Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

bspwm VS awesome

Compare bspwm VS awesome and see what are their differences

bspwm logo bspwm

A tiling window manager based on binary space partitioning

awesome logo awesome

A dynamic window manager for the X Window System developed in the C and Lua programming languages.
  • bspwm Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-14
  • awesome Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-12-19

bspwm features and specs

  • Highly Configurable
    Bspwm is known for its high level of customizability, allowing users to tweak almost every aspect of their window management experience through simple scripts and configuration files.
  • Efficient Use of Screen Space
    As a tiling window manager, Bspwm automatically arranges windows in a way that maximizes screen real estate, minimizing overlap and unused space.
  • Lightweight
    Bspwm is extremely lightweight, making it suitable for older hardware and systems with limited resources. It does not come with additional software bloat.
  • Scriptable with Unix Philosophy
    Bspwm adheres to the Unix philosophy of 'doing one thing well'. It functions without managing keybindings, allowing users to use other programs (like sxhkd) for keybinding management, which offers greater flexibility.
  • Active Community Support
    Bspwm has an active community and comprehensive documentation, which helps new users get started and troubleshoot any issues they might encounter.

Possible disadvantages of bspwm

  • Steep Learning Curve
    The configuration process can be complex and overwhelming for beginners. Unlike more mainstream window managers, bspwm requires learning various scripts and commands.
  • Lack of GUI Configuration Tools
    Bspwm does not come with graphical configuration tools, which might be inconvenient for users who prefer a GUI for managing settings.
  • Sparse on Built-in Features
    Since bspwm follows the Unix philosophy closely, it lacks many built-in features and utilities that other window managers might offer. Users need to set up additional tools for tasks such as wallpaper management or system trays.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Some applications that expect a floating window manager might not work well with bspwm, requiring extra configuration or using alternative software.
  • Limited Out-of-the-box Experience
    Bspwm does not come with a pre-configured environment, which can be a disadvantage for users looking for a ready-to-use experience out of the box.

awesome features and specs

  • Highly Configurable
    Awesome is extremely configurable, allowing users to customize their environment to fit their specific workflow.
  • Lightweight
    As a tiling window manager, Awesome is very lightweight and consumes minimal resources, which is ideal for older hardware or minimal setups.
  • Lua Scripting
    Configuration is done through Lua scripting, which provides powerful and flexible customization options.
  • Tiling and Dynamic Layouts
    Awesome offers both tiling and floating window management with dynamic layouts that adjust based on user preference.
  • Active Community
    The Awesome community is active and supportive, providing ample documentation and user-contributed modules and configurations.

Possible disadvantages of awesome

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Due to its extensive configurability and scripting-based setup, Awesome can be challenging for newcomers to get accustomed to.
  • Limited Graphical Configuration Tools
    Configuration is done mainly through text files and scripts, which can be daunting for users who prefer graphical interfaces.
  • Sparse Default Configuration
    The default configuration of Awesome is fairly minimal, requiring significant setup time to create a personalized environment.
  • Performance Overhead with Complex Scripts
    While Lua scripting is powerful, highly complex scripts can introduce performance overhead, potentially impacting the system's responsiveness.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Certain applications that are designed with floating window managers in mind may not function optimally with Awesome's tiling system.

bspwm videos

Switching To Bspwm - Initial Thoughts

More videos:

  • Review - BSPWM - Its like I3 but not.
  • Review - BSPWM Review

awesome videos

Surface Go Review - It’s Awesome

More videos:

  • Review - RICO (PC) - Why it's Awesome - Review
  • Review - Awesome review of the 80's Hollow Handled Survival Knife!!
  • Review - My God is Awesome- Charles Jenkins

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to bspwm and awesome)
Window Manager
54 54%
46% 46
Linux
50 50%
50% 50
Utilities
56 56%
44% 44
Productivity
38 38%
62% 62

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare bspwm and awesome

bspwm Reviews

Top 13 Best Tiling Window Managers For Linux In 2022
Support for multiple windows, limited support for EWMH, automatic mode for automatically determining the location of app tiles, and configuration and control via messages are among the characteristics of bspwm.
Source: www.hubtech.org
13 Best Tiling Window Managers for Linux
bspwm’s features include support for multiple windows, partial support for EWMH, automatic mode for automatically setting the position of app tiles, and it is configured and controlled through messages, among others.
Source: www.tecmint.com

awesome Reviews

Top 13 Best Tiling Window Managers For Linux In 2022
Awesome is a free & open-source next-generation tiling manager for X that is designed to be fast and adaptable, with a focus on developers, power users, and anyone who wants to have more control over their graphical environment.
Source: www.hubtech.org
13 Best Tiling Window Managers for Linux
awesome is a free and open-source next-generation tiling manager for X built to be fast and extensible and it is primarily aimed at developers, power users, and anyone who would like to control their graphical environment.
Source: www.tecmint.com
5 Great Tiling Window Managers for Linux
Awesome has a unique take on the concept of a tiling window manager. It is probably the most user-friendly on the list. Much like i3, it claims to have well-documented code to make it very easy to dig right into for modifications. It adheres to FreeDesktop standards (Desktop notifications system, system tray, etc.) and has great keybindings which make navigating with it...

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, bspwm seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 21 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

bspwm mentions (21)

  • well... thinkpads are awesome
    Over on Linux, I’ve been learning kinda a-lot about linux tools and workflows. I've recently got into window managers, bspwm was my first one and I'm thinking of moving towards a Arch+Hyprland setup in future. Setting it up was way easier than I thought, and I got inspired by a YouTuber named jvscholz, who’s all about minimalism and productivity. - Source: dev.to / 18 days ago
  • What WM should I use?
    Use BSPWM. It supports right clicks by default and its modular. You might want to look for status bars that work with it, slstatus does not work. Good luck, supremacist! Source: over 1 year ago
  • What are some OpenSource apps that are the best of their kind?
    I had not heard of bspwm but I am a fan of telling WMs. Looking at the documentation now, I really like the pragmatic approach lol https://github.com/baskerville/bspwm. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Got some questions before moving to linux...
    I am not familiar with that distro at all, so no idea. KDE Plasma is fine, I use it myself (with BSPWM as my window manager, but that's irrelevant). Source: almost 2 years ago
  • MacBook Setup - OS Ventura 13.1 - Samsung QLed 43” - VM: yabai - Terminal: Hyper
    There's a paradigm shift required for a lot of people to start using automatic tiling window managers. Yabai is basically a bspwm port for MacOS and it follows the rules of binary space partitioning. In fact, bspwm has a great diagram on its github readme that illustrates how it works. This will limit the number of windows you can have on any given desktop. To overcome this limitation you use multiple desktops. A... Source: about 2 years ago
View more

awesome mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of awesome yet. Tracking of awesome recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing bspwm and awesome, you can also consider the following products

i3 - A dynamic tiling window manager designed for X11, inspired by wmii, and written in C.

dwm - dwm is a dynamic window manager for X. It manages windows in tiled, monocle and floating layouts. All of the layouts can be applied dynamically, optimising the environment for the application in use and the task performed.

qtile - Qtile is a full-featured, hackable tiling window manager written in Python.

Openbox - Openbox is a highly configurable, next generation window manager with extensive standards support.

Xmonad - xmonad is a dynamically tiling X11 window manager that is written and configured in Haskell.

Fluxbox - Fluxbox is a window manager for X that was based on the Blackbox 0.61.1 code.