--- title: GNU Emacs Reviews meta\_title: 'GNU Emacs Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features | G2' meta\_description: Filter 84 reviews by the users' company size, role or industry to find out how GNU Emacs works for a business like yours. aggregate\_rating: rating\_value: 4.5 review\_count: 84 scale: '5' date\_modified: '2026-08-09' parent\_category: name: Editor url: https://www.g2.com/categories/editor --- ### GNU Emacs Pros and Cons: Top Advantages and Disadvantages #### Quick AI Summary Based on G2 Reviews Generated from real user reviews Users love the **extensive customizability** of GNU Emacs, allowing for a tailored and flexible user experience. [(1 mentions)](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485648&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) Users love the **customization** options in GNU Emacs, enabling tailored experiences and extensible functionality. [(1 mentions)](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485706&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) Users experience a **steep learning curve** with GNU Emacs, requiring significant time to understand its complexities. [(1 mentions)](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485655&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) Users find a **steep learning curve** for GNU Emacs, often taking considerable time to understand its functionalities. [(1 mentions)](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485668&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) ### Top Pros or Advantages of GNU Emacs ##### 1. Customizability Users love the **extensive customizability** of GNU Emacs, allowing for a tailored and flexible user experience. [ See 1 mentions ](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485648&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) See Related User Reviews ![Ganesh G.](/assets/transparent-ad5be28fbcd25b7b08d2cebe1d957125437fb5407d75ee717965ad22c8808791.gif "Ganesh G.") GG Ganesh G. Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 5.0/5 "Highly Configurable and Extensible Platform" What do you like about GNU Emacs? Everything is configurable and extensible ##### 2. Customization Users love the **customization** options in GNU Emacs, enabling tailored experiences and extensible functionality. [ See 1 mentions ](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485706&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) See Related User Reviews ![Ganesh G.](/assets/transparent-ad5be28fbcd25b7b08d2cebe1d957125437fb5407d75ee717965ad22c8808791.gif "Ganesh G.") GG Ganesh G. Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 5.0/5 "Highly Configurable and Extensible Platform" What do you like about GNU Emacs? Everything is configurable and extensible ### Top Cons or Disadvantages of GNU Emacs ##### 1. Complexity Users experience a **steep learning curve** with GNU Emacs, requiring significant time to understand its complexities. [ See 1 mentions ](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485655&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) See Related User Reviews ![Ganesh G.](/assets/transparent-ad5be28fbcd25b7b08d2cebe1d957125437fb5407d75ee717965ad22c8808791.gif "Ganesh G.") GG Ganesh G. Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 5.0/5 "Highly Configurable and Extensible Platform" What do you dislike about GNU Emacs? Learning curve is very low and its take lot of time to figure out things. ##### 2. Learning Difficulty Users find a **steep learning curve** for GNU Emacs, often taking considerable time to understand its functionalities. [ See 1 mentions ](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?filters%5Bsentiment_snippet%5D=2485668&qs=pros-and-cons#reviews) See Related User Reviews ![Ganesh G.](/assets/transparent-ad5be28fbcd25b7b08d2cebe1d957125437fb5407d75ee717965ad22c8808791.gif "Ganesh G.") GG Ganesh G. Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 5.0/5 "Highly Configurable and Extensible Platform" What do you dislike about GNU Emacs? Learning curve is very low and its take lot of time to figure out things. ## Top-Rated Alternatives [ ![Visual Studio Code](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/image/large_detail/large_detail_13aba37ae908d9cf29a2452925257ccc/visual-studio-code.jpeg "Visual Studio Code") Visual Studio Code 4.7/5(2,732) ](https://www.g2.com/products/visual-studio-code/reviews) [ ![Notepad++](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/hd_favicon/1487566090/notepad.png "Notepad++") Notepad++ 4.6/5(2,475) ](https://www.g2.com/products/notepad/reviews) [ ![Sublime Text](https://images.g2crowd.com/uploads/product/hd_favicon/1487566128/sublime-text.png "Sublime Text") Sublime Text 4.5/5(1,783) ](https://www.g2.com/products/sublime-text/reviews) [ View All Alternatives ](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/competitors/alternatives) TT Thanh Dũng T. Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 12/21/2015 "The best editor of all time" 5/5 What do you like best about GNU Emacs? - Emacs Keybindings - Highlight syntax - Autocompletion - Plugins - Spacemacs for long time Vim user. This is the main reason why I switch from Vim to Emacs Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What do you dislike about GNU Emacs? - Keybindings for editor motion - Hog CPU from time to time - GUI is not snappy and lag on occasions Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Recommendations to others considering GNU Emacs: I highly recommend to use Emacs in your workflow development Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What problems is GNU Emacs solving and how is that benefiting you? - It's so great for software development. - Absolutely improve my productivity Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Show More Validated ReviewerIncentivizedSource: G2 invite ![军朋 .](/assets/transparent-ad5be28fbcd25b7b08d2cebe1d957125437fb5407d75ee717965ad22c8808791.gif "军朋 .") 军 军朋 . Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) 12/22/2015 "Python & Ruby Developer" 5/5 What do you like best about GNU Emacs? Many plugins. I'd love such as magit, helm, projectile, snippet and engine-mode. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What do you dislike about GNU Emacs? The plugin manager is not good, will be better. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Recommendations to others considering GNU Emacs: It's cool. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What problems is GNU Emacs solving and how is that benefiting you? write some code. if you are developer, you should using Emacs. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Show More Current UserValidated ReviewerIncentivizedSource: G2 invite ![Verified User in E-Learning](/assets/icons/anonymous-avatar-purple-4ae1032bdb50ee5682003170c8184aee790d25958bd397abbd384ba52c596a7b.svg "Verified User in E-Learning") UE Verified User in E-Learning Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) 1/19/2016 "Great text editor" 5/5 What do you like best about GNU Emacs? It's completely customizable and has limitless features. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What do you dislike about GNU Emacs? Learning curve can be steep. Sometimes you need things to work in a hurry without rummaging through tons of config files. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Recommendations to others considering GNU Emacs: Also checkout Spacemacs. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What problems is GNU Emacs solving and how is that benefiting you? I'm mainly a Vim user, but I think that Emacs (with Evil) is a better editor, so I'm in the process of switching. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Show More Current UserValidated ReviewerIncentivizedSource: G2 invite ![Verified User in Computer Hardware](/assets/icons/anonymous-avatar-purple-4ae1032bdb50ee5682003170c8184aee790d25958bd397abbd384ba52c596a7b.svg "Verified User in Computer Hardware") UC Verified User in Computer Hardware Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) 5/31/2015 "The old classic" 5/5 What do you like best about GNU Emacs? Simple at first glance, with immense power lying dormant, ready when you need it. Standard inclusion with Linux. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What do you dislike about GNU Emacs? Absolutely daunting for beginners. However, practice makes perfect, and odds are someone in your company can help you with whatever comes up, since emacs is so widely used. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Recommendations to others considering GNU Emacs: It's about as free as free gets, so by all means try it out through whichever means, you can even run it within windows if you so choose! Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. What problems is GNU Emacs solving and how is that benefiting you? Used emacs occasionally at a previous company for various text editing needs within a Linux environment. If you're familiar with emacs, it greatly improves productivity to have access to its capabilities from any Linux terminal, as I did. (I've used emacs more frequently for personal use) Review collected by and hosted on G2.com. Show More Validated ReviewerSource: Organic ## Work at FreeCAD? Claim this profile to respond to reviews, update product info, and reach in-market buyers. [ Claim this profile ](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/claim_requests/new?utm_medium=profile-footer-claim-cta&utm_source=g2) ##### Categories on G2 [Text Editor](https://www.g2.com/categories/text-editor) ##### Explore More [What implementation timeline and disruption risk do teams face with quote to cash consulting engagements in regulated industries?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/what-implementation-timeline-and-disruption-risk-do-teams-face-with-quote-to-cash-consulting-engagements-in-regulated-industries)[Which theater venue management platforms have the strongest operational case studies from major performing arts organizations?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/which-theater-venue-management-platforms-have-the-strongest-operational-case-studies-from-major-performing-arts-organizations)[What's the top-rated cloud backup app for IT companies](https://www.g2.com/discussions/what-s-the-top-rated-cloud-backup-app-for-it-companies) [Which Google Workspace project management platforms are most trusted by team leads coordinating cross-functional projects?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/which-google-workspace-project-management-platforms-are-most-trusted-by-team-leads-coordinating-cross-functional-projects)[Which AI content tool offers the most natural language output?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/which-ai-content-tool-offers-the-most-natural-language-output)[Pros and Cons Details](https://www.g2.com/products/gnu-emacs/reviews?qs=pros-and-cons) [Show MoreShow Less](javascript:void(0);)