It’s widely acknowledged that the Linux ecosystem boasts a vast array of distributions, numbering in the hundreds. Some gain fleeting popularity, while others fade into obscurity. Looking at the landscape in 2023 and beyond, a core group of five distributions stand out as enduring and influential, shaping the desktop Linux experience: Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, and Arch. Beyond these giants, a multitude of niche distributions cater to specific needs, whether it’s server environments (RHEL, SLE), highly technical users (Gentoo, Slackware), or simplifying general-purpose distros for newcomers (Zorin, Pop!_OS).
The primary differentiators between distributions often lie in their package management systems and default configuration choices, particularly the desktop environment. Furthermore, Linux distributions can be broadly categorized by their learning curve, ranging from user-friendly options for beginners to highly customizable platforms for experts. This “Distro Compare” can be visualized in tiers of difficulty:
Beginner-Friendly – Major Distros: These distributions prioritize ease of use, offering graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for most tasks and aiming for an out-of-the-box experience. Some may require minor post-installation adjustments, such as installing proprietary codecs or NVIDIA drivers.
- Ubuntu/Kubuntu
- Ubuntu-based distributions like Mint, Pop!_OS, or Zorin.
- Fedora
- openSUSE
Beginner-Friendly – Other Distros: Similar in ease of use to the major distros, but with a smaller community and potentially less third-party support. This can manifest as limited availability of proprietary applications, less extensive hardware and software testing, and fewer online tutorials and community support resources. While the distributions themselves are user-friendly, these factors can present a slightly steeper learning curve for users transitioning from Windows or macOS.
- OpenMandriva
- Mageia
- PCLinuxOS
- Solus
Advanced Users: Accessible to anyone, but require a willingness to engage with documentation, the command line interface (CLI), and configuration file editing for full customization and setup.
- Arch Linux
- Debian
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux and RHEL derivatives (CentOS, Rocky, AlmaLinux)
- SUSE Linux Enterprise
Expert Users: Share the characteristics of advanced distributions but demand additional distribution-specific knowledge and expertise.
- Slackware – Lacking automatic dependency resolution for packages.
- Gentoo – Source-based distribution, requiring compilation of software.
- Alpine – Employs musl libc instead of the standard GNU C Library (glibc).
- NixOS and Guix System – Utilize declarative configuration management with their own unique programming languages.
This “distro compare” predominantly focuses on “original” distributions rather than forks, as the differences between closely related distributions are often superficial. For instance, the distinctions between Ubuntu and Mint are relatively minor: Mint is exclusively available for x86_64 architecture, offers fewer pre-installed desktop environment options, lacks the extended update support of Ubuntu Pro, and pre-installs Flatpak in place of Snap.
Linux Distribution Comparison Table
Source: eylenburg.github.io
Last updated: February 14, 2025
| Feature | Debian 么
