When comparing FreeCommander vs Midnight Commander, the Slant community recommends Midnight Commander for most people. In the question“What are the best file managers for Windows?” Midnight Commander is ranked 12th while FreeCommander is ranked 15th. The most important reason people chose Midnight Commander is:
Midnight commander uses the full screen of the terminal in a very efficient way. It displays two panels for files horizontally. On the bottom it has the most useful commands with their corresponding key attached. All of this makes for a very intuitive interface both for beginners and experienced users.
Specs
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Pros
Pro 2 Pane Layout
Makes normal file operations (like move & copy) easy.
Pro Quick Navigation
Commonly used folders can be added and accessed using the favorites list -- in addition, physical and network drives can be switched to with a single click.
Pro Very powerful Multirename tool
Pro Has a portable version
Because it's portable, you can easily move the folder with all your files to other devices.
Pro Powerful search feature
FreeCommander provides a search functionality that allows you to filter out results.
Pro Very powerful set of file copying options
FreeCommander has a very powerful set of file copying options.
Pro Very usable and reliable Sync tool
Pro Shows folder file size
In Details mode you can turn on Folder Data file size.
Pro Keyboard shortcuts
Has a good set of keyboard shortcuts enabled by default
Pro Interface highly customizable, native Dark Mode, stable, very accessible primary functionality, very frequent updates
Simple 1-click buttons to toggle views, enable or disable visual filter, etc. Very simple instant filtering. The folder syncing is as good as "GoodSync".
Pro Excellent file manager with lots of hotkeys
Also file search, filter and multi file rename functionalities.
Pro Intuitive interface
Midnight commander uses the full screen of the terminal in a very efficient way. It displays two panels for files horizontally. On the bottom it has the most useful commands with their corresponding key attached. All of this makes for a very intuitive interface both for beginners and experienced users.
Pro Can be run in the terminal
Being a terminal application means that it's suited for people who spend most of their time on the terminal because they don't have to switch windows in order to open their file manager. It also means that they can use it both locally and remotely.
Pro Easy to use
Midnight commander is easy and intuitive to use. The most common commands are displayed in the bottom (move, copy, paste, delete, edit, view, make directory). Files can be selected with the arrow keys which move the cursor through them. The Enter key goes down in a directory. To move the focus between two panels the tab key is used.
Pro Lightweight
Pro Stable
Pro Often available in default repository
and hence easy to install by usually package manager.
Pro Lynx-like motion
Cursor+left to go to parent directory, cursor+right to go into child directory.
Pro Well-presented
Cons
Con It's easy to delete important stuff by accident
When you want to delete something, it will often highlight both a file and its folder. The whole folder is then removed if you don't de-select the folder manually.
Con Only the 32-bit version is free
You have to make a donation to be able to download the 64-bit version.
Con Cluttered and dated UI
The user interface has an outdated look, with a lot of button and menu options that can be overwhelming.
Con Unable to replace default file explorer
Con Buggy
Good facilities overall, but there's a bug that makes menus freeze and get stuck on the page.
Con File viewer: searching can be quite cumbersome
Especially searching next or previous.
Con No directory bookmarks
Con No easy way to change colors matching certain files
There probably is a possibility, but it is not easy.
Con Quirky and hard to remember shortcuts
E.g. when trying to take the current directory's path to the command line.
Con Lacks drag and drop feature
With midnight commander you cannot drag and drop files to move them around. Instead, you have to do the necessary actions in order to move files around (cut and paste or copy and delete).
Con Can only be run in the terminal
MC lacks a standalone GUI option.