Ranking Linux Distributions for 2025: a tier list for my use case !

[@TheLinuxEXP]

Try Kasm Workspaces to stream any desktop, app or OS to your web browser: kasmweb.com/community-edition kasmweb.com/cloud-personal

[@ausarma8403]

TRY GERUDA AND ITS BROWSER, PLEASE.

[@flashwashington2735]

Why in the hell would I want to do that? No profit. No benefit. Waste of time. No thanks!!

[@QuestionTheTruth]

Bazzite. Had been interesting to see what you thought about it.

[@NovabitsYT]

11:16 If arch was the first linux system I saw, I would have run away from the linux area and never look back

[@papakamirneron2514]

Yes, but this is not what it wants to be. I fully understand just wanting to flash Fedora and have stuff work but if you're up for it Arch is great to tinker with. We should not recommend Arch to beginners but we should recommend it to Linux users.

[@sclapple3192]

​@@papakamirneron2514Honestly, arch isn't that bad given you have used some other Linux distro as an introduction. Speaking as a new Linux user (less than a month of use) tried Ubuntu, fedora, mint, and while they were nice, the packages were outdated for what I wanted to do so I switched to arch. While the setup is definitely more time consuming compared to other distros, actually downloading apps is far easier on arch. Honestly if you install arch with a desktop environment you are used to and use something like a gaming install script (if gaming is your goal) I'd say it's easier than any other distro I've used

[@sharkuel]

@@papakamirneron2514 and the bad rep arch has for being unstable and breaking usually is on the user, and not the distro. Yes the AUR is cool but people don't understand that the AUR should be the last resort to install packages, the Arch Repos are fairly packed, but if you add the CachyOS repos, you are golden and do not need to rely on the AUR at all. At this point my system is running Arch on my home studio, and basically set up the thing 6 months ago, and forget about it ever since, only reminding myself (or the notification in the taskbar) that I need to update the system.

[@goose-lw6js]

the tier list isn't labeled as linux for beginners although i guess you can argue that this channels target audience isn't exactly hardcore enthusiasts. imho theres absolutely no denying that arch is top tier for anyone who wishes to customize their entire setup inside out (and not just the UI). everything follows established principles with minimal distro specifics (only mkinitcpio comes to my mind but that also can be replaced by dracut for example). the arch wiki alone makes a rank below S tier hard to justify if we aren't talking specifically about beginner/minimal user effort distros. it's also surprisingly hard to break if you stick to the best practices.

[@deano1699]

@@goose-lw6js exactly. The algo is delivering tier lists like these to people searching for "the best linux distro", and that search itself is going to yield a majority of "beginner", or "want to use the OS, not tinker with it" type people.

[@alpacamale2909]

Some linux users are obsessed with things being updated all the time. Sometimes if something works it doesn't need an update.

[@NanomachineExE]

Functionally, yes. Security exploits argue otherwise, however.

[@flashwashington2735]

@@NanomachineExE Security exploits have voices and talk to you? What about a ten year exploitable weakness and there are other under addressed exploits common to many distros. And I've had two. Yes two. LTS Ubuntu versions installs self destruct. at about two years after rolling updates blew the underlying library support. Fedora is becoming the 'Linux MS,' and this Linux Experiment dude is an opinionated moron. And that's when the stars are aligned and he's having a good day. Even then he blathers on like President Biden. Losing brain cells here! must go.

[@MartinWoad]

​@@NanomachineExEThat is the problem. Security updates should be put on a completely different axis to feature updates, but developers very wrongly mix these things together in the same releases often. In my opinion, security updates should always be separated from functionality updates and backported as much as possible, which often doesn't happen.

[@Bareego]

Yeah, although linux mint is generally great, that one update that fubared the package manager wasn't a great thing.

[@flashwashington2735]

@@Bareego More then that since it relies so much upon the flawed Ubuntu model.

[@moose43h]

Endeavour os was my choice and I used it for 2 years straight.

[@cameronbosch1213]

Same here. I've had less problems with EndeavourOS than point release distros like Fedora, Ubuntu, and Debian and have much more up to date packages like DEs.

[@PranjalP21]

Vanilla Arch is best

[@cameronbosch1213]

@@PranjalP21 Maybe as a distro but not the community behind it. EndeavourOS is a much better community than Arch proper.

[@Craft2guardian]

@@PranjalP21I use base arch but I might go back to EOS because I am having some issues with wifi and sound but arch is really fast and boots 5-10 seconds faster

[@xHiNoTorix]

Endeavour OS is amazing. Easy enough to install it without any hassle and hard enough to learn how Linux works. Since a lot of people in my friend group are dissatisfied of the direction Microsoft takes, I offered them to install Endeavour. A lot of people in my friend group are now using Endeavour and after a few days of learning how to use it, they don't have any problems doing so. If you use it for gaming you have to install a few packages, especially when it comes to lib32 packages. But since you can modify the installer, you can install them right during the installation process of the OS.

[@KuruGDI]

_Not enough testing on KDEneon_ - Well... KDEneon _is_ the testing distro so it's no wonder there are quite a few bugs in there. Linux Mint looks like an old Windows system - I think this is why so many people like it. They miss the days of Windows 7 and Mint has them covered quite good there IMO.

[@QWERTYQwertz852]

I Like Windows 7 and hate the Look of linux mint. It Looks sooo bad

[@el_fucko]

@@QWERTYQwertz852 What you actually hate is the look of Cinnamon, presumably. Fortunately, you can use and customize any desktop environment you want - including in ways that make your Mint install look like Windows 7.

[@trustavidity]

I've always felt Mint more aligned with Windows 2000/XP than 7. It's an excellent distro for those who want 98% function and 2% form but for those who want a bit more excitement in the OS, it can leave you wanting, IMO. I'll check it out again to see if the changes in 22.1 are enough to look past the old-timey aesthetic but if not, I'll likely stick to something with a bit more character.

[@flashwashington2735]

Huge mistake to pick linux distros on looks vs. merits. Pick your distros based on foundational and practical matters. Then get massage it as you are accustomed, or learn it's ways, Lest you waste your time putting lipstick on a pig, When you could be wedded with a beautiful, performant partner. Then when you smooched the lipstick off pig and she returns to the stie, don't cry to anyone that she never bore you offspring, you pervert.

[@OkarinHououinKyouma]

You mean XP?

[@leovi2]

"Dragged while screaming",,,, sounds accurate

[@s_ziel]

3:05 I think you mean DNF5

[@Malix_Labs]

Confirmed, he meant DNF5

[@TActually]

I came looking for this comment.

[@soymadip]

10:27 AUR doesn't just contain 3rd party packages, they also contain direct builds from devs...

[@paultapping9510]

oh, I actually didn't know that. There goes my only usecase for flatpak 😂

[@soymadip]

@@paultapping9510 check for dev info in aur page. you will get if its official or not

[@sciencedaemon]

This guy only half knows what he is talking about.

[@goose-lw6js]

this vid should be titled "distro tierlist for flatpack lovers". i feel most of us arch users don't care about flatpack and thats why we ended up mid

[@bogaczew]

still, it contains 3rd party packages.

[@98SE]

Perfect timing for my 2025 New Year's Resolution: NO WINDOWS. My servers, laptops, and Steam Deck are all running Linux, only my main PC is left running Windows now. This is the year I finally go full Linux after 13 years of using Linux daily on secondary machines.

[@fargoththemoonsugarmaniac]

goobers floobers

[@legitt6093]

I feel you, as I was in the same boat 10 years ago. Migrating away from Windows on my main PC (with Windows XP on it) was one of the most burdensome things I ever did. But when I was done I was definitely happier and never looked back ever since.

[@98SE]

@@legitt6093 This is exactly the experience I had with migrating my main laptop (Toshiba Satellite L350-235) to Linux when I was younger. It was painful migrating a non-server to Linux but I was and still am so excited to learn everything lmao, also I am a programmer (but an inexperienced one atm); it took me a few months to get comfortable with linux, but I am so happy I did it, my main laptop now is a ThinkPad T430 running Arch Linux, my server is a Raspberry Pi3B and ThinkPad T480 with 64GB RAM (RPi runs Debian and T480 runs Proxmox with 5x Debian VMs). :D

[@98SE]

@@fargoththemoonsugarmaniac goobers I floobers Arch btw UwU :3

[@Diggy22]

It’s good to see Linux Mint still getting so much love. To be honest, I never needed the flashiest OS, just one that is stable, dependable, and able to run what I need it to. That’s Linux Mint in a nutshell, and I recommend it to EVERYONE who is just getting into Linux.

[@ThePhenoix504FI3D1]

3:04 dn5 not dnf4

[@francoprofeti142]

Saw the whole video expecting to see EndeavourOS. It's not just "Arch with a skin", it's almost pure Arch with its only relevant issue addressed, which is installation and configuration difficulty. If Manjaro which is a little bit polemic is mentioned, then it would be fair to mention Endeavour.

[@RanCham727]

Endeavour is the first distro I've gotten my nvidia laptop to work right. It's awesome I love it. It's arch just a little less painful

[@rasonbryant]

I agree EOS is way better than Manjaro, it just works out the box, great for gaming, access to the AUR. Great community.

[@nawantabahpangestu1973]

It's not Arch. Just like how Steam OS is not Arch Linux.

[@SchlumplesSchlumolomus-u9u]

Yes it is, Nawan, and you damn well know it lmao

[@xnour2]

​@@nawantabahpangestu1973It's literally arch but with a gui installer. I don't even use it as I prefer building from scratch, but even then it's obvious that it's pure arch.

[@carrotmanmatt]

Would be interested to see some opinions on distros like BlendOS, Bazzite, Bluefin, & Aurora

[@freesiu]

true, seems weird he skipped them

[@RenderingUser]

Yea. I was surprised bazzite was skipped

[@youtubelisk]

Why, his opinions are basic enough as it is. If you introduce even more things, it becomes practically useless.

[@vatsalyavashisth9563]

@@RenderingUser its a goddamn reskin ffs

[@Invid72]

@@RenderingUser Yeah, Bazzite would have been a better choice than HoloISO or SteamOS. Don't get me wrong, I like SteamOS on my Steam Deck, but it's not designed for general use beyond a Steam Deck.

[@PenguinByte]

Fedora my beloved

[@РуфатРамазанов-в1э]

Mint my beloved

[@Kiaulen]

Also love Fedora here. It's up to date and still very stable. Mint for my grandparents, Fedora (or Fedora KDE) for me.

[@charles69326]

@@Kiaulen I'm testing Fedora XFCE and I'm really enjoying it, my only problem is having to manually install the nvidia drivers through the terminal

[@ChelseaInSp4ce]

Fedora has really ended up hitting that sweet spot for me. I still use Mint a lot for daily driving (mainly because I'm too lazy to reinstall everything I have on there, it's a mess) but I had a ton of fun exploring Fedora spins this year; KDE, Gnome, i3 until I finally settled on Hyprland on top of the minimal install. Coming from Mint with a very casual user mindset I love how slim and clean I was able to keep this current Fedora install, and I appreciate it being much more up to date than Mint. Unless I wanna do gaming or Unity work I'll always boot into Fedora on my laptop these days.

[@PenguinByte]

@ great to hear! I used Fedora for a year straight and then about a month after that, and a few other times, and it’s by far my favorite distro. Newest packages with decently new base, most stable distro I’ve ever used as well, very secure, well performant, definitely overall the perfect distro in my book! I plan on returning to it in the future.

[@OraOraOra]

Great Tier list, yes Tier List's are kind of a meme, but I like that you put effort in it and give pro and cons! I also like that you started by putting a distro in each tier first, kinda like a baseline. Happy new year!

[@MasterGeekMX]

I have installed VanillaOS on my mom's laptop, and because she isn't a developer or anything technical, but instead she is an elementary school teacher, the immutable nature and background updates makes it a perfect OS for her.

[@umikali222]

Linux mint 22.1 will have a huge redesign of cinnamon. It's gonna look a lot more modern.

[@Nope-gu3ph]

If it does, I'll switch. Right now, it looks so stale out of the box that it can't convince me to switch from GNOME (Ubuntu)

[@umikali222]

@@Nope-gu3ph you can download the 22.1 beta

[@twa9995]

​​@@Nope-gu3phI'd like to hear an opinion on why gnome is good, I've never seen the appeal next to other ones

[@mihairomulus2488]

@@Nope-gu3ph it will

[@RandomGeometryDashStuff]

why does "modern" mean gradientless and T H I C C? just look at buttons in windows xp any theme or qt6 fusion theme buttons and then look at qt6 breeze theme or gtk adwaita theme buttons see the padding in last two most annoying padding is in torrent-file-editor tree view with qt6 breeze theme

[@sash69420]

I have been using mint on my old pc for a while now and the way it works reminds me of windows 7. The best no-nonsense distro for the average user imo.

[@Astroo69]

Bazzite needs to go in the next list

[@impersonator4439]

​@monki_sudo yes it is.

[@Astroo69]

@ still warrants being on the list

[@zorrodk3104]

Yeah, and CaschyOS too

[@mr.alkenly889]

what about chimera, the most popular gaming distro just got skipped

[@draftofspasiba2]

Also EndeavourOS

[@Crackalacking_Z]

The point of Manjaro is, that it's more tested than Arch and so there is less bleeding from the bleeding edge. The AUR isn't officially supported by Manjaro and "use at your own risk". If the user heavily depends on the AUR, then there's the unstable branch, which is more or less the same speed as Arch, but still comes with all the quality of life improvements. I personally enjoy the up-to-date-ness with less drama. I do use the AUR, but only for a few things not critical to my system. The AUR never caused me any issues in 7 years of using Manjaro on various devices.

[@sciencedaemon]

Exactly. This guy previously said in another video that manjaro is not even usable despite so many using it. Been on it for over 3 years with no real problems. Have another computer on it for 2 years, no problems. He is not doing actual testing before he speaks.

[@mytech6779]

I haven't tried Manjaro since the main guy quit and they switched to versioned releases. Did they switch back to rolling?

[@IAmTheSlink]

I don't use Manjaro myself, but I've never understood the reasoning behind its low ranking on list like this one (particularly on this channel). I mean, if it's considered good to use the older Debian base, and pad that out with Flatpak for your software needs, then why is it somehow bad to take the same approach on Manjaro?

[@manfredkernMK]

I only tested Manjaro a bit. But if I would use it, I would first take software from the official repo. Second, I would use flatpacks / snaps and at last I would use the AUR. And about the other problems from Manjaro (e.g. outdated certificates), I think they have learned their lessons. I think, Manjaro makes Arch more accessible. Would I use it as my daily driver? Probably not. I'm more a fanboy of LinuxMint, Ubuntu, Debian - and also Fedora.

[@sciencedaemon]

@@IAmTheSlink it is because this guy in the video had one bad experience with hardware issues or something. He previously claimed it was unusable while at the same time many were using it with no issues, myself included. I laughed when he made that stupid claim. And here he is again with bogus ideas.

[@NekoApril]

19:29 Not only can you use flatpaks on NixOS, there are also projects that let you manage them like you would native packages.

[@NithinMonni]

I'm interested. What are the projects?

[@intermarer9145]

Don't forget to also join Antifa and pay reparations to BLM while you're at it

[@theshowmanuk]

Really like these reviews, very informative and useful. Happy New Year.

[@forest6008]

honestly, while i am biased, nixos should be in top tier, because while the packages are third party, i havent encountered too many broken packages, and when i do, i can always revert to an old version of the package very easily, its learning curve i would say is honestly steeper than arch's though, and the declarativeness is amazing, better than you would think, and the rolebacks are so useful, it takes out all of the fear of experimenting with your configurations. I had no clue about the community drama around nixos so i cant comment on that, but it hasent disrupted anything that ive seen.

[@mr.alkenly889]

I don't think the learning curve for NixOS is as bad as Arch, mainly because it is a once and done thing. Also because there are premade configurations on the nix wiki. For example I could never get the nvidia drivers on my laptop working, nixos is the only distro I have been able to consistently get the drivers working. I also run linux on a 128 GB so I keep running out of space due to files that I misplace so I have to reinstall the system every so often and the config file makes it so easy. I hardly mess with it and it just works. Definitely underrated

[@forest6008]

@@mr.alkenly889 yeah that is true, and thats why i love it, but it took me weeks to work out how to get certain dev tools working, and also how to use nix flakes. Arch i got up and running in a few days.

[@swwox]

I ran arch as my first distro on my old computer and now nixos on my new one and I can say that for me nixos was much harder to get into than arch Edit: tbf I also mean understanding at a reasonable level not just getting something working.

[@Nohrr79]

For me NixOS is top tier since I have several devices that run same rock solid configuration + WSL on my work device and even my shell on Android with nix-on-droid. And if any of my devices die, I can restore the device with NixOS and a backup of my home dir instantly. You can use NixOS like a normal distribution and just define the base packages and install anything else via Flatpaks or define every aspect of the OS and it's configuration down to Firefox or VScodium extentions - it's totally up to you and your knowledge of the nix language. On top of that I can experiment with new software on nix-shell without tainting my system.

[@borisjulinuv2776]

i didnt try flakes but just making my first basic build all inside the configuration.nix took me 2 days it was also my first try at wayland and a tile manager (hyprland) so i would say its a learning curve but its realistic since after that you got your first stable back up you could go back

[@deusexaethera]

Kubuntu with Snap removed and Flatpak installed has met all my needs for years. I have several other distros installed on removable storage, but Kubuntu - Snap + Flatpak is the one I actually use daily. If I couldnt use Kubuntu anymore, I'd probably use vanilla Debian.

[@Home-o2v4h]

What if you do sudo apt install firefox on kubuntu ?

[@cameronbosch1213]

Why not use Tuxedo OS, which has much more up to date KDE packages and a few other niceities?

[@bhargavjitbhuyan9394]

Why do you hate snaps so much? I think they are fine for stuff like ides and other stuff like that like a text editor.

[@electronnuclear]

​@bhargavjitbhuyan9394 probably bcz snaps run in the background and auto-update stuff without your permission.

[@zparihar]

That's what I thought with Vanilla Debian as well so I switched. However, I regret it because they are still on KDE 5.27.5 and not updating to 5.27.11. Too many bugs!

[@writerpatrick]

It's a shame Zorin didn't rank higher. It's newbie friendly but an experienced Linux user might notice weaknesses in it. The company's focus seems to be on the business side of computers and selling services and software. It's possible they're focusing on stability over the latest components.

[@chrisfc200]

I agree with this. I have fully switched from Windows to Zorin and it has been a really positive and smooth experience.

[@SwordsDraw]

I also switched from windows straight to zorin. Apart from the usual.logitch bluetooth moise nightmares that you have with all linux distros, Zorin has been a very pleasant surprise!

[@visthj]

Regarding gaming distros, I'd want to see CachyOS and Bazzite being in the next year's tierlist. There's a ton of people coming out of nowhere that really like them, and a lot of them just appreciate the abscence of problems Windows causes, like bloat, telemetry and how updates and drivers work here. They love Linux just for being lightweight! Pika and Chimera are other options in that space and I've heard good things about them as well, but they're more of a honorable mention alongside Cachy or Bazzite.

[@impersonator4439]

​@monki_sudo that's just a distro bro lmao.

[@John7No]

@@impersonator4439 so? anything in this video is a distro, so they fit in the narrative

[@DDjivan]

@@John7No it seems impersonator4439 was responding to a deleted reply

[@rufuspilula247]

Bazzite OS is definitely my "best of the year" Linux distro. It's as simple to use as Mint and Nobara are, it's based on Fedora Kinoite so it has all the benefits of Fedora, and it has a ton of tweaks that come from SteamOS. So it's basically like a mix of all the best distros on your tier list. I pretty much started recommending it over Mint. (I know it's a gaming OS, but you don't need to be a "gamer" to appreciate an OS that's all set up for your average user and is super easy to use. For people that just don't want to have Steam and Waydroid pre-installed they provide AuroraOS)

[@BenjaminWheeler0510]

Isn’t bazzite just aurora + steam auto-installed?

[@chucklesdeclown8819]

bazzite has become my home pc OS for the time being. i'm basically doing the "using linux for 30 days" challenge but really i'm planning on it becoming my main os. i've definitely been thinking about messing around with other distros though like i'm already planning on setting up a gpu passthrough vm using looking glass(for applications that only run on windows) i'm planning on installing and using a backup software called pika backup already got vr up and running with ALVR and since pipewire has become standard on most linux distros the only thing i had problems with was figuring out i already had pipewire in the first place. its been great, few hickups here and there. not knowing flatpak gave you everything i need to have an application work from the start have caused me to go down their respective holes on how to get a game that needed dotnet 7 drivers to work took me a while but i found a solution by using koji only to find out the game had a flatpak and flatpaks do what they do but i figured it was a good thing to know anyway because any alternative method for having things work and work well is always nice and if i run into a game that needs dotnet 7 proper(and it doesnt have a respective package) in the future i know what to do(this time through a distrobox).

[@DDjivan]

​@@BenjaminWheeler0510 more like aurora is bazzite with less features (steam, lutris, wallpaper engine plugin, waydroid...) and a worse documentation

[@rufuspilula247]

@@BenjaminWheeler0510 It's made by the same people, so in theory it is. But, in practice Aurora is just a worse Bazzite. Bazzite has Waydroid, which is a huge plus considering Windows 11 also brags about it's Android app compatibility. It has the "welcome screen" where you can install some extra apps, plugins, utilites, etc. when you boot it the first time. Which is always a huge plus, especially for new users. It also seems to have more compatibility and performance patches, especially for gaming. Bazzite definitely feels like their flagship distro, while Aurora is just a stripped out version of it. Aurora seems to be more focued on being a system for software developers, while Bazzite is meant to be an every-day use distro. (I know there's a non-dev version of Aurora, but it's almost pointless when you can just use Bazzite instead)

[@CallsignEskimo-l3o]

While it's not the best judge of distro popularity, there is a reason MX Linux is consistently at the top of the DistroWatch ranking list. The ability to easily create a backup bootable disc of your entire system is very appealing. No other distro offers this so effortlessly.

[@fowlerfreak7420]

It's been at the top of the list for years because of view bots. I don't know why that's the case exactly, but there's a reason you don't find nearly as many people online using MX Linux compared to its ranking.

[@pedrohqb]

@@fowlerfreak7420 No one proved that and I doubt it is true.

[@Albert-gm9so]

Fedora is just awesome. Recently switched to universal blue images and I love it even more.

[@KeyT3ch]

You really should give CachyOS a try!!

[@PrinceOfPickles]

Bumping this up. Have been using CachyOS as my main OS for more than a month and it has been solid.

[@pl2040]

Pikaos is similar to cachy but deb sid. Optomized the same on the kernal level. But benefits from package testing and not being on ubuntu. They have a great repo that makes it easy to install cosmic and hyperland

[@revanisalive]

cachyos is really good. very easy to install and use. the gaming-meta package is awesome for installing steam, lutris, wine etc

[@sebastiangonzales46]

Been using it for 6 months now, pretty solid distro

[@subhadeepjasu292]

Definitely the first video of 2025. Also happy new year!!!

[@alinayreez2492]

as a newby in linux who didn't know a single distro or what in the world is flatpak or .deb, i am now daily driving linux on my only, old laptop. the motivation was to get a better over all experience sync things weren't smooth on windows 10 anymore. now i am running Ubuntu desktop on linux mint Wilma and im happy.

[@temari2860]

I do like snaps more in terms of technical design. And for the fact that snaps can package anything, not just graphical apps, including desktops and drivers. However everything I dislike about snaps are just Canonical decisions like not making them more open, or the genius decision to have the snap directory be visible in user's home directory even tho it's not meant to be interacted with directly.

[@temari2860]

And regarding Ubuntu itself, I don't know why but somehow it is literally the only one of the big distros that I keep having constant and serious problems with whenever I try it, for the past 2 years or so. I mean issues like the entire desktop randomly crashing, wifi device randomly stops being recognized, sound stops working. Haven't had this amount of issues with any other distro for years.

[@bhargavjitbhuyan9394]

​@@temari2860 my issue with the current version of Ubuntu (24.10) is that it uses 512MB more ram for reserve than any other distro. Why?! Other distros let me use ~7718mb/8GB but Ubuntu lets me use only 7206 of ram. I want this fixed.

[@zombieguy]

Snaps are legit the only system I've not had huge underlying issues with. The Linux community really needs to stop throwing hissy fits over developers wanting any level of ownership when there are so many other alternatives.

[@offbeat-human]

Happy new year!

[@codeman99-dev]

13:49 To be clear, you mean that Pop!_OS is outdated in Gnome only, correct? Everything else feels up-to-date and solid. I think I have Kernel 6.10 right now? Flathub applications is fine. Just want to make sure I'm on the same page here.

[@savagepro9060]

I will never forget my very FIRST introduction into the Linux realm . . . Mandrake Linux 8.1 "Vitamin". Still have my original CDs!

[@YehonatanHarush]

You forgot about Arch based distro’s Like EndeavourOS \ CachyOS. They ranked at the top at DistroWatch.

[@Cyco_Nix]

He only puts ones he has tried or played around with. He should try them for sure.

[@sciencedaemon]

That's because his rankings are bogus, based on his limited experience and feelings.

[@AiMimi-Lunix]

​@@sciencedaemonlike every other tierlist

[@CodeGoblinsDev]

@@sciencedaemon Its ragebait, its such a shit list

[@LinuxGamingChronicles]

I'd like to see your take on PikaOS 4, CachyOS and Bazzite

[@veronicathecow]

Tried half of these and others as well but I always come back to PCLinuxOS for reliability and for ease of use. 01:26 Ubuntu 02:43 Fedora 03:49 KDE Neon 04:50 MX Linux 06:03 Deepin 07:22 elementaryOS 08:36 Linux Mint 09:39 Arch Linux 11:18 Tuxedo OS 12:38 Debian 13:39 PopOS 15:19 OpenSUSE 16:31 Gentoo 17:35 Manjaro 18:23 NixOS 19:54 Gaming distros 20:45 Vanilla OS 21:40 Others 24:36 Sponsor: Tuxedo Computers 25:14 Support the channel

[@HAVOCSTUDIOS]

Could you please test Parrot OS and Mabox OS? Happy New Year!!! 🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷

[@TheLonelyMoon]

Switched to Linux last summer, about half a year now. From Fedora to Nix to Arch. Arch had a learning curve but it's my favorite distro currently. Arch is amazing but it's not the distro for everyone. Installing Arch with BTRFS as a newbie was tough lol And Arch updates have been amazing this year imo

[@revanisalive]

all roads lead to Arch

[@herrspitz6964]

Congrats to install arch with btrfs. Do you use grub-btrfs? I use the same setup and it always saves my day if something gone very very bad.

[@cjpgconman]

What's your French Warhammer channel?? I've been learning French for a few years, and enjoy Warhammer, so this would be a great addition for me to listen to help with my French

[@sub-harmonik]

So why put mx-linux in average but debian in good? does it not have the same flatpak support? I use an older version of mx-linux and I mainly like it because it makes configuration easier with all the built-in tools. I don't really need the most up-to-date packages usually, and when I do I build them from source if they're not in the backports

[@davidloewi5530]

Came here to say exactly this. Making Debian Stable "good" and MX "average" doesn't make a lot of sense. MX _is_ just Debian Stable _plus_ useful tools, plus backports, and plus flatpaks, all by default. 100% compatible with Debian repos. I love (even though I don't even use it much myself, except on my wife's machine!)

[@vladimir_fomin90]

Manjaro is my favorite distro, I've had the least problems with it.

[@danytalksmusic]

Love to see such an honest tier list! I'm impressed you keep up with the latest news from so many distros because many other reviewers have outdated opinions and clear biases in one way or another. I also liked that you rank some distros as "no thanks" rather than saying "bad" or "trash tier", because you're not necessarily saying they are terrible, but maybe they just don't suit your personal needs and there's better options out there. Keep up the good work!

[@middle_pickup]

Before I ask you to rate Kubuntu perhaps I should ask if the rated on this list for Ubuntu translates for the same spot on the list for the KDE spin. I'm new to the Linux community, and I've been using Kubuntu 24.04 since August. Seems pretty good to me. Just wondered what your thoughts are.

[@setaindustries]

Interestingly enough I've been having a lot of regressions with Fedora, from not being able to resize GTK4 apps to nasty graphical glitches using an AMD GPU to the screen rotation completely breaking on my 2in1. All of these bugs were not present in previous versions and only recently have they showed up. It's almost like they're not careful enough when updating certain subsystems.

[@gronki1]

I switched from Fedora to Opensuse Tumbleweed after 8 years. So far i feel the experience is more polished and stable. But it has only been 2 months.

[@vasilis97]

Re: Gentoo, I would place it next to Arch, because it is very user and developer-programmer centric. It's not meant to be used by a newbie user and in no case I would recommend it for such a use case. Its pros is not the optimization ability to produce faster programs, but the USE flags. You can strip out features that you are surely would not use (thus reducting the attack surface and size) and the consequence of this is that you have to compile each package. In the process you are able to optimize the compiled executable, but this is not what it was meant for. Granted, as a rolling, source-based distro it requires time from you, but when you get the hang of it, this time is relatively minimal (excluding the compile times). Besides for desktop use, I use it in my server too and it works just fine. Just my 2 cents.

[@bakuai]

In 2025, I hope you try the uBlue distros: Bazzite for gaming, Bluefin for a Gnome workstation, and Aurora for a KDE workstation. I personally really like Bluefin. Thanks for always making such great content!

[@impersonator4439]

​@monki_sudo then Nobara linux isn't a distro either. You're completely wrong.

[@impersonator4439]

​@monki_sudo then Nobara linux isn't a distro either? You're completely wrong dude and stop spamming the same answer.

[@Albert-gm9so]

Been using Silverblue for almost 2 years and recently switched to uBlue images. Running right now Bazzite GNOME on desktop and I love it.

[@simpilotadamt1012]

KDE Neon isn't necessarily meant to be a full on distro in its own right, more supposed to be used as a testing ground.

[@kevadu]

I use Manjaro and I don't even touch AURs. I've found it to be a very easy-to-use, reliable, and up-to-date distro. I think you're too hung up on the AUR thing, which were always optional and not recommended.

[@alex_pnw]

I appreciate this review and your other videos. I am curious though as to why there was no review of more privacy focused operating systems such as Qubes or PureOS. I’m using Qubes as my daily driver for over 6 months now on my desktop and the only gripe is some pkgs are difficult -> impossible to install in app Qubes. Since rebuilding my entire home office this past year, I didn’t make time to give PureOS a good spin. I look forward to your feedback on these OS’s in the future 🙏

[@davidkachel]

I just tried, several times, to install Fedora on a second drive. I finally removed the drive. Not a good experience at all. The remaining drive has KDE Neon on it and has for some time. Never a problem of any kind. When Nick tells me that Fedora is better, I believe he must have valid reasons for thinking so, but Fedora definitely does NOT make a good first impression and that is what is lacking in most distros.

[@doigt6590]

Yeah, he's really exaggerating the supposed downsides of KDE Neon

[@ReflexVE]

Weird, Fedora installed fine on a second drive for me, two NVMe drives, one with Windows, one with Fedora 38, after a year like that I ended up deleting Windows as I wasn't booting it anymore.

[@doigt6590]

@@ReflexVE it's not that weird. That's pretty much how all linux problems are. That's why distro reviewers tend to try multiple different pcs just in case

[@davidkachel]

@@ReflexVE I just finished spending a couple hours trying again with a different computer and different drive. I finally got it installed but it was not easy... then I realized I can't use it at all. I must have X11 and Fedora no longer provides it as an option. Oh well, not the most time I ever wasted.

[@davidkachel]

@@doigt6590 I don't know about that. I have trusted Nick's advice for some time. I think the problem is just that Fedora needs to work on their installer. It's not very smooth or clear.

[@eyesharp]

I used Kubuntu when i started out with Linux a couple of years ago, had some strange issues here and there. I got frustrated with having to wait for the Plasma updates. So I switched to Neon just to try it out. Except for the update to the new LTS that had some "issues" let say. Everything has been working great for me. Am I the exception?

[@DanielBull]

No you're not on your own. I've been using Neon as my daily driver for years now along with quite a few other people I know. Sure it does have the odd issue now and again but to be honest every Linux distribution I've used has, the issues always get fixed pretty quick though and the guys running it are quick and responsive and supportive.

[@Lampe2020]

I switched from Ubuntu to Fedora a few months ago and honestly I'm happy I did. Snaps are no longer forced onto me and even though I have to manually add some proprietary stuff and some things break due to my home folder being 1:1-copied from my Ubuntu install, I like the overall experience.

[@TriopsGalaxy]

Good video. Happy New Year! 🎉

[@Slugbunny]

Happy new year! What a perfect starter for a fresh one. 🤩

[@CreepToeJoe]

I'm starting to get more and more interested in openSUSE.

[@teropaavonen1543]

I think your assessment of Manjaro is unfair. Manjaro is stable and always remains updated. I think Manjaro is the best rolling release distro. I have 5 computers on which I have Manjaro installed and used for more than 2 years without problems. I think Manjaro has a clear mission as an easy-to-use and constantly updated distro. Manjaro is also really easy to install. The choices and interface during installation are really easy to understand. I use AUR packages only when there are no options.

[@manfredkernMK]

I like your statement. But I would put SUSE Tumbeweed and Fedora at the same level in terms of stabiltty. "Bleeding", but not too much.

[@franklehmann3785]

Would appreciate if you could do an explainer on the differences between the "main" distros like debian, ubuntu (including kubuntu, xubuntu etc.), Fedora, Arch and all the derived stuff like Mint, Neon, Pop!OS, Manjaro etc. I have the impression that most Linux newbies don't really get this important difference. IMO all the derived distros get way too much attention as it rarely makes any sense to use these: They typically use quite old base-lines like (ubuntu LTS) and mostly only play around with the look&feel and/or the desktop selection (which you can also do when just using the "main" distros) . On the other hand the fact that you can use the "main" distros with a different than their default desktop gets no attention at all. E.g. where in your distro ranking is kubuntu or xubuntu or Fedora with KDE instead of Gnome? A newbie looking at this will most likely not know/learn that these options exist. I would always recommend to use something like kubuntu (with removed snaps) over stuff like Mint or Neon, as you still access the "real" ubuntu repos and you can get updates every 6 months and do not have to wait for Mint or Neon to re-base to the latest ubuntu LTS.

[@seanaldridgefrancisco8736]

I have definitely been enjoying daily driving Mint for about 5 months by now. It feels much snappier compared to windows and is also lighter on resources.

[@arnonart]

i'm not a computer expert and i run manjaro now for 4 years. actually the system iäm writing the comments on is 4 years old, nearly five and works great. i do install from the AUR and sometimes it doesn't install. so the worst case scenario is that the update is lingering for a while till the rest of the packages are updated. i can live with that. the biggest advantage is that you can find everything, and i mean everything in the AUR or git versions straight from pamac.

[@AnEagle]

i think honestly, no one uses gentoo for the extra performance. You use it for control. it allows you to keep a really stable core, while updating some stuff to be more cutting edge. I used it for a while, before hyprland was on fedora, because I don't really like arch and it's constant updating. It was the only way to keep hyprland and mesa up to date while keeping a relatively slow update cycle (gentoo is comparable to debian by default)

[@rowancat4680]

As a gentoo user this is accurate. Stability is king

[@vincentschumann937]

gentoo is the only linux distro that never borked itself for me, and their handbook is great

[@0x6a09]

the extra performance comes as a good bonus, probably, doesn't it?

[@AnEagle]

@0x6a09 honestly, never noticed it at all, so I couldn't care less What I did notice though, is the power off time, but that probably comes from the setup being more minimalistic

[@leftbas65]

I was on Denial 12 Stable for almost a year before I started suffering from FOMO. I did some research and decided to try the Testing branch and I'm really glad I did. My laptop is still super stable, but now I get to enjoy the 6.12 kernel and Gnome 47.2. I'm curious what you think of the difference if you were to test it out.

[@volodd]

Be aware that in the spring/summer, there will be a freeze for testing Debian (before next stable release). In that time there will be almost no security updates, only really urgent one if any. This is the main disadvantage of testing. The freeze can take even months, there is no clear rule how long can it take.

[@leftbas65]

@volodd thanks for the reminder. As it is, updates normally drop every couple of days, so the break might be welcome and it'll be fun to watch the uptime grow LOL

[@leftbas65]

@volodd thanks for the reminder. As it is, updates normally drop every couple of days, so the break might be welcome and it'll be fun to watch the uptime grow LOL

[@dan.devine]

CachyOS is definitely worth a look!

[@richd6362]

Thank you for the ranking. Happy New Year!

[@morningsage5673]

I run Mac and can’t wait for asahi to get a bit better. It’s not usable for a daily driver yet, but the work of reverse engineering is pretty amazing and the whole thing looks promising.

[@demirmahir]

I wanted to like Fedora, but it's such a PIA to install it with an Nvidia card, so getting issues from the beggining is a no-go for me. I could not even get to a point where I could deal with the driver issues. I'm running Mint Debian Edition now and it just works. pop_os is unfortunatelly unusable at this point since it's beyond neglected and untill it gets to a usable state with the COSMIC it will be couple of years at least. I really don't see the reason behind them going all in on a new DE.

[@RicketyEdge2326]

LMDE is the most issue free distro I've touched, the only one where nearly everything just worked.

[@wilf1312]

I'm in a similar situation, though I'm just running Debian Stable. Not something I would have considered before but it works perfectly well and I love the fact I don't have big updates almost every day. Backports and Flatpak are more than enough for me if I want recent versions of software.

[@mmstick]

Pop!_OS is actively maintained and updated. Calling it unusable or neglected is hyperbolic.

[@rick_mars3599]

I don't know if you've already tried it, but Guix is ​​an interesting proposal, it's a "fork" of NixOS that took its own path years ago and offers the same features, basically a declarable configuration but with a strong philosophy of only having FOSS packages, I don't know if it's interesting for you, if you're even going to try it, but it seems less like a curious and somewhat unique distro

[@Rubberduck505]

You should try siduction! Its a really interesting mix between new packages and the very stable debian base.

[@somegeezer4058]

It's based on sid which isn't stable.

[@DrathVader]

This might be the silliest reason to distrohop, but recently the fonts on fedora started to look really blurry. I thought it's my eyes but Ubuntu looks perfectly sharp.

[@Steel0079]

I have noticed that too after increasing scaling on my 14 inch 2k resolution laptop

[@Fitz557]

I'm kind of a newbie with Linux, but for more than a year now, Steam OS is my main distro, since my computer died and my steam deck is my only computer, so even in desktop mode. And for a normal user, honestly it's great. I find it easy, I could install everything I needed, and I never felt limited. Except for the fact that you can't use a printer with it. It's a super weird thing, that makes you feel like you're not a real computer. But apart from that, I really can't complain.

[@SalisburyKarateClub]

What's your issue with printers, I've had a few issues but managed to work through them. I might be able to point you in the right direction. I've found HP printers to be the easiest to configure. My 2 printers are on a network, that was a challenge with a Brother printer, but got them both working

[@Imevul]

I like flatpak, but I have multiple times run into issues specifically because I had the flatpak version of the software. Spent several days trying to get global keybinds to work for discord, several days trying to get modded games to work in steam, etc... And after switching to the .deb version, everything just worked immediately. Generally now, I prefer to use native versions if available, but I fear with the proliferation of flatpak, there might be a trend towards just providing flatpak versions. I use Zorin, but I definitely agree that it could benefit from some faster updates.

[@CasanovaLucas]

2024 I changed from Ubuntu to Fedora due to "Root low space" problem that Canonical cant solve. I must say, Fedora is pretty good!

[@kkb-graph]

Thanks for the review. I interact regularly with Ubuntu and Fedora distros only, so it is useful to watch other distros comparison and evaluation periodically) Also, it would be great to watch a video from you about distros for a home server (NAS, virtualization/containerization, Media center): what distros are popular and what do they offer? Which would you recommend for what use cases?

[@doink_v]

I’d argue Bazzite is superior to Nobara and SteamOS. It has much better support for gaming handhelds and significantly easier to get started. Immutable too, so it’s hard to mess up. The GNOME version is better IMO, I’m sick of KDE’s constant jank.

[@impersonator4439]

​@monki_sudo yes it is dummy. Nobara Linux is a distro according to you and that's also fedora.

[@michaellearningstuff7732]

I'm not sure if someoone mentioned Bazzite, but I'd love to see your reveiw in about 5-6 months because there's plenty of reveiws now and we might need to see its development over time

[@gastongmartinez1977]

You should try Void Linux, it's the best experience I've had on a rolling distro

[@D6Soldier]

It's a shame there no mention of void... Considering it's built from the ground up and is not just a reskinned flavour

[@professorateu]

Have you ever tested Regata OS? I have used it for a while and I had a good time with it.

[@JaegerDives]

Linux Mint on 7 computers in the house and 2 at the office in an enterprise environment under the radar of IT. I haven't had a reason to change especially with Chrome, edge and web apps plus OpenOffice.

[@jluquer]

I’d love to hear a review of Debian Testing and Sid. Currently, I use Fedora on my personal laptop and Ubuntu LTS for work. I’m considering trying Debian Testing as my new daily driver for both. Both can be great options for rolling release fans. Sid is more cutting-edge but comes with more instability, offering an experience similar to Arch but within the Debian ecosystem. On the other hand, Debian Testing seems like a solid choice, offering a good balance of new features and stability, with less risk of major breakages. Plus, it’s the base for Kali Linux, which speaks to its reliability. If any of you use Debian Testing or Sid, it would be great to hear your thoughts!

[@kote315]

...Speaking about AUR, by the way. There is a DAW called Zrythm, which has a very interesting distribution model. It is open-source software, but you have to pay if you want to get a compiled, ready-to-install version. Of course you can build it yourself from the source, but it's pretty complicated... unless some good guy wrote a script that does it automatically for you. So yes, you can install it from AUR.

[@NovaDragonWatches]

Its the same case for Aseprite, popular sprite editor

[@jcugnoni]

A video on MxLinux would be cool. From my tests, it works pretty well on low end machines and for some users, disk space is actually an issue with the new diatria that rely a lot on flatpak or snap (whose runtime take a lot of space).

[@oooooooooooooooooo709]

Fedora user here 👌What an awesome distribution ✨ It's a top notch experience out of the box and dnf is an amazing package manager.

[@Kugelteam]

How stable is it?

[@bhargavjitbhuyan9394]

Fedora's WINE (windows compatibility layer) package is bad.

[@_BeastRein]

@bhargavjitbhuyan9394 i've personally never had issues with fedora WINE (Wine Is Not an Emulaor), what things were bad for you with it?

[@VoidyWay]

​@bhargavjitbhuyan9394 why?

[@ybcanal21]

Happy New Year ! You may try/review Cachy OS and Blend OS in 2025.

[@ua_andrew_ca]

I disagree with Manjaro's judgement. It's a solid distro and definitely better than Elementary and Tuxedo.

[@valga_la_rebuznancia]

Not enough subs for the value this channel provides. keep it up man!💪🏽

[@myhappyabby]

I think the fact Fedora has really taken off as a rolling release as well as a respectable base for ASAHI, ARM, and RISCV

[@unkn0ws]

We urgently need the development of Anti-Cheats for online games for Linux, until the end of support for Windows 10, and we will certainly see a sharp increase in users migrating to Linux! 📈 I'm one of those cases, I much prefer Linux to Windows, however, I need to have Windows to play games/platforms that require Anti-Cheat... 😩

[@zyanide]

You compare distros based on features and use cases. However, when (ordinary) people install an OS, they don’t wanna reinstall and migrate their data every 6-12 months. (I used to, but I don’t have time for that anymore.) You should also compare the upgradability and patches as well. It would make sense for those who really wanna work on Linux, not just to try it out.

[@AlucardNoir]

As a Manjaro user that doesn't use the AUR, the point of Manjaro is that it's rolling, easy to use - unlike arch, sorry, but I rarely need to use the command line on Manjaro - and comes with proprietary drivers - unlike say Open SUSE Tumbleweed or Fedora. I'm a computer user, not a linux user. My OS is there to be the interface between the programs I use and the hardware I have. Arch wants me to be a Linux user first and foremost, Tumbleweed wants me to only use hardware made by certain manufacturers, most point release distros want me to always use hardware that's a few months out of date and drivers that are always out of date. Honestly, Manjaro is the best Windows replacer distro out there. IF you want a linux distro that can take the place of Windwos, and which won't require you change your habits all that much, Manjaro is the way to go. Arch, Void and Gentoo are great if you want to learn linux from a birds aye view, but they're not good things to replace windows or mac with - at least not for the normal computer user, not even for the regular techie. Point release distros are a completely different parading that either Mac or Windows, and corporate rolling distros like Thumbelweed are not end user friendly with their open source only approach to drivers and software. If you want to talk about an Arch distro that serves no purpose, EndevourOS is one.

[@tbkswagg]

I tried out every fkn distro imaginable over the many years Ive been using Gnu/linux. EndeavourOS gave me the least amount of headaches with all the benefits of Arch. As a second, I used Manjaro the most. I had some huge problems with it a few years ago (dont remember what) and I switched to endeavouros with Gnome. Xubuntu, Manjaro, EndeavourOS and Void Linux are the all time best distros imo.

[@evans-uu5wm]

Happy new year Nick! Please make a review of EndeavourOS

[@laletemanolete]

Mint 'til death

[@referralacc1033]

Mint is good but you are missing out on so many amazing features which KDE gives. It makes life so easier.

[@foss_sound]

@@referralacc1033KDE is a nightmare for usability. But it is definetely the DE with most features and customizability.

[@referralacc1033]

@foss_sound can you explain how its a nightmare ? Even If you keep it just default its one of the best DE, and when you want to customize its the Most customizable DE.

[@sciencedaemon]

RIP

[@CoolyCools]

​@@referralacc1033kde is too heavy for liking compared to cinnamon which only uses 5% of my pentium cpu

[@MrLazini]

great vid ! what about clear linux ? any thoughts ?

[@ClintEastwood8484]

Agree in pretty much everyrhing. Just think it was a little harsh on Zorin. Having out of the box deb, flatpack and snaps ys great, it looks good and its on 6.8, which is not bleading edge but its just fine. Happy new year from Argentina!

[@Cobinja]

What I don't like about dnf4 on Fedora is how they present updates in the terminal. Every item takes two lines, even on a 4K display in a maximized terminal window. I'd rather have the same amount of info on one line. There is anough horizontal space available.

[@OrkhanJulfa]

Putting Manjaro to "No thanks" is very unfair for me. I am new in Linux and using it less than a year. Tested Kubuntu, Fedora, Neon, Nobara but only Manjaro and EndeavourOS worked for me. I'm graphic designer, animator and hobbies game developer. Couldn't install latest drivers for nVidia on Kubuntu and Fedora. So-called game ready Nobara was too buggy and unstable and most outrageous thing with it was not ability to properly launch some older games (for instance Skyrim) on Steam I easily launched on Manjaro. Also Unity Hub from AUR can be easily installed on Manjaro. So I can say if are newbie like me and need Linux for Multimedia and Gaming with ability to install freshly updated software version from repositories - Manjaro and EndeavourOS are best. I think all these Ubuntu kind OS are good for experienced users, servers or just simple internet browsing.

[@SimpleLife881]

It's a very informative videos. Thanks for this Linux os review...... could you please do a review of Emmabuntus Linux OS. I find it at par with mint....

[@Marshall1914]

I love LMDE.

[@longrolstral]

I've been using Manjaro for several years. I had one problem after an update because I stopped the process part way through. Other than that, coding, office stuff, video and photo editing, and gaming all work fine.