Linux vs MAC vs Windows

By Priya Pedamkar

Differences Between Linux and MAC and Windows

An operating system is considered to be the backbone of any system. Without an operating system, the user and system cannot interact. It acts as a mediator between both of these. We mainly have three kinds of operating systems, namely, Linux, MAC, and Windows. To begin with, MAC is an OS that focuses on the graphical user interface and was developed by Apple, Inc, for their Macintosh systems. Microsoft developed the Windows operating system. It was developed so as to overcome the limitation of the MS-DOS operating system. Linux is UNIX like a source software and can use an operating system that provides full memory protection and multi-tasking operations. It is an open d by anyone.

Head To Head Comparison Between Linux and MAC and Windows (Infographics)

Below is the Top 5 Comparisons Between Linux vs MAC vs Windows

Web development, programming languages, Software testing & others

Key Differences Between Linux and MAC and Windows

These are popular choices in the market; let us discuss some of the major difference

These are the most used operating systems. Though all three are widely used, there are significant differences between Linux vs MAC vs Windows. Windows is dominant over the other two as 90% of users prefer Windows. Linux is the least used operating system, with users accounting for 1%. MAC is popular and has an overall user base of 7% over the world.

When it comes to the risk of malware, Windows is the most prone. This is due to a larger user base. Linux is very unlikely to be affected by malware. MAC is similar when it comes to Malware.

Windows is expensive, and the cost starts from $100. Linux is free, and anyone can download and use it. MAC is costlier than Windows, and the user is forced to buy a MAC system built by Apple.

Comparison Table Linux vs MAC vs Windows

As you can see, there are many comparisons. Let’s look at the top Comparison below –

The basis of Comparison	Windows	MAC	Linux
Basic difference and history	Windows was first released in 1985. It was supposed to be a graphical user interface on top of MS-DOS. All features of MS-DOS were later integrated with Windows 95 release. It was a huge success in and led to the Windows transition.	This operating system from Apple stands older than Windows. It was first released in 1984. It began as a graphical user interface right from its inception. In 2005 the design and structure of MAC OS were changed to Intel x86 based architecture.	It was initially developed at Finnish University. It was released in 1991 and designed for GNU developers. GNU developers later integrated it into Linux. It is open to consumers, and everyone can use it as per their specifications.
File structure	Windows follows a directory structure to store the different kinds of files of the user. It has logical drives and cabinet drawers. It also has folders. Some common folders like documents, pictures, music, videos, and downloads. All these files can be stored in these folders, and also new folders can be created. It also has files which can be a spreadsheet or an application program. It can have extensions as .txt, .jpg etc. In addition to this, Windows also provides a recycle bin where all deleted files can be stored. Recycle bin can be configured to increase its size.	The file structure of MAC is commonly known as MAC OS X. If you go to dig into your MAC’s hard disk through the finder, you will see many directories. The root directory of MAC may encounter when they visit their own MAC book. You can explore the file system and directory structure by going to directories like /Application, /Developer, /sbin, /tmp, etc.	Linux has a completely different file structure form Windows and MAC. It was developed with a different code base. It stores data in the form of a tree. There is a single file tree, and all your drives are mounted over this tree.
Registry	Windows registry is a master database that is used to store all settings on your computer. It is responsible for storing all user information with its passwords, and device relate information. The registry also has an editor which allows you to view all keys and values or even drivers if necessary.	MAC stores all application settings in a series of .plist files, which have the various preferences folder in MAC. This .plist file contains all properties in either plain text or binary format. These are stored at: /Library/Preferences folder	Linux also does not have a specific registry of its own. All application setting is stored on a program basis under the different users in the same hierarchy format of the files being stored. There is no centralized database for storing these details, and so periodic cleaning is also not required.
Interchangeable Interfaces	Windows interface was not interchangeable until Windows 8. Windows XP had some improvements but not par. Start menu, taskbar, system tray, and Windows Explorer.	MAC has a facility to bridge virtual network interfaces. This can be done by going to system preferences and managing the interfaces.	Linux is easy to switch interfaces. You can switch the environment without having to carry all installations. There are utilities like GNOME and KDE which help in catering to these needs. They help in focusing on different aspects.
Command terminal	A terminal or command prompt is a black box ideally used to execute commands. It is also called the Windows Command Processor. It is used to execute commands and different batch files. It can also be used for administrative functions and troubleshoot and solve all windows issues.	MAC provides a console as a terminal application. It has a console, command line, prompt and terminal. A Command-line is used to type your commands. Prompt will provide you with some information and also enable you to run commands. A terminal is an actual interface that will provide the modern graphical user interface as well. You can find the terminal at Applications -> Utilities.	Linux also provides a terminal. You can find terminal at: Applications -> System or Applications -> Utilities. In addition to this, there is also a shell prompt. The most common shell used in bash. It defines how the terminal will behave and look when it is run.

Conclusion

All these operating systems have their own pros and cons. It depends on the user and their choices and preferences of what they expect from the operating system. Windows can be used for playing games. Programmers can use Linux, and people who are interested in graphics can use MAC.

Recommended Article

This has been a useful guide to the Differences Between Linux vs MAC vs Windows. Here we also discuss the key differences with infographics and comparison table. You may also have a look at the following articles –

Windows or Linux/Mac : which one is better for development?

Which one is better in terms of workflow, developer experience, etc?

Discussion (23)

I’m a huge Linux fan/user for 10 years now. I used it everyday on all of my development machines.

I bought my first gaming pc at the beginning of this year, so I’ve installed Windows on it.

But I thought maybe I could use it for work as well, as it’s an ‘MHz Monster’ — if you know what I mean :). And WOW. I was so surprised how well WSL2 integrated into the operating system. I do not even see that I’m on a Windows machine. I can install whatever I want on the Ubuntu running in WSL2. VSCode is also connecting to that WSL instance. Perfect.

I’m also running some of my development environment in docker, which is perfectly working.

I recommend testing it!

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Wow that’s cool to hear. I’m on windows and I’ve always wanted to explore linux

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I prefer linux for Development.

Give WSL2 a chance also

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I’ve been using all three and it’s quite similar. You may loose more time here and there on linux but overall it’s the same. At this point, I think it’s more about personal preference / workflow on your project (docker / VPN access only on windows / etc) and also your feeling regarding closed source system.

I’m mainly talking about web development of course.

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With a powerful enough machine, its irrelevant, with WSL2 and even using virtualization you can have everything from Windows on linux (and vice versa).

But on low end machine, definitely linux, less bloated and easier maintenance.

As i have to work on apple products im using mac @ work, except xcode all tools i use works well on linux.

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I prefere Linux. You can customize it, choose from various environments, setup own shortcuts and have more workspaces which I am using a lot for better management of my work. Windows are too binding for me.

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I have coded in Linux and Windows and my personal preference is Linux just because that’s the platform that target platform work related tasks is Linux (I also coded in MVS/zOS but that’s beyond the scope of this exercise). Both have each strengths and weaknesses, therefore better is a somewhat relative term. In my case, what drives my choice is the target platform.

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Currently use Mac for work but I prefer Linux 🙂

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I prefer Linux because it’s scalable, extendable and free. I don’t use windows because it’s evil. Mac? I never got a chance to use it on my desk but when i watch a developer’s course online, almost 50% of them using mac. I believe that the full stack developers prefering the mac because of it’s design programs support.

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Mac/Linux for all things JS related. Windows for ‘.net’ and ‘C#,’ etc.

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Why mac/linux for js? Can you specify?

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Oh. Sure. It was just a quick ‘on the way out.’
The main reason why is b/c Mac gives us much better experience with Terminal — iTerm2, brew package manager, etc.

Now, on the latest Windows, one can utilize the Linux subsystem, so that’s not bad now — but then, you are not really using Windows then.

For most thing web dev, setting up npm and installing packages and such, my students have generally had less trouble/issues as opposed to using GitBash on Windows for this.

It’s not a ‘major’ difference, but the terminal and package management is nice to have, which is a big part of full-stack JS. So. not JS per say — JS can be written in the browser console, technically.

Ok, so it’s pretty much even, but if asking, then Mac/Linux terminal gives a more seamless web dev experience for some of the things I have mentioned here.