Boomerang vs Cutter

Boomerang is an open-source decompiler that translates supported machine-code binaries into C source code. It supports x86 (IA-32 only), PPC, and ST20 architectures, and accepts ELF, PE, DOS MZ, DOS/4GW LE, and Mach-O files. Users can run it as a command-line tool or a GUI application. The project describes its license as BSD, and the software is free. Build instructions cover Linux, macOS, and Windows, but compiling requires a 64-bit operating system and a C++17 compiler; 32-bit systems are not supported. Documented prerequisites include CMake, Qt5, Capstone, GNU bison, and GNU flex. Precompiled packages are available for release versions, although the project recommends building the development branch from source. Unit and regression tests are provided, but the README says the regression test suite cannot be built on Windows. The maker describes the release as intended for developers and experimenters and warns that large-binary decompilation may disappoint. Decompiled output does not recreate the original source file and may differ from it. The project directs users to its GitHub issue tracker for bug reports.

Cutter is a free, open-source reverse-engineering platform for Linux, macOS, and Windows. Its Qt and C++ interface is powered by Rizin, and releases integrate the native Ghidra decompiler without Java. Other decompiler plugin options include RetDec and JSDec; Cutter developers officially maintain RzGhidra. For navigation, it provides a full graph view and a mini-graph, while its hex view can display and modify files. A Python scripting engine supports task automation, and plugins can be written in C++ or Python. Cutter also includes emulation for automation, cryptographic algorithms, and malware analysis. Its native and remote debugger supports dynamic analysis and is marked beta. Supported architectures include 6502, ARM, AVR, Dalvik, Game Boy, Java bytecode, and many others. Cutter is licensed under GPLv3, with official downloads for all three listed operating systems. Developer and community contact options include Telegram, IRC, and Twitter.