro audio

Android M paired with newer devices are getting audio latency down to 20 milliseconds or less, which is great compared to previous Android versions, however is still slower than Apple's 7ms on the iPhone 4S - a 4 year old phone. There are almost no professional audio tools available for Android because the latency was way too slow for professional audio creation, but perhaps now that Android isn't so far back we will start to see a few options come to Android. See More

Top Pro

Cheap phones

Android phones can cost little as $100. See More

Top Con

Wide variety of phones forces variance in quality

While there are many great Android phones, there are also many Android phones that lack in both hardware and software. When purchasing Android phones, a consumer might want to do some research first - especially when buying on a budget. Not only do you have to worry about shotty hardware or poor quality testing, manufacturers tend to tinker with the software on phones. More often than not this leads to poor performance, unintuitive 'features', slower (or complete lack of) updates, and custom software that detracts from the user's experience. See More

Top Pro

Security Updates

Android does frequent updates to keep users secure See More

Top Con

App permission issues

Any users from Android M onward are not affected by this issue. Permissions are only granted via a pop-up when the app requests. The application permission system used requires requesting access to more user data than should be needed to run an app. For example, in order to enable matchmaking in games the app needs access to contacts list. Additionally, since Google doesn't enforce requesting only the permissions necessary for an app to function, a culture of requesting permissions that aren't in any way needed for the app to function has emerged. See More

Top Pro

Built-in screen recording

Android 5.0.+ supports screen recording via a new api. Android 4.4 KitKat supports screen recording accessible via an ADB command on unrooted devices. See More

Top Con

Fragmentation and security flaws due to negligence.

Most Android phones seem to be released on a "Let's release a few software updates until we release the next phone, and never push out an update again." For example, In May 2014, 8.5% of phones were Kitkat, 60.8% were spread out between three versions of jellybean (with bias towards older versions), and the another 20% spread out over ICS, Honeycomb, Gingerbread, and Froyo. Google no longer maintains Android 4.3 or prior and serious security exploits remain in those versions. Device manufacturers are also taking no action, which leaves almost a billion Android users exposed. You may also encounter lingering and unfixed bugs, glitches, etc. as a result of the manufacturer's and Google's lack of interest in older versions. Some flagship phones are well supported into the future, but the fact that your phone won't be supported by its manufacturer and/or Google is a consideration you must make when purchasing an Android phone. See More

Top Pro

Consistent back button makes navigation easy

Top Pro

The most widely used mobile OS

Top Pro

Personal assistant with Google Now

Google Now is an intelligent personal assistant available within the Google Search mobile application for the Android and iOS operating systems. It's software that makes your life more convenient by giving you all the information you need at any moment. See More

Top Pro

Accessibility

Built in text to speech is provided by TalkBack for people with low or no vision. Enhancements for people with hearing disabilities are available as are other aids. See More

Top Pro

More integrated sharing options

Top Pro

Desktop and lockscreen widgets

Desktop widgets provide quick access to the information you need quickly and access the most. These are available out of the box, and can be developed by anyone. Widgets on the lockscreen have been removed since the Lollipop update, but is available on 3rd party lockscreens such as AC Display and KK Locker. See More

Top Pro

Highly customizable

One of the massive benefits of Android being open-sourced are all the modifications you can make to the phone to customise pretty much anything. Some of the cooler things you can do are: Replace the entire operating system with a custom ROM. Replace the keyboard. Change the home screen launcher. Change the lock screen. See More

Top Pro

Integration with Google Services

For those that already use Google's services, like Google Maps and GMail, Android offers tighter integration with those services than any of the alternatives, and saves users the need to create extra accounts. See More

Top Pro

Lots of hardware choices

There are about 18000 released devices that run on Android. This means that a user familiar with Android can have a large variety of devices from which they can choose. See More

See All

Solus

Top Pro

Fast Dev Response

The Solus team has great customer service and will create rapid solutions. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Responsive

System boots quickly and stays responsive. Does what operating system should do, and does it really well. See More

Top Pro

Modern desktop environment

The default desktop environment used by Solus is called Budgie and is quite nice and minimalistic. See More

Top Pro

Easy installation

The installation procedure for this distribution is quite simple. It's GUI based and all you have to do is to follow the instructions given by the installation window itself. See More

Top Pro

Rock-solid Distro

Very stable and well curated. See More

Top Pro

Seamless Packages

It may not have the most obscure packages, but the packages it does have is a good number of everything a Linux user needs. Gamers, developers, desktop users, etc. all have the necessary packages and then some. The packages themselves are integrated perfectly and are very well updated. See More

Top Pro

Lightening fast boot time

Top Pro

Default experience is clean and easy

The default desktop experience on the Budgie version is very clean and streamlined. Although the Budgie DE isn't the most customisable, but it's customisable enough for me to recreate the desktop style of ElementaryOS with the dock and bar at the top. See More

Top Pro

Friendly towards proprietary codecs, firmware and drivers.

So you won't have to enable PPAs or extra repos for that. See More

Top Pro

Most stable Rolling Release Distro

Top Pro

Rolling Release Model

Wich means you don't have to suffer from version to version updates that can break it. See More

Top Pro

Great package management

The software center makes it really easy to install the latest software through Snappy and Flatpak. Including third party software. See More

Top Pro

Exclusively for desktop systems

Top Pro

Stable

The system itself is very stable. All packages in the repository seem to be carefully picked, well prepared and run stable. See More

Top Pro

Rolling release

Top Pro

Well curated software

The software is well curated in the repos, you have access to flatpaks and snaps, so virtually, all the software you'll ever need is there for you. See More

See All

Deepin

Top Pro

Great support for graphics cards

Deepin OS includes a program called "Deepin Graphics Driver Manager" which can easily install a good driver for the graphics card. See More

Top Con

Made for the desktop

It is made to showcase the deepin desktop and not for gaming or customization. See More

PrudentHarmonia's Experience

im a very big fan of linux distros like debian(normally based on the gnome interface) or ubuntu(based on the kde interface i think), but the best that i know about is deepin, the ui design, excellent gpu support+drivers, the apps avalible and a lot more (ive been using deepin for 4 years) See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Easy to use

It's very easy to use. You can easily uninstall a program by going to the menu then right-clicking on the preferred app and selecting "Uninstall" option. See More

Top Con

Slow default repos

Download speed for packages from the default repos is abnormally slow. See More

Top Pro

Has its own toolkit

It has its own toolkit called "Deepin Tool Kit". And the maintainers themselves use it. See More

Top Pro

Enjoy the simplicity of Deepin's desktop

The desktop interface and apps feature an intuitive and elegant design. Moving around, sharing and searching, etc. has become simply a joyful experience. See More

Top Pro

Great design to the app store

The app store is gorgeous. See More

Top Pro

Excellent apps

Having Deepin installed also means you have thousands of quality apps to choose from. The apps which come with installation will suit your needs to browse the Internet, listen to music, watch videos, talk with friends, editing documents or simply any task you want to do at home or in your office. See More

Top Pro

Exciting applications

It has some exciting applications, such as Deepin Graphics Driver Manager which can easily change between free and proprietary drivers without any issue. See More

Top Pro

Based on Debian

It is based on Debian which is the best Linux distribution for desktops. See More

Top Pro

Easy to install

Installing Deepin OS is very easy. Even easier than installing Ubuntu! See More

Top Pro

Company behind it

The Wuhan Deepin Technology is behind this Linux distribution. See More

Top Pro

Blur and transparent design

Deepin has a blur and transparent design throughout the OS, which makes it one of the most beautiful Linux distros. See More

Top Pro

Launches programs faster

Programs load and launch faster in Deepin than other Linux distributions. It takes only about 3 seconds to launch Chrome. See More

Top Pro

Well-designed in every detail, developers have a professional aproach to the system

Deepin has a sane default set of apps including custom apps of their own design that gives the distro a very consistent look and feel. By working with the community on these tools as well as custom translations there is a great sense of polish when using it that is not often seen when using such a new desktop environment. See More

Top Pro

Lighter than Windows 10 and Ubuntu

Deepin 15.7 is lighter than Windows 10 and Ubuntu. See More

Top Pro

VLC media player works without any issue

In some cases, VLC media player has some problems with Ubuntu or Ubuntu-based Linux distros. That isn't the case with Deepin. See More

Top Pro

Automatically cleans package cache

Deepin automatically cleans package cache. Cleaning package cache is a good thing as it will make the OS much faster and lighter. See More

Top Pro

Can be made to look like Windows easily

By default, Deepin looks kinda like macOS but it can be made to look like Windows by right-clicking on the dock and changing the mode from "Fashion Mode" to "Efficient Mode". See More

Top Pro

Very stable

Even though it is based on Debian unstable, it is still pretty stable and you will hardly ever get a dependency issue. See More

Top Pro

Rolling release

It is a rolling release Linux distribution which is quite popular these days. See More

Top Pro

Best for daily use

Top Pro

Includes both Windows and macOS style interface

Top Pro

Ability to use Windows programs using PlayOnLinux

If you have windows apps/games, then you can install this app from the store. It has great features and excellent optimization. See More

Top Pro

Quite lightweight

Deepin 15.7 is lighter than Windows 10 and Ubuntu. See More

Top Pro

Seemless transition form Windows to Linux

Easy to install, comes with default packages to typical needs e.g. Chrome, WPS office, System Monitor and a bunch of multimedia utilities. Its easy to install and uninstall applications, it has a great app store and is fast. On same laptop run much faster than Windows 10 did. See More

Top Pro

Not based on Ubuntu

Some people don't like Ubuntu nor its derivatives. See More

Top Pro

Comes with CrossOver pre-installed

Deepin is a huge supporter of Codeweavers CrossOver. So, it includes CrossOver pre-installed. Nevertheless, it's NOT a trial version. And with CrossOver, you can easily install and use Windows programs See More

Top Pro

Supports Flatpak

Deepin OS supports Flatpak. It also has some Flatpak programs installed by default. See More

Top Pro

Steam pre-installed

Top Pro

Gives warning messages when upgrading packages using apt

Deepin uses their own modified version of apt. When there is a distribution upgrade available and if we try to upgrade by running "sudo apt upgrade", then this modified version of apt gives this warning message, "DDE programs will work abnormally if run this command. Run sudo apt dist-upgrade or sudo apt full-upgrade instead." See More

Top Pro

Includes a lot of packages in the official repository

The official repository of deepin OS includes over 73,000 packages. See More

See All

Arch Linux Testing

Top Pro

Bleeding Edge support

Despite the negative connotations that come with bleeding edge software, Arch is quite stable, and new updates allow for some of the best support for game compatibility, notable when using Wine, and Steam Play/Proton. See More

VaporOS

Ubuntu LTS

Top Pro

Good PPA repositories available

PPA repositories allow you to install the latest version of your preferred software while keeping the rest of the operating system "stable". See More

Top Con

Outdated

LTS has very, very old core packages. See More

MotivatedShulmanu's Experience

I love to love it See More

Top Con

Relatively high system requirements

The default Unity desktop environment is a resource hog which requires hardware accelerated graphics rendering in order to run smoothly, making out of the box Ubuntu unsuitable for low-end and older systems. Even mildly aged hardware, you'll get far better performance out of a lighter desktop environment like LXDE or XFCE. See More

See All

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Gentoo Linux

Top Pro

Can by optimized to any given CPU by using proper compile flags

Since everything is being built on your PC you can fine-tune the code to make use of your CPU. And all it requires is two lines of string variables in a global config. See More

Top Con

Not beginner-friendly

You have to read a lot of instructions to start, even if you are familiar with Linux. Furthermore, as you have to configure the kernel and init system, expect some boot failures at beginning. See More

Specs

See All Specs

Top Pro

Full control of the software

You build the package from a source you can see and read. You decide which features you want to build in and which aren't needed. You can choose build options, optimisation and whatever else fancy stuff you want modified. With a binary distribution this simply isn't possible. See More

Top Con

Since everything must be compiled it takes a lot longer to update

And if you have to update the kernel or some heavy software like Chromium it can takes hours if not more on weaker hardware. See More

Top Pro

Fully customizable

The usage of advanced features like USE flags makes it more customizable than any binary distribution. See More

Top Pro

Doesn't need a USB ISO for installation

Since Gentoo is a source-based Linux distribution, you don't necessarily need to have Gentoo's ISO for installation. You can use your previous distro's ISO and still follow the handbook for installation. See More

See All

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My Recommendation for Gentoo Linux

My Recommendation for Gentoo Linux

Can by optimized to any given CPU by using proper compile flags

Not beginner-friendly

Full control of the software

Since everything must be compiled it takes a lot longer to update

Fully customizable

Doesn't need a USB ISO for installation

20 Other Games Considered

My Recommendation for SteamOS

My Recommendation for SteamOS

Free

Extensive use of shared libraries

For entertainment, it just works

Closed Source

Linux Powered

Hard to Using at Windows Users

Native graphics processor support

Old base

Gamer-oriented development model

Not universal

Can now run some Windows Games

Not built around the desktop experience

Linux Powered

Still in beta

Vulkan oriented instead of DX12

Still lacking many AAA games

My Recommendation for Manjaro Linux

My Recommendation for Manjaro Linux

Stable and consistently up to date

Bad way of handling dependencies

Steam installed by default

Nothing new

Based on Arch and user friendly

You can't change the default theme in certain applications

Good documentation and forum

Can still be unstable

Very good looking desktops

The Manjaro unstable repository is slow to sync with the Arch stable repository

Excellent graphical package manager (Pamac)

Installation is extremely buggy

Installation is a breeze

Bad Dependencies

Friendly community

Slightly bloated

Calls itself "stable," but actually just holds Arch Linux repositories back for a week

Weekly manual updates

New packages and security updates are held for testing longer

My Recommendation for Windows 10

My Recommendation for Windows 10

Supports all major Game APIs

Comes with bloatware preinstalled

Widest range of games available

Closed source

Game Mode

It advertises MS Store Apps in the start menu

Good compatibility with Windows 7 software

Forced updates on Home and Pro versions

Rolling

Collects a lot of user data and sends it Microsoft by default

Steam's best buddy

Start menu lacks expected customization options

Xbox App for Windows 10 allows you to play with Xbox users

No guest accounts

Better than all the other Windows versions

Tablet mode is a pain to use

Returns to a more familiar style start bar unlike Windows 8

Gamer black screen of death and game blocking

Free upgrade for users on older Windows versions

Expensive

All games are supported

Certain games don't run well

Built-in support for VPNs

Installs bloatware

Latest version of Windows.

Reset on major update

Free (kind of)

They spy on you with telemetry

user freandly