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Add to SafariWhen comparing Total Commander vs xplorer², the Slant community recommends Total Commander for most people. In the question“What are the best file managers for Windows?” Total Commander is ranked 3rd while xplorer² is ranked 8th. The most important reason people chose Total Commander is:
Supports plugins for compression, file system, and file types.
Specs
Question Ranking
Pros
Pro Plugins
Supports plugins for compression, file system, and file types.
Pro Very customizable
Total Commander is extremely flexible, with plenty of customizable options such as changing the color scheme, customizing menus, and editing shortcuts.
Pro Can replace a lot of utility tools
There are a lot of built-in utility tools and plug-ins. There's multi-file renamer, verify file checksum to ensure download content integrity, sync directory tool, etc.
Pro Life-time license
Once purchased you can use it as long as you like and never have to pay again.
Pro Productive
Even if you have not learned the keys from DOS NortonCommander, learning them now will make you more productive when dealing with files.
Pro Layout increases productivity
The dual-pane layout makes normal file operations (like move & copy) easy.
Pro Useful multiple advanced options
Show hidden files, show differences between directories, FTP connections, coding and decoding (MIME, l).
Pro Works even when Windows is very unstable
Pro Compare files and show differences
Can compare and show text file differences (diff) line-by-line, even character-by-character. Very useful for programmers. Can compare binary files, telling if files have the same content or not.
Pro Powerful file search
The file search has many features, like using regular expressions to find the file names or even inside the content of the files. It can filter by file size, date and others, or even find duplicate files.
Pro Batch-rename files and folders
Sometimes you want to rename a bunch of files for some reason.
Eg:
file1-useless info blah blah.mp8
file2-useless info blah blah.mp8
file3-useless info blah blah.mp8
file4-useless info blah blah.mp8
file5-useless info blah blah.mp8
At once you can remove the "-useless info blah blah" in all file names. Or you could change the "file" to "my_super_file" to all at once.
The possibilities are endless.
Pro Saves time
Pro On copy/move it can both avoid overwrite the destination file AND losing the copied file at the same time
Sometimes you need to copy/move a bunch of files to a folder that already has files. During the copy when Total Commander encounter files in the destination folder that has the same name of the copied files, it allows you to choose auto-rename the copied files or the destination files. It's beautiful.
Pro Convenient
Pro Free
Pro Customizable tabs
Allows renaming tabs and setting maximum tab text length, which is very convenient. You can also lock tabs in two modes: a) change dir not allowed and b) change dir allowed (but it would return to the original path once you browse another tab). It doesn't allow assigning different colors to each tab, though.
Pro Cloud plugin
Pro Easy for language translation
Pro Forget about the mouse
The total commander is convenient to use both with the mouse and exclusively using the keyboard.
But using only the keyboard gives it a big increase in the speed of work because you do not aim at your mouse. You need some time to get used to it, but it's really worth it.
Pro Good all-purpose file manager
Pro Faster than most similar applications
It's hard to find a free or low cost alternative that is as quick, and stable, especially managing NTFS volumes on a remote NAS. It still freezes and chokes, just not as often as newer applications, like XYplorer, Free Commander, etc.
Pro 250+ file attributes that can be added as columns to view more file attributes
Pro Comprehensive functionality
Full search, sync files & folders, show folder sizes, robust copy, native file viewer, tabs within panes, very configurable display, command shell, bookmarks, etc.
Pro Ability to save state
xplorer² gives users the ability to save the state, so the program will open with the same state the next time it's used.
Pro Execute DOS commands
Pro Flexible search function
Search based on numerous file attributes. Search in ranges. Search inside files. Save search parameters for future use.
Pro Browse Flat to view the contents of several subdirs as if they were stored in a single dir
Let's say you are located in a given subdir that has 5 subdirs. You can see the contents of all the files located in those subdirs as if they were stored in a single dir. Very useful when you want to locate files that you don't know exactly where they are located and searching is not an option.
Pro Free version available
There is a free version available, xplorer² Lite, for non-commercial use.
Pro Scrap Area where you can drop files located in different sub directories to allow you to access them instantly
Let's say that today you are going to update a letter located in subdir X, continue developing a spreadsheet located in subdir Y, review a presentation located in subdir Z, review a project located in subdir W, etc.. You can drag and drop all these files to the Scrap Area and open and work with them, save them, open again, continue tomorrow and the files will be updated in their respective original locations. No need to navigate and navigate and navigate.
Pro Supports TotalCommander plugins
Pro Copy/Move many simultaneous tasks
Can display the size in bytes of every folder listed in the current branch of the tree.
Pro Can create "tabs" of the most used sub directories that you can access with a simple click
Pro Mass rename capability
Pro Connects to network drives and cloud storage easily
Pro Lifetime license available
Pay once, get all future updates. Standard version licenses are also available.
Cons
Con Cannot display background colors for file names
While it can display different colors (even based on filters) for the text color of those file names, but not for the background color.
Con Very slow on loading network shares
Con Proprietary
Total Commander offers a free 30-day trial, after which the cost of the program is $44.
Con Classic Interface
Con Need to spend a lot of time for custom configuration
Need to spend a lot of time for custom configuration, many features of the steps are very cumbersome to reduce operating speed.
Con Stagnating rate of development
Any improvements to the software are happening at a glacial pace which is making this software more and more outdated for a long time now.
Only a few minor improvements a year. User suggestions for improvements are routinely rejected or explained away. As for suggesting new features -- you'll quickly abandon all hope. Only realistic reason to visit their support forums is to read Kilmatead's posts -- for anything else prepare to be disappointed.
UPDATE (and slightly offtopic): Kilmatead seems to be no longer active on the forums, so the next best thing is xplorer2 blog which seems to often feature interesting technical topics.
Con Un-evolved
The interface is essentially unchanged since its Windows XP days, with very little customization possible. Organization of features is convoluted, with some simple ones, like individual icons to quickly switch views missing. The stagnant cluttered design can make even long-time users drop the program.
Con Distracting prompts in the Lite version
A free version of the program is available, xplorer² lite. However it is very light on features, and will display a prompt if a feature is selected that isn't available in the Lite version.
The full program is $29.95 for advanced and $49.95 for max power.
