12 Best LaTex Editors for Windows & Mac in 2021

Discover the Best LaTex Editors Software that works with Windows, Mac, and Linux: Unless you are from academia with the experience of writing elaborate technical articles and research papers, it is unlikely that you are familiar with the .tex file extension. We are mostly acquainted with Microsoft Word and similar text editors for document typing and editing experience. They target the general audience and standard word processing utility. LaTex editors are a bit different in their formatting and functionality.

LaTex is not another word processor

Move over the standard text editing features of Word because LaTex offers you a high-quality typesetting application to prepare documents, primarily scientific and technical papers. It bears a resemblance to HTML as both follow markup-level instructions for formatting. Research and academics involve mathematical equations and symbols that often fall outside the purview of standard word formatting editors. Hence, LaTex Editors have gained traction in the publication domain.

LaTex Editors mainly focus on the structure and arrangement of a document. Hence, they attract document designers more than just writers. An average writer will use a different font or text style for the headings and another for the body for readability.  

LaTeX conveys more about the document in a structured fashion. It wraps the text into a specific design for the output text document. Readability increases with a clean and minimal appearance.

Features of LaTex Editors

• Typesetting technical reports, books, and journal articles
• Typesetting of mathematical formulae and notations
• Designing documents with more sectioning, cross-references, tables, and figures
• Citation management
• Managing internal references
• Auto-generating the format for bibliographies and indices
• Conversion to other file formats
• Customization using colors, themes, and artworks

The Best LaTex Editors Software

LaTex Editors have become critical in the age of digital documentation. We crave advanced typesetting and text editing features with several competitive software popping up in the market.

Here are 12 best LaTeX editors that need your attention:

TeXmaker

TeXmaker is easily the most recognizable free LaTex Editors out there, loved and well-rated by its users. It is open-source and available for installation across all leading platforms. It also packs all the essential features for LaTex editing in an easy to navigate, minimal user interface. The package comes with Unicode support and an integrated PDF viewer for faster previewing and navigation.

Features

• Users can insert tables, notations, cross-references, equations, images, and footnotes seamlessly from the configuration window.
• The QuickStart window provides access to the in-built spell checkers and layout settings.
• Structure View allows users to view and edit multiple documents in different sections, each labeled for more readability and organization.
• Search for texts in folders and subfolders directly with the file explorer.
• It also allows t compile and save the document in different formats like PDF, HTML, or ODF file.
• Compile your code conveniently while tracking and correcting all the errors before extracting it
• Capable of detecting and reporting errors and warning automatically
• Create small-scale documents quickly with the auto-generation wizard

Download here: https://www.xm1math.net/texmaker/

System Support: Windows, Mac, and Linux

Overleaf

Contrary to TeXmaker, Overleaf is a cloud-based LaTex editing solution you can access through your web browser. Yet, it is a powerful LaTex editing suite with the scope to add symbols, equations, images, and bibliographies for a comprehensive academic paper publishing experience. Moreover, Overleaf stands out for its collaboration abilities and file-sharing options. The license is free for a single collaborator with monthly pricing options based on the scaling of users. It costs $15 per month for ten collaborators and $30 a month for unlimited accessors.

Features

• Massive collection of ready-to-use professional templates to quickly start preparing standard documents, including lab reports, resumes, cover letters, thesis, etc.
• Collaborate and share information with team members in real-time to prepare academic and technical documents.
• Users can preview the final typeset output in real-time.
• Audit trails help you track changes and comments in the document.
• Error control and Notation support make learning and navigation easier for users transitioning from other competitive LaTex editors.
• Includes an optimized compiler that can debug the code and report errors and warnings efficiently
• It is web-based, so the program does not reside on your local disk.

Website: https://www.overleaf.com/

LaTex Base

Like Overleaf, LaTex Base is another web-based LaTex editor that lets you write code while it compiles automatically. You can access the editor remotely from any device. It supports most of the core functionality of LaTex editors, where you can create technical papers and academic documents seamlessly. The free version includes editing and sharing features. You can expand its functionality with a $4.99 Premium upgrade or a $3.99 Student one.

Features

• Syntax highlighting
• The Premium and Student versions support integration with Google Drive and Dropbox for storage
• You can share and publish documents with the click of a button
• The in-built compiler debugs your code while you type, saving time and posting errors and warnings in real-time
• You can use LaTex offline for editing

Website: https://latexbase.com/

LyX

LyX gained popularity as a LaTex Editors owing to its interactive GUI for editing and configuration. It is minimal with modern features that set it apart from its competitors. You can add and edit text, images, notation, equations, formulae, symbols, graphs, and tables in a single place. It is the preferred editor for mathematical papers as it includes a library of algorithms, equations, and theorems. With LyX, you can also edit novels and scripts, making it a versatile document processor.

Features

• Open-source and beginner-friendly
• Automatic indexing is an exclusive LyX feature
• The integrated equation editor and reference indexing makes documenting easier
• Supports floating-point numbers and tables
• Users can drag and drop advanced mathematical equations to include them in text and edit them in place
• Create bibliographies conveniently with BibTeX
• Multilingual support
• Includes a spell-checker and PDF viewer

Download here: https://www.lyx.org/

Emacs

Emacs is the industry choice for a Unix-based LaTeX editor. It is popular among engineers, professors, students, programmers, and system administrators for its functionality put together in a well-rounded layout with standard editing commands. You can perform different activities in an integrated environment like writing code, documenting, shell scripting, or reading a manual.

Features

• With full Unicode support, you can type in different scripts
• Expand the functionality of Emacs with downloadable modules and plugins
• Customize the environment with Emacs Lisp programming
• In-built documentation available

Download here: https://www.gnu.org/s/emacs/

TeXstudio

Academia adores TeXstudio for its multi-platform support and powerful editing features. It is a verticality of TeXmaker, adding to the open-source code for more advanced features. Hence, apart from syntax highlighting and reference checking, you will get Link overlay support, word counter, frequency count analysis, etc.

Features

• Drag and drop tables, equations, formulae into your documents
• Get access to over 1000 mathematical symbols
• Seamlessly manage citations
• Automatically format tables
• The built-in Assistant features guides you in creating new .tex files and arranging content into them
• You can preview the file in PDF and export to HTML

Download here: https://www.texstudio.org/

KileLaTex Editor

Kile is a minimal and responsive LaTex Editor, created and maintained by KDE. It is free and open-source. The dynamic GUI is easy to navigate, and it makes citation and referencing convenient. Students can make the most of its features and collection of templates and quickstart wizards.

Features

• It supports forward-searching and inverse-searching
• Preview your documents before publishing
• Complete attractive projects quickly with advanced editing techniques, templates, and auto-generation wizards

Download here: https://kile.sourceforge.io/

Authorea

Authorea is an excellent web-based LaTeX editor where users can create and edit academic documents with single-click citing and publishing. It also supports real-time collaboration where authors and scholars can collectively comment and edit on ongoing work. The customer support team at Authoera is prompt and available around the clock at your service.

Features

• Track changes and manage different iterations of the same documents in one place
• Seamless collaboration tools with chat and comment feature
• Auto-generation option for reference pages
• Create document faster with a massive collection of templates for your needs
• Convert text files in PDF and Word to .tex files for editing

Website: https://www.authorea.com/

TeXworks

TeXworks is an extension of another popular LaTeX editor named TeXshop. It packs a comprehensive GUI for editing along with access to core functions of LaTeX editing and typesetting. It is minimal and clean and gets the job done quickly.

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Features

• Unicode support
• Auto-completion and auto-correction
• Supports a PDF viewer with auto-synchronization to make positioning easier
• Code folding and easy insertion of tables and graphs

Download here: http://www.tug.org/texworks/

TeXnicCenter

TeXnicCenter is an open-source and free LaTex editor available to Windows users. The MikTeX typesetting distribution makes it easier to convert Microsoft Word files to LaTex. It also includes a responsive GUI for all the critical LaTex editing functions with UTF-8 and auto-correction support.

Features

• Master-branch navigator makes it easier to find and view documents
• Pre-defined LaTeX snippets for advanced mathematical formulae can make coding easier
• Formatting features like syntax highlighting and parenthesis matching
• Quick setup wizards for text generation

Download here: https://www.texniccenter.org/

MiKTeX

MikTeX is an excellent free and open-source LaTeX editor for beginners and amateurs. It stands out with its document management features and ready-to-use templates to seamlessly get to work. The publishers release regular updates to keep it secure and extend its core functionality to include more modern and unique features.

Features

• Easy to install and use
• Collection of templates available for your standard needs
• Integrated package management suite
• Manage bibliographies easily and add notations and equations to your text

Download here: https://miktex.org/

Papeeria

Users also find great value in Papeeria as a LaTeX editor with real-time collaboration features. You can create scientific papers with graph plots and equations seamlessly. The most notable feature of Papeeria is its collection of templates. You will find a ready-to-use layout for cover letters, magazines, journal articles, CV, etc.

Features

• Make documents faster by formatting any of the numerous layouts available
• Collaborate with team members during documentation
• Integration with Dropbox, GitHub, and Google Drive for cloud storage
• Use the plot builder feature to generate plots automatically based on input values

Website: https://papeeria.com/

List of 12 Best LaTex Editors

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