Linux Mint

Reader supplied reviews for Linux Mint Average rating 8.9 from 1003 review(s) Please specify which version of the distribtion you are reviewing. Please select a rating in the range of 1-10. Please write at least a few sentences about the distribution while limiting your review to 4080 characters. What are your thoughts on Linux Mint? Please include a few pros and a few cons, along with your overall impression of the operating system. Our FAQ page has tips on writing a good mini-review. Version: -- 22.37-LMDE6-LMDE21.35-LMDE20.34-LMDE19.318.317.316151413121110987654.03.13.02.22.12.0 Rating:    -- 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 out of 10 Your review (minimum 250 words): Past reviews - sort by: DateVotes Version: 7-LMDE Rating: 10 Date: 2026-03-06 Country: Germany Votes: 4 LMDE7 is a distribution the way I prefer. Not too much bells&whistles but surely enough for productive work. The default cinnamon desktop for LMDE7 offers the right amount of GUI stuff. And thanks to flatpak any further software required can be optained quite fast. Thanks to its rock-solid base Debian there are little to no chances ending up in an instable system up-on running a system upgrade. Security patches are offered frequently. In the past I was using other distributions (e.g. SuSe/OpenSuse, Ubuntu, ...). Often enough it had been a compromise; now using LMDE/Cinnamon I'm satisfied in a degree I never had been before. E.g. the applets & desklets offered by cinnamon are of great value. "Quick launcher" is one of the center pieces among these apps. Most of the facts mentioned here are valid for Linux Mint in general, but thanks to the Debian approach this distribution is much closer to the FOSS approch as I interpret it. Recently I could convince a friend of mine switching from Windows 10 to LMDE7 on his office PC. He is running a small family based company (3 people in total). I recommeded to give a try to LMDE since updating to Windows 11 was being refused last year. The computer he is using up-to-now is equipped with an Intel i7-7x00, 16 GB of RAM and a SSD (512GB as far as I can remember). So the CPU generation was the hurdle. Finally getting used to use LMDE7 and LibreOffice (now 26.2) was not really a big deal for him. Oh, by the way: „Quick launcher“ has become the center of his desktop: Launching both invoice or offer forms, launching a viewer for e-invoices, eMail, internet browser, file browser – all done using shortcuts from within „Quick launcher“ ! He rarely needs to maneuver to the lower left to open up the apps menu ... Actually I did install RustDesk on his new installation and I offered him to give a call in case of issues supporting him remotely using RustDesk. No need for support yet … ;-) Was this review helpful? Yes No Version: 22.3 Rating: 10 Date: 2026-03-05 Country: Türkiye Votes: 9 Linux Mint is an absolute gem for anyone looking to escape the complexity of other operating systems. Whether you're a seasoned Linux enthusiast or a complete newcomer, Mint welcomes you with open arms and delivers an experience that's both powerful and refreshingly straightforward. Ease of Use Right out of the box, Linux Mint feels intuitive and familiar. The Cinnamon desktop environment is beautifully designed, with a clean layout that won't intimidate newcomers. Everything just works—installation is smooth, and you'll be productive within minutes rather than hours of configuration. Stability and Performance Built on Ubuntu's solid foundation, Mint offers exceptional stability without sacrificing performance. Your system runs smoothly even on older hardware, making it perfect for breathing new life into aging computers. I've experienced virtually zero crashes or slowdowns. Software Library The Software Manager provides access to thousands of applications, and most popular programs have Linux Mint versions. Whether you need productivity tools, creative software, or games, you'll find what you're looking for with just a few clicks. Community and Support The Linux Mint community is wonderfully supportive and active. Documentation is comprehensive, forums are helpful, and the developers genuinely listen to user feedback. You never feel alone when troubleshooting issues. Customization While Mint is user-friendly out of the box, it's also incredibly customizable for those who want to tinker. Themes, layouts, and settings can be adjusted to match your preferences perfectly. The Verdict Linux Mint strikes that rare balance between simplicity and capability. It respects your time, your hardware, and your intelligence. Whether you're switching from Windows, Mac, or another Linux distro, you'll find Mint to be a refreshing, reliable, and genuinely enjoyable operating system. Highly recommended for everyone! Was this review helpful? Yes No Version: 7-LMDE Rating: 10 Date: 2026-03-05 Country: United States Votes: 5 Years of using and enjoying Linux Mint as my daily driver OS has taught me a great deal about what people actually want and need in their computer’s operating system, plainly showing why Windows and MacOS have lost so much of the appeal they once had. A vast portion of perfectly capable Windows 10 computers have been arbitrarily excluded from updating to Windows 11 by Microsoft. Short of purchasing expensive new machines with Windows 11 requirements built in, huge numbers of users have to surrender any hope they may have had of a ‘better way of doing things computing wise’ to the whims and desires of their Microsoft overlords --which is why so many are seeking ways to escape the quick sand trap they’ve found themselves stuck in with Windows 11. A couple of decades ago I recognized early Microsoft ‘danger signals’ for what they were, and along with others began to experiment with early versions of desktop Linux, landing on Ubuntu, and following that with Linux Mint. Been with Ubuntu based Mint ever since, finding it offers by far the best out-of-the-box install it and go right to work personal computing experience available anywhere! As a naturally curious Linux user I’ve experimented over the years with a lot of different distros, measuring each against what I’ve come to love about Linux Mint. Today there are a number of desktop competitors to Mint, most based on Debian or Ubuntu, but few anywhere near as polished and ‘ready to work’ right out of the box as Mint is. In my view the only real option to Ubuntu based Linux Mint is Linux Mint Debian Edition 7, ‘LMDE’ for short. After closely following LMDE’s development these past 15 years, I now run LMDE 7 on about half of my PCs, having found everything I love about Ubuntu based Linux Mint available with LMDE from the very start, without any of the issues that Ubuntu based distros, including Mint, have to put up with or provide work-arounds for. For anyone who’s interested, I’d encourage giving LMDE 7 a try. It’s simpler and less affected than Ubuntu based Linux Mint, and whether you keep LMDE 7 stock ‘right out-of-the-box’ or customize it to your liking, you’ll enjoy its light weight rock solid Debian base together with the trademark ‘Minty Goodness’ that Clem and his Linux Mint team bake into each of their distros -- whether Ubuntu or Debian based! Was this review helpful? Yes No See all 1003 reader reviews of Linux Mint...