 Visitor Reviews |
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Reader supplied reviews for CachyOS
Average rating
8.0 from 468 review(s)
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-19
Country: United States
Votes: 3
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I've dipped in and out of Linux for over two decades now. Never sticking with it long term, until now. Built a new system about a year ago and installed Mint first (same as it always is - okay, I guess), then tried CachyOS. Been with it ever since. I don't know that I'd say CachyOS specifically is why I've been happy sticking with Linux this time so much as the maturity of the Linux ecosystem overall. Especially with gaming. What CachyOS does right is out of the box setup is excellent. All the defaults, from Limine, to BTRFS, KDE Plasma, plus the easy add-ons, like the "CachyOS gaming-meta" that with a single click installs all the gaming essentials make for an awesome first impression.
While it's commonly said that Arch isn't for the Linux novice, CachyOS certainly had done an excellent job of making me questions that belief. Especially with the ability for quick, hassle free rollback should an update (or oopsie) actually bork the system. Seriously, with a couple clicks and a reboot the system is back to the pre-borked state. That functionality isn't unique to CachyOS, but I don't know of another distro so easily configured out of the box like that (maybe there is, I only sampled two distros this round).
As long as one is willing to browse the super helpful CachyOS user forums or extensive CachyOS Wiki if you do encounter an issue or need something not immediately obvious, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to even a Linux noob.
✓ Easy to install and up and running faster than Windoze
✓ Cutting edge while minimizing the cutting edge pain
✓ Gets the most out of modern hardware (even Nvidia!)
✓ Excellent all-around for productivity and gaming
✅ Not a Microsoft product and open source
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-16
Country: United Kingdom
Votes: 9
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I'm a gamer and I've been seriously distrohopping for a couple of years, I spent some time with almost every major distro out there and most of the gaming specific ones too. But CachyOS has stopped all that, I've been running it for over a year now, and I can't see myself changing any time in the near future.
The weird thing is people have the perception that arch based distros, on a cutting edge release schedule, are janky as hell and always breaking. But in the time that I've been using CachyOS, it has never crashed or broken, other than through my own actions, I'm super impressed, not to mention I get the benefits of the latest kernel and app versions all the time!
It also has some great default config, for example btrfs and limine means you can snap every time you make a change with pacman or yay/paru, and if something goes wrong you can boot from one of those snapshots.
It's fast, the devs are great, it runs everything extremely well. Package-wise you have the world at your hands, with the AUR, which as long as you're sensible isn't as bad as some people would have you believe.
I don't know what else to say, it's AWESOME! Have fun everyone! :)
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Version: 260426
Rating: 6
Date: 2026-05-16
Country: Poland
Votes: 1
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It is a real ARCH Linux. (great for software developers, etc...) for Windows replacement consider DEBIAN (13: Trixie)
Yes, it is fast : optimized kernel is great, especially on a machine with X86_64-V3 CPU (I have an AMD Ryzen 5 pro...)
No it is not worry free : only the KDE Desktop works well out of the box.
MATE is buggy, and need lots of manual intervention etc....
COSMIC, seems buggy too.
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For the installer, the user interface CachyOS is very similar to EndeavourOS, faster but much less robust !
On EndeavourOS almost everything works as installed, not on CachyOS... yet.
Good work, it shall be excellent some time soon.
My Wish: all three desktop environment mentioned above, fully functional. MATE for reason, COSMIC... for love ! (not ready yet either).
Perhaps GNOME too...
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-16
Country: Brazil
Votes: 1
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I’ve used Debian, Mint, Fedora KDE and GNOME, Solus, Zorin, openSUSE, Bazzite, Pop!_OS, and Kubuntu, and I can easily say that CachyOS is one hell of an operating system. It’s Arch-based and inherits a bit of its philosophy, meaning you need to install a few things that are missing out of the box (like Office, CUPS, etc.). But other than that, it comes with a very fair bundle of applications. It features two package managers with AUR support, which pull optimized and incredibly fast programs from the repository, giving the whole system a sense of speed.
I started using it on my main PC (Ryzen 5 5500 and RX 7600), and later installed it on my Lenovo laptop (Intel, no dedicated GPU), and I didn't face a single instability issue or anything like that. The system is beautiful, fast, stable, and very easy to use if you are somewhat used to Linux and have a little bit of terminal knowledge (or simply use language models).
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-14
Country: Sweden
Votes: 5
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Been a user of Arch for a couple of years, the I built a new computer and gave CachyOS a test, never regret it. The power of the rolling release that arch is following, but CachyOS is even more forward, pushing updates and the tweaked kernel is amazing. Also the ease of installation. Sure I know how to setup a fully functional Arch to my liking, but CachyOS makes it so much easier. Some say it's bloated compared to a "perfect" Arch install. And yes there are packages that are included that I doesn't care much about, but it's easier to just remove them afterwards. I'm very happy after 6 months to have it as my primary driver for work, gaming and my home lab. Running on a Intel i7-2700K, 32GB DDR5 Memory, Intel ARC A770 16GB and a BTRFS RAID10 at 5.7 TiB. The Intel xe driver and the mesa lib has really starting to mature, running the bleeding edge beta version of mesa (mesa-git 26.2.0_devel.222169.e3beb262bd4-1) and rusticl in combination with linux-cachyos-rt-bore-lto.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-10
Country: Mexico
Votes: 1
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Estoy realmente encantado con CachyOS, después de usar muchas distros, de decirme usuario de Fedora desde la edición 14, encontré la distribución de Linux ideal para mi. Me gusta mucho la filosofía que tienen de optimizar al máximo los paquetes según tu hardware, la facilidad para configurar e instalar cualquier aplicación, pero sobre todo, el hecho de poder usar Steam y la mayoría de juegos en Linux, era lo único que me detenía realmente de abandonar las ventanas. Puedo configurar un entorno de desarrollo realmente poderoso y muy grato. Gracias al equipo de CachyOS por el trabajo tan hermoso que han hecho. ¡Los amo!
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-09
Country: France
Votes: 23
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I did a lot of Distrohopping in the past. The first Linux that made me stop that was Solus. Really snappy, with fresh enough packages, and very stable for a Rolling-Release. I'd still recommend Solus, but I have the feeling the team behind the project is too small, and some packages and some applications from the repo (LibreOffice) showed some unstability or lack of performance, so, being a power-user, I needed to distrohop again.
I was tempted by CachyOS and OpenSuse Tumbleweed, after all the searches I've done... and, afraid by Arch-bases (I already tried Manjaro, Antergos and a pure Arch in the past), and thinking the hype behind CachyOS was maybe exaggerated, I tried OpenSuse Tumbleweed. I won't go into details, but it was a mistake.
So, quite frustrated by Tumbleweed, I installed less than 2 weeks later CachyOS.
I took my time, read the wiki, watched videos on YouTube. And once I understood how the system needs to be installed, and how I need to install the packages, I am seriously SHOCKED! Shocked in a GOOD way, of course.
- The system is incredibly snappy
- The performance on apps and video games are top and they're very stable and fast to open
- Now, it's Limine which is recommended instead of Grub or Systemd, and that's an excellent choice, because we have snapshots saved and offered by default when we boot the system, so if an update breaks the system, unless it breaks even the boot, we can go back.
- When we read the wiki, it is very easy to install what we need for video games (Steam, Lutris, Heroic, Wine...). Just use "CachyOS Hello", press "Applications/Modifications" and "Install Gaming packages".
- To install anything else, I expected "Octopi" because of the videos I watched, but I discovered CachyOS uses "Shelly" instead now. And that's, by far, the best application manager I've ever seen. Maybe not as beginner-friendly as Discover, as there is not as much information about the softwares / packages, but it manages everything: Packages from CachyOS repository, flatpaks, AUR, and even AppImages. First time I see a single software manager doing all those things. That's a really pleasant discovery.
- The updates are really easy to make and to check, thanks to the little CachyOS icon in the notifications.
I have just one fear now, the moment an update may break my system... Because, it is still an Arch-based, so that's to be expected. But at least, there are snapshots to help me for most of the cases when it'll happen.
Right now, I am EXTREMELY HAPPY with CachyOS. And I'm now convinced that the hype behind CachyOS was deserved.
Just... if you're tempted to install it, keep in mind it's an Arch-base. You need to read the wiki, update preferably once per week or each 2 weeks, and be ready that the system may break and you'll need to repair it after an update. At least, that's the conclusion I draw after all my searches.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-09
Country: Brazil
Votes: 3
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awsome,runs perfectly and is very optimized
+fine configured
+quite performant starting and running
+easy and reliable system- and software-installer
+great amount of available software
+nice, smooth Plasma Desktop
The performance is just unreal right out of the box, especially with how it comes pre-configured with heavily optimized kernels like BORE. For gaming, it has been an absolute dream. Almost all my games work flawlessly right through Proton. I play a ton of CS2 competitively, and I was heavily worried about input lag, frame drops, or weird mouse acceleration issues. But the latency is practically non-existent, and it handles my high-polling-rate peripherals beautifully without any heavy tinkering. The only minor downside is that a few top-tier titles with those wildly complicated, kernel-level anti-cheat systems still refuse to play nice. But honestly, that's a wider industry problem, not a CachyOS problem, and it's a trade-off I'm more than willing to make to escape the Windows ecosystem.
On the daily use and productivity side, I found absolutely all the software I need to get by. Getting my development environment fully set up with VS Code, translation layers for tools like LINQPad (via Proton), and all my usual stuff was surprisingly painless. I can just dive in and work without feeling like I'm constantly fighting my operating system. It's just a remarkably smooth, stable experiance from top to bottom.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-06
Country: Poland
Votes: 0
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I recommend - the first Linux with real win against Windows. Now the only issues which need to be fixed are - erasing dependency of any rust/cancer in the code and erasing any digital ID data for secure privacy. I recommend - the first Linux with real win against Windows. Now the only issues which need to be fixed are - erasing dependency of any rust/cancer in the code and erasing any digital ID data for secure privacy. I recommend - the first Linux with real win against Windows. Now the only issues which need to be fixed are - erasing dependency of any rust/cancer in the code and erasing any digital ID data for secure privacy.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-05-06
Country: Germany
Votes: 2
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I am using Linux since more than 20 years, mostly debian-based because if the reliability and compatibility in software. With Arch-based rolling releases I had some experience with manjaro, which could lead to broken Systems after big updates or software changes.
I just saw the great reviews and test for CachyOS.
So I wanted to give it a try. I was surprised of the very easy and stable installation tool and a quite fine configured system OOTB. I installed on external SSD. Although installer ended with an error on bootloader-installation (on system-partition because of other leading linux-/grub-OS), it was detected and started correctly.
By now, I coudn't test much, but I can say:
+fine configured
+quite performant starting and running
+easy and reliable system- and software-installer
+great amount of available software
+nice, smooth Plasma Desktop
Hope I will get my printer added without edges. All other actions we will see, I am very hopeful by now. If Cachy will be reliable with rolling updates, this could be a very good OS for me and especially for my relatives who don't care much about maintenance :-)
Good luck for you all!
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Version: 260426
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-05-04
Country: Argentina
Votes: 4
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I don't know about anyone else, but 2026 is officially my year of Linux. This is the very first time I've fully committed to switching from Windows to Linux, and honestly? I am completely blown away. I've always been hesitant in the past, thinking I'd have to sacrifice system performance, lose access to my daily apps, or spend hours staring at a terminal screen just to get basic things working. But CachyOS completely changed the game for me. I genuinely believe this specific OS is pivotal for the entire Linux family right now. It takes all the raw power and bleeding-edge updates of Arch and packages it into something actually usable, insanely fast, and user-friendly.
The performance is just unreal right out of the box, especially with how it comes pre-configured with heavily optimized kernels like BORE. For gaming, it has been an absolute dream. Almost all my games work flawlessly right through Proton. I play a ton of CS2 competitively, and I was heavily worried about input lag, frame drops, or weird mouse acceleration issues. But the latency is practically non-existent, and it handles my high-polling-rate peripherals beautifully without any heavy tinkering. The only minor downside is that a few top-tier titles with those wildly complicated, kernel-level anti-cheat systems still refuse to play nice. But honestly, that's a wider industry problem, not a CachyOS problem, and it's a trade-off I'm more than willing to make to escape the Windows ecosystem.
On the daily use and productivity side, I found absolutely all the software I need to get by. Getting my development environment fully set up with VS Code, translation layers for tools like LINQPad (via Proton), and all my usual stuff was surprisingly painless. I can just dive in and work without feeling like I'm constantly fighting my operating system. It's just a remarkably smooth, stable experiance from top to bottom.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-03
Country: Bangladesh
Votes: 10
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Consistently the most reliable distro I've used.
I keep coming back, why? Because every single time I get into trouble with other distros, or maybe find something that bothers me, I can always rest assured, that every single thing will be fine if I just come back to CachyOS.
They've reached a level of proper perfection, nothing is too much or too little in this distro, you get to choose things, maybe not in a fully bare bones fashion as like pure Arch right from the beginning (because they make certain things easier right out of the box, for example the aur helper already being set up), but in the end this is arch too, so you can do whatever you could do in Arch (faster at times, right out of the box).
I have nothing but good things to say about this distro, its arch, but on a league of its own now, the hype truly is well deserved.
Kudos to the developers of this distro, thank you for creating such an amazing thing, something I can always crawl back to.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-01
Country: Canada
Votes: 5
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I don't know about anyone else, but 2026 is officially my year of Linux. This is the very first time I've fully committed to switching from Windows to Linux, and honestly? I am completely blown away. I've always been hesitant in the past, thinking I'd have to sacrifice system performance, lose access to my daily apps, or spend hours staring at a terminal screen just to get basic things working. But CachyOS completely changed the game for me. I genuinely believe this specific OS is pivotal for the entire Linux family right now. It takes all the raw power and bleeding-edge updates of Arch and packages it into something actually usable, insanely fast, and user-friendly.
The performance is just unreal right out of the box, especially with how it comes pre-configured with heavily optimized kernels like BORE. For gaming, it has been an absolute dream. Almost all my games work flawlessly right through Proton. I play a ton of CS2 competitively, and I was heavily worried about input lag, frame drops, or weird mouse acceleration issues. But the latency is practically non-existent, and it handles my high-polling-rate peripherals beautifully without any heavy tinkering. The only minor downside is that a few top-tier titles with those wildly complicated, kernel-level anti-cheat systems still refuse to play nice. But honestly, that's a wider industry problem, not a CachyOS problem, and it's a trade-off I'm more than willing to make to escape the Windows ecosystem.
On the daily use and productivity side, I found absolutely all the software I need to get by. Getting my development environment fully set up with VS Code, translation layers for tools like LINQPad (via Proton), and all my usual stuff was surprisingly painless. I can just dive in and work without feeling like I'm constantly fighting my operating system. It's just a remarkably smooth, stable experiance from top to bottom.
I'm enjoying my daily computing so much more now. The telemetry and bloatware are completely gone, my system feels incredibly snappy, and I actually feel like I own my PC hardware again. If you are sitting on the fence about ditching Windows for good, definitly give CachyOS a shot. It makes the transition so much easier than you'd expect. I love it a lot, and I am absolutely not switching back!!!
Seriously, way to go guys!!!
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-01
Country: Germany
Votes: 0
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Coming from Manjaro linux, I feel very confortable. Installed fast and witout problems. Only issue is that your system may get mirrors from Russia, China or Iran in your mirror-list. I had to go one by one and comment them out. Also mask the cachyos-rate-mirrors.timer and cachyos-rate-mirrors.service to avoid getting them back in the next automatic mirror refresh. Other difference to Manjaro is AUR packages are to install with paru instead of pamac. All works as expected, WIFI, network, printer, scaner, GPU. It feels solid.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-30
Country: United States
Votes: 1
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Had issues with Pop OS, etc and finally settled on CachyOS. Running Plasma KDE and havent' had any real issues. My wireless Razer headset just works. New OLED monitor, works. I'm dual booting Windows 11 as I still play BF6, PUBG, etc. But unless I'm playing those, most game else works just fine. Love the BTRFS Assistant for automatic snapshots. Haven't run into any problems running the updater and bricking the system. It's snappy and responsive. Hopefully one day game developers will allow linux to run anti-cheat and I'll never have to boot into Windows again, at least on my personal PC.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-30
Country: Germany
Votes: 0
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Wow!
Ich habe gerade die neueste Version von CachyOS vom 26.04. in meiner VM ohne Probleme installiert: PIIX3-Chipsatz, kein TPM, USB-Tablet, IO-APIC auf „ON“ gesetzt, Hardware-Uhr auf „ON“ gesetzt, kein EFI, VMSVGA-Grafikcontroller, VirtualBox 7.0 unter Linux – und es läuft wie geschmiert. Fazit: So eine saubere Linux-Installation habe ich noch nie gesehen!
I just installed the latest 04/26 version of CachyOS in my VM without any issues: PIIX3 chipset, no TPM, USB tablet, IO-APIC set to “ON”, hardware clock set to “ON”, no EFI, VMSVGA graphics controller, VirtualBox 7.0 running on Linux and it's running like a charm. Bottom line: Never seen such a clean Linux setup before!
Good bye, Linux Mint!
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-29
Country: Romania
Votes: 0
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Este, fără îndoială, una dintre cele mai rapide distribuții bazate pe Arch Linux disponibile în prezent. Ceea ce o face specială este utilizarea kernel-urilor optimizate (precum linux-cachyos) și compilarea pachetelor cu instrucțiuni x86-64-v3 și v4, ceea ce oferă un plus vizibil de fluiditate în utilizarea zilnică și în gaming.
Interfața de instalare este intuitivă, iar scripturile de optimizare post-instalare sunt extrem de utile. Totuși, fiind un sistem de tip „rolling release”, necesită un utilizator care să aibă minime cunoștințe de mentenanță pentru a gestiona eventualele mici conflicte de pachete. Dacă ești în căutarea performanței brute fără compromisuri, CachyOS este alegerea ideală.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-27
Country: United States
Votes: 0
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I switched from Linux Mint and it was very easy, quick and efficient. I choose Plasma-KDE and found it runs faster! than Cinnamon on Linux Mint. I found even Darktable ran faster compared to using on Mint. Intel/Nvidia stays up to date and I haven't run into any problems with display. External monitors through HDMI also worked better then when using Mint. I will admit it was a bit different learning Arch comming from Debian but so far it went well. I even set it up to dual boot with Mint on one partition and CachyOS on the other. I did use the Grub option so they work well together. I strongly recommend giving it a try.
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Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-27
Country: France
Votes: 1
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Even after having tried distros such as openSuse, Fedora and Pop!_OS on my '21 Asus TUF notebook (AMD Ryzen 7 6800H, 32GB DDR5, RTX 3070 Laptop GPU), a rather capricious laptop, and not to mention Ubuntu 24.04 with its installation issues (installer didn't work at all), I've got myself an easy-to-install operating system with CachyOS.
A clear difference between CachyOS and my previous experience with the other distros can be seen in terms of its performance. The reason behind the high performance of the OS can be the optimized repositories and the customized kernels. When using GNOME 50, everything works incredibly fast; and, what is more important, it supports fractional scaling. Moreover, the hardware integration is done excellently: AMD/Nvidia hybrid graphics, function keys and backlighting are all supported out-of-the-box, no manual tinkering required.
As a returning Arch user, I have found that there are not many differences in comparison with CachyOS. However, it was not complicated for me to set up the system thanks to the convenient CachyOS Installation and the Following Hello tools. At the same time I did not face any unexpected problems during installation because of good documentation, and when really in doubt, there's always the Arch Linux Wiki. The updates are frequent and stable, as expected and anticipated. I give it a perfect ten score for refreshing my capricious machine and my joy with an Arch based distro.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-24
Country: United States
Votes: 0
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By far my favorite arch based distro. The default install covers all my favorites, LUKS, Limine, BORE, snapper and an amazing update tool (seems an oxymoron for linux, let alone arch), but it's great, covering news, standard and extra repos, aur, and flatpak with a cleanup at the end. It's been stable and running bleeding edge rocm/ollama with near zero downtime for me thus far. Install was painless, boot is fast, and it has multiple layers of redundancy. I tried to get my ai stack running on fedora, debian, ubuntu, and even gentoo prior to this, and there was always something causing issues with an integral part of my stack, but nearly everything i need is already cleaned up and ready to go in the cachy extra repo.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-24
Country: Pakistan
Votes: 0
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By far my favorite arch based distro. The default install covers all my favorites, LUKS, Limine, BORE, snapper and an amazing update tool (seems an oxymoron for linux, let alone arch), but it's great, covering news, standard and extra repos, aur, and flatpak with a cleanup at the end. It's been stable and running bleeding edge rocm/ollama with near zero downtime for me thus far. Install was painless, boot is fast, and it has multiple layers of redundancy. I tried to get my ai stack running on fedora, debian, ubuntu, and even gentoo prior to this, and there was always something causing issues with an integral part of my stack, but nearly everything i need is already cleaned up and ready to go in the cachy extra repo.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-04-21
Country: Australia
Votes: 1
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I use Linux to revive old computers. I tried CachyOS as it was at the top of the distribution list.
4G of RAM was required which limited its use. A Fujitsu touch screen with 4G RAM and 128G SSD was used. The installation screen looked straightforward. When it came to dual-booting alongside another Linux-OS, it became a challenge to master making the partitions with Gparted, as its something I don’t often do, so I took the easier option and installed over the entire disk and then re-installed the other Linux, which had an easier install.
After the install I was expecting a faster boot but it took about 1 minute for each reboot. The programs available to run on various Linux OS are similar. The installation of programs for Office, Graphics and Multimedia from the CachyOS repository went well but I did not find about a quarter of those I normally use.
I started with the XFCE for a lightweight option but it was a bit underwhelming so I switched to Plasma-KDE which was more attractive and had more features. Its a learning curve and appreciate the work that’s gone into its design.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-19
Country: Iraq
Votes: 17
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A fast and smooth modern system that offers the best experience, or at least the best I have tried so far among operating systems. It is undisputedly the fastest, with absolutely fantastic resource management. It is the best in terms of interface aesthetics, and the customization capability is extremely high; simply do whatever you imagine, as there are no limits to what you can do and change. It is a masterpiece, and something I have never felt this satisfied with in a system my entire life; it is freedom in every sense of the word. Compared to Windows, it's like a one-square-meter jail cell.
Most importantly, it is incredibly fast, and this is due to the optimized kernel. Thanks to everyone who contributed to building this system. I must mention something very important: no matter the load on the system or the amount of software running in real-time, the system maintains fast and stable performance. Words do not do it justice; it is wonderful. I have spent a very long time with Linux systems, but this system was something completely different. I mean the massive software support, and the support for continuous fixes at a very rapid pace; sometimes a specific software or program in the system fails, and it doesn't take more than three days to a week for the issue to be resolved. This is the fastest system support and improvement experience I have had in my life.
The support, development, and improvement teams are like soldiers who never sleep, neither day nor night; updates can arrive 3 to 5 times a week, which is incredibly strong support. Even though they might include updates from the original Arch kernel, I inspect every update, and most of them relate to the system itself and its optimized kernel. To shock readers even more, they have even modified many software programs to match the high speed of the system; for example, the fastest web browser in the world, "Thorium," has been modified by the system's team into a custom version. I tried it, and oh my god! With the fastest system in the world and the fastest browser in the world, I now have the fastest experience in the world. Previously, I thought some of the slowness in web browsing was due to the internet service provider, but after this experience, and with the exact same internet speed, it turns out a large part of the speed depends on the system and the browser.
To sum up my point: try this system. I promise you will experience unprecedented speed, provided your device meets the medium requirements to run it, as it is designed for modern devices. I have a very powerful computer running it, and I must honestly say: I have loved this system and I have no intention of ever leaving it, no matter what happens.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-16
Country: Brazil
Votes: 6
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Excelente experiência! CPU i5 6200U (Dual core), GPU Intel HD520,
16GB de RAM DDR4 2133mhz e SSD de 256GB, TV LG 4K 60". 10 bits de cor, HDR,
1440p a 60hz no desktop (devido a limitação da porta HDMI só ir até 4k 30hz) e a tv fazendo upscale pra 2160p, ta lindo!
Nunca tive essa experiência no windows.
A maioria das distros são mais leves que o windows porem, essa Cachy Os
é muito bem feita! Tenho impressão de estar usando um Notebook novo de
tão boa a experiência de uso no dia a dia. Quero agradecer a todos que estão
por traz desse projeto maravilhoso que esta prosperando muito.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-15
Country: United Kingdom
Votes: 11
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ABSOLUTE PEAK. Can't find anything wrong with it after 7 months of usage. It's fast, it's reliable and it's feature-packed. I have noticed the improvement in performance coming from bazzite I have been enjoying how easy it is to get used to and it ties perfectly with KDE Plasma.
I have it on two key devices of note, one is my main PC, but the other is an Asus BR1100CKA.
This laptop has a Dual-Core Celeron N4500 at 1.10Ghz and 4GB of RAM. The storage is 64GB of eMMC and yet it plays games perfectly fine on CachyOS. The one that performs the best (easy 60fps) is MegaBonk.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-14
Country: United States
Votes: 18
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CachyOS was easy to install and significantly improved my gaming performance, even on an NVIDIA card. For me personally on fairly budget hardware those improvements were pretty extreme, nearly doubling frame rates in some cases (compared to Linux Mint), but depending on your hardware the differences might be more or less noticeable.
In terms of software, CachyOS uses pacman as the primary package manager and benefits from all the packages available in the Arch repositories, as well as the AUR, which gets pretty much every package anyone is going to need. There are a lot of GUI options available, so it's possible (though not recommended) to avoid using the terminal for a large variety of things.
On the Desktop Environment side of things, CachyOS defaults to the latest version of KDE Plasma, which is arguably the best Linux DE by far right now. There are also a number of other options available at install including GNOME, XFCE, Cosmic, Cinnamon and more. For those who like Window Managers instead of full DEs, CachyOS has plenty of options there as well including Niri (my personal favorite), Hyprland, Sway, i3, and more.
The filesystem that CachyOS uses by default is BTRFS, though other options like EXT4, XFS, ZFS, F2FS, and BcacheFS are available if desired. If installing using BTRFS, CachyOS has automatic snapshot using snapper that allow you to rollback your system from the boot menu fairly easily in case of any issues. This is helpful both in the case of an update breaking something, as does happen on occasion with rolling release distros, and in the case of any tinkering gone wrong.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-13
Country: Brazil
Votes: 8
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CachyOS is the closest it has ever been to a perfect Linux distro compared to any other. I've tried using vanilla Arch before, but I had some problems with it regarding NVIDIA drivers. This did not happen here.
Pros:
+ Super easy to install (after all, it has Calamares) and use, especially for beginners.
+ Stable despite being Arch-based.
+ Great community support and documentation (the Arch Wiki also helps with this).
+ Similar FPS in games like RDR2 and GTA5 as Windows, while being open-source.
+ Installer offers flexible choices for bootloaders, DEs/WMs, and additional options like printer and scanner support.
+ Great support for Intel and NVIDIA components.
+ Optimized kernel for performance and security, including sched-ext, which increased my FPS by 50+ in Minecraft.
Cons:
- Has unnecessary packages that an average Linux user won't need post-installation (for example, Plymouth, which makes the boot splash prettier, but it isn't something I necessarily need).
- systemd (some people are not bothered by this, but I am).
As shown here, there are many more pros than cons for this distro, but there are still cons. If Cachy had an option for picking init systems other than systemd and specifically selecting which packages to install and not install, both straight from the ISO, this would be, in my opinion, the best Linux distro that exists. If it's not possible to add an option for init systems, they could at least provide ISOs bundled with different init systems, like Artix does.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-10
Country: Canada
Votes: 15
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I moved to CachyOS from windows in October 2025. It was my first real jump into the linux world. The install was easier and quicker than a windows install. The OS has just worked. I had a problem with auto mounting my drives at start up but that was an error on my part and not the OS or the instructions in the wiki. I know a lot of people told me to stay away from Arch based Os's for my first jump into linux, but CachyOS has been very easy to use and between the Cachy wiki and the Arch wiki I don't feel like I'm going to ever really struggle with a problem. Cachy has been very stable for me and I enjoy the rolling release. I also have not had any bugs due to the rolling release as I was told I would, and snapper gives me some piece of mind that even if I do it will be easy to fix. I can't recommend this distro enough. Huge thank you to the Cachy team. Keep up the good work!
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Version: 260308
Rating: 5
Date: 2026-03-31
Country: France
Votes: 0
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Depuis la dernière version ils ont complètement supprimé "X11".
J'avais décidé de réinstaller "Cachyos" car mon temps de démarrage devenait très long...environ plus de 2 min sur mon pc trop vieux qui a plus de 15 ans.
En consultant les discussions du forum de "Cachyos" j'ai découvert qu'ils supprimaient depuis la nouvelle version de "Cachyos" la prise en charge de "X11".
L'écran d'authentification restera bloqué et vous empêchera d'accéder à "Cachyos" car maintenant c'est "Wayland" qui est obligatoirement activé par défaut donc plus du tout de "Plasma X11".
J'ai une très vieille carte graphique Nvidia GT710 à 2 Go de vram qui n' est pas du tout compatible avec "Wayland"...et le drivers "Nouveau" fonctionne très mal pour le gaming.
Adieu "Cachyos"'...
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-30
Country: Romania
Votes: 22
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I have started my journey in Linux not so long ago (maybe a year or so) and have used quite a few distros (Linux mint, Endeavor OS and CachyOS) and out of all them CachyOS is the most inspiring and easy-to-use. I like both the philosophy of it and the perfomance it gives.
First things first, the gui installer. I would say it's amazing, it's fast, reliable and gets the job done. I've been able to configure everything I needed and install it in ~30 minutes.And then there's the Cachy Hello app that managed installing my browser and all the stuff I need, removing the block from pacman and many things else.
CachyOS kernel manager is wonderful app that lets me quickly change kernel version without any trouble so I could compare the performance of all of them (I think bore is the best of them yet).
So after switching from mint to Endeavor I felt a significant increase in the difficulty of updating all the packages (flatpaks,aur etc.) but on CachyOS the experience in updates are somewhat similar to mint in it's simplicity. Cachy Update handles everything for me and I just have to confirm few thing here in there.
My setup perfectly worked out of the box (NVIDIA 3060 card, amd ryzen 5600 processor and all peripherals), expect for my Brother HL2140R printer. I had to download the brlaser package from aur for it to function, which wasn't the case for Mint experience. But I guess it's overall arch problem since it was the same on Endeavor OS.
The overall performance increase that system gives is either significant (15-30 fps compared to others) or none at all. It really depends on a game you are testing in. System stability is quite good, in my month of usage I haven't run in any problem with the system expect for some issue with Hyprland ( not a CachyOS problem, rather an update problem).
Pros
+ Sometimes increase in perfomance in some games
+ Ease of installing and using
+ Good community and technical support
+ Good hardware support
Cons
- No offline installer (for me, as a resident of censored country it could be an issue)
- Lesser community than some of other mainstream distros (though it keeps growing)
- I've run into some issues with secureboot
- No implementation of apparmor or SElinux
I would recommend this distro both to experienced and inexperienced linux users, as it has stability of Linux Mint and power of Arch linux. Documentation seems nice and through and you can find most answers on forums and reddit. That's definitely a go-to distro.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-03-30
Country: Unknown
Votes: 9
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I've been using CachyOS for a few months, eventually deciding to stop and look for a different distro. It's definitely simple to use, features a good set of optimization tools, configuration and kernels to choose. It struck me as a disto with a good take on Arch, being easy to install even for a beginner, with a clear documentation included. The reason I stopped using it comes from the recent developments: it became too oversized with packages, while including only an online installation and refusing to provide some sort of offline version. I noticed someone on reddit mentioning this issue, just to end up being mocked for having a slower internet connection. That's the another reason: community surrounding it became very dismissive and elitist, sometimes speaking low on any other distribution when mentioned. There are still of course people who are very helpful and nice, and big thanks to them, but then there is this other group coming to sight, with a visibly toxic behaviour.
Important to mention is also the reaction to the recent age verification topic. CachyOS developers, to all the questions about this issue, reacted with silence at first, then eventually posting about it in an emotional manner, calling people who were looking for answers "radical" and deciding to ban any mentioning about it. I feel like the matter could be handled and communicated in a much better, mature way.
Personally, I wish well for CachyOS developers and just hope that their communication practices could be improved upon, because it's a really promising distribution. I switched to EndeavourOS myself since, and I'm pleased with the change.
Pros
+ Easy to install and use for an Arch distro, even for beginners
+ Good optimizations in many aspects, from kernels to tools and schedulers
+ Good hardware support
Cons
- No offline installer and no plans to add one
- Growing elitism and toxicity in the community, though you can still find people who are very nice and helpful
- Distribution rapidly becomes heavier and overpacked
- Not great communication practices from the team
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-29
Country: Switzerland
Votes: 4
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I generally dislike distro-hopping and using distributions that are not quite mainstream. Usually, they are not maintained as well as the mainstream options and have only minor cosmetic differences, which are rarely worth making the switch for. I was pleasantly surprised by CachyOS in virtually every aspect.
There are multiple desktop environments and window managers to choose from, and none of them feel like an afterthought. They are all well maintained, the default setups make sense, and the tools most users need are already installed and configured with sensible defaults.
The one-click setup for gaming is a game-changer. The distribution handles Nvidia drivers, Wine, and Proton automatically, without involving the user, which is a significant advantage for less experienced users. I believe it is a great all-rounder and useful for both newcomers and experienced users.
My only concern is a potential decrease in popularity, which might in the future negatively affect the project, but right know it is simply one of the best distros to choose from. I hope it continues being a popular choice and continues to be updated regularly and maintained well into the future.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-28
Country: Italy
Votes: 5
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This distro is very easy to install and setup. I'm using it on a modern HP Omen 16 laptop with Nvidia card onboard. All peripherals are working correctly. The updater is very light and easy to use, with continous update day by day.
Another nice thing is the Kernel Manager, that allow you to try other versions alongside the more stable one (nice to be able to test also the RC version).
I also use Steam for gaming and it's also very easy to setup; performances equal or even better compared to Win 11.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-23
Country: Germany
Votes: 24
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I have been using CachyOS for approximately four months on a relatively uncommon hardware setup: an older Razer Blade laptop combined with a Thunderbolt 3 eGPU (GTX 1080 Ti). This kind of configuration tends to reveal compatibility and stability issues quickly, especially under Linux. Based on my experience, CachyOS has provided the most consistent and reliable results on this system.
From the beginning, installation and hardware detection were straightforward. Both the internal GPU and the external GPU were recognized without requiring unusual workarounds. While eGPU setups under Linux are inherently complex, CachyOS handled the basics reliably and allowed me to reach a usable system state quickly.
What stands out most is stability. Even with the added complexity of Thunderbolt and hybrid graphics, the system behaves predictably during daily use. General desktop performance is smooth, and applications launch quickly. The system also feels responsive under load, which is particularly important on hardware that is not specifically designed with Linux in mind.
Performance is another strong point. CachyOS delivers the best results I have experienced on this setup, especially in terms of responsiveness and overall system fluidity. While certain edge cases still exist—particularly with demanding gaming workloads on eGPU configurations—the underlying system remains stable and usable, which is more important for long-term daily use.
I am using KDE Plasma, which complements CachyOS well. KDE provides a mature and feature-complete environment that works reliably across different use cases, including multi-GPU scenarios. The combination of CachyOS and KDE offers a good balance between flexibility and usability.
In summary, CachyOS has proven to be a dependable distribution on hardware that can be challenging for Linux. It combines strong performance, solid stability, and enough flexibility to adapt to more complex setups. For users with similar hardware configurations, it is definitely worth considering.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-20
Country: Türkiye
Votes: 7
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It's my first main OS for linux. I tried a few linux distros and install them on my HP gaming laptop, next to the win11. Then I decided to install cachy on a new laptop, I buy one with only integrated GPU, Lenovo one. All drivers working perfectly. Only a sleep mode problem happened but I fixed it with AMD_STB conf file, too easy. I use this new laptop regularly, only using hp for playing battlefield. Lately I don't play that much so I can say that cachyOS became main OS, and of course the new laptop is heavier to move it and battery lives longer cuz integrated cpu. After I'll sent hp to the service I'll install cachyOS to hp to play RDR2.
If you are using windows and want to try a linux distro, you can buy a small laptop with only integrated GPU. Of course you have to be kinda rich :D. But really I'm a student with living only with scholarship. Maybe I made a dangerous move, of course I will eat only water a few months. :D hahahahah whatever.
I give 9 because there are some keyboard issue on some laptops. Lenovo has its own drivers but HP still has some problems. Idk which side will fix it. If I use a english Q keyboard maybe it won't be a problem but my laptop is Turkish Q. I write in the cachy forum but no answer, too normal of course.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-18
Country: Sweden
Votes: 12
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It's honestly one of the better and more stable Arch distros I've tried out. It's simple, fast and very stable. A lot of things just work out of the box while still being fairly minimal and clean. Even works great for gaming out of the box.
Despite being Arch, I have yet to run into any issues with it.
It might not look super flashy and in your face like some of the others out there, but I like it. It's nice and clean, and if you're someone that want it super flashy then it's still Arch and you can just do the changes yourself.
It's become my home distro, I love everything about it.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-03-17
Country: United States
Votes: 1
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This is for the review of the handheld edition, not the desktop edition. The Handheld edition is an amazing distro for handhelds, I find this better than native steam os and bazzite due to it being Non Immutable and much snappier. This is much more beginner friendly compared to the desktop edition because It only has one desktop environment and one bootloader (now two, System D and Limine).
I recommend this for your Steam Deck, Rog Ally, or Legion Go due to decky loader and emudeck having less issues installing compared to Nobara and Bazzite.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-16
Country: Indonesia
Votes: 4
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Recently, CachyOS has become one of my favorite operating systems. My experience so far has been very positive. The system feels incredibly fast and stable compared to many other distributions I’ve tried. What impressed me the most is the level of optimization— even on a low-end machine, the performance remains smooth and responsive.
Another great aspect of CachyOS is that it feels quite friendly for beginners. The overall user experience is simple and comfortable, and many applications work well out of the box. I also appreciate that several Windows applications can run properly through compatibility layers available in the Linux ecosystem, which makes the transition much easier.
As someone who regularly works on assignments and projects, this distro has helped me complete my tasks faster and more efficiently than before. Its stability allows me to focus on my work without worrying about system issues or interruptions.
I truly appreciate the hard work of the CachyOS developers. The effort put into performance optimization and usability is clearly noticeable. I hope the project continues to grow and evolve in the future—especially in areas like stability, application compatibility, and user experience for both beginners and advanced users.
Thank you to the developers for creating such a fast, stable, and enjoyable operating system. I’m excited to see how CachyOS will continue to improve and exceed expectations in the future.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-15
Country: Ukraine
Votes: 2
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I like it. Pretty graphics, and it feels very responsive even with KDE Plasma on a 12 year old rig. The only problems with install were related to my BIOS making not very obvious on how to disable the secure boot, and a shaky internet connection. The other minor annoyance is probably related to NVidia driver, and Wayland: the second monitor resolution is too low. It could be because the second is connected through DVI. Dual-booting with Window which I use for CAD, Limine added Windows without a hitch. Immediately installed Blender, Prusa, Orca, and Cura slicer - everything works as expected. As such I am planning to use it, maybe try installing Plasticity 3D later.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-09
Country: India
Votes: 9
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As a first-time Linux user, I initially tried Pop OS but couldn’t get it to my liking. After some research, I discovered that CachyOS is simple to install and comes with all the necessary packages. Their package library is well-maintained and documented, making it easy to install what I need from the terminal. It runs incredibly fast on my 10-year-old laptop with an Nvidia 1050 Ti 4GB and an i5 8th gen processor. My steam and epic library works like charm with few hiccups from heroic but I can find answers to most my issues in their forum. Next I’m planning to learn development either of KDE apps or get started with kernel code as their few apps for which I would like to improve the UI
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Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-09
Country: Germany
Votes: 11
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I've been looking for a Linux-based system to replace a multipurpose Windows installation for quite some time. In the past, I repeatedly ran into issues where either gaming support or certain office hardware - particularly my HP Laser MFP 135ag scanner - did not work properly. The available solutions were often unreliable or had usability limitations that made them impractical for daily use.
CachyOS finally provides everything I was looking for. The system offers excellent performance and allows extensive customization, even at a very low level if desired. The included performance optimizations are a particularly welcome addition and noticeably contribute to the overall responsiveness of the system.
My installation experience was somewhat mixed. The GNOME Desktop ISO booted into a black/blank login screen on my system, while the KDE Plasma ISO worked without any issues. Since I don't have a strong preference for a specific desktop environment, this was not a major problem for me.
UEFI booting and key enrollment are documented, but I still managed to misconfigure things a couple of times—possibly due to quirks in my BIOS (HP OMEN 30L Desktop GT13-0xxx). I eventually settled on using the Limine boot loader for a dual-boot setup with CachyOS and Windows. It is very useful that CachyOS provides this option.
Setting up my multi-monitor configuration was straightforward and required only a few clicks.
Since installation (Jan. 2026), the system has been fast, stable, and reliable. Overall, CachyOS has proven to be a strong candidate for replacing my previous Windows setup. The need to boot into Windows again has been minimal so far and reasons to do so vanish week by week.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-09
Country: Germany
Votes: 10
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The installation went smoothly. I first did a test run with the live image and then installed it on a separate SSD. After a surprisingly short time, the system was up and running, and my gaming hardware and streaming equipment were working perfectly, from the RGB control to the Stream Deck, sound mixer, HOTAS, etc. I actually had to invest less time than before with Windows 11. Updates have been running without any side effects so far. I've been running Cachy OS for about 6 months now and haven't started Windows 11, which is still installed in parallel, for at least 3 months.
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Version: 260308
Rating: 4
Date: 2026-03-09
Country: New Zealand
Votes: 5
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Finally, after several releases that seemed not to start up, then start an installer, etc. I did manage to get Cachy installed! You just need to be rather patient.
Pros:
- it is Arch, and a rolling release
- it offers many desktops from one ISO [1]
- the system is quite responsive (that speed-optimised promise on the can - tick yes)
Cons:
- it completely cannot play alongside other distros / dual-boot [2]
- as noted by others, package availability is not quite Arch-level
[1] So I got to see Cosmic, outside of Pop!OS, nice job guys. The KDE looked good. Some distros split it out as an ISO per desktop, but quite a few other distros do what Cachy offers - one ISO and you can pick, even more than one.
[2] I went with GRUB to try and stick with what other distros still use. The Cachy partition went invisible to installs after it, so I could only re-carve-up the 'other' part of the disk. Haven't tested Limine. So if you add Cachy, install it last.
Summary:
It was good to see what Cachy has on the inside. The impression is excellent in terms of UI and user experience, graphics, etc - but for me the cons outweigh the pros. It depends on your particular usage. For me, I flip between distros on my 'test' machine, but 'production' stays with a distro for years on end. I need to get stuff done, and if packages are not there or there are operational issues, I don't need drama in my workflow. As noted, being Arch there should not be drama, but as noted by other reviewers, there are gaps for some reason.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-03-07
Country: United States
Votes: 4
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It is now March, 2026. Last year, I encountered an impossible situation: a blank screen after installing CachyOS.
This month, the experience is much, much better. The install seems easier, where last year I was ambushed at least twice.
One difficulty does persist: CachyOS has disabled the use of os-prober in the grub configuration, for no good reason (IMHO).
I have used i3wm, Plasma (both X11 and Wayland), hyprland, and Sway with the new CachyOS. All of them work well. The default i3wm setup was an improvement over others. In general the entire configuration defaults feel better.
Startup is speedy. My experience is that CachyOS is noticeably speedier than other OSs.
I have a complicated application that is available as a Deb or an RPM. I was able to install the deb by jumping through many hoops, each of which was the equivalent of a black box. It is a sloppy affair, but that is not the fault of CachyOS.
My NVIDIA GTX-1050 works out of the box; the correct proprietary driver was installed by CachyOS. This is a major improvement. Or so it seems to me.
I give this new version an "8" because I have not worked with CachyOS long enough for highest confidence. So far, this has been a great experience. Except for the complications when installing grub.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 6
Date: 2026-03-05
Country: United States
Votes: 3
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After installing CachyOS with KDE desktop. First boot would go to black screen with mouse cursor. After wasting several minutes reinstalling with other desktop environments, KDE was the only one not working. For the first time in years I had to go to a forum to follow bread crumbs to find KDE remedy. The fix was to login into shell and run plasma update.
Unlike other review post. I found package installer lacking programs included with other Linux distros. Which lead to me back Arch forums to find work around. If you enjoy trouble shooting “bugs” and package installs. Which is a great way to learn. This might be your OS.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-03-05
Country: Russia
Votes: 9
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Really just works distro. What I like about it:
- Easy GUI installation
- Fresh packages
- Out of the box configuration of latest `new feature branch` nVidia drivers which means best performance with zero effort from end-user
- Out of the box configuration of snapshots with BTRFS as file system + Limine as bootloader so you can roll-back in case your system got broken after update
- Out of the box updating daemon `CachyUpdate` (just ArchUpdate skin) which will notify you about updates every hour (I've changed it to every 8 hours)
- Out of the box software to run Windows executables (better to avoid it but nice that you don't need to set it up manually)
- Nice Wiki documentation and Discord server
- Have GUI for package installer (not as pretty in comparison to other distros' app stores though)
- AUR / ChaoticAUR support which means you likely won't face a problems with packages you need (including proprietary ones)
- Fast package manager with fun pacman animation
- KDE Plasma works without any distro related problems
- New open-source technologies like Wayland and PipeWire included and work by default
- Just works for me as a Windows 10 refugee who used to observe Linux but not switch
- GUI kernel manager so you can try different kernels and find one which work best for your hardware*
- Have precompiled packages for x86_64_vN target CPU architectures depending on supported instructions set what can provide some performance benefits**
*I don't think it's much useful for modern computers but for older ones maybe but let it be a pros because it gives you opportunity to try
**I don't think it's much performance benefits in regular use on modern hardware but maybe that's crucial for older machines
What I not really like:
- I've heard developers used bots to promote their distro. If so then I highly condemn such behaviour
- Have aura of "gaming turbo flex distro" and not as mature as core distros
- Can't recommend it to those newbies or Windows refugees who aren't also a solid power-users or have time/will to explore nuances (I myself don't know much)
- Strange syntax of package manager which is not as intuitive as `sudo apt install/search/update` or `sudo dnf install/search/update`
- I'm sure it still will break some day and I will need to roll-back via snapshots
- Default GUI for package installer is kinda ugly compared to modern store-like alternatives
- Uses Calamares as installer which is buggy and can hang or close unexpectedly
- Lacks offline installer and fully depends on internet connection during installation. Online installation is nice but I think it's better to have a choice between two options
For now it's my daily driver for about 1.5 months and first distro which I've found less annoying to consider try switching from Windows 10.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-01
Country: United States
Votes: 31
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I came from Windows 11 and worked my way through Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora, and Bazzite before landing on CachyOS as my main OS. Here's my honest take.
Installation was quick and painless. The installer is straightforward, and I had KDE Plasma up and running without any issues. Not something you always expect from an Arch-based distro.
Performance is where CachyOS genuinely surprised me. Coming from Windows 11 and several other Linux distros, I wasn't expecting such a noticeable jump in snappiness and responsiveness — but the difference is real and immediate. The custom kernel and optimized packages deserve the credit, and the CachyOS Hello app makes post-install setup easy without having to rely entirely on the terminal.
Gaming works well for most titles. With Steam, Proton, and the AUR, you have everything you need to get started with Linux gaming right away.
Software availability is essentially unlimited thanks to Arch's repos and the AUR. Coming from Fedora and Bazzite, I found the package selection here to be broader and more flexible.
Bottom line: CachyOS is a great pick for gamers, developers, Linux enthusiasts, and general desktop users comfortable with a rolling-release system. If you've been distro-hopping and want something fast and stable to finally settle on, this might be it.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-01
Country: Canada
Votes: 1
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I saw a lot of hype on the web so I had to see what the fuss was about.
I attempted installation on PC with an old NV Quadro card but couldn't get past the login screen. Swapped out for a newer but slightly weaker AMD graphics card, now works amazingly well. Very impressed with it's responsiveness. KDE Plasma seems very polished .
I haven't used it extensively, but I highly recommend trying this OS, the PC I installed it on is just for testing.
I'm considering replacing Ubuntu with this on my daily driver laptop so I can get more time working with it.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-02-27
Country: Italy
Votes: 11
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I've tried many distributions over the years, going from Ubuntu with gnome2 to Debian with gnome modified with dash to panel and arcmenu, to Zorin OS, always with Windows in dual boot. Then I switched to just Zorin and I knew I had found the right one. But then I tried CachyOS with KDE Plasma, Limine, BTRFS with v3 instructions and sched-ext bpfland, and I was absolutely amazed. Fantastic! Both for pros and for attentive and curious beginners. Secure, up to date, fantastic and functional! The cow system for any restores is excellent. Excellent warnings during updates and installations. Perfect!
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-02-22
Country: Netherlands
Votes: 9
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CachyOS is a capable Arch-based distribution. Installation via Calamares is efficient and hassle-free. Dual monitors work flawlessly out of the box, requiring no tweaks.Performance delivers strong results immediately, managing workloads effectively. Customization is robust, with ready-to-use widgets, panels, and wallpapers for personalization.Gaming under Wayland has limitations: some titles, like CS2, may not launch by default. A Steam config resolves this reliably. Notably, with CS2, you can freely work with other programs in parallel—Alt+Tab or switch apps without crashes, unlike Windows where it disrupts gameplay.A standout feature is the inclusion of Windows-style shortcuts, such as Win+Shift+S for screenshots and Win+V for clipboard history. These saved me significant setup time compared to Ubuntu, where equivalents demand manual configuration.As a rolling-release Arch derivative, it provides fresh packages and flexibility without raw Arch's complexity. Drawbacks are minor and typical of Wayland, easily addressed with basic adjustments.In summary, CachyOS balances power, usability, and familiarity, making it a practical choice over more rigid distros like Ubuntu, Mint.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-02-21
Country: France
Votes: 3
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I was looking for a quick and stable OS. I like the rolling release flavor which brings always up to date packages and also optimized for your hardware (x64). Lots of DE but waiting for server version to deploy one for my headless home lab server. Paru, the package manager, is a great feature because it's very fast and has simple options that can cope with AUR packages as well. There are a lot of mirrors and it will find out the fastest for you. You can rely on the wiki and lean more from Arch Linux one if required. I like the cutting edges schedulers available to be sure it will suit your needs.
This OS is so flexible and versatile that it can likely replace any other.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-02-18
Country: Slovakia
Votes: 6
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I am completely new to Linux. After Microsoft pissed me off so much, I decided to start learning Linux. First, I installed it on my work laptop, then I took a chance and installed it on my main computer, which I use for gaming.
It's an AMD 9800X3D 9070XT with 32 GB of RAM. I wanted a distribution optimized for gaming, and I must say I'm pleasantly surprised. It runs smoothly. Since I play Battlefield 6, which requires Secure Boot, I had a lot of fun signing and creating keys. As a beginner, I didn't care about everything.
The Cachy OS environment is pleasant and very fast. I immediately enriched it with eza, atuine, fzf, fresh, bottles, and it runs like a dream. I'm looking forward to completely breaking this installation...
I was used to the flatpack store from Linux MINT, and I miss it a lot, but I learned to do everything through the terminal.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
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Version: 260124
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-02-10
Country: United States
Votes: 0
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Main issues is it ability to run stable on a
in a vm manager (virtual box or VM Workstation)
Hardware I have used for testing has been
AM4 & AM5 Ryzen 7 processors with 32 gig / 64 gig.
Zero issues observed on the live system; and
no major issues once running.
Problem seems to be related to the boot sequence and starting up.
CachyOS does not recommend that the software
run in a VM I did not know about this fact until I googled
can I run it in said environment.
Based on this; I would say that this Arch disto on bare metal
would rate closer to 8.0.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-02-05
Votes: 32
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Endlich Freiheit: Mein Wechsel von Windows zu CachyOS
Nach etlichen Jahren als treuer Windows-Nutzer war für mich der Punkt erreicht, an dem das Fass überlief. Die ständigen Datenschutzprobleme, das Gefühl, ungefragt als Datenquelle für Telemetrie herhalten zu müssen, und die zunehmende Überladenheit des Systems haben mich nach Alternativen suchen lassen. Mein Ziel war klar: Ein System, das meine Privatsphäre respektiert, ohne dass ich dafür ein Informatikstudium absolvieren muss.
Die Überraschung: Geschwindigkeit trifft auf Intuition Ich habe mich für CachyOS entschieden und was soll ich sagen? Ich bin schlichtweg fassungslos, wie reibungslos dieser Umstieg verlief. Ich hatte mit einer steilen Lernkurve und komplizierten Terminal-Befehlen gerechnet, doch das Gegenteil ist der Fall. Ich kam auf Anhieb klar. Die Benutzeroberfläche ist modern, logisch aufgebaut und reagiert so schnell, dass Windows dagegen wie ein Relikt aus der Steinzeit wirkt.
Performance, die man spüren kann Es ist nicht nur ein subjektives Gefühl – CachyOS läuft heftig schnell. Dank der optimierten Kernel und der speziellen Anpassungen an die Hardwarearchitektur fühlt sich jede Interaktion verzögerungsfrei an. Programme öffnen sich instant, und das gesamte System wirkt extrem „snappy“. Dass ein so leistungsfähiges Betriebssystem gleichzeitig so einsteigerfreundlich sein kann, hat mich am meisten überrascht.
Fazit Wer den Datenschutz-Albtraum von Windows satt hat und ein System sucht, das nicht nur sicher, sondern auch technisch brillant optimiert ist, kommt an CachyOS nicht vorbei. Ein absoluter Gamechanger für jeden, der einfach nur will, dass sein Rechner das tut, was er soll – und das in Lichtgeschwindigkeit!
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-02-05
Votes: 5
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The good:
1. Detects nVidia driver out of the box. No more configuration requires, which a lot of other Linux distros struggle to achieve
2. Very minimal OS updates after new installation and gets up and running quickly.
3. Hello CachyOS app has a great selections of popular apps and makes choices much easier
4. has built-in Snapper automatic backup tool that create a restore point before each major updates.
5. detects my Brother printer out of the box. no config
6. file input/out read/write speeds are very fast.
The bad:
1. the installation process is not very smooth. I almost could not install it on my 9 years old workstation until I select one of the other installation options for legacy hardware, which is rather confusing and took me a while to figure out
2. Gnome desktop environment is missing a lot of Gnome apps and features, something that Fedora's Gnome does really well but CachyOS can't, which I guess are intentionally left out, for speed and performance at the sake of the elegance and integration of functions.
Overall, it's a really fast OS but just may be missing some user-friendly features which can be an obstacles to more mainstream audiences.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-02-05
Votes: 3
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overall not bad but wouldn't recommend this OS for a first time Linux user. I would say if you are willing to make the leap to Linux style OS's maybe revisit this one when you have more experience with Linux. Even tho this is one of the easier to use Arch OS Distro's it still can be daunting for a first time user.
Pros:
1.) easier Arch based OS than most Arch distro's.
2.) driver support is quite good out of the box
3.) has many User Interfaces that can help someone transition from other popular OS's
Cons:
1.) community support is good but less tolerant when it comes to newbies you will run into elitist personalities.
2.) setup can be a pain for older hardware, would suggest cutting edge hardware.
3.) AUR does have issues of packages not being vetted or informing user. again suggest you have more experience with Linux before diving into this disto.
4.) Arch is not for the faint at heart you will have to get in touch with your inner terminal user and be vigilant on what you install and trust.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-02-01
Votes: 8
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The performance has been great and it is very simple and straightforward to prepare your desktop. I believe that you should try this distribution. I am using an AMD gpu and its rolling out nice. Updates come very frequently but they aren't necessary (I still update cuz i love to and i check every 30 mins if there is one lol). There is a very big forum and community if you want to troubleshoot some issues that you are experiencing. This was my first Linux distribution and I haven't used Windows actually because I went straight for Linux after my PC was finished building.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-31
Votes: 18
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I've primarily used Windows my entire life. Back in 2007 when I was in college I got a Macbook Pro and used that for several years, but other than that it's been all Windows. Last year, after hearing about Linux being more suitable for gaming, and generally just being dissatisfied with Windows, I decided to try Linux. I tried Ubuntu, Kubuntu, and Mint on a laptop and eventually came across CachyOS and decided to try that. CachyOS ended up being such a good experience that I put it on my desktop and haven't regretted it since.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-30
Votes: 8
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It works well right after installation. It works great after custom configuration, even in an environment that’s typically difficult for Linux, such as hybrid graphics (AMD + NVIDIA Optimus) with an external monitor. After installation, the system uses the AMD iGPU by default, so when an external monitor is connected to the HDMI port handled by the NVIDIA GPU, performance is poor and there is noticeable lag—most likely caused by NVIDIA’s power‑saving mode and the need to synchronize frames between the iGPU and dGPU. After forcing NVIDIA usage by adding a few environment variables and raising the default NVIDIA clock speeds, system smoothness becomes satisfactory.
In performance and balanced modes, I force KWin and other applications to render on the NVIDIA GPU; in power‑saving mode, I use the AMD iGPU, and this seems to be a very good combination.
By the way, the AMD + NVIDIA setup also causes issues on Windows 11, so it’s not just a challenge for Linux.
So far, I haven’t had any problems with CachyOS, and this is my first attempt at an Arch‑based distribution—I previously always used Debian‑based systems. I’ve adapted to it very well; installing software via pacman or from AUR packages is very convenient and simple. Keep it up, I recommend it.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-30
Votes: 12
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Struggled with installation on an Alienware M18 R1 AMD until I realized the user skill issue was a BIOS setting. Once I figured that out, it's been a breeze. Feels insanely fast and a nice way to learn about Arch-style Linux with guardrails in place to keep things running smoothly.
WiFi, cam, microphone, Fn keys, RGB lighting, etc worked right out the box. Handles the 480Mhz screen with no issues (after I sorted out the BIOS setting). Zero issues with audio. Bluetooth, etc. Handles Davinci Resolve Studio if you follow the Arch guides. I run a customized Raw Therapee + digiKam workflow with Filmulator, custom ICC profiles, some ROCm tailored local AI models -- no hiccups.
Purists might feel it comes with too many options and too many default apps, and that's fair. Also, who cares? That said, you'll need to ensure you do have a little bit more hard drive space than the purists would (and that's relatively speaking compared to Windows -- I mean, it's neglible when comparing just about any distro to Windows). But without doing a tally, Cachy seems quite a bit lighter than Ubuntu.
Cachy is still a relatively new distro, so time will tell if the team sticks it out long term. For serious daily driving that you rely on development not stopping and has critical personal information and files on it, I'll likely stick with a team that's a lot more boring, risk-averse, focused on long term stability, a proven track record when times get rough and has a well established governance model.
For production, I've been running it on my beast for professional creative work without an issue. I know if it works on Cachy, it works on Arch. Just Cachy saves me a lot of time getting up and running.
Very impressed! Definitely donating to help keep this project up and running.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-29
Votes: 0
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Run as a daily driver on multiple systems: laptop, desktop, and homebrew server.
Overall, I love it. With such a small team they are able to push an effective Arch flavor that can be a good replacement for Windows as a gaming OS. Classic Arch issues (hibernation be damned), and AMD graphics seem to be a little unstable compared to NVidia. The inbuilt package manager is good enough to get what you need, and Octopi can get you what you want. I haven't found a great "app store" but I couldn't care less, AUR itself is plenty good for searching. I have yet to find a package I want to install that didn't have a release on AUR.
It's opinionated enough to hold new user's hand, and the Arch wiki can carry you the rest of the way. I transitioned from Windows to Kubuntu, and quickly swapped to Cachy. This is the first distro I was comfortable enough to replace my daily with, and it has been so worth it. I'm sure the Gentoo guys are scoffing and mocking, but I think CachyOS is perfect for a Windows power user looking to transition to a clearly superior OS.
Give it two years to mature and I think it might turn into Arch's Ubuntu.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-28
Votes: 7
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Concept seems good but I wasn't able to install it on a test laptop, seems to have a lot of bugs in the installer and severe hardware compatibility limitations, including some very basic issues: it seems wasn't able to write any changes to the partition table, so the first installation said it was complete, but on reboot it couldn't find a boot device. Thereafter it couldn't delete any partitions on the HDD. This seems a very basic bug Maybe with more development it will become a viable option for a desktop, but given the bugs encountered, can't imagine it would be trustworthy enough for production use.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-27
Votes: 3
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I'm a newbie moving from Windows and macOS.
I researched extensively and learned all the basics of using Linux with terminal and with cachyOS it made it pretty easy as I did not have to use terminal all the time but I prefer terminal whenever possible as I get logs and see if something errors.
All in all my 10year old hardware kind of got new life with CachyOS and works extremely fast. Even gaming feels butter smooth.
CPU: i5-8300H
GPU Nvidia 1050ti 4GB
RAM: 16GB
Acer Predator Helios 300 from 2017.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-27
Votes: 30
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Impressed with the speed, alacrity so far. My first rolling release.
Installation & updates so far working seemlessly.
Having been a Ubuntu/LinuxMint user mainly, taking a little bit of time to adjust/find how to do same things as my daily distro, but so far very impressed. Know there are a few things to watch for as a rolling release vs a staged distribution, but no issues after a couple of weeks of using so far.
Running dual boot with LinuxMint on a Beelink EQR7 Mini PC. Have another instance running on VMWare.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-26
Votes: 0
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CachyOS is one of the best and fastest Arch-based Linux distributions available today, especially for users who care deeply about performance and responsiveness. Built on top of Arch Linux, CachyOS takes the Arch philosophy and pushes it further by aggressively optimizing the system for speed, efficiency, and modern hardware.
One of CachyOS’s biggest strengths is its custom-tuned kernel and software stack. The Cachy kernel is compiled with performance-focused optimizations that noticeably improve system responsiveness, faster boot times, and smoother multitasking. Thanks to its rolling release model, users always get the latest kernel updates, drivers, and packages without waiting for major version upgrades. This makes CachyOS an excellent choice for developers, power users, and Linux enthusiasts who want cutting-edge features with maximum performance.
What’s truly impressive is how well CachyOS performs on low-end and older devices. Systems that usually feel sluggish on other distributions run surprisingly smooth on CachyOS. Application launch times are quick, desktop animations feel fluid, and overall system latency is minimal. This makes it a blessing for users with limited hardware who still want a modern, fast Linux experience.
CachyOS also provides a clean installer, sensible defaults, and access to Arch’s vast repository and AUR, giving users both simplicity and flexibility. Despite being highly optimized, it remains stable and reliable for daily use.
In short, CachyOS combines Arch Linux’s power with serious performance enhancements. It’s a top-tier choice for anyone who wants a blazing-fast, rolling-release Linux distribution that feels smooth, modern, and incredibly responsive.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 6
Date: 2026-01-25
Votes: 5
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CachyOS has a lot of well deserved buzz right now. Highly optimized version of Arch, with some nice built-ins. The problem comes months after install, no matter what you do your root partition will run out of space. I had three computers, each with more than 45 GB assigned for the root partition and after updates, installing software there was no space on any of them. I had to manually clean up space on the root partition.
I've never run across this issue with other Arch based spins. Not Manjaro, not Endeavor, not even Artix. It can't be snapper, as the snapshots from that are tiny. Something else they are doing to optimize the system is chewing up drive space.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-25
Votes: 0
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Yesterdays update makes what is the greatest most stable linux distro even greater. Everything works excellently without any issues. The repositories has everything and up to date software. The performance in gaming is out of this world and dare i say sometimes faster than windows especially with nvidia drivers. Been on bazzite, mint and fedora where i occasionally had huge problems and instability. I would like to congratulate the cachyos team for their great effort. No wonder its at the top of the Distro watch list that makes others jealous.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-25
Votes: 1
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Inspired by the glowing 10/10 reviews, I can wholeheartedly echo their sentiments. Choosing CachyOS as my gateway from Windows to Linux has been nothing short of a revelation. Like others have said, the out-of-the-box experience is phenomenal. The installer effortlessly detected my hybrid NVIDIA/AMD laptop hardware, and the curated “gaming meta” package meant I was launching titles from Steam and Heroic within minutes of the first boot. There’s a tangible truth to the performance claims—the snappiness of the BORE-scheduler kernels isn’t just benchmark jargon; it’s in how instantly applications open and how smoothly the desktop responds, even under load.
What truly solidified my choice was the perfect balance CachyOS strikes. It grants you the raw power and bleeding-edge appeal of Arch Linux—with full access to the colossal AUR—but without the daunting, manual setup process. The cachyos-setup tool is a masterpiece of convenience, letting you configure drivers, choose from multiple desktops, and install optimized packages with a few clicks. It feels like a distro that respects both your time and your desire for control.
While the learning curve for maintenance is steeper than something like Mint, the incredible speed, stability, and customizability are more than worth it. The documentation and community, while smaller than some giants, have been sufficient for the rare issues I’ve encountered. After months of use, I’ve experienced none of the infamous “update breaks” that sometimes plague rolling releases, just a consistently fast and reliable system.
Leaving Windows felt like shedding a weight—no more forced updates, intrusive telemetry, or bloated background processes. CachyOS replaced it with a transparent, efficient, and deeply satisfying computing environment that I control. For any gamer or power user looking to make the switch, especially one who values performance above all, CachyOS isn’t just a good choice; it feels like the secret, optimal one. It has completely reshaped my expectations for what an OS can be, and there is absolutely no going back.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-24
Votes: 0
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cachyos:
I have been using CachyOS for a while, over 2 years, and my opinion about the system is extremely negative. First of all, the main problem I encountered was the stability of the system. Sudden freezes and crashes became frequent and unpleasant. This created a constant feeling of anxiety that anything could happen at the most inopportune moment. For example, several times I lost unsaved data due to unpredictable reboots and system errors.
In addition, package management in CachyOS turned out to be a real disaster. There were often problems installing and updating software, and the errors I encountered were difficult to fix, not to mention the immediate hostility faced from its community. To fix the problems, complex commands were required in the terminal, which is not suitable for users who prefer a graphical interface and a distro that’s easy to use
Performance issues were also not long in coming. On old hardware, the system works very slowly, despite the claims of its optimization for less powerful machines. This is annoying and makes working on such devices almost impossible. As others have said, there is zero proof of any “gaming optimizations”, just a lot of talk.
In addition, support and documentation leave much to be desired. Often, the information in forums and manuals is outdated or not detailed enough. This makes finding solutions to problems that arise a time-consuming and tedious process.
Despite the presence of many options for customization, the setup process is far from intuitive, a lot of options don’t apply, and if they do, things start bugging out and may crash the system. The flat icons and flat theme is- to put it nicely, harmful to the eyes and icons don’t make sense, so it’ll be difficult trying to figure out some of the applications you want to use are This leads to additional problems and makes the system difficult to use.
Overall, using CachyOS has become a source of constant problems and frustration. For those looking for a reliable and user-friendly operating system, stay FAR away from CachyOS.
The only positive here is that it’s Linux and not Windows.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-24
Votes: 0
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Installed it on 2 computers, having weird issues on one with the keyboard. After lots of troubleshooting, the issue is still persistent. Fortunately, that's my secondary PC. On my main gaming PC with Nvidia 4080 Super, I have almost zero issues. I have not experienced any slowness during install and daily operation. No update broke any of the 2 computers yet. (I hope I didn't just jinx it!)
I'm not a Linux pro, but also not a full green Linux noob. I am also not a brand loyalist at all - I was relatively happy using some Windows versions. I always liked Linux, but it always felt a bit "incompatible" with me, especially when it comes to gaming. Years ago, I spent some significant time with Ubuntu, Mint and Arch. I didn't really love Ubuntu. Mint was better for me. Arch was even better: I liked to be in control, I didn't mind the complicated installation, I really liked Pacman. I hated that I manually have to go through config files after a system update. Miss one just once, and your system is no longer booting.
With CachyOS, gaming is alright (but I do lack experience with other distros, as my last attempt with Linux [Arch] was 5-10 years ago), I have Pacman, I have relative stability - at least, no system breaking updates, even if it is because of a missed config file (so technically: user error). It does feel weird to base a more user friendly distro on the tinkerer's distro, but I mostly have what I wanted from Linux, and for the first time ever, I fully switched from Windows. Microsoft can continue living in its delusions, I don't care anymore.
Doing my things (including gaming) works okay on CachyOS. I'm just wondering about distros I never tried, like Fedora.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-01-24
Votes: 0
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Older HP tower, legacy Bios, 8 GB of Ram on a 2.5" 500GB 32MB cache 7200 RPM WD HDD and Radeon AMD6450 graphics card.
Could not install the OS when HDD was formatted BTRFS, but did install when formatted to EXT4. Like Gardua Linux, if it sees BTRFS file system partitions on GPTdisk, it expects, and tries to use, an EFI boot directory.
Had the usual Arch Linux runaway fans / black screen / hung system when the system tried to go into Hibernation, even though I set Screen and Power Settings in KDE6 to never go into Hibernation. Had to edit all the YESs to NOs in /etc/systemd/sleep.conf to prevent the system from going into Hibernate & Suspend.
Cachy Software installer did not have all the browsers, media apps, burner apps, etc. that I usually use. But at least one could add Hardened And LTS kernels. One can also build their own through the Configure button. Much welcomed.
Octopi is a little hard to navigate, and like Synaptics, or even DNF, one has to know what apps they want, the question is where it is nestled. I'm at least happy that it didn't resort to KDE Discovery to download and install FlatPaks.
Anyone who has been with Linux for years probably already has themes, icons, fonts, wallpapers, etc. that they prefer, so changing the desktop to their preference shouldn't be too much of a problem. Once setup as one loves the desktop is responsive enough.
Like all other Arch Linux distros, some browsers, like Brave and Vivaldi, needed to have Hardware Acceleration disabled. The problem is the frustration of re-setting it while the screen flickers, blanks, temporarily freezes and repeatedly cycles endlessly. Can install un-googled Chromium and LibreWolf, so, much appreciated.
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Version: 260124
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-24
Votes: 6
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Tried to install CachyOS with the new ISO 3 times, but always got the error that something went wrong but no message what exactly.
I was able to install CachyOS with older version of the installer, but it did not look very polished. It is more like an unstable mess in my opinion.
I think the devs should take some time and test their software before they release something to the public. But instead they throw a bunch of untested new features at the users that can break more stuff then you will gain from it.
I switched back to Linux Mint. It may be older software due to being LTS, but it runs smooth without issues.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-23
Votes: 1
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1. Not optimized for the latest hardware: Specifically, it's an OS with x86-64-v3 and v4 repositories, not allowing it to fully utilize the potential of the newest hardware. While Linus Torvalds is critical of the level of CPU optimization and believes this classification will become less relevant, CachyOS's dedication is to not improve performance and introduce more bugs, crashes, freeze-ups and overall headaches.
2. Many unnecessary applications: The GUI has a lot of bloatware, providing tools that users normally wouldn’t use and cannot easily remove later if needed.
3. Buggy pre-installed tools: bottom-tier CLI tools are included from the start, and Zsh comes with no built-in plugins. FishShell is the default shell, widely considered not user-friendly, cumbersome and difficult to use. Other unnecessary tools for setting up your environment are thrown in haphazardly and they don’t work.
4. Stability: If you experience instability, review your hardware configuration. While having multiple desktop environments (DEs) to choose from is an advantage, be aware that some DEs may be unstable.
5. Limited keyboard navigation: The Tab key doesn't cycle focus through buttons in the install menu, preventing installation from the GUI screen using only the keyboard.
6. Unresponsive installer: The installer app can be unresponsive. You might be tempted to click repeatedly, but be patient and wait after clicking a button, or you might cause a crash and kernel panic, like I experienced.
7. KDE stability: While KDE is the flagship desktop environment, it can be unstable sometimes because of how the developers of CachyOS “optimize” their distro. Gnome is considerably even more unstable and difficult to use.
8. Overutilization of Flatpak: When looking for applications, check Flathub for Flatpak versions first- you’ll see how heavily bloated it is and all of the questionable privacy stuff it claims to need to work. Flatpak does not add a streamlined installation experience and reduces compatibility. While CachyOS gaming meta is available, it’s even more unstable than regular CachyOS, using Steam through Flatpak rather than installing it locally will cause more compatibility issues.
Finally, it's unfair to compare this Frankenstein patchwork of a distro to other, better distros that actually work and developers who care to have a thriving, friendly community instead of a hostile, bleak one like CachyOS is. If you prefer this, by all means, continue to use it- be prepared for the headaches and drama this will cause though.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-22
Votes: 1
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After some years of distro hopping I remained stuck with Arch, and lately Endeavouros that is going better and better. I tried almost for curiosity Cachy, and I am impressed! Easy installation, and a lot of features that makes your life easy on linux. Last but not least is snappy.. for me very good Arch based distro, now it runs on my touchpad laptop with no problem at all, with rolling release, many choice of kernel, btrfs file system for having snaps to recover any time you install new software, games run smoothly. I am using Cachy by the way, now :) :) :)
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-21
Votes: 1
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I hop between distros until I find one I like.
Mint... OK, it's stable but runs kinda sluggish for me on good hardware.
Zorin... Good. Never had any problems. I think it runs better than Mint. Currently running on an 8th gen i7 NUC with 32GB RAM.
CachyOS... its been rock stable and not had one problem so far after 2 months of use. Snappy and quick. Currently running on my 8th gen Legion Slim 7i and my Intel Intel NUC 11 Enthusiast (Phantom Canyon).
I have not tried the official release of Mint 22.3 yet. Have not really had a desire to.
If someone was wanting to switch from win to lin, I would suggest one of the above three based on their needs and/or experience level. All are very good, but for me as a daily, I am using CachyOS.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-21
Votes: 0
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I installed dozens Distros Linux last year because I gave up Windows. CachyOS was by far the best one. The community and the support that the developers have been given is incredible. There are still some things that need to be fixed, like when I close some apps the system logs out. I am really impressed with this distro. The games in my Radeon RX 9070 XT are working as smooth as they were doing on Windows 11. The working the developers are doing customizing the kernels is wonderful. the installation is very easy and the choice it gives you to choose the DE I never saw in other distro. I am waiting for DE Cosmic become more estable, because my next mission is to install CachyOS with COSMIC. Thank You CachyOS Team.Congratulations!!!
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-20
Votes: 0
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I really like the out-of-the-box experience, as it detected my hardware (amd chip + graphics) automatically and i didn't need to configure anything for it. Another point i really like is the support of many desktop environments in the installer menu as you don't need to configure it yourself. For gaming it is perfect, as the gaming package is already installed and you can just transfer your steam games from windows without an error. Most of the times i need to adjust the proton version, as some bugs may appear, but that is not the worst, as i can play many games on epic visual settings with 90 fps.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 5
Date: 2026-01-20
Votes: 0
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CachyOS is great! The installation is well document, feature rich and all drivers are installed automatically!
Then on first boot the SPEED is just incredible. My laptop not only works, but it also just feels fast, even though it is allready 10 years old.
But, I am stil going to wipe my system.
Today for the second time an update just broke boot. As I am mostly using my laptop for meetings or presentations, this really sucks.
Last time I learned how to use TTY (ctrl+alt+f3) and then iwctl for wireless, which then resulted in me being able to update the laptop again. Yes the next update fixed the boot into the desktop failing.
This time it is different. My wireless driver does not load. I don't have an adapter for ethernet either. I also think that I have setup timeshift. So this is again a major problem.
An update breaking sound is one thing, an update breaking boot is just bad.
And yes, Arch is not stable this and that, but I did not expect to be thrown under the bus like this nonetheless.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-17
Votes: 1
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I have been a long-time user of both Windows and macOS, but transitioning to CachyOS has been a total game-changer for my workflow. With the combination of CachyOS and the Niri compositor, everything runs incredibly smoothly and feels significantly more responsive than any other setup I've tried.
One of the standout features is how user-friendly it is for gamers; it provides excellent default gaming packages out of the box, making it remarkably easy to set up Steam and start playing immediately without the usual Linux troubleshooting. The performance gains were so noticeable that I actually reformatted my entire disk and left the Windows platform for good. Furthermore, the documentation is exceptionally helpful and comprehensive, which made the transition feel seamless. If you are looking for a high-performance, Arch-based distribution that just works, I cannot recommend CachyOS enough.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-14
Votes: 0
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After spending significant time with the 251129 release of CachyOS, I feel compelled to share why this distribution has become my primary driver. While the community average sits at a respectable 7.9, I find myself leaning toward a much higher score because of the sheer technical ambition this project displays. CachyOS isn't just another Arch-based skin; it is a meticulously optimized powerhouse. The most immediate "pro" I encountered was the undeniable performance boost provided by their x86-64-v3 and v4 optimized repositories. On modern hardware, the system feels incredibly responsive, with application launch times that noticeably outperform standard Arch or Fedora. The inclusion of the CachyOS Hello tool and the customized Calamares installer makes the initial setup a breeze, allowing even those who aren't terminal wizards to customize their kernel and desktop environment right from the start.
However, no operating system is without its "cons," and CachyOS does have a few hurdles for the uninitiated. Because it pushes the envelope with optimized packages and multiple custom kernels like Bore or EEVDF, there is a slightly higher risk of package conflicts compared to a more conservative "stable" distribution. While the CachyOS team does an excellent job of maintaining their repos, being on the bleeding edge of Arch means you must be comfortable with occasional manual intervention or reading the news feed before a major update. Additionally, for users on much older hardware that doesn't support the newer x86-64-v3 instructions, the performance benefits might be less pronounced, making the extra repository complexity feel redundant.
My overall impression of CachyOS is that it is the definitive choice for enthusiasts who want to squeeze every last drop of power out of their CPU. It balances the "DIY" spirit of Arch with a layer of professional-grade optimization that is hard to find elsewhere. The developers are highly active and responsive, which gives me great confidence in the longevity of the project. If you are looking for a rolling-release system that feels "snappy" in a way most distros don't, this is it. For its innovation and the noticeable speed improvements it brings to my daily workflow, I am happy to give it a solid 9 out of 10. It is a brilliant example of how much further Linux can go when developers focus on hardware-specific optimization.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-13
Votes: 0
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Honestly, I can´t use other distros. The AUR and pacman are the most versatile package managers that I have used, everytime I try a non-arch distro I miss them, and why can´t I use other arch based distros? CachyOS has the least problem with my hardware. Using it on a acer nitro 5 an517-57, meaning impossible to disable nvidia optimus, as i use a dual monitor setup I get a lot of trouble. Other distros capped my second monitor refresh rate in half when using wayland, this also occured on CachyOS put changing to any cachyV4 kernel version fixed it. Even with this problem I used it for 1 month without regrets, then hopped to windows so i could play some siege, fortunately for me it got hacked and I was stuck seeing the agony of slowed down Firefox scroll bar on firefox or when watching 1440p videos, also the unresponsive file searcher. CachyOS KDE surpasses any use case of windows unless when you NEED Adobe software / MS Office and don´t want to bother creating a vm/container to run it. Also, updates didn´t break anything on my end, so no planned obsolesce like Microsoft does with Windows. Games run great, there is a "install all necessary game packages" wich makes it so fine, Its custom proton version fell snappier and more performant than other options. A really well rounded distro.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-12
Votes: 0
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A relatively perfect Linux distribution that leaves nothing to be desired.
The distribution is very easy to install, has excellent hardware recognition, and works flawlessly.
I use the distribution for my daily work with conference calls, office documents, etc. It works wonderfully.
Above all, without any problems. The rolling release is very pleasant and the performance is very good.
All packages are easy to install and there is good git support for programs that are not standard.
Multimedia use is also very good and easy and works without any problems.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-09
Votes: 0
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After being on Mint, Fedora Bazzite and CachyOs for two moths, I seriously found CachyOs to be the best distro i have ever used. It just works out of the box for my nvidia 5090, it just loads the latest NVIDIA drivers and updates it withought fuss, it recognizes my monitor, keyboard and mouse brands without issues. With fedora and Mint i have to go to the terminal to download the 5090 driver. As for system restore Cachy gives you Btfrs like Mints time shift, unfortunately Fedora gives you nothing. The gaming packages that come with Cachy is another plus. For gaming Cachy was the best, unilike bazzite which i used as well and had issues with. Seriously recommend this distro for beginners and advanced users alike. Its as easy as Mint, users often dismiss the cachy hello and this is where the Cachy team needs to spend some time to make the gui better so users can be more aware of. The cachy team should make the Cachy software installer the main one and remove octopi and the arch updater as users are confused and often mistake them for the official app store. I seriously wish the Cachy team all the success.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-08
Votes: 0
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This is Arch, but it has more performance and convenience. The standout feature is the speed: CachyOS uses aggressively tuned kernels, including the BORE scheduler, which delivers a genuinely snappier feel especially on older hardware. Applications launch quicker, and the desktop just feels more responsive. The installer is very straightforward and easy to use. You get a smooth Calamares installer, followed by their excellent "CachyOS Setup" app. This application lets you configure drivers, select desktop environments (KDE Plasma is the flagship, and it's beautifully configured), and install curated packages or niche items like gaming tools with a few clicks.
You get all the power of Arch, access to the AUR, and rolling updates but without the manual setup grind. The documentation is community-driven and improving, though it can be sparse in some areas compared to more established distros. It’s not for absolute Linux newcomers, as you still need some terminal comfort for maintenance, but it’s perfect for tinkerers and performance seekers who want a cutting-edge, fast system without starting from absolute zero. For me, it hit the sweet spot between control and convenience.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-07
Votes: 0
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I find the installation walk through to be simple and straight forward. I didn't run into any issues at all upon install, formatting, partitioning etc.
Running the system a few months now, have not had issues. No need for any kind of manual interventions or had any stability issues.
I find some of the 1 star reviews interesting because they often run the system in virtual machines or in a live environment. CachyOS will work in these environments but you cannot and will not benefit from the packages in these configurations and it specifically says not to do this in the documentation.
No issues on this operating system when used as designed.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-06
Votes: 0
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For PC gamers who are technically minded, comfortable in their OS, like customisations and control, I wouldn't pick any other distribution, especially if you're new to Linux. It's a gentle introduction to using Arch Linux, and the opinions are all very much what you'd want, gaming optimised kernels, enhancements for the latest AMD CPUs, an updater CLI/GUI combo. Check recent benchmarks too, CachyOS usually tops the charts which proves its capability and that the changes are meaningful. I won't be going back to Windows
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-06
Votes: 0
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I often wonder about ridiculous claims, blazing fast, CatchyOS, ahem, that one burned itself very quickly.
CatchyOS has one very big catch, even running from memory it feels sluggish compared to antiX with ICEWM running live from ram. From SSD it is also noticeably slower, the test experience is now consigned to the land of loonies and legends.
To add in:
The distro is so slow, applications crash a lot of the time, and I had numerous lock-ups, one that was so bad, it broke grub and just really kept being a beta quality product. Releases are rushed out with no care at all, and as others have said, the community, wow, it’s toxic.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-01-05
Votes: 1
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The best Linux distro I used. I was an Ubuntu user for a long time. I have a high end recent spec PC. Nvidia GPU. Ubuntu (24.04 LTS) would crash on a daily basis (Nvidia). I tried many distros to replace Ubuntu but, all had issues with Nvidia.The problems I had, fail to walk up from suspend. Wrong monitor resolution when it does suspend and walk up. Screen tesaring and artifacts. I finally heard of Cachyos. It fixed all my issues and it is so snappy. It seems that the latest Nvidia drivers and the customisation by the Cachyos team have managed to fix Nvidia issues.It is my first Arch based OS and I won't go back. Keep the good work guys.
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Version: 221230
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-01-03
Votes: 0
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This is my first and only distro I've used on my personal computer at home. I deleted Windows 6 months ago for this OS with KDE Plasma, and it's been a very easy transition with very few hiccups. I mostly use it for gaming, and there have been a few issues that popped up here and there, like randomly losing focus on my active game/window while playing a game (as if I had alt-tabbed out). But the solutions were't too difficult. I'd highly recommend this OS for gamers. I especially love how I can install the whole gaming package, including Steam proton, and Nvidia drivers all with one easy command prompt. That's faster than setting up steam on Windows.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-03
Votes: 2
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Installed, but without an Internet connection due to not recognizing DHCP or my modem. Distros that I have used that recognize DHCP and Modem are: Ultramarine, GeckoLinux, Devuan, Mint, SolydXK, KDE Neon. So, if those distros install and recognize the internet connection, how is it that catchyos is so stupid? There is not much help online, at least none you can understand. The community has not been very helpful and it is a bit rough if you do not understand near immediately in the "help" they give and understand what to do if there are bugs and other problems- the developer “team” (1 person) is also the same way. For a casual user, It’s difficult when it implies the utility of the command line too much.
I do not recommend this.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 2
Date: 2026-01-03
Votes: 3
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It is an enthusiast distro that a lot of people coming from Windows should not be using. Based on Arch it does not hold your hand. Easy for non technical users to get caught with their pants down with security. No checking to see if packages will break your system.
I do like the performance boost but it is a tradeoff. Some apps and even games actually perform worse. Where others off minimal gains. Some do truly offer larger gains however. It really is your miles may vary.
If using an Arch distro I prefer either base Arch or EndeavourOS. Easy to use the CachyOS kernel if you want, but honestly no huge benefit.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2026-01-03
Votes: 1
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Everyone told me coming from Windows to Linux, meant I should try catchy os. I was told how easy it was to use and how user friendly it was. I tried installing catchy os on every computer in the house (I have four). It is not easy or user friendly. It looks haphazardly put together, especially because of the use of minimalism and flat design as the UI. Asking for help meant needing to use the terminal for everything. I was instructed to use the terminal to change my desktop wallpaper. One of my computers would not boot no matter what I tried. Someone told me to edit the GRUB menu but since it would not boot and displayed a black screen, I could not do anything with it. I got it working on my desktop which was four years old, and it froze anytime it went into sleep mode. I tried disabling sleep mode, but the screen would still sometimes turn black. My laptop could not boot this and kept providing a kernel panic.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 9
Date: 2025-12-31
Votes: 0
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This is my third distro ever. Used Ubuntu very briefly in 2013 and Mint for a few months in 2018/2020.
My primary concern has been gaming performance on linux, and how it has evolved over time.
I decided to check in again in 2025, and the word was Arch based distros were doing best for games, and CachyOS and Endeavour were most friendly to Windows users. I tried CachyOS.
On CachyOS, everything I've played runs exceptionally well through Steam. Battle.net programs run via steam. This is currently achieved in a slightly inelegant way (installing Battle.net Launcher as a game in Steam), but all the games I played (SC2, D2R) function perfectly.
I have not tried anything from other platforms such as EA, though I read that they function well though HeroicLauncher or Lutris.
I tried Steam for Linux around 2013 and 2020. The performance in games vs Windows was pretty bad in 2013. In 2020 it was close but there was input lag issues in my experience. I am using the same hardware now as in 2020.
I am currently using a 360Hz monitor and the performance in games, to my eye, is now indistinguishable from the Win10 environment performance. Respsonse time to inputs feel exactly the same as they did in Windows10 the day before installing Cachy. I haven't tested any benchmarks because functionally I can't tell a difference.
I am quite satisfied with respect to modern game performance on CachyOS. Out of the box overclocking of the GPU with NVidia settings is nice to see now.
OS is quick in operation, very nice looking with Plasma Nord theme.
When I first tried Steam for Linux around 2013, there was one game that was Linux friendly in my library (TF2). Today I have a shared family library of over 1000 titles, and if I select 'only Linux compatible titles', only three titles out of 1000 are removed. All my old games that were not previously compatible now work.
Cons, with respect to gaming and the related programs, are superficial so far. After pressing the login button on the Battle.net Launcher, some visual corruption is sometimes seen in the login window before it signs in and switches to the main Battle.net program window.
After launching Starcraft 2 for the first time, it took a good minute or two to fully load in all the profile related data. I wasn't sure if the game was functioning properly, but once all the data was pulled it performed perfectly.
Every time I read Year of Linux, I shrug it off, but it is coming now. Given how much gaming drives the PC market, the parity that linux is reaching here is actually going to threaten Microsoft's market share before long. The only thing holding the gamers back has been the non functionality/performance of DirectX games.
i7 9900k 5.0Ghz
32gb ddr4
gigabyte nvidia rtx 2080 super
aorus z390 master
1 tb SSD
1440p 360hz monitor
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Version: 251129
Rating: 9
Date: 2025-12-31
Votes: 0
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I come from using Debian-based distros, mainly Linux Mint, followed by MX, with a strong preference for the Xfce DE. I love Xfce because of it's simplicity, "snappiness" and no nonsense approach. I admit: "out of the box" it is ugly. However, this is very quickly fixed by making use of the ease with which it can be customised.
Desktop environments like KDE Plasma and GNOME (so-called 'flagship distros'), are subtle, but confusing. They represent more the approach of Windows like it is today, whereas Xfce harks back to Windows 7, when GUI approaches were still "healthy".
In all my "distro-hopping" and testing I always preferred testing them on real hardware, because only that gives REAL feedback. Don't get me wrong: I admire virtual machines and the amount of clever coding these require, but in the real world all this has limited use. I have a computer solely dedicated to testing out new distributions and new versions of my preferred ones. This is an old Core 2 Duo machine from HP. Distros that can run video without much stuttering and implement sound easily and well on this old clunker get my approval.
CachyOS performs rather well on this test-machine. This might be achieved to a large extend by the BORE optimisation.
This is REAL innovation, not pointless re-hashing of mainstay distributions like Debian or Arch.
I have to learn more terminal commands now, but so what? Life is a process of constant learning. Although I am 74, I have always lived by this motto.
CachyOS comes from Germany... so do I. I live in Australia since 1983. Considering the rotten state of the world these days, I am sure I made the right decision in emigrating to Australia.
I might make the right decision too by switching to CachyOS... at least on one or two of my various computers.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2025-12-30
Votes: 0
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Best distro of the year.
CachyOS is by far the best distro of 2025. Its fast, responsive and full of goodness. Your games will run smooth as butter. The discord is super helpful and people are very nice there too. The only small complaint i have is setting up a custom dns can be a bit of a struggle.
To start gaming, all you need is to install the "Game package" and you can start gaming with the best kernel tweaks and proton version out there. This also includes Steam and Lutris.
Its simply fantastic and i recommend it to everyone who want to play games the best way on Linux.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 4
Date: 2025-12-29
Votes: 2
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Not really a nice Distro but its getting a lot of downloads. Its not half as fast as the developers make it sound and a terrible installation process , not faster than most others that ive used over my 36 years of using Linux.
My test machines are very basic, 4th and 9th gen i7 with 16gb of memory and a SSD, had to restart my installation 3 times in VMWare, the basic apps installed by default are kind of boring and can not be used out of the box as a desktop machine.No office suite. Abi Word should not be included as the first choice.
On the looks side its not winning any accolades either but its not the worst you can get.
Im not a gamer so i have no intention spending an evening to get the emulators working well enough.
So its a no from me.
Out of the box distros that runs perfect are Mint and Zorin. They are both as perfect as you can get. Zorin is very underrated and its perfect as a workstation.
I have around 1700 client on Mint and Zorin workstations/desktops and laptops, with absolutely no issue..
Ive never seen Linux as a desktop replacement a there is a huge gap in desktop suites and software, but its getting there.
A celeron laptop with 8 gigs of mem and a SSD is just perfect for Linux.
This is a very basic feedback as my software programs and the sheer size of the projects killed CachOS.
great effort , but i wont be using or recommending it.
Nothing like Mint or Zorin to start of your Linux exploration with no tears.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2025-12-29
Votes: 2
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I tested catchyos immediately after its release, coming from endeavouros, which is my daily driver, for months without any problems right out of the box.
Installation of catchyos went ok enough, and Wi-Fi and other hardware were recognized after a little while of drivers being updated. KDE Plasma as the desktop environment ran without issues. Though the OS installs pretty slowly, and booting is equally slow as well.
However, it's a distro full of bloat and “optimizations”, that are half-baked and don’t have any evidence and proof to back any of these “optimizations” are helpful- they just add a ton of resource usage and lots of processes running, which is actually quite sad, the bloatware found in this distro where you get three terminals and several media players out of the box—why?
But the printer, an Epson ET 2650, was listed, but apparently lacked the necessary printer drivers to get it to print.
And since there was no package manager and Flathub couldn't help either, that was a major deal-breaker.
Otherwise, I have nothing negative to report; Flathub provides the necessary programs.
However, the pre-installed programs in catchyos can't be easily uninstalled; at least, I couldn't find a way to do so, and the developers' blog wasn't particularly helpful either.
That ended my experiment with catchyos, and I'm going back to endeavouros who are open with the community and helpful and not closed off and hostile like catchyos is.
System
Acer Aspire C24-860
Intel® Core™ i3-7130U × 4
Intel® HD Graphics 620 (KBL GT2)
16 GB RAM 1 TB Samsung SSD
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Version: 251129
Rating: 1
Date: 2025-12-28
Votes: 2
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Live disk loads OK. Slow to boot and slow to use.
Installation from USB key to SSD failed (black screen after boot).
The installer gives erroneously "no disk with gpt table", "no EFI partition".
First time I encounter this installer, could not find a remedy.
I can't recall when was the last time an installation failed for me (no expert, but linux user for many years).
KDE version.
Machine:
Type: Desktop Mobo: Gigabyte model: B450 AORUS M
serial: UEFI: American Megatrends LLC. v: F67g
date: 12/28/2025
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Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2025-12-27
Votes: 0
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I have been using cachyos flawlessly on my laptop for a year, with KDE Plasma and now with Niri.
This has been just great: it is fast, low on resource, good on power consumption and easy to use.
Installation was easy and I never had any issue with updates or anything else, even after 3 months not touching my PC.
It is minimal but all the essential packages are here, which I very much like (no bloat).
It just works, well and fast.
After years of distro hoping and distro comparison, I don't feel the need to distro hop anymore, I feel at home.
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Version: 251129
Rating: 9
Date: 2025-12-27
Votes: 0
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My New favourite Linux distro for gaming, blazing fast, install the gaming package in the CachyOS Hello and just install games and smile. For newer hardware its one of the fastest Linux Distros out there. Coming from windows 11, it feels like youre driving a race car when using CachyOS. Its optimized and fast. I can see a rapid grow in CachyOS, and im not surpriced, just the fact that you can download this OS for free, hav NO spying and NO forced apps thrown at you is mindblowing. Using CachyOS you will have the advantage of using the latest and greatest. My mind is blown. CachyOS is my new home on my computer.
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Latest Reviews
Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-19
Votes: 3
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I've dipped in and out of Linux for over two decades now. Never sticking with it long term, until now. Built a new system about a year ago and installed Mint first (same as it always is - okay, I guess), then tried CachyOS. Been with it ever since. I don't know that I'd say CachyOS specifically is why I've been happy sticking with Linux this time so much as the maturity of the Linux ecosystem overall. Especially with gaming. What CachyOS does right is out of the box setup is excellent. All the defaults, from Limine, to BTRFS, KDE Plasma, plus the easy add-ons, like the "CachyOS gaming-meta" that with a single click installs all the gaming essentials make for an awesome first impression.
While it's commonly said that Arch isn't for the Linux novice, CachyOS certainly had done an excellent job of making me questions that belief. Especially with the ability for quick, hassle free rollback should an update (or oopsie) actually bork the system. Seriously, with a couple clicks and a reboot the system is back to the pre-borked state. That functionality isn't unique to CachyOS, but I don't know of another distro so easily configured out of the box like that (maybe there is, I only sampled two distros this round).
As long as one is willing to browse the super helpful CachyOS user forums or extensive CachyOS Wiki if you do encounter an issue or need something not immediately obvious, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to even a Linux noob.
✓ Easy to install and up and running faster than Windoze
✓ Cutting edge while minimizing the cutting edge pain
✓ Gets the most out of modern hardware (even Nvidia!)
✓ Excellent all-around for productivity and gaming
✅ Not a Microsoft product and open source
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-16
Votes: 1
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I’ve used Debian, Mint, Fedora KDE and GNOME, Solus, Zorin, openSUSE, Bazzite, Pop!_OS, and Kubuntu, and I can easily say that CachyOS is one hell of an operating system. It’s Arch-based and inherits a bit of its philosophy, meaning you need to install a few things that are missing out of the box (like Office, CUPS, etc.). But other than that, it comes with a very fair bundle of applications. It features two package managers with AUR support, which pull optimized and incredibly fast programs from the repository, giving the whole system a sense of speed.
I started using it on my main PC (Ryzen 5 5500 and RX 7600), and later installed it on my Lenovo laptop (Intel, no dedicated GPU), and I didn't face a single instability issue or anything like that. The system is beautiful, fast, stable, and very easy to use if you are somewhat used to Linux and have a little bit of terminal knowledge (or simply use language models).
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 6
Date: 2026-05-16
Votes: 1
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It is a real ARCH Linux. (great for software developers, etc...) for Windows replacement consider DEBIAN (13: Trixie)
Yes, it is fast : optimized kernel is great, especially on a machine with X86_64-V3 CPU (I have an AMD Ryzen 5 pro...)
No it is not worry free : only the KDE Desktop works well out of the box.
MATE is buggy, and need lots of manual intervention etc....
COSMIC, seems buggy too.
----
For the installer, the user interface CachyOS is very similar to EndeavourOS, faster but much less robust !
On EndeavourOS almost everything works as installed, not on CachyOS... yet.
Good work, it shall be excellent some time soon.
My Wish: all three desktop environment mentioned above, fully functional. MATE for reason, COSMIC... for love ! (not ready yet either).
Perhaps GNOME too...
----
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-16
Votes: 9
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I'm a gamer and I've been seriously distrohopping for a couple of years, I spent some time with almost every major distro out there and most of the gaming specific ones too. But CachyOS has stopped all that, I've been running it for over a year now, and I can't see myself changing any time in the near future.
The weird thing is people have the perception that arch based distros, on a cutting edge release schedule, are janky as hell and always breaking. But in the time that I've been using CachyOS, it has never crashed or broken, other than through my own actions, I'm super impressed, not to mention I get the benefits of the latest kernel and app versions all the time!
It also has some great default config, for example btrfs and limine means you can snap every time you make a change with pacman or yay/paru, and if something goes wrong you can boot from one of those snapshots.
It's fast, the devs are great, it runs everything extremely well. Package-wise you have the world at your hands, with the AUR, which as long as you're sensible isn't as bad as some people would have you believe.
I don't know what else to say, it's AWESOME! Have fun everyone! :)
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-14
Votes: 5
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Been a user of Arch for a couple of years, the I built a new computer and gave CachyOS a test, never regret it. The power of the rolling release that arch is following, but CachyOS is even more forward, pushing updates and the tweaked kernel is amazing. Also the ease of installation. Sure I know how to setup a fully functional Arch to my liking, but CachyOS makes it so much easier. Some say it's bloated compared to a "perfect" Arch install. And yes there are packages that are included that I doesn't care much about, but it's easier to just remove them afterwards. I'm very happy after 6 months to have it as my primary driver for work, gaming and my home lab. Running on a Intel i7-2700K, 32GB DDR5 Memory, Intel ARC A770 16GB and a BTRFS RAID10 at 5.7 TiB. The Intel xe driver and the mesa lib has really starting to mature, running the bleeding edge beta version of mesa (mesa-git 26.2.0_devel.222169.e3beb262bd4-1) and rusticl in combination with linux-cachyos-rt-bore-lto.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-10
Votes: 1
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Estoy realmente encantado con CachyOS, después de usar muchas distros, de decirme usuario de Fedora desde la edición 14, encontré la distribución de Linux ideal para mi. Me gusta mucho la filosofía que tienen de optimizar al máximo los paquetes según tu hardware, la facilidad para configurar e instalar cualquier aplicación, pero sobre todo, el hecho de poder usar Steam y la mayoría de juegos en Linux, era lo único que me detenía realmente de abandonar las ventanas. Puedo configurar un entorno de desarrollo realmente poderoso y muy grato. Gracias al equipo de CachyOS por el trabajo tan hermoso que han hecho. ¡Los amo!
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-09
Votes: 3
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awsome,runs perfectly and is very optimized
+fine configured
+quite performant starting and running
+easy and reliable system- and software-installer
+great amount of available software
+nice, smooth Plasma Desktop
The performance is just unreal right out of the box, especially with how it comes pre-configured with heavily optimized kernels like BORE. For gaming, it has been an absolute dream. Almost all my games work flawlessly right through Proton. I play a ton of CS2 competitively, and I was heavily worried about input lag, frame drops, or weird mouse acceleration issues. But the latency is practically non-existent, and it handles my high-polling-rate peripherals beautifully without any heavy tinkering. The only minor downside is that a few top-tier titles with those wildly complicated, kernel-level anti-cheat systems still refuse to play nice. But honestly, that's a wider industry problem, not a CachyOS problem, and it's a trade-off I'm more than willing to make to escape the Windows ecosystem.
On the daily use and productivity side, I found absolutely all the software I need to get by. Getting my development environment fully set up with VS Code, translation layers for tools like LINQPad (via Proton), and all my usual stuff was surprisingly painless. I can just dive in and work without feeling like I'm constantly fighting my operating system. It's just a remarkably smooth, stable experiance from top to bottom.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-09
Votes: 23
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I did a lot of Distrohopping in the past. The first Linux that made me stop that was Solus. Really snappy, with fresh enough packages, and very stable for a Rolling-Release. I'd still recommend Solus, but I have the feeling the team behind the project is too small, and some packages and some applications from the repo (LibreOffice) showed some unstability or lack of performance, so, being a power-user, I needed to distrohop again.
I was tempted by CachyOS and OpenSuse Tumbleweed, after all the searches I've done... and, afraid by Arch-bases (I already tried Manjaro, Antergos and a pure Arch in the past), and thinking the hype behind CachyOS was maybe exaggerated, I tried OpenSuse Tumbleweed. I won't go into details, but it was a mistake.
So, quite frustrated by Tumbleweed, I installed less than 2 weeks later CachyOS.
I took my time, read the wiki, watched videos on YouTube. And once I understood how the system needs to be installed, and how I need to install the packages, I am seriously SHOCKED! Shocked in a GOOD way, of course.
- The system is incredibly snappy
- The performance on apps and video games are top and they're very stable and fast to open
- Now, it's Limine which is recommended instead of Grub or Systemd, and that's an excellent choice, because we have snapshots saved and offered by default when we boot the system, so if an update breaks the system, unless it breaks even the boot, we can go back.
- When we read the wiki, it is very easy to install what we need for video games (Steam, Lutris, Heroic, Wine...). Just use "CachyOS Hello", press "Applications/Modifications" and "Install Gaming packages".
- To install anything else, I expected "Octopi" because of the videos I watched, but I discovered CachyOS uses "Shelly" instead now. And that's, by far, the best application manager I've ever seen. Maybe not as beginner-friendly as Discover, as there is not as much information about the softwares / packages, but it manages everything: Packages from CachyOS repository, flatpaks, AUR, and even AppImages. First time I see a single software manager doing all those things. That's a really pleasant discovery.
- The updates are really easy to make and to check, thanks to the little CachyOS icon in the notifications.
I have just one fear now, the moment an update may break my system... Because, it is still an Arch-based, so that's to be expected. But at least, there are snapshots to help me for most of the cases when it'll happen.
Right now, I am EXTREMELY HAPPY with CachyOS. And I'm now convinced that the hype behind CachyOS was deserved.
Just... if you're tempted to install it, keep in mind it's an Arch-base. You need to read the wiki, update preferably once per week or each 2 weeks, and be ready that the system may break and you'll need to repair it after an update. At least, that's the conclusion I draw after all my searches.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-05-06
Votes: 2
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I am using Linux since more than 20 years, mostly debian-based because if the reliability and compatibility in software. With Arch-based rolling releases I had some experience with manjaro, which could lead to broken Systems after big updates or software changes.
I just saw the great reviews and test for CachyOS.
So I wanted to give it a try. I was surprised of the very easy and stable installation tool and a quite fine configured system OOTB. I installed on external SSD. Although installer ended with an error on bootloader-installation (on system-partition because of other leading linux-/grub-OS), it was detected and started correctly.
By now, I coudn't test much, but I can say:
+fine configured
+quite performant starting and running
+easy and reliable system- and software-installer
+great amount of available software
+nice, smooth Plasma Desktop
Hope I will get my printer added without edges. All other actions we will see, I am very hopeful by now. If Cachy will be reliable with rolling updates, this could be a very good OS for me and especially for my relatives who don't care much about maintenance :-)
Good luck for you all!
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-06
Votes: 0
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I recommend - the first Linux with real win against Windows. Now the only issues which need to be fixed are - erasing dependency of any rust/cancer in the code and erasing any digital ID data for secure privacy. I recommend - the first Linux with real win against Windows. Now the only issues which need to be fixed are - erasing dependency of any rust/cancer in the code and erasing any digital ID data for secure privacy. I recommend - the first Linux with real win against Windows. Now the only issues which need to be fixed are - erasing dependency of any rust/cancer in the code and erasing any digital ID data for secure privacy.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-05-04
Votes: 4
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I don't know about anyone else, but 2026 is officially my year of Linux. This is the very first time I've fully committed to switching from Windows to Linux, and honestly? I am completely blown away. I've always been hesitant in the past, thinking I'd have to sacrifice system performance, lose access to my daily apps, or spend hours staring at a terminal screen just to get basic things working. But CachyOS completely changed the game for me. I genuinely believe this specific OS is pivotal for the entire Linux family right now. It takes all the raw power and bleeding-edge updates of Arch and packages it into something actually usable, insanely fast, and user-friendly.
The performance is just unreal right out of the box, especially with how it comes pre-configured with heavily optimized kernels like BORE. For gaming, it has been an absolute dream. Almost all my games work flawlessly right through Proton. I play a ton of CS2 competitively, and I was heavily worried about input lag, frame drops, or weird mouse acceleration issues. But the latency is practically non-existent, and it handles my high-polling-rate peripherals beautifully without any heavy tinkering. The only minor downside is that a few top-tier titles with those wildly complicated, kernel-level anti-cheat systems still refuse to play nice. But honestly, that's a wider industry problem, not a CachyOS problem, and it's a trade-off I'm more than willing to make to escape the Windows ecosystem.
On the daily use and productivity side, I found absolutely all the software I need to get by. Getting my development environment fully set up with VS Code, translation layers for tools like LINQPad (via Proton), and all my usual stuff was surprisingly painless. I can just dive in and work without feeling like I'm constantly fighting my operating system. It's just a remarkably smooth, stable experiance from top to bottom.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-03
Votes: 10
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Consistently the most reliable distro I've used.
I keep coming back, why? Because every single time I get into trouble with other distros, or maybe find something that bothers me, I can always rest assured, that every single thing will be fine if I just come back to CachyOS.
They've reached a level of proper perfection, nothing is too much or too little in this distro, you get to choose things, maybe not in a fully bare bones fashion as like pure Arch right from the beginning (because they make certain things easier right out of the box, for example the aur helper already being set up), but in the end this is arch too, so you can do whatever you could do in Arch (faster at times, right out of the box).
I have nothing but good things to say about this distro, its arch, but on a league of its own now, the hype truly is well deserved.
Kudos to the developers of this distro, thank you for creating such an amazing thing, something I can always crawl back to.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-01
Votes: 0
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Coming from Manjaro linux, I feel very confortable. Installed fast and witout problems. Only issue is that your system may get mirrors from Russia, China or Iran in your mirror-list. I had to go one by one and comment them out. Also mask the cachyos-rate-mirrors.timer and cachyos-rate-mirrors.service to avoid getting them back in the next automatic mirror refresh. Other difference to Manjaro is AUR packages are to install with paru instead of pamac. All works as expected, WIFI, network, printer, scaner, GPU. It feels solid.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-05-01
Votes: 5
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I don't know about anyone else, but 2026 is officially my year of Linux. This is the very first time I've fully committed to switching from Windows to Linux, and honestly? I am completely blown away. I've always been hesitant in the past, thinking I'd have to sacrifice system performance, lose access to my daily apps, or spend hours staring at a terminal screen just to get basic things working. But CachyOS completely changed the game for me. I genuinely believe this specific OS is pivotal for the entire Linux family right now. It takes all the raw power and bleeding-edge updates of Arch and packages it into something actually usable, insanely fast, and user-friendly.
The performance is just unreal right out of the box, especially with how it comes pre-configured with heavily optimized kernels like BORE. For gaming, it has been an absolute dream. Almost all my games work flawlessly right through Proton. I play a ton of CS2 competitively, and I was heavily worried about input lag, frame drops, or weird mouse acceleration issues. But the latency is practically non-existent, and it handles my high-polling-rate peripherals beautifully without any heavy tinkering. The only minor downside is that a few top-tier titles with those wildly complicated, kernel-level anti-cheat systems still refuse to play nice. But honestly, that's a wider industry problem, not a CachyOS problem, and it's a trade-off I'm more than willing to make to escape the Windows ecosystem.
On the daily use and productivity side, I found absolutely all the software I need to get by. Getting my development environment fully set up with VS Code, translation layers for tools like LINQPad (via Proton), and all my usual stuff was surprisingly painless. I can just dive in and work without feeling like I'm constantly fighting my operating system. It's just a remarkably smooth, stable experiance from top to bottom.
I'm enjoying my daily computing so much more now. The telemetry and bloatware are completely gone, my system feels incredibly snappy, and I actually feel like I own my PC hardware again. If you are sitting on the fence about ditching Windows for good, definitly give CachyOS a shot. It makes the transition so much easier than you'd expect. I love it a lot, and I am absolutely not switching back!!!
Seriously, way to go guys!!!
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-30
Votes: 0
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Wow!
Ich habe gerade die neueste Version von CachyOS vom 26.04. in meiner VM ohne Probleme installiert: PIIX3-Chipsatz, kein TPM, USB-Tablet, IO-APIC auf „ON“ gesetzt, Hardware-Uhr auf „ON“ gesetzt, kein EFI, VMSVGA-Grafikcontroller, VirtualBox 7.0 unter Linux – und es läuft wie geschmiert. Fazit: So eine saubere Linux-Installation habe ich noch nie gesehen!
I just installed the latest 04/26 version of CachyOS in my VM without any issues: PIIX3 chipset, no TPM, USB tablet, IO-APIC set to “ON”, hardware clock set to “ON”, no EFI, VMSVGA graphics controller, VirtualBox 7.0 running on Linux and it's running like a charm. Bottom line: Never seen such a clean Linux setup before!
Good bye, Linux Mint!
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-30
Votes: 1
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Had issues with Pop OS, etc and finally settled on CachyOS. Running Plasma KDE and havent' had any real issues. My wireless Razer headset just works. New OLED monitor, works. I'm dual booting Windows 11 as I still play BF6, PUBG, etc. But unless I'm playing those, most game else works just fine. Love the BTRFS Assistant for automatic snapshots. Haven't run into any problems running the updater and bricking the system. It's snappy and responsive. Hopefully one day game developers will allow linux to run anti-cheat and I'll never have to boot into Windows again, at least on my personal PC.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-29
Votes: 0
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Este, fără îndoială, una dintre cele mai rapide distribuții bazate pe Arch Linux disponibile în prezent. Ceea ce o face specială este utilizarea kernel-urilor optimizate (precum linux-cachyos) și compilarea pachetelor cu instrucțiuni x86-64-v3 și v4, ceea ce oferă un plus vizibil de fluiditate în utilizarea zilnică și în gaming.
Interfața de instalare este intuitivă, iar scripturile de optimizare post-instalare sunt extrem de utile. Totuși, fiind un sistem de tip „rolling release”, necesită un utilizator care să aibă minime cunoștințe de mentenanță pentru a gestiona eventualele mici conflicte de pachete. Dacă ești în căutarea performanței brute fără compromisuri, CachyOS este alegerea ideală.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-27
Votes: 1
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Even after having tried distros such as openSuse, Fedora and Pop!_OS on my '21 Asus TUF notebook (AMD Ryzen 7 6800H, 32GB DDR5, RTX 3070 Laptop GPU), a rather capricious laptop, and not to mention Ubuntu 24.04 with its installation issues (installer didn't work at all), I've got myself an easy-to-install operating system with CachyOS.
A clear difference between CachyOS and my previous experience with the other distros can be seen in terms of its performance. The reason behind the high performance of the OS can be the optimized repositories and the customized kernels. When using GNOME 50, everything works incredibly fast; and, what is more important, it supports fractional scaling. Moreover, the hardware integration is done excellently: AMD/Nvidia hybrid graphics, function keys and backlighting are all supported out-of-the-box, no manual tinkering required.
As a returning Arch user, I have found that there are not many differences in comparison with CachyOS. However, it was not complicated for me to set up the system thanks to the convenient CachyOS Installation and the Following Hello tools. At the same time I did not face any unexpected problems during installation because of good documentation, and when really in doubt, there's always the Arch Linux Wiki. The updates are frequent and stable, as expected and anticipated. I give it a perfect ten score for refreshing my capricious machine and my joy with an Arch based distro.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260426
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-27
Votes: 0
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I switched from Linux Mint and it was very easy, quick and efficient. I choose Plasma-KDE and found it runs faster! than Cinnamon on Linux Mint. I found even Darktable ran faster compared to using on Mint. Intel/Nvidia stays up to date and I haven't run into any problems with display. External monitors through HDMI also worked better then when using Mint. I will admit it was a bit different learning Arch comming from Debian but so far it went well. I even set it up to dual boot with Mint on one partition and CachyOS on the other. I did use the Grub option so they work well together. I strongly recommend giving it a try.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-24
Votes: 0
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By far my favorite arch based distro. The default install covers all my favorites, LUKS, Limine, BORE, snapper and an amazing update tool (seems an oxymoron for linux, let alone arch), but it's great, covering news, standard and extra repos, aur, and flatpak with a cleanup at the end. It's been stable and running bleeding edge rocm/ollama with near zero downtime for me thus far. Install was painless, boot is fast, and it has multiple layers of redundancy. I tried to get my ai stack running on fedora, debian, ubuntu, and even gentoo prior to this, and there was always something causing issues with an integral part of my stack, but nearly everything i need is already cleaned up and ready to go in the cachy extra repo.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-24
Votes: 0
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By far my favorite arch based distro. The default install covers all my favorites, LUKS, Limine, BORE, snapper and an amazing update tool (seems an oxymoron for linux, let alone arch), but it's great, covering news, standard and extra repos, aur, and flatpak with a cleanup at the end. It's been stable and running bleeding edge rocm/ollama with near zero downtime for me thus far. Install was painless, boot is fast, and it has multiple layers of redundancy. I tried to get my ai stack running on fedora, debian, ubuntu, and even gentoo prior to this, and there was always something causing issues with an integral part of my stack, but nearly everything i need is already cleaned up and ready to go in the cachy extra repo.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-04-21
Votes: 1
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I use Linux to revive old computers. I tried CachyOS as it was at the top of the distribution list.
4G of RAM was required which limited its use. A Fujitsu touch screen with 4G RAM and 128G SSD was used. The installation screen looked straightforward. When it came to dual-booting alongside another Linux-OS, it became a challenge to master making the partitions with Gparted, as its something I don’t often do, so I took the easier option and installed over the entire disk and then re-installed the other Linux, which had an easier install.
After the install I was expecting a faster boot but it took about 1 minute for each reboot. The programs available to run on various Linux OS are similar. The installation of programs for Office, Graphics and Multimedia from the CachyOS repository went well but I did not find about a quarter of those I normally use.
I started with the XFCE for a lightweight option but it was a bit underwhelming so I switched to Plasma-KDE which was more attractive and had more features. Its a learning curve and appreciate the work that’s gone into its design.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-19
Votes: 17
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A fast and smooth modern system that offers the best experience, or at least the best I have tried so far among operating systems. It is undisputedly the fastest, with absolutely fantastic resource management. It is the best in terms of interface aesthetics, and the customization capability is extremely high; simply do whatever you imagine, as there are no limits to what you can do and change. It is a masterpiece, and something I have never felt this satisfied with in a system my entire life; it is freedom in every sense of the word. Compared to Windows, it's like a one-square-meter jail cell.
Most importantly, it is incredibly fast, and this is due to the optimized kernel. Thanks to everyone who contributed to building this system. I must mention something very important: no matter the load on the system or the amount of software running in real-time, the system maintains fast and stable performance. Words do not do it justice; it is wonderful. I have spent a very long time with Linux systems, but this system was something completely different. I mean the massive software support, and the support for continuous fixes at a very rapid pace; sometimes a specific software or program in the system fails, and it doesn't take more than three days to a week for the issue to be resolved. This is the fastest system support and improvement experience I have had in my life.
The support, development, and improvement teams are like soldiers who never sleep, neither day nor night; updates can arrive 3 to 5 times a week, which is incredibly strong support. Even though they might include updates from the original Arch kernel, I inspect every update, and most of them relate to the system itself and its optimized kernel. To shock readers even more, they have even modified many software programs to match the high speed of the system; for example, the fastest web browser in the world, "Thorium," has been modified by the system's team into a custom version. I tried it, and oh my god! With the fastest system in the world and the fastest browser in the world, I now have the fastest experience in the world. Previously, I thought some of the slowness in web browsing was due to the internet service provider, but after this experience, and with the exact same internet speed, it turns out a large part of the speed depends on the system and the browser.
To sum up my point: try this system. I promise you will experience unprecedented speed, provided your device meets the medium requirements to run it, as it is designed for modern devices. I have a very powerful computer running it, and I must honestly say: I have loved this system and I have no intention of ever leaving it, no matter what happens.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-16
Votes: 6
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Excelente experiência! CPU i5 6200U (Dual core), GPU Intel HD520,
16GB de RAM DDR4 2133mhz e SSD de 256GB, TV LG 4K 60". 10 bits de cor, HDR,
1440p a 60hz no desktop (devido a limitação da porta HDMI só ir até 4k 30hz) e a tv fazendo upscale pra 2160p, ta lindo!
Nunca tive essa experiência no windows.
A maioria das distros são mais leves que o windows porem, essa Cachy Os
é muito bem feita! Tenho impressão de estar usando um Notebook novo de
tão boa a experiência de uso no dia a dia. Quero agradecer a todos que estão
por traz desse projeto maravilhoso que esta prosperando muito.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-15
Votes: 11
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ABSOLUTE PEAK. Can't find anything wrong with it after 7 months of usage. It's fast, it's reliable and it's feature-packed. I have noticed the improvement in performance coming from bazzite I have been enjoying how easy it is to get used to and it ties perfectly with KDE Plasma.
I have it on two key devices of note, one is my main PC, but the other is an Asus BR1100CKA.
This laptop has a Dual-Core Celeron N4500 at 1.10Ghz and 4GB of RAM. The storage is 64GB of eMMC and yet it plays games perfectly fine on CachyOS. The one that performs the best (easy 60fps) is MegaBonk.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-14
Votes: 18
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CachyOS was easy to install and significantly improved my gaming performance, even on an NVIDIA card. For me personally on fairly budget hardware those improvements were pretty extreme, nearly doubling frame rates in some cases (compared to Linux Mint), but depending on your hardware the differences might be more or less noticeable.
In terms of software, CachyOS uses pacman as the primary package manager and benefits from all the packages available in the Arch repositories, as well as the AUR, which gets pretty much every package anyone is going to need. There are a lot of GUI options available, so it's possible (though not recommended) to avoid using the terminal for a large variety of things.
On the Desktop Environment side of things, CachyOS defaults to the latest version of KDE Plasma, which is arguably the best Linux DE by far right now. There are also a number of other options available at install including GNOME, XFCE, Cosmic, Cinnamon and more. For those who like Window Managers instead of full DEs, CachyOS has plenty of options there as well including Niri (my personal favorite), Hyprland, Sway, i3, and more.
The filesystem that CachyOS uses by default is BTRFS, though other options like EXT4, XFS, ZFS, F2FS, and BcacheFS are available if desired. If installing using BTRFS, CachyOS has automatic snapshot using snapper that allow you to rollback your system from the boot menu fairly easily in case of any issues. This is helpful both in the case of an update breaking something, as does happen on occasion with rolling release distros, and in the case of any tinkering gone wrong.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-04-13
Votes: 8
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CachyOS is the closest it has ever been to a perfect Linux distro compared to any other. I've tried using vanilla Arch before, but I had some problems with it regarding NVIDIA drivers. This did not happen here.
Pros:
+ Super easy to install (after all, it has Calamares) and use, especially for beginners.
+ Stable despite being Arch-based.
+ Great community support and documentation (the Arch Wiki also helps with this).
+ Similar FPS in games like RDR2 and GTA5 as Windows, while being open-source.
+ Installer offers flexible choices for bootloaders, DEs/WMs, and additional options like printer and scanner support.
+ Great support for Intel and NVIDIA components.
+ Optimized kernel for performance and security, including sched-ext, which increased my FPS by 50+ in Minecraft.
Cons:
- Has unnecessary packages that an average Linux user won't need post-installation (for example, Plymouth, which makes the boot splash prettier, but it isn't something I necessarily need).
- systemd (some people are not bothered by this, but I am).
As shown here, there are many more pros than cons for this distro, but there are still cons. If Cachy had an option for picking init systems other than systemd and specifically selecting which packages to install and not install, both straight from the ISO, this would be, in my opinion, the best Linux distro that exists. If it's not possible to add an option for init systems, they could at least provide ISOs bundled with different init systems, like Artix does.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-04-10
Votes: 15
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I moved to CachyOS from windows in October 2025. It was my first real jump into the linux world. The install was easier and quicker than a windows install. The OS has just worked. I had a problem with auto mounting my drives at start up but that was an error on my part and not the OS or the instructions in the wiki. I know a lot of people told me to stay away from Arch based Os's for my first jump into linux, but CachyOS has been very easy to use and between the Cachy wiki and the Arch wiki I don't feel like I'm going to ever really struggle with a problem. Cachy has been very stable for me and I enjoy the rolling release. I also have not had any bugs due to the rolling release as I was told I would, and snapper gives me some piece of mind that even if I do it will be easy to fix. I can't recommend this distro enough. Huge thank you to the Cachy team. Keep up the good work!
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 5
Date: 2026-03-31
Votes: 0
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Depuis la dernière version ils ont complètement supprimé "X11".
J'avais décidé de réinstaller "Cachyos" car mon temps de démarrage devenait très long...environ plus de 2 min sur mon pc trop vieux qui a plus de 15 ans.
En consultant les discussions du forum de "Cachyos" j'ai découvert qu'ils supprimaient depuis la nouvelle version de "Cachyos" la prise en charge de "X11".
L'écran d'authentification restera bloqué et vous empêchera d'accéder à "Cachyos" car maintenant c'est "Wayland" qui est obligatoirement activé par défaut donc plus du tout de "Plasma X11".
J'ai une très vieille carte graphique Nvidia GT710 à 2 Go de vram qui n' est pas du tout compatible avec "Wayland"...et le drivers "Nouveau" fonctionne très mal pour le gaming.
Adieu "Cachyos"'...
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 7
Date: 2026-03-30
Votes: 9
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I've been using CachyOS for a few months, eventually deciding to stop and look for a different distro. It's definitely simple to use, features a good set of optimization tools, configuration and kernels to choose. It struck me as a disto with a good take on Arch, being easy to install even for a beginner, with a clear documentation included. The reason I stopped using it comes from the recent developments: it became too oversized with packages, while including only an online installation and refusing to provide some sort of offline version. I noticed someone on reddit mentioning this issue, just to end up being mocked for having a slower internet connection. That's the another reason: community surrounding it became very dismissive and elitist, sometimes speaking low on any other distribution when mentioned. There are still of course people who are very helpful and nice, and big thanks to them, but then there is this other group coming to sight, with a visibly toxic behaviour.
Important to mention is also the reaction to the recent age verification topic. CachyOS developers, to all the questions about this issue, reacted with silence at first, then eventually posting about it in an emotional manner, calling people who were looking for answers "radical" and deciding to ban any mentioning about it. I feel like the matter could be handled and communicated in a much better, mature way.
Personally, I wish well for CachyOS developers and just hope that their communication practices could be improved upon, because it's a really promising distribution. I switched to EndeavourOS myself since, and I'm pleased with the change.
Pros
+ Easy to install and use for an Arch distro, even for beginners
+ Good optimizations in many aspects, from kernels to tools and schedulers
+ Good hardware support
Cons
- No offline installer and no plans to add one
- Growing elitism and toxicity in the community, though you can still find people who are very nice and helpful
- Distribution rapidly becomes heavier and overpacked
- Not great communication practices from the team
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-30
Votes: 22
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I have started my journey in Linux not so long ago (maybe a year or so) and have used quite a few distros (Linux mint, Endeavor OS and CachyOS) and out of all them CachyOS is the most inspiring and easy-to-use. I like both the philosophy of it and the perfomance it gives.
First things first, the gui installer. I would say it's amazing, it's fast, reliable and gets the job done. I've been able to configure everything I needed and install it in ~30 minutes.And then there's the Cachy Hello app that managed installing my browser and all the stuff I need, removing the block from pacman and many things else.
CachyOS kernel manager is wonderful app that lets me quickly change kernel version without any trouble so I could compare the performance of all of them (I think bore is the best of them yet).
So after switching from mint to Endeavor I felt a significant increase in the difficulty of updating all the packages (flatpaks,aur etc.) but on CachyOS the experience in updates are somewhat similar to mint in it's simplicity. Cachy Update handles everything for me and I just have to confirm few thing here in there.
My setup perfectly worked out of the box (NVIDIA 3060 card, amd ryzen 5600 processor and all peripherals), expect for my Brother HL2140R printer. I had to download the brlaser package from aur for it to function, which wasn't the case for Mint experience. But I guess it's overall arch problem since it was the same on Endeavor OS.
The overall performance increase that system gives is either significant (15-30 fps compared to others) or none at all. It really depends on a game you are testing in. System stability is quite good, in my month of usage I haven't run in any problem with the system expect for some issue with Hyprland ( not a CachyOS problem, rather an update problem).
Pros
+ Sometimes increase in perfomance in some games
+ Ease of installing and using
+ Good community and technical support
+ Good hardware support
Cons
- No offline installer (for me, as a resident of censored country it could be an issue)
- Lesser community than some of other mainstream distros (though it keeps growing)
- I've run into some issues with secureboot
- No implementation of apparmor or SElinux
I would recommend this distro both to experienced and inexperienced linux users, as it has stability of Linux Mint and power of Arch linux. Documentation seems nice and through and you can find most answers on forums and reddit. That's definitely a go-to distro.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-29
Votes: 4
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I generally dislike distro-hopping and using distributions that are not quite mainstream. Usually, they are not maintained as well as the mainstream options and have only minor cosmetic differences, which are rarely worth making the switch for. I was pleasantly surprised by CachyOS in virtually every aspect.
There are multiple desktop environments and window managers to choose from, and none of them feel like an afterthought. They are all well maintained, the default setups make sense, and the tools most users need are already installed and configured with sensible defaults.
The one-click setup for gaming is a game-changer. The distribution handles Nvidia drivers, Wine, and Proton automatically, without involving the user, which is a significant advantage for less experienced users. I believe it is a great all-rounder and useful for both newcomers and experienced users.
My only concern is a potential decrease in popularity, which might in the future negatively affect the project, but right know it is simply one of the best distros to choose from. I hope it continues being a popular choice and continues to be updated regularly and maintained well into the future.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-28
Votes: 5
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This distro is very easy to install and setup. I'm using it on a modern HP Omen 16 laptop with Nvidia card onboard. All peripherals are working correctly. The updater is very light and easy to use, with continous update day by day.
Another nice thing is the Kernel Manager, that allow you to try other versions alongside the more stable one (nice to be able to test also the RC version).
I also use Steam for gaming and it's also very easy to setup; performances equal or even better compared to Win 11.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-23
Votes: 24
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I have been using CachyOS for approximately four months on a relatively uncommon hardware setup: an older Razer Blade laptop combined with a Thunderbolt 3 eGPU (GTX 1080 Ti). This kind of configuration tends to reveal compatibility and stability issues quickly, especially under Linux. Based on my experience, CachyOS has provided the most consistent and reliable results on this system.
From the beginning, installation and hardware detection were straightforward. Both the internal GPU and the external GPU were recognized without requiring unusual workarounds. While eGPU setups under Linux are inherently complex, CachyOS handled the basics reliably and allowed me to reach a usable system state quickly.
What stands out most is stability. Even with the added complexity of Thunderbolt and hybrid graphics, the system behaves predictably during daily use. General desktop performance is smooth, and applications launch quickly. The system also feels responsive under load, which is particularly important on hardware that is not specifically designed with Linux in mind.
Performance is another strong point. CachyOS delivers the best results I have experienced on this setup, especially in terms of responsiveness and overall system fluidity. While certain edge cases still exist—particularly with demanding gaming workloads on eGPU configurations—the underlying system remains stable and usable, which is more important for long-term daily use.
I am using KDE Plasma, which complements CachyOS well. KDE provides a mature and feature-complete environment that works reliably across different use cases, including multi-GPU scenarios. The combination of CachyOS and KDE offers a good balance between flexibility and usability.
In summary, CachyOS has proven to be a dependable distribution on hardware that can be challenging for Linux. It combines strong performance, solid stability, and enough flexibility to adapt to more complex setups. For users with similar hardware configurations, it is definitely worth considering.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-20
Votes: 7
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It's my first main OS for linux. I tried a few linux distros and install them on my HP gaming laptop, next to the win11. Then I decided to install cachy on a new laptop, I buy one with only integrated GPU, Lenovo one. All drivers working perfectly. Only a sleep mode problem happened but I fixed it with AMD_STB conf file, too easy. I use this new laptop regularly, only using hp for playing battlefield. Lately I don't play that much so I can say that cachyOS became main OS, and of course the new laptop is heavier to move it and battery lives longer cuz integrated cpu. After I'll sent hp to the service I'll install cachyOS to hp to play RDR2.
If you are using windows and want to try a linux distro, you can buy a small laptop with only integrated GPU. Of course you have to be kinda rich :D. But really I'm a student with living only with scholarship. Maybe I made a dangerous move, of course I will eat only water a few months. :D hahahahah whatever.
I give 9 because there are some keyboard issue on some laptops. Lenovo has its own drivers but HP still has some problems. Idk which side will fix it. If I use a english Q keyboard maybe it won't be a problem but my laptop is Turkish Q. I write in the cachy forum but no answer, too normal of course.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-18
Votes: 12
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It's honestly one of the better and more stable Arch distros I've tried out. It's simple, fast and very stable. A lot of things just work out of the box while still being fairly minimal and clean. Even works great for gaming out of the box.
Despite being Arch, I have yet to run into any issues with it.
It might not look super flashy and in your face like some of the others out there, but I like it. It's nice and clean, and if you're someone that want it super flashy then it's still Arch and you can just do the changes yourself.
It's become my home distro, I love everything about it.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-03-17
Votes: 1
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This is for the review of the handheld edition, not the desktop edition. The Handheld edition is an amazing distro for handhelds, I find this better than native steam os and bazzite due to it being Non Immutable and much snappier. This is much more beginner friendly compared to the desktop edition because It only has one desktop environment and one bootloader (now two, System D and Limine).
I recommend this for your Steam Deck, Rog Ally, or Legion Go due to decky loader and emudeck having less issues installing compared to Nobara and Bazzite.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-16
Votes: 4
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Recently, CachyOS has become one of my favorite operating systems. My experience so far has been very positive. The system feels incredibly fast and stable compared to many other distributions I’ve tried. What impressed me the most is the level of optimization— even on a low-end machine, the performance remains smooth and responsive.
Another great aspect of CachyOS is that it feels quite friendly for beginners. The overall user experience is simple and comfortable, and many applications work well out of the box. I also appreciate that several Windows applications can run properly through compatibility layers available in the Linux ecosystem, which makes the transition much easier.
As someone who regularly works on assignments and projects, this distro has helped me complete my tasks faster and more efficiently than before. Its stability allows me to focus on my work without worrying about system issues or interruptions.
I truly appreciate the hard work of the CachyOS developers. The effort put into performance optimization and usability is clearly noticeable. I hope the project continues to grow and evolve in the future—especially in areas like stability, application compatibility, and user experience for both beginners and advanced users.
Thank you to the developers for creating such a fast, stable, and enjoyable operating system. I’m excited to see how CachyOS will continue to improve and exceed expectations in the future.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-15
Votes: 2
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I like it. Pretty graphics, and it feels very responsive even with KDE Plasma on a 12 year old rig. The only problems with install were related to my BIOS making not very obvious on how to disable the secure boot, and a shaky internet connection. The other minor annoyance is probably related to NVidia driver, and Wayland: the second monitor resolution is too low. It could be because the second is connected through DVI. Dual-booting with Window which I use for CAD, Limine added Windows without a hitch. Immediately installed Blender, Prusa, Orca, and Cura slicer - everything works as expected. As such I am planning to use it, maybe try installing Plasticity 3D later.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 4
Date: 2026-03-09
Votes: 5
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Finally, after several releases that seemed not to start up, then start an installer, etc. I did manage to get Cachy installed! You just need to be rather patient.
Pros:
- it is Arch, and a rolling release
- it offers many desktops from one ISO [1]
- the system is quite responsive (that speed-optimised promise on the can - tick yes)
Cons:
- it completely cannot play alongside other distros / dual-boot [2]
- as noted by others, package availability is not quite Arch-level
[1] So I got to see Cosmic, outside of Pop!OS, nice job guys. The KDE looked good. Some distros split it out as an ISO per desktop, but quite a few other distros do what Cachy offers - one ISO and you can pick, even more than one.
[2] I went with GRUB to try and stick with what other distros still use. The Cachy partition went invisible to installs after it, so I could only re-carve-up the 'other' part of the disk. Haven't tested Limine. So if you add Cachy, install it last.
Summary:
It was good to see what Cachy has on the inside. The impression is excellent in terms of UI and user experience, graphics, etc - but for me the cons outweigh the pros. It depends on your particular usage. For me, I flip between distros on my 'test' machine, but 'production' stays with a distro for years on end. I need to get stuff done, and if packages are not there or there are operational issues, I don't need drama in my workflow. As noted, being Arch there should not be drama, but as noted by other reviewers, there are gaps for some reason.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-09
Votes: 10
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The installation went smoothly. I first did a test run with the live image and then installed it on a separate SSD. After a surprisingly short time, the system was up and running, and my gaming hardware and streaming equipment were working perfectly, from the RGB control to the Stream Deck, sound mixer, HOTAS, etc. I actually had to invest less time than before with Windows 11. Updates have been running without any side effects so far. I've been running Cachy OS for about 6 months now and haven't started Windows 11, which is still installed in parallel, for at least 3 months.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260308
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-09
Votes: 11
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I've been looking for a Linux-based system to replace a multipurpose Windows installation for quite some time. In the past, I repeatedly ran into issues where either gaming support or certain office hardware - particularly my HP Laser MFP 135ag scanner - did not work properly. The available solutions were often unreliable or had usability limitations that made them impractical for daily use.
CachyOS finally provides everything I was looking for. The system offers excellent performance and allows extensive customization, even at a very low level if desired. The included performance optimizations are a particularly welcome addition and noticeably contribute to the overall responsiveness of the system.
My installation experience was somewhat mixed. The GNOME Desktop ISO booted into a black/blank login screen on my system, while the KDE Plasma ISO worked without any issues. Since I don't have a strong preference for a specific desktop environment, this was not a major problem for me.
UEFI booting and key enrollment are documented, but I still managed to misconfigure things a couple of times—possibly due to quirks in my BIOS (HP OMEN 30L Desktop GT13-0xxx). I eventually settled on using the Limine boot loader for a dual-boot setup with CachyOS and Windows. It is very useful that CachyOS provides this option.
Setting up my multi-monitor configuration was straightforward and required only a few clicks.
Since installation (Jan. 2026), the system has been fast, stable, and reliable. Overall, CachyOS has proven to be a strong candidate for replacing my previous Windows setup. The need to boot into Windows again has been minimal so far and reasons to do so vanish week by week.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 251129
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-09
Votes: 9
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As a first-time Linux user, I initially tried Pop OS but couldn’t get it to my liking. After some research, I discovered that CachyOS is simple to install and comes with all the necessary packages. Their package library is well-maintained and documented, making it easy to install what I need from the terminal. It runs incredibly fast on my 10-year-old laptop with an Nvidia 1050 Ti 4GB and an i5 8th gen processor. My steam and epic library works like charm with few hiccups from heroic but I can find answers to most my issues in their forum. Next I’m planning to learn development either of KDE apps or get started with kernel code as their few apps for which I would like to improve the UI
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-03-07
Votes: 4
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It is now March, 2026. Last year, I encountered an impossible situation: a blank screen after installing CachyOS.
This month, the experience is much, much better. The install seems easier, where last year I was ambushed at least twice.
One difficulty does persist: CachyOS has disabled the use of os-prober in the grub configuration, for no good reason (IMHO).
I have used i3wm, Plasma (both X11 and Wayland), hyprland, and Sway with the new CachyOS. All of them work well. The default i3wm setup was an improvement over others. In general the entire configuration defaults feel better.
Startup is speedy. My experience is that CachyOS is noticeably speedier than other OSs.
I have a complicated application that is available as a Deb or an RPM. I was able to install the deb by jumping through many hoops, each of which was the equivalent of a black box. It is a sloppy affair, but that is not the fault of CachyOS.
My NVIDIA GTX-1050 works out of the box; the correct proprietary driver was installed by CachyOS. This is a major improvement. Or so it seems to me.
I give this new version an "8" because I have not worked with CachyOS long enough for highest confidence. So far, this has been a great experience. Except for the complications when installing grub.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 8
Date: 2026-03-05
Votes: 9
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Really just works distro. What I like about it:
- Easy GUI installation
- Fresh packages
- Out of the box configuration of latest `new feature branch` nVidia drivers which means best performance with zero effort from end-user
- Out of the box configuration of snapshots with BTRFS as file system + Limine as bootloader so you can roll-back in case your system got broken after update
- Out of the box updating daemon `CachyUpdate` (just ArchUpdate skin) which will notify you about updates every hour (I've changed it to every 8 hours)
- Out of the box software to run Windows executables (better to avoid it but nice that you don't need to set it up manually)
- Nice Wiki documentation and Discord server
- Have GUI for package installer (not as pretty in comparison to other distros' app stores though)
- AUR / ChaoticAUR support which means you likely won't face a problems with packages you need (including proprietary ones)
- Fast package manager with fun pacman animation
- KDE Plasma works without any distro related problems
- New open-source technologies like Wayland and PipeWire included and work by default
- Just works for me as a Windows 10 refugee who used to observe Linux but not switch
- GUI kernel manager so you can try different kernels and find one which work best for your hardware*
- Have precompiled packages for x86_64_vN target CPU architectures depending on supported instructions set what can provide some performance benefits**
*I don't think it's much useful for modern computers but for older ones maybe but let it be a pros because it gives you opportunity to try
**I don't think it's much performance benefits in regular use on modern hardware but maybe that's crucial for older machines
What I not really like:
- I've heard developers used bots to promote their distro. If so then I highly condemn such behaviour
- Have aura of "gaming turbo flex distro" and not as mature as core distros
- Can't recommend it to those newbies or Windows refugees who aren't also a solid power-users or have time/will to explore nuances (I myself don't know much)
- Strange syntax of package manager which is not as intuitive as `sudo apt install/search/update` or `sudo dnf install/search/update`
- I'm sure it still will break some day and I will need to roll-back via snapshots
- Default GUI for package installer is kinda ugly compared to modern store-like alternatives
- Uses Calamares as installer which is buggy and can hang or close unexpectedly
- Lacks offline installer and fully depends on internet connection during installation. Online installation is nice but I think it's better to have a choice between two options
For now it's my daily driver for about 1.5 months and first distro which I've found less annoying to consider try switching from Windows 10.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 6
Date: 2026-03-05
Votes: 3
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After installing CachyOS with KDE desktop. First boot would go to black screen with mouse cursor. After wasting several minutes reinstalling with other desktop environments, KDE was the only one not working. For the first time in years I had to go to a forum to follow bread crumbs to find KDE remedy. The fix was to login into shell and run plasma update.
Unlike other review post. I found package installer lacking programs included with other Linux distros. Which lead to me back Arch forums to find work around. If you enjoy trouble shooting “bugs” and package installs. Which is a great way to learn. This might be your OS.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 9
Date: 2026-03-01
Votes: 1
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I saw a lot of hype on the web so I had to see what the fuss was about.
I attempted installation on PC with an old NV Quadro card but couldn't get past the login screen. Swapped out for a newer but slightly weaker AMD graphics card, now works amazingly well. Very impressed with it's responsiveness. KDE Plasma seems very polished .
I haven't used it extensively, but I highly recommend trying this OS, the PC I installed it on is just for testing.
I'm considering replacing Ubuntu with this on my daily driver laptop so I can get more time working with it.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-03-01
Votes: 31
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I came from Windows 11 and worked my way through Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora, and Bazzite before landing on CachyOS as my main OS. Here's my honest take.
Installation was quick and painless. The installer is straightforward, and I had KDE Plasma up and running without any issues. Not something you always expect from an Arch-based distro.
Performance is where CachyOS genuinely surprised me. Coming from Windows 11 and several other Linux distros, I wasn't expecting such a noticeable jump in snappiness and responsiveness — but the difference is real and immediate. The custom kernel and optimized packages deserve the credit, and the CachyOS Hello app makes post-install setup easy without having to rely entirely on the terminal.
Gaming works well for most titles. With Steam, Proton, and the AUR, you have everything you need to get started with Linux gaming right away.
Software availability is essentially unlimited thanks to Arch's repos and the AUR. Coming from Fedora and Bazzite, I found the package selection here to be broader and more flexible.
Bottom line: CachyOS is a great pick for gamers, developers, Linux enthusiasts, and general desktop users comfortable with a rolling-release system. If you've been distro-hopping and want something fast and stable to finally settle on, this might be it.
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-02-27
Votes: 11
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I've tried many distributions over the years, going from Ubuntu with gnome2 to Debian with gnome modified with dash to panel and arcmenu, to Zorin OS, always with Windows in dual boot. Then I switched to just Zorin and I knew I had found the right one. But then I tried CachyOS with KDE Plasma, Limine, BTRFS with v3 instructions and sched-ext bpfland, and I was absolutely amazed. Fantastic! Both for pros and for attentive and curious beginners. Secure, up to date, fantastic and functional! The cow system for any restores is excellent. Excellent warnings during updates and installations. Perfect!
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Project: CachyOS
Version: 260124
Rating: 10
Date: 2026-02-22
Votes: 9
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CachyOS is a capable Arch-based distribution. Installation via Calamares is efficient and hassle-free. Dual monitors work flawlessly out of the box, requiring no tweaks.Performance delivers strong results immediately, managing workloads effectively. Customization is robust, with ready-to-use widgets, panels, and wallpapers for personalization.Gaming under Wayland has limitations: some titles, like CS2, may not launch by default. A Steam config resolves this reliably. Notably, with CS2, you can freely work with other programs in parallel—Alt+Tab or switch apps without crashes, unlike Windows where it disrupts gameplay.A standout feature is the inclusion of Windows-style shortcuts, such as Win+Shift+S for screenshots and Win+V for clipboard history. These saved me significant setup time compared to Ubuntu, where equivalents demand manual configuration.As a rolling-release Arch derivative, it provides fresh packages and flexibility without raw Arch's complexity. Drawbacks are minor and typical of Wayland, easily addressed with basic adjustments.In summary, CachyOS balances power, usability, and familiarity, making it a practical choice over more rigid distros like Ubuntu, Mint.
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