Best Operating Systems in 2026
Updated
45 operating systems ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
45ranked
0free plans on this page
4 Oct 2026last checked
Input list Operating Systems 20 channels on this page · 120 of 160 spec lines stated by the makers
Ch Tool Free planPaid fromDevice typesCPU architecturesSupport lifecycleBuilt-in managementApp compatibilityDeployment models Spec sheet Score
26 Linux Mint Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesdesktop computers, laptop computersCPU architecturesnot statedSupport lifecycleLTS releases are supported for 5 years; Linux Mint 22.3 is supported until April 2029.Built-in managementUpdate Manager; centralized software updatesApp compatibilitySoftware manager; access to software packages; dual-boot installation alongside WindowsDeployment modelsInstallation on desktop and laptop computers; live USB 6/8spec lines stated 5.8
27 OpenIndiana Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesx86 PCs; workstations; serversCPU architectures64-bit x86; SPARC is not currently available for HipsterSupport lifecycleHipster is a rolling release; snapshots are published approximately every six months. No fixed support duration stated.Built-in managementIPS package installation, search, and updates; boot environment management with beadmApp compatibilityIPS repositories; supports SFE and pkgsrc repositories; legacy pkgadd/pkgrm commandsDeployment modelsPhysical PC/workstation/server installation; cloud image 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
28 Photon OS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesBare-metal systems, virtual machines, Raspberry Pi, cloud instancesCPU architecturesx86 64, ARM64/aarch64Support lifecycleSecurity updates as needed; non-security package updates described in legacy FAQ as quarterly; no fixed duration verifiedBuilt-in managementtdnf package manager; Photon Management Daemon; RPM OSTree; Network Configuration ManagerApp compatibilityDocker and other container formats; Kubernetes; RPM packages via tdnf; RPM OSTreeDeployment modelsBare metal; VMware hypervisors; ISO installation; OVA appliance; AWS AMI; Google GCE image; Azure VHD; Raspberry Pi image 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
29 Qubes OS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesComputers with compatible 64-bit Intel or AMD CPUs and required virtualization featuresCPU architecturesx86 64 (64-bit Intel or AMD; Intel 64/AMD64)Support lifecycleQubes OS releases are supported for six months after each subsequent major or minor releaseBuilt-in managementQubes Update tool; Qube Manager; Qubes Template Manager; qvm-template; command-line qube toolsApp compatibilityApp qubes based on Fedora and Debian templates; community templates include Whonix, Ubuntu, Arch Linux, and Gentoo; Windows qubes supportedDeployment modelsInstalled on compatible physical computers; may also be installed on a USB flash drive or external disk 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
30 Solus Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesPersonal computers (desktop and laptop hardware)CPU architecturesx86-64 (64-bit)Support lifecycleRolling release; homepage describes weekly tested updates. No fixed support duration specified.Built-in managementSoftware Center; eopkg command-line package manager supports package operations and rollbackApp compatibilitySolus package repository; Flatpak preferred for third-party applications; Snap and AppImage also workDeployment modelsInstallable ISO images for physical computers; can be installed alongside another operating system 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
31 Ubuntu Touch Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesPhones, tablets, desktop PCs, Raspberry Pi, PinebookCPU architecturesnot statedSupport lifecycleRegular OTA updates; no fixed support duration statedBuilt-in managementOTA system updates; device installation via UBports InstallerApp compatibilityOpenStore native apps; Waydroid Android apps; Libertine desktop Linux appsDeployment modelsInstall on compatible physical devices; preinstalled devices; virtual development installation 6/8spec lines stated 5.8
32 Void Linux Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesPCs and laptops; ARM devices including Raspberry Pi, Pinebook Pro, Lenovo ThinkPad X13s, and Apple Silicon; containersCPU architecturesx86 64, i686, aarch64, armv7l, armv6lSupport lifecycleRolling release; no fixed support duration specifiedBuilt-in managementXBPS package installation, update, removal, querying, repository management; runit service supervisionApp compatibilityNative XBPS binary packages and source package builds; glibc and musl variants; OCI container imagesDeployment modelsPhysical installations via live images, rootfs tarballs, or ARM platform images; OCI containers 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
33 Xubuntu Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesdesktop computersCPU architecturesx86 64 (Intel or AMD 64-bit)Support lifecycleRegular releases: 9 months; LTS releases: 3 yearsBuilt-in managementSoftware Updater; Software & Updates settings; Software CenterApp compatibilityAPT/DEB packages, Snap, Flatpak, AppImage, PPAsDeployment modelsInstalled on compatible computers; live USB/DVD trial 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
34 Zorin OS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesDesktop and laptop computers; Intel-based Mac computers; supported Chromebook modelsCPU architectures64-bit x86 Intel or AMD CPUsSupport lifecycleZorin OS 18.1 receives software updates and security patches until 1 June 2029Built-in managementSoftware Updater; Upgrade Zorin OS appApp compatibilityAPT, Flatpak, Snap, .deb, AppImage, Web Apps, and optional Wine compatibility for some .exe and .msi appsDeployment modelsPhysical computer installation; live USB test; dual boot 7/8spec lines stated 5.8
35 Alpine Linux Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesPhysical computers, Raspberry Pi, routers, servers, virtual machines, cloud images, containers and chrootsCPU architecturesaarch64, armhf, armv7, loongarch64, ppc64le, riscv64, s390x, x86, x86 64Support lifecycleMain repository typically supported for 2 years; community repository until the next stable releaseBuilt-in managementnot statedApp compatibilitynot statedDeployment modelsPhysical installation images, cloud images, virtual-system images, container and chroot root filesystems, netboot, Raspberry Pi and Xen Dom0 5/8spec lines stated 5.7
36 Lubuntu Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesDesktop PCs and laptops; project homepage also mentions Raspberry PiCPU architecturesnot statedSupport lifecycleLTS releases are supported for three years; interim releases for nine months. Lubuntu 26.04 LTS is listed as supported until April 2029.Built-in managementnot statedApp compatibilityDiscover Software Center for installing applications; supports common file formats including documents, images, audio, and videoDeployment modelsInstallable desktop operating system; downloadable desktop ISO image 5/8spec lines stated 5.7
37 NetBSD Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesServers, desktop systems, embedded devices, handheld devices, legacy hardware, and emulatorsCPU architecturesamd64, arm, mips, powerpc, i386, sparc64, alpha, hppa, m68k, sh3, vax, and othersSupport lifecycleFormal release branches receive bug fixes while listed as supported; formal releases are supported for several years. Older unsupported releases do not receive bug fixes, including security fixes.Built-in managementpkgsrc and pkgin package management; sysinst installation and upgrade utilityApp compatibilitypkgsrc builds software from source and installs binary packages; binary-only distributions are supported on native and emulated NetBSD platformsDeployment modelsPhysical hardware and emulators; NetBSD images are provided for multiple architectures and devices 7/8spec lines stated 5.7
38 Oracle Solaris Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesServers and enterprise systemsCPU architecturesSPARC and x86Support lifecycleSolaris 11.4 Premier Support through November 2031; Extended Support through November 2037; Sustaining Support indefiniteBuilt-in managementIPS package management and updates; lifecycle management; boot environments; Solaris ZonesApp compatibilityApplication Binary Guarantee for existing applicationsDeployment modelsOn-premises installations; virtualized environments; cloud installations 7/8spec lines stated 5.7
39 Apache NuttX Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesDevelopment boards and embedded devices; simulator targets are also documentedCPU architecturesARM, ARM64, AVR, AVR32, 8051, CEVA, ESP32 Xtensa, Intel x86/x86 64, MIPS, m68k, RISC-V, SPARC, SuperH, TriCore, Xtensa, Z80Support lifecyclenot statedBuilt-in managementConfigurable build system; native board/architecture configuration; driver and power-management subsystemsApp compatibilityPOSIX/ANSI-oriented APIs; binary loader supports ELF and NXFLAT modules and built-in applicationsDeployment modelsPhysical embedded boards/devices and simulator targets 6/8spec lines stated 5.6
40 FreeRTOS Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesMicrocontrollers and small microprocessorsCPU architectures40+ processor architectures, including RISC-V and ARMv8-MSupport lifecycleLTS libraries receive security updates and critical bug fixes for two yearsBuilt-in managementnot statedApp compatibilityKernel ports, demos, and reference integrations; 15+ toolchainsDeployment modelsEmbedded physical devices; cloud images not verified 6/8spec lines stated 5.6
41 KaiOS Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDevice typesSmart feature phones; non-touch mobile phonesCPU architecturesnot statedSupport lifecyclePublished active baselines include KaiOS 2.5.3 and 3.1 through June 30, 2027, and 2.6 and 4.0 through June 30, 2029. KaiOS separately describes at least three years of support for versions 2.6.x and 4.x.Built-in managementnot statedApp compatibilityHTML5/web apps; packaged apps can use privileged APIs; hosted apps run content from a web server; app updates/distribution through KaiStoreDeployment modelsInstalled on OEM/ODM smart feature phones 4/8spec lines stated 5.6
42 Tizen Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDevice typesIoT, TV, mobile, wearableCPU architecturesARMv7l, AArch64, x86 64 (reference build artifacts)Support lifecyclenot statedBuilt-in managementSystem upgrade; mobile device management; system, power, and device managementApp compatibilityNative, web, .NET, and hybrid native/web application packages; application package managerDeployment modelsEmbedded device profiles; downloadable reference images for generic hardware and Raspberry Pi targets 6/8spec lines stated 5.6
43 QNX Neutrino RTOS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice typesEmbedded systems; supported applications include medical instruments, routers, telematics devices, process-control systems and air-traffic-control systemsCPU architecturesMIPS, PowerPC, SH-4, ARM, StrongARM, XScale, x86Support lifecycleFoundational QNX products typically reach End of Sale and Standard Support 8 years after commercial release; product-specific lifecycle variesBuilt-in managementQNX Software Center for downloading and managing QNX SDP versions 7.x and 8.xApp compatibilityPOSIX API support; portability and migration from Linux, Unix and other POSIX programsDeployment modelsEmbedded target hardware; runtime virtual machine availability is documented for QNX Neutrino 7/8spec lines stated 5.5
44 Sailfish OS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDevice typesSmartphones; tablets; embedded devicesCPU architecturesARMv7 (armv7hl); ARM64 (aarch64); x86 (i486) SDK targetsSupport lifecyclenot statedBuilt-in managementMobile device management APIs; remote device provisioning; configurable policies; remote OS updates and app management; remote locking and data wipeApp compatibilityNative Qt applications; optional Android AppSupport; Android app stores and APK installationDeployment modelsInstalled on supported physical phones; adaptable to embedded devices 6/8spec lines stated 5.5
45 OpenWrt Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDevice typesnot statedCPU architecturesnot statedSupport lifecyclenot statedBuilt-in managementnot statedApp compatibilitynot statedDeployment modelsnot stated 0/8spec lines stated 5.2
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