Link copied to clipboard # CLion vs Visual Studio Comparison - What are their main differences? Share [ Export ](/compare/clion/visual-studio/export.csv) CLionVisual Studio[+ Add Product](#) Reviews **CLion** [ 4.4/5(55) ](https://www.g2.com/products/clion/reviews#reviews) **Visual Studio** [ 4.5/5(4,008) ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews#reviews) Pricing **CLion** Free Trial **$229.00** 1 User Per Year · FOR BUSINESS & ORGANIZATIONS **Visual Studio** No pricing available **Pricing Insights** from reviews Time to Implement **CLion** Not enough reviews yet **Visual Studio** 3 months Based on 44 responses Return on Investment **CLion** Not enough reviews yet **Visual Studio** 12 months Based on 40 responses Perceived Cost **CLion** $$$$$ **Visual Studio** $$$$$ Average Discount **CLion** Not enough reviews yet **Visual Studio** 14% Pros & Cons **CLion** Not enough data **Visual Studio** [ Ease of Use (206) ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=1778394&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews)[ Features (181) ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=1778921&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews)[ Slow Performance (147) ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=1777886&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews)[ High Resource Consumption (84) ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=1777843&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) Integrations **CLion** Not enough data **Visual Studio** [ ![Product Avatar Image](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/image/large_detail/large_detail_5a7938ffd6497884772dc39786f9e1e2/adobe-analytics.png "Product Avatar Image") Adobe Analytics ](https://www.g2.com/products/adobe-analytics/reviews)[ ![Product Avatar Image](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/image/large_detail/large_detail_92678e42a1cad1b80e7d257e3636e25e/android-studio.jpg "Product Avatar Image") Android Studio ](https://www.g2.com/products/android-studio/reviews)[ ![Product Avatar Image](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/image/large_detail/large_detail_dbc216204b9197e5c0a1b6ac81e9b7e1/azure-devops-server.png "Product Avatar Image") Azure DevOps Server ](https://www.g2.com/products/azure-devops-server/reviews)[ ![Product Avatar Image](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/image/large_detail/large_detail_f176b4154a751d10150daa67a57b7dc5/azure-functions.jpg "Product Avatar Image") Azure Functions ](https://www.g2.com/products/azure-functions/reviews)[ View all ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/integrations) Screenshots **CLion** ![CLion screenshot](https://images.g2crowd.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=600,height=600,fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,/https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/attachment/file/36731/Screenshot-2023-12-01-at-13.26.42.png) **Visual Studio** ![Visual Studio screenshot](https://images.g2crowd.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=600,height=600,fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,/https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/attachment/file/20651/uploads_2Fd08cf40a-35bd-4c8e-87de-d117cd10b517_2FIC798330.png) Ratings Meets Requirements **CLion** 8.9 8.951 **Visual Studio** 9.1 9.13,224 Ease of Use **CLion** 8.4 8.451 **Visual Studio** 8.7 8.73,247 Ease of Setup **CLion** Not enough data **Visual Studio** 8.7 8.7910 Ease of Admin **CLion** Not enough data **Visual Studio** 8.5 8.5567 Quality of Support **CLion** 7.9 7.929 **Visual Studio** 8.4 8.42,808 Has the product been a good partner in doing business? **CLion** Not enough data **Visual Studio** 8.8 8.8531 Product Direction (% positive) **CLion** 9.8 9.849 **Visual Studio** 8.9 8.93,122 Features C/C++ Integrated Development Environments (IDE)[Hide 7 FeaturesShow 7 Features](javascript:void(0);) 8.2 30 8.8 576 Functionality Ease of Use 8.8 28 9.1(won by 0.3) 515 File Management 8.3 28 8.9(won by 0.6) 508 (There is a greater than 0.5 difference between this product's rating and its competitors) Multi-Language Support 7.7 22 8.9(won by 1.2) 470 (There is a greater than 0.5 difference between this product's rating and its competitors) Customization 8.6 26 8.8(won by 0.2) 496 Straight-Out-the-Box Functionality 7.8 27 8.8(won by 1.0) 495 (There is a greater than 0.5 difference between this product's rating and its competitors) Help Guides 7.8 23 8.7(won by 0.9) 497 (There is a greater than 0.5 difference between this product's rating and its competitors) Patching & Updates 8.1 26 8.7(won by 0.6) 492 (There is a greater than 0.5 difference between this product's rating and its competitors) Application Development Platforms[Hide 57 FeaturesShow 57 Features](javascript:void(0);) Not enough data 8.9 470 Additional Functionality Continuous Integration Not enough data Not enough data Drag & Drop Not enough data Not enough data Backup and Recovery Not enough data Not enough data Multiple Programming Languages Supported Not enough data Not enough data Continuous Deployment Not enough data Not enough data Code Development Not enough data Not enough data For No-Code Development Not enough data Not enough data Version Control Not enough data Not enough data Configurable Workflow Not enough data Not enough data Graphical User Interface Not enough data Not enough data For Low-Code Development Not enough data Not enough data Activity Dashboard Not enough data Not enough data Generative AI Not enough data Not enough data UI Prototyping Not enough data Not enough data Source Control Not enough data Not enough data Software Development Not enough data Not enough data API Not enough data Not enough data Data Import/Export Not enough data Not enough data Web App Development Not enough data Not enough data Custom Development Not enough data Not enough data Code Repository Integration Not enough data Not enough data Data Security Not enough data Not enough data Mobile Development Not enough data Not enough data Access Controls/Permissions Not enough data Not enough data Game Development Not enough data Not enough data Collaboration Tools Not enough data Not enough data Application Security Not enough data Not enough data Alerts/Notifications Not enough data Not enough data Automated Testing Not enough data Not enough data Integrated Development Environment Not enough data Not enough data Offline Access Not enough data Not enough data Debugging Not enough data Not enough data AI Copilot Not enough data Not enough data Reporting/Analytics Not enough data Not enough data Compatibility Testing Not enough data Not enough data Pre-built Templates Not enough data Not enough data Third-Party Integrations Not enough data Not enough data Data Modeling Not enough data Not enough data Customizable Branding Not enough data Not enough data Data Visualization Not enough data Not enough data Code Editing Not enough data Not enough data Functionality Ease of Use Not enough data 9.1(won by default) 430 File Management Not enough data 9.1(won by default) 407 Multi-Language Support Not enough data 9.0(won by default) 383 Customization Not enough data 9.0(won by default) 409 Straight-Out-the-Box Functionality Not enough data 8.7(won by default) 391 Help Guides Not enough data 8.7(won by default) 393 Patching & Updates Not enough data 8.9(won by default) 398 Workflow Management Not enough data Not enough data Change Management Not enough data Not enough data Deployment Management Not enough data Not enough data Performance Management Not enough data Not enough data Compliance Management Not enough data Not enough data Lifecycle Management Not enough data Not enough data Task Management Not enough data Not enough data Document Management Not enough data Not enough data Database Support Not enough data Not enough data .NET Integrated Development Environments (IDE)[Hide 19 FeaturesShow 19 Features](javascript:void(0);) Not enough data 8.8 954 Functionality Ease of Use Not enough data 9.1(won by default) 851 File Management Not enough data 9.0(won by default) 822 Multi-Language Support Not enough data 8.9(won by default) 737 Customization Not enough data 8.7(won by default) 813 Straight-Out-the-Box Functionality Not enough data 8.7(won by default) 800 Help Guides Not enough data 8.6(won by default) 787 Patching & Updates Not enough data 8.7(won by default) 794 Deployment Management Not enough data Not enough data Additional Functionality Code Development Not enough data Not enough data Debugging Not enough data Not enough data AI Copilot Not enough data Not enough data Generative AI Not enough data Not enough data Game Development Not enough data Not enough data Web/Mobile App Development Not enough data Not enough data Data Modeling Not enough data Not enough data For Developers Not enough data Not enough data Code Editing Not enough data Not enough data Website Development Not enough data Not enough data Graphical User Interface Not enough data Not enough data Mobile Development Platforms[Hide 3 FeaturesShow 3 Features](javascript:void(0);) Not enough data 8.6 53 Agentic AI - Mobile Development Platforms Adaptive Learning Not enough data 8.7(won by default) 40 Natural Language Interaction Not enough data 8.5(won by default) 40 Proactive Assistance Not enough data 8.5(won by default) 41 User Insights Reviewers' Company Size [![CLion](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/hd_favicon/fd3f7b61a619d7c2a7a9af28834ccc10/clion.svg "CLion")](https://www.g2.com/products/clion/reviews) CLion Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.) 60.4% Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.) 20.8% Enterprise(\> 1000 emp.) 18.9% [![Visual Studio](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/hd_favicon/646c72569089375221819d6efbe819a0/visual-studio.svg "Visual Studio")](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews) Visual Studio Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.) 36.1% Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.) 32.0% Enterprise(\> 1000 emp.) 31.9% Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 60.4% 36.1% Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) 20.8% 32.0% Enterprise (\> 1000 emp.) 18.9% 31.9% Reviewers' Industry [![CLion](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/hd_favicon/fd3f7b61a619d7c2a7a9af28834ccc10/clion.svg "CLion")](https://www.g2.com/products/clion/reviews) CLion Computer Software 32.1% Information Technology and Services 9.4% Higher Education 9.4% Research 5.7% Internet 5.7% Other 37.7% [![Visual Studio](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/hd_favicon/646c72569089375221819d6efbe819a0/visual-studio.svg "Visual Studio")](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews) Visual Studio Computer Software 31.1% Information Technology and Services 22.6% Higher Education 2.9% Financial Services 2.6% Internet 2.2% Other 38.7% FAQs ## CLion vs Visual Studio FAQs Generated using AI Last updated: August 14, 2026 ### What is the difference between Visual Studio vs CLion? Visual Studio stands out for its higher G2 rating, broader review base, and stronger support and setup scores compared to CLion. | [Visual Studio](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews) | [CLion](https://www.g2.com/products/clion/reviews) | | --- | --- | | 4.5/5 (4004 reviews) | 4.4/5 (55 reviews) | | Small-Business | Small-Business | | 8.7 | — | | 8.4 | 7.9 | | Comprehensive, integrated development environment with powerful IntelliSense and debugging tools | Lightweight, intuitive navigation and strong C/C++ support | ### How do the pricing models of Visual Studio and CLion compare? Visual Studio is rated higher for value, with reviewers expressing greater satisfaction with its pricing compared to CLion. - **Visual Studio:** Reviewers highlight the availability of a free Community edition and describe the pricing as decent, with strong value for individual users and students. - **CLion:** Reviewers note that CLion is available at a reasonable cost and mention the benefit of a free student license, but also cite pricing as a potential annoyance for non-students. ### What are the best alternatives to Visual Studio and CLion? The top three alternatives to Visual Studio and CLion are Xcode, Eclipse, and NetBeans. | Product | G2 Rating (reviews) | Largest Segment | Pricing Insight | Top Reviewer-Cited Strength | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Visual Studio](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio/reviews) | 4.5/5 (4004 reviews) | Small-Business | Reviewers highlight the free Community edition and strong value for individuals and students | Comprehensive, integrated development environment with powerful IntelliSense and debugging tools | | [CLion](https://www.g2.com/products/clion/reviews) | 4.4/5 (55 reviews) | Small-Business | Reasonable cost, free student license, but pricing can be a concern for non-students | Lightweight, intuitive navigation and strong C/C++ support | | [Xcode](https://www.g2.com/products/xcode/reviews) | 4.2/5 (1039 reviews) | Small-Business | — | Strong integration with Apple development tools and platforms | | [Eclipse](https://www.g2.com/products/eclipse/reviews) | 4.3/5 (3221 reviews) | Enterprise | — | Highly extensible and widely used for Java development | | [NetBeans](https://www.g2.com/products/netbeans/reviews) | 4.2/5 (675 reviews) | Small-Business | — | Easy to use and supports multiple programming languages | ### Which Java Integrated Development Environments (IDE) features should I prioritize when comparing Visual Studio and CLion? Buyers should prioritize IntelliSense/code completion, debugging tools, integration capabilities, extension/plugin ecosystem, and file management when comparing Visual Studio and CLion. - **IntelliSense/Code Completion:** Visual Studio is frequently praised for its powerful IntelliSense and smart code suggestions; CLion is noted for optimized auto-completion, especially for C/C++. - **Debugging Tools:** Visual Studio receives consistent acclaim for its integrated debugger and diagnostic tools; CLion is recognized for its built-in debugger and real-time collaboration features. - **Integration Capabilities:** Visual Studio is cited in 587 reviews for Git integration and 168 for GitHub integration; CLion reviewers mention integration with JetBrains ecosystem and plugins, though with some limitations for GitHub and GitLab. - **Extension/Plugin Ecosystem:** Visual Studio is highlighted for its extensive extension marketplace and plugin support; CLion is noted for a wide range of plugins, especially for C/C++ productivity. - **File Management:** Visual Studio is frequently mentioned for robust file management and project organization; CLion receives mixed feedback, with some reviewers noting file management limitations. ### What are the pros and cons of Visual Studio vs CLion? Visual Studio's headline strength is its comprehensive, integrated development environment, while CLion's is its lightweight design and strong C/C++ support. - **Visual Studio strengths:** Powerful IntelliSense, integrated debugging and profiling tools, extensive extension ecosystem, strong Git and GitHub integration (587 and 168 all-time mentions), and support for multiple programming languages. - **Visual Studio trade-offs:** Resource-intensive, slower startup times, can feel overwhelming for beginners due to feature density, and higher licensing costs for enterprise editions. - **CLion strengths:** Lightweight and intuitive navigation, strong C/C++ support, fast find and replace, real-time collaboration, and affordable student licensing. - **CLion trade-offs:** Lacks a built-in compiler, integration with GitHub and GitLab is less robust, file management system receives criticism, and performance can lag on large projects. ### Is Visual Studio or CLion better for small businesses? Visual Studio is the stronger fit for small businesses, supported by its dominant small-business segment and positive reviewer sentiment. - **Visual Studio:** Largest segment is Small-Business; reviewers consistently highlight ease of use, strong value with the free Community edition, and broad language support as advantages for small teams. - **CLion:** Largest segment is Small-Business; reviewers appreciate its affordable student licensing and lightweight design, but note limitations in integrations and file management for broader small-business needs. ### Which Java Integrated Development Environments (IDE) platform has better integrations? Visual Studio is favored for integrations, with significantly higher reviewer-cited integration counts than CLion. - **Visual Studio:** 587 reviews mention Git integration and 168 mention GitHub integration, with additional praise for Azure and extension marketplace integrations. - **CLion:** Reviewers mention integration with JetBrains ecosystem and plugins, but note less robust GitHub and GitLab integration and occasional plugin issues. ### How do Visual Studio and CLion compare on customer support? Visual Studio scores higher on Quality of Support (8.4 vs 7.9), but the difference is below the 0.2-point materiality threshold, indicating near-parity in support experiences. - **Visual Studio:** Reviewers describe support as generally responsive, with accessible documentation and community resources, though some note occasional complexity in resolving licensing or setup issues. - **CLion:** Reviewers report satisfactory support, especially for C/C++ topics, but mention that integration and plugin issues can require additional troubleshooting. ### Which is easier to implement, Visual Studio or CLion? Visual Studio leads on Ease of Setup with a score of 8.7, while CLion's setup score is not available. - **Visual Studio:** Reviewers consistently describe the setup process as straightforward, with guided installers and clear onboarding for new users. - **CLion:** Reviewers note that setup is generally easy, especially for those familiar with JetBrains IDEs, but mention that configuring compilers and plugins can be more complex for beginners. ### Which product has better File Management? Visual Studio is favored for File Management, with reviewers consistently highlighting its robust project organization and file handling capabilities. - **Visual Studio:** Reviewers frequently praise its file management, project organization, and ability to handle large codebases efficiently; Ease of Use score is 8.7. - **CLion:** Reviewers note file management limitations and occasional issues with project organization; Ease of Use score is 8.4. 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