The 7 Best Windows Text HTML Editors

Use these editors to design web pages and apps

By
Jennifer Kyrnin
Jennifer Kyrnin
Freelance Contributor
  • University of California
  • University of Washington
Jennifer Kyrnin is a professional web developer who assists others in learning web design, HTML, CSS, and XML.
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Updated on June 11, 2021

Text editors are HTML editors that allow you to manipulate HTML tags directly. Some HTML text editors also include a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor, while others are purely text. We reviewed over 130 web editors for Windows against over 40 criteria relevant to professional web designers and developers.

Following are the seven best text web editors for Windows.

01
of 07

Adobe Dreamweaver

Adobe Dreamweaver

Adobe
What We Like

  • Program in JSP, XHTML, PHP, and XML.

  • Powerful and versatile.

  • WYSIWYG editor is excellent.

  • Trial period available.

What We Don't Like

  • Expensive.

  • Overkill for non-professional website designers.

Dreamweaver is the most popular professional web development software package available. It comes with a powerful WYSIWYG editor and expertly manages JSP, HTML, PHP, CSS, JavaScript, and XML development. Dreamweaver is a good choice for professional and beginner web designers as you can design visually or with code.

Dreamweaver CC is available as part of Adobe's Creative Cloud for a monthly or yearly fee.

02
of 07

Komodo IDE

The Komodo Edit logo

ActiveState
What We Like

  • Supports many languages beyond HTML.

  • Add more languages through plug-ins.

What We Don't Like

  • Lacks WYSIWYG for HTML.

  • The free version is basic.

Komodo IDE is a great tool for developers who are building more than web pages. It supports a variety of languages, including Ruby, Rails, PHP, and more. If you're building Ajax web applications, you should take a look at this IDE. It is also great for teams, as there is a lot of collaboration support built into the IDE.

03
of 07

Aptana Studio

Aptana Studio 3 Download Page
What We Like

  • Makes it easy to visualize the DOM.

  • Good for web application development.

What We Don't Like

  • Heavy system resource consumption.

  • Preferences and workbench setup can be cumbersome at first.

Aptana Studio is an interesting take on web page development. Instead of focusing on HTML, Aptana focuses on JavaScript and the other elements that allow you to create Rich Internet Applications (RIA). One of the things we really like is the outline view that makes it easy to visualize the Document Object Model (DOM). This makes for easier CSS and JavaScript development. If you're a developer creating web applications, Aptana Studio is a good choice.

04
of 07

NetBeans

NetBeans home page
What We Like

  • Version control functionality.

  • Great for Java development.

What We Don't Like

  • Substantial learning curve for new users.

  • User interface is inferior to others.

NetBeans IDE is a Java IDE that can help you build robust web applications. Like most IDEs, it has a steep learning curve because they don't often work in the same way that web editors do. But once you get used to it, you'll be hooked. One nice feature is the version control included in the IDE which is useful for people working in large development environments. If you write Java and web pages, this is a great tool.

05
of 07

NetObjects Fusion

NetObjects Fusion mx

Amazon
What We Like

  • Intuitive interface is easy to learn.

  • Built-in SEO support.

What We Don't Like

  • Features tend to be mundane.

  • Lacks hosting capabilities.

Fusion is a powerful HTML editor. It combines all the tasks you need to get your website up and running, including development, design, and FTP. Plus you can add special features to your pages like captchas on forms and e-commerce support. It also has support for Ajax and dynamic websites. There is even SEO support built in.

If you’re not sure if you want Fusion, try the free version, NetObjects Fusion Essentials.

06
of 07

CoffeeCup HTML Editor

The logo for CoffeeCup Free HTML Editor.

CoffeeCup
What We Like

  • Affordable price.

  • One-time purchase comes with free updates for life.

What We Don't Like

  • Not as powerful as other editors.

  • Can be frustrating for beginners.

CoffeeCup software does a great job of providing what their customers want for a low price. The CoffeeCup HTML editor is a great tool for web designers. It comes with lots of graphics, templates, and extra features like the CoffeeCup image mapper. And we found that if you request a feature, they will add it or create a new tool to take care of it. Plus, once you purchase CoffeeCup HTML editor, you get free updates for life.

07
of 07

Notepad++

Notepad++
What We Like

  • Auto-completes text as you write.

  • Tabbed interface.

  • Syntax, highlighting, and plug-in features.

  • Portable version available.

What We Don't Like

  • Aesthetically unappealing interface.

Made especially to work with Windows, Notepad++ is an excellent HTML editor for beginners who need a text file viewer or editor with advanced features. Several documents can remain open at the same time, while displaying at the top of Notepad++ as tabs. Notepad++ can also open almost any file as a text document, and you can save documents in a range of formats, including HTML.

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