NetBeans vs Eclipse

by Gralio Mar 07, 2025

NetBeans and Eclipse are both free, open-source IDEs suitable for mid-sized businesses. NetBeans offers a user-friendly experience tailored for Java development, while Eclipse provides broader language support and greater customizability through plugins. The best choice depends on your team's experience level and project requirements.

At Gralio.ai we help to simplify your decision-making process by offering detailed, side-by-side software comparisons like this one, to help you confidently choose the tool that aligns with your business goals.

This comparison was created by analysing 3161 reviews and 59 websites, saving 18 hours, 3 minutes of reading.

NetBeans

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Eclipse

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About

NetBeans is a free, open-source software platform designed for building a variety of applications, primarily for businesses. It supports popular programming languages like Java, PHP, and C/C++, and provides tools that streamline the coding process, making it faster and more efficient. NetBeans runs seamlessly on Windows, Linux, and Mac operating systems, offering flexibility for developers. Its key strength lies in its comprehensive set of features for creating applications, making it a versatile choice for businesses of all sizes.

Eclipse provides a suite of tools for software developers to write, test, and manage code. It offers a collaborative and customizable platform used by individuals and companies of all sizes. While known for Java development, it also supports other programming languages. Eclipse is free, open-source, and constantly evolving with new features and improvements.

Summary

Main difference

NetBeans excels in its user-friendly interface and comprehensive features specifically designed for Java development, making it ideal for beginners and those focused on Java projects. Eclipse, while also supporting Java, offers broader language support and a highly customizable environment through its extensive plugin ecosystem, catering to more experienced developers and diverse project needs.

Relative strengths of NetBeans (compared to Eclipse)

Superior user interface, especially for beginners, simplifying Java development.
More comprehensive set of built-in features for Java development, including GUI design tools.
Stronger focus on Java and related technologies, providing a more streamlined experience for Java-centric projects.

Relative weaknesses of NetBeans (compared to Eclipse)

Limited language support compared to Eclipse, primarily focusing on Java.
Less customizable than Eclipse, with fewer plugins and extension options.
Can be resource-intensive, potentially leading to slower performance on less powerful machines.

Who should use NetBeans VS. Eclipse

NetBeans is a free, open-source IDE best for Java development, especially GUI design. Users praise its comprehensive features and ease of use for beginners, while some find it slow and memory-intensive. Consider NetBeans if you need a robust, free IDE but be prepared for potential performance issues.

Eclipse is a free, open-source IDE known for its Java development capabilities, but supports other languages as well. Users praise its easy-to-use interface, extensive plugin ecosystem, and robust debugging features. However, some find it resource intensive and the UI outdated. Perfect for developers seeking a customizable and collaborative platform.

Ideal for small to large businesses seeking open-source Java development.
Strong fit for Software, IT, Media, and Professional Services.

Ideal for businesses of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises.
Best fit for software development teams, but adaptable to other industries.

NetBeans and Eclipse features

Supported

Partially supported

Not supported

Type in the name of the feature or in your own words tell us what you need

Commit and push

Supported

NetBeans allows committing and pushing code changes directly via its Git integration.

Supported

Eclipse supports committing and pushing code changes directly within the IDE via the EGit plugin.
Branch management

Supported

NetBeans supports creating, switching, merging, and managing branches via Git integration.

Supported

Eclipse supports branch management via the EGit plugin.
Plugin support

Supported

NetBeans supports a wide variety of plugins to extend its functionality.

Supported

Eclipse supports a wide variety of plugins via the Eclipse Marketplace.
JUnit integration

Supported

NetBeans supports JUnit 4 and 5 tests.

Supported

Eclipse supports creating, running, and managing JUnit tests within the IDE.
Maven integration

Supported

NetBeans has built-in support for Maven projects.

Supported

Eclipse has built-in Maven integration via the M2Eclipse project.
Code completion

Supported

NetBeans supports code completion to speed up coding and reduce errors.

Supported

Eclipse supports code completion via its Code Assist feature.

Qualities

Value and Pricing Transparency

No data

No data
Customer Service

No data

No data
Ease of Use

No data

+0.56

Rather positive sentiment
Reliability and Performance

No data

-0.14

Neutral sentiment
Ease of Implementation

No data

+0.08

Neutral sentiment
Scalability

No data

-0.6

Rather negative sentiment

NetBeans and Eclipse Pricing

No data

We couldn't find a pricing page for NetBeans.

No data

User sentiment

Strongly positive

See full Pricing page

NetBeans and Eclipse review insights

3161 reviews analysed from

Users love

Excellent for Java development, particularly GUI design with Swing.
Comprehensive features for coding, debugging, and project management.
Easy-to-use interface, especially for beginners.
Free and open-source, making it accessible to everyone.
Extensive plugin ecosystem allows for customization and extended functionality.

Easy-to-use interface for Java development.
Extensive plugin ecosystem for customization and integration.
Robust debugging features for efficient bug fixing.
Excellent support for Maven and other build tools.
Open-source and free, making it accessible to everyone.

Users dislike

Slow startup and loading times are frequently reported.
High memory usage can lead to performance issues, especially on older machines.
Limited support for languages other than Java, hindering versatility.
UI design is considered outdated and less visually appealing compared to modern IDEs.
Occasional bugs and crashes can disrupt workflow.

Slow startup times and occasional performance lags, especially with larger projects.
UI looks outdated and could be more intuitive.
Limited customization options for themes and visuals.
Some plugins can be unreliable or poorly maintained.
Resource intensive, requiring significant memory and CPU.

NetBeans and Eclipse Ratings

G2

4.1/5

(670)

G2

4.3/5

(2506)
Glassdoor

3.7/5

(10)

Company health

Employee growth

No data

No change in the last year

Web traffic

No data

1% decrease in the last quarter

Financing

No data

How do NetBeans and Eclipse compare in memory usage and startup performance?

Both NetBeans and Eclipse users report slow startup times and high memory usage, particularly when working on larger projects. While neither product clearly outperforms the other in these areas based on user reviews, these performance issues are more frequently cited as a dislike for NetBeans.

Which IDE provides better support for languages other than Java, given my team's needs?

While both NetBeans and Eclipse offer support for languages other than Java (such as C/C++ and PHP), Eclipse is generally considered to have broader and more robust support through its extensive plugin ecosystem. NetBeans, while supporting other languages, is primarily known for its Java development capabilities and user reviews suggest its support for other languages is more limited. Therefore, for a team needing strong support for multiple languages beyond Java, Eclipse is likely the better choice.

What are the advantages of NetBeans?

NetBeans excels in its comprehensive features specifically designed for Java development, particularly GUI design with Swing. Its ease of use, especially for beginners, combined with its free and open-source nature, makes it highly accessible. Furthermore, the extensive plugin ecosystem allows for a high degree of customization and extends its functionality.

What are the disadvantages of NetBeans?

NetBeans users frequently report slow startup and loading times, along with high memory usage that can impact performance, especially on less powerful machines. The IDE has also been criticized for its outdated user interface and limited support for languages other than Java. Occasional bugs and crashes have also been reported, which can disrupt workflow.

Alternatives to NetBeans and Eclipse

Datalore

Datalore is a cloud-based platform designed for data science teams to collaborate on projects. It offers tools for writing code, connecting to databases, analyzing data, and creating visualizations. Teams can work together in real-time, making it easier to share insights and build data-driven solutions. While offering advanced features, Datalore also provides a user-friendly interface, making it accessible for team members with varying technical skills. Datalore can be hosted online or within your own IT environment.

Visual Studio

Visual Studio, by Microsoft, is a popular software development tool. It helps developers build a wide variety of applications – from simple programs to complex websites and mobile apps. Visual Studio provides a single, comprehensive environment for coding, debugging, testing, and deploying software, making the development process smoother and more efficient.

IntelliJ IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA is a software development tool made by JetBrains, specifically for Java and Kotlin programming languages. It's designed to make programmers more efficient with features that help with coding, project organization, and error detection. What sets it apart is its focus on anticipating what a programmer needs next, offering suggestions and automating tasks to speed up the development process.

AWS Cloud9

AWS Cloud9 is a cloud-based platform for writing and testing software. It lets your developers work from anywhere with an internet connection, using only their web browser. It offers a variety of tools to streamline the software development process, including the ability to run and debug code. AWS Cloud9 is designed for businesses of all sizes that develop software using languages like Java, PHP, C/C++, and Python.

Suneido

Suneido is a software platform designed for building and running business applications. It provides all the tools you need in one package, including a database, programming language, and pre-built components, so there's no need to combine separate products. This open-source platform aims to be a simpler and more cost-effective alternative to larger, more complex systems used for application development.

GitHub

GitHub is a website and cloud-based service that helps developers store and manage their code. It's like Google Docs for software development, where teams can work together on projects, track changes, and prevent errors. GitHub is known for its user-friendly interface and is used by companies of all sizes to build and maintain software.

Page co-authored by

Michal Kaczor

CEO at Gralio

Michal has worked at startups for many years and writes about topics relating to software selection and IT management. As a former consultant for Bain, a business advisory company, he also knows how to understand needs of any business and find solutions to its problems.

Tymon Terlikiewicz

CTO at Gralio

Tymon is a seasoned CTO who loves finding the perfect tools for any task. He recently headed up the tech department at Batmaid, a well-known Swiss company, where he managed about 60 software purchases, including CX, HR, Payroll, Marketing automation and various developer tools.

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