Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Hyprland VS i3

Compare Hyprland VS i3 and see what are their differences

Hyprland logo Hyprland

Hyprland is a dynamic tiling Wayland compositor that doesn't sacrifice on its looks. - GitHub - vaxerski/Hyprland: Hyprland is a dynamic tiling Wayland compositor that doesn't sacrifice on ...

i3 logo i3

A dynamic tiling window manager designed for X11, inspired by wmii, and written in C.
  • Hyprland Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-22
  • i3 Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-19

Hyprland features and specs

  • Dynamic Tiling
    Hyprland offers dynamic tiling, allowing windows to be organized automatically and efficiently on your screen based on your workflow.
  • Wayland Support
    Hyprland is built on Wayland, providing smoother graphics, better performance, and modern features as opposed to older technologies like X11.
  • Customization
    The environment provides extensive customization options, enabling users to tailor the interface and behavior to their preferences.
  • Active Development
    Hyprland has an active and growing developer community, ensuring regular updates and improvements to the software.
  • Low Resource Usage
    Hyprland is designed to be lightweight, making it efficient in terms of resource usage, which is beneficial for older or less powerful hardware.

Possible disadvantages of Hyprland

  • Early Development
    Hyprland is relatively new and may lack some stability and features found in more mature window managers.
  • Compatibility Issues
    As an early-stage Wayland compositor, some applications might face compatibility issues, particularly those heavily reliant on X11.
  • Learning Curve
    Users new to tiling window managers or Wayland might face a steep learning curve when transitioning to Hyprland.
  • Limited Documentation
    Documentation can be sparse or incomplete, making it challenging for new users to find help or resources.
  • Feature Gaps
    Certain functionalities present in well-established window managers might be missing or underdeveloped in Hyprland.

i3 features and specs

  • Efficient Window Management
    i3 allows for highly efficient window management using a tree data structure, making it easy to snap windows into grids and manage multiple applications simultaneously.
  • Lightweight
    i3 is deliberately simplistic and lightweight, which allows it to run efficiently on older hardware or systems with limited resources.
  • Customizability
    Users can extensively customize keybindings and behavior through a plain text configuration file. This allows for a personalized workflow.
  • Keyboard-Centric
    i3 is designed to be used primarily through keyboard shortcuts, which can lead to increased productivity for advanced users.
  • Scriptability
    i3 supports various scripting languages through its IPC (Inter-process Communication) interface, enabling automation of complex workflows.
  • Community and Documentation
    i3 has strong community support and extensive documentation, making it easier for new users to learn and troubleshoot issues.

Possible disadvantages of i3

  • Steep Learning Curve
    New users may find i3 difficult to learn and configure, especially if they are accustomed to traditional desktop environments.
  • Lack of GUI Configuration Tools
    i3 relies heavily on manual edits to text files for configuration, lacking user-friendly graphical interfaces for setup and customization.
  • Limited Out-of-the-Box Features
    i3 does not come with many built-in features available in more comprehensive desktop environments, such as app launchers or system tray support, requiring additional setups.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Some applications may not play well with tiling window managers like i3, requiring workarounds or alternative software choices.
  • Minimal Default Appearance
    Without customization, i3 offers a very minimalistic and barebones visual experience, which may not be appealing to all users.

Hyprland videos

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i3 videos

30k Miles with the BMW i3 - End of Lease Review

More videos:

  • Review - 2016 BMW i3 - Review and Road Test
  • Review - 2018 BMW i3s Range Extender (REx) Review - The Future Of Cars?
  • Demo - Gaming With Intel's Core i3 9100F - The First Turbo Boosted Desktop i3
  • Review - The best EV for the money? Used BMW i3 Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Hyprland and i3)
Linux
15 15%
85% 85
Window Manager
10 10%
90% 90
Utilities
11 11%
89% 89
Desktop Environments
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Hyprland and i3

Hyprland Reviews

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i3 Reviews

Top 13 Best Tiling Window Managers For Linux In 2022
Sway is a tiling Wayland i3-compatible window manager that dynamically arranges app windows to rationally maximise desktop space. It is free, open-source, and lightweight. By default, it arranges windows in a grid and supports practically all of the i3 commands.
Source: www.hubtech.org
Top 10 Best Desktop Environments in 2020
i3-wm is one of my most loved standalone window managers, qualifying it to easily fit under the desktop environment list! The configuration is just very easy, and you can change everything that you see on screen. This includes what information you see on the bottom panel, how windows behave, and keyboard shortcuts to move, align, and set up windows on the screen.
13 Best Tiling Window Managers for Linux
Sway is a free, open-source, and lightweight tiling Wayland i3-compatible window manager that automatically arranges app windows to logically maximize desktop space. It arranges windows into a grid by default and supports almost all the commands included in i3.
Source: www.tecmint.com
5 Great Tiling Window Managers for Linux
I begun testing i3 just this week. I was always fascinated by the Tiling WM’s as they seem really light on system resources and functional. To my surprise , although i3 is really easy to customize, and works really well (at least for my needs) , I found that it isn’t really that lightweight. I had Mate desktop environment use the same amount of RAM. Maybe I was mislead to...

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, i3 seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 90 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.

Hyprland mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Hyprland yet. Tracking of Hyprland recommendations started around Apr 2022.

i3 mentions (90)

  • Automatic Visual Feedback for System Volume Change in I3wm via Dunst
    I switched to the i3 tiling based window manager. Because it's a whole different environment and thinking, it was very different from what I was used to. The volume buttons were working on my keyboard, but I didn't get any visual feedback. Furthermore, the volume percentage could go down below zero and increase up to more than hundread percent. There were times when I was confused why the keys stopped working, but... - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • "We understand" ;)
    This is partially why I use tools like i3 (/ sway). I like the tool; it works extremely well for me; the design has stayed the same for 20 years; there's no profit motive to come along and fuck everything up. It just works. It is boring in the best way possible. Source: about 1 year ago
  • what machines have you used for development, and what do you prefer?
    I use MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid-2014) with Manjaro as OS using i3 as a window manager. It isn't perfect, but I'm thrilled with it. I have been a Mac OS user for the last 15 years and wouldn't change what I have now for a Mac OS because I don't need more than what I'm using for development. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Machine for pentesting and general use?
    For daily usage I really like kubuntu with i3wm, but it takes some configuration and getting used to the shortcuts, but it's well worth it. Source: over 1 year ago
  • What's the difference between Gnome and KDE? Do applications written for one work in the other?
    Some window managers are meant to be used as-is, and provide a minimalist yet functional environment that use very little resources or give power users an almost HUD-like interface. Examples of those window managers are OpenBox and i3wm for X, and Weston and Hyprland for Wayland. Source: over 1 year ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Hyprland and i3, you can also consider the following products

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

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.

Sway - Sway is a drop-in replacement for the i3 window manager, but for Wayland instead of X11.

awesome - A dynamic window manager for the X Window System developed in the C and Lua programming languages.

Wayfire - Wayland compositor with 3d effects.

KDE Plasma Desktop - Plasma Workspaces is the umbrella term for all graphical environments provided by KDE.