Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Nemo VS Thunar

Compare Nemo VS Thunar and see what are their differences

Nemo logo Nemo

Nemo is the official file manager for the ...

Thunar logo Thunar

Thunar is a modern file manager for the Xfce Desktop Environment.
  • Nemo Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-14
  • Thunar Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-25

Nemo features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Nemo features a clean and intuitive interface that makes it easy for users to navigate and manage their files.
  • Customization
    Nemo allows extensive customization through plugins and extensions, giving users the ability to tailor the file manager to their preferences.
  • Integration with Cinnamon
    Nemo is tightly integrated with the Cinnamon desktop environment, providing a seamless experience for Linux Mint users.
  • Performance
    Nemo is known for its fast performance and minimal resource usage, making it suitable for both low-end and high-end systems.
  • File Operations
    Nemo provides a range of robust file operations, including bulk renaming, advanced search features, and efficient handling of large directories.

Possible disadvantages of Nemo

  • Limited Cross-Desktop Compatibility
    Nemo is designed primarily for the Cinnamon desktop environment, which may lead to compatibility issues or lack of integration in other desktop environments.
  • Dependency on Cinnamon Components
    Nemo relies on several components of the Cinnamon desktop, making it less optimal for users who prefer a different desktop environment.
  • Less Frequent Updates
    Compared to some other file managers, Nemo receives updates and new features less frequently, which might limit its development pace.
  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While the basic interface is easy to use, mastering all of Nemo's advanced features and customizations may require some time and effort.
  • Potential Stability Issues
    New releases of Nemo sometimes come with bugs or stability issues that might not be immediately addressed.

Thunar features and specs

  • Lightweight
    Thunar is a file manager designed to be fast and low on system resource usage, making it suitable for older hardware or systems with limited resources.
  • Simple Interface
    Thunar offers a clean and straightforward user interface, which makes it easy for users to navigate and manage files without a steep learning curve.
  • Extensible
    Thunar supports plugins, allowing users to extend its functionality with additional features like bulk renaming or adding custom actions.
  • Integration with Xfce
    Thunar is the default file manager for the Xfce desktop environment, ensuring tight integration and consistent behavior across the desktop.
  • Custom Actions
    Users can configure custom actions that appear in the context menu, providing a level of personalization and flexibility in daily file management tasks.

Possible disadvantages of Thunar

  • Limited Advanced Features
    Compared to other file managers, Thunar lacks some advanced features like integrated terminal panels or advanced search capabilities.
  • Slower Development
    Thunar's development cycle can be slower compared to other file managers, which might result in delays in new features and bug fixes.
  • Less Customizable
    While Thunar does offer some level of customization, it is not as customizable as some other file managers that allow more extensive interface and functionality tweaks.
  • Dependent on Xfce Components
    Thunar relies on various Xfce components, which might lead to dependencies that are less desirable if you are not using Xfce as your desktop environment.
  • Limited Network Browsing
    Thunar’s capabilities for network browsing and managing remote files are not as robust as some other file managers, which may be a limitation for certain users.

Nemo videos

Finding Nemo 3D movie review

More videos:

  • Review - Pixar Perfect Review #10 - Finding Nemo
  • Review - Finding Nemo - Disneycember

Thunar videos

Showing Thunar file browsers preferences

More videos:

  • Review - Comparing File Managers - Nautilus Versus Thunar Versus Nemo
  • Review - Add Custom Actions to Thunar File Manager

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Nemo and Thunar)
FTP Client
39 39%
61% 61
File Manager
40 40%
60% 60
File Explorer
35 35%
65% 65
File Management
46 46%
54% 54

User comments

Share your experience with using Nemo and Thunar. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Nemo should be more popular than Thunar. It has been mentiond 8 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.

Nemo mentions (8)

  • Is there another file manager that works well with Gnome?
    Nemo worked well with GNOME 3, not sure about GNOME 4x. It is based on a very old version of nautilus. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Using Nemo in Fedora 37
    For me is Nemo. Nemo is the file manager that Linux Mint maintains and uses by default in its desktop environment. It is a fork of Nautilus so is similar and migrating to it is painless. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • How its mtp implemented in nemo?
    I did some research about it and I find that nautilus uses a plugin called gvfs-mtp to get support mtp, so I think maybe that is the problem. I tried to read the code but I dont know to much of programming in C, then I ask myself how is that nemo handles mtp, and tried to search in the source code, I searched here https://github.com/linuxmint/nemo but couldn't find nothing so Im asking here because I dont know to... Source: over 2 years ago
  • What beautiful Linux apps deserve more "marketing attention" for lack of a better term?
    Nemo Cinnamon's file manager, I love how customizable it is, even if it looks worse than Nautilus :(. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Are there alternatives to dolphin?
    Nemo Cinnamon filemanager...afraid no clue how well it works in other DEs. Source: over 3 years ago
View more

Thunar mentions (4)

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Nemo and Thunar, you can also consider the following products

Midnight Commander - GNU Midnight Commander is a visual file manager, licensed under GNU General Public License and...

Krusader - Krusader is an advanced twin panel (commander style) file manager for KDE and other desktops in the *nix world, similar to Midnight or Total Commander.‎Get your copy of the Krusader .

Double Commander - Double Commander is a cross-platform open source file manager with two panels side by side.

Caja - Caja, the file manager for the MATE desktop

Vifm - Vifm is a ncurses based file manager with vi like keybindings.

fman - An unexpected gift. January 07, 2018 by Michael. One of the nice things that happened last week was an fman user writing in to say that 1) fman "is THE BEST SOFTWARE" (sic). And that 2) he would like to send me a $50 tip.