Agda vs Isabelle
Agda
wiki.portal.chalmers.seIsabelle
isabelle.in.tum.deSide by side
| Figure | Agda | Isabelle |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 1 |
| Spec score · Formal Verification Tools | 8.1 (#5) | 7.9 (#13) |
| Support | The Agda wiki directs users to ask questions on the Agda mailing list or Agda Zulip server. | Support is available through official documentation, the isabelle-users and isabelle-dev mailing lists, Zulip, and Q&A sites listed by the project. |
Plans
In their own words
Isabelle
Isabelle is a free proof assistant for expressing mathematical formulas in a formal language and proving them within a logical calculus. Its main applications are formalizing mathematics and verifying properties of hardware, software, programming languages, and protocols. Isabelle/HOL provides a higher-order logic environment for large applications, with tools for reasoning, simplification, linear arithmetic, algebraic decision procedures, and access to external first-order provers through Sledgehammer. Proofs can be written in Isar, a structured language intended to be understandable to people and computers. Isabelle/HOL can generate SML, OCaml, Haskell, and Scala code from executable specifications. Isabelle/jEdit is the default interface, providing ongoing proof checking and real-time feedback; the Isabelle2025-2 release also includes Isabelle/VSCode with panels for documentation, symbols, and Sledgehammer. The distribution includes a library of verified mathematics, supplemented by the Archive of Formal Proofs. Isabelle runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, and self-hosted deployments. Its main code base is subject to BSD-style regulations. Windows lacks developer signatures and certificates and is rejected by Microsoft by default at first launch; macOS requires users to allow the unsigned application to open.