Essential Guide: How to Install Notepad++ in Ubuntu

In this tutorial I show you how to install Notepad++ on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS or later.

And spoiler: it’s really easy.

Few text editors are as famous or as well-loved as Notepad++, which is a free and open-source code editor made for Windows and written in C++.

Notepad Plus Plus (to say its name aloud) is popular with developers and programmers due to its small size, fast performance, expansive feature set, and comprehensive support for programming languages including C++, C#, Java, Python, and PHP (amongst many more).

Notepad++ features include:

• Tabbed interface for working with multiple files
• Syntax highlighting and folding
• Text search/replace
• Configurable GUI
• Automatic word/function completion

— and that’s merely scratching the surface.

There is not a native Linux version of Notepad++ but you can install Notepad++ in Ubuntu using Wine, a free, open-source compatibility layer for Windows software.

Now, I get it: running Windows apps in Linux via Wine may sound OTT, especially when lots of brilliant Linux text editors are available natively, ranging from Qt-based Notepadqq (which is heavily inspired by Notepad++), to Gedit, VSCode, Kate, and Sublime Text.

But perhaps you want use a text editor you already know how to use, has features that work in a way you’re familiar with, and a user-interface and workflow that’s second nature. If you switched to Ubuntu from Windows using an app you know is one less “new thing” to learn.

So, if you’re a fan of Notepad++, or wondering whether it’s as good as its avowed fans say, read on to learn how easy it is to install Notepad++ in Ubuntu.

Install Notepad++ in Ubuntu

It’s been possible to install Notepad++ on Linux distributions such as Ubuntu using Wine for a while.

Wine is great, but careful attention is sometimes required to configure or set it up correctly — more attention than some folks are willing to spend.

Enter Snap, an easy way for developers to package and distribute software on Linux with all dependencies and configurations pre-set, included, ready to go.

Snaps are why it’s so easy to install and run Notepad++ on Ubuntu (and other Linux distributions) as you do not need to install Wine yourself. The Snap package includes a pre-configured Wine environment that’s ready to go.

And because Snap apps are isolated from the rest of your system it can’t affect any other Wine apps you have installed — so if you’re a big gamer, no stress!

To install Notepad++ in Ubuntu:

1. Open Ubuntu Software/App Center
2. Search for ‘notepad++’
3. Click on the search result that appears
4. Click install

That’s all there is to it.

Prefer to install things in Ubuntu using the terminal? Run this command to install Notepad++:

sudo snap install notepad-plus-plus

Once the installation completes you can go ahead and open Notepad++ from the Applications grid (or any other Linux app launcher/menu you may use.

Summary

If you are looking for a feature-rich text editor that’s is open-source, lightweight, and backed by a mature ecosystem of plugins, and supported by an enthusiastic community then I recommend trying Notepad++ — as you’ve seen, it’s easy to install, so why not?!