Midnight Commander

Active

Founded: 1994
Developer: Community-developed (GNU project)
Pricing: Free (open-source)
Open source: Yes
Platforms: Linux, Unix-like systems

Indexes

File Managers

Overview

Midnight Commander is a visual, dual-pane, text-mode file manager for Unix-like operating systems that enables copying, moving, deleting files and directories, searching, and executing subshell commands.²¹ It includes an internal viewer, editor, and diff viewer, with support for treating remote systems via FTP/SSH and archives as local directories, suitable for terminal environments without graphical interfaces.²¹³

Key Features

Dual-pane interface - Displays two directories simultaneously for easy file operations between them.
File operations - Supports copy, move, delete, rename, link, permissions changes.
Virtual File System (VFS) - Browses FTP, SSH, and archive files (tar, zip) as local directories.
Internal viewer and editor - Built-in tools for viewing, editing files, and diff comparison.
Search functionality - Searches files by name or content, treats results as a directory.
Hotlist - User-defined list of frequently used directories.
Subshell integration - Switch to full shell with Ctrl-O and return to MC.
Mouse support - Native under X11, via gpm in console.

Pricing

Plan	Price	Includes
Community Edition	Free	Full feature set under GPL.

Platforms & Requirements

Runs on Unix-like systems including Linux in console, xterm, or SSH sessions; no specific minimum requirements noted beyond terminal access.¹²⁵ Lacks native support for Windows or macOS; limited to text-mode environments without GUI dependency.⁸

Integrations & Ecosystem

FTP
SSH
TAR archives
ZIP archives
GZIP
BZIP2

Alternatives

App	Difference
ranger	Python-based terminal file manager with vi-like keybindings.
lf	Lightweight terminal file manager focused on speed and simplicity.
Double Commander	Graphical dual-pane manager inspired by Total Commander, cross-platform.
Nautilus (Files)	GNOME graphical file manager with GUI interface.

Reputation

Midnight Commander is regarded as a powerful, stable text-mode file manager rivaling GUI tools in features, praised for ease of use in terminal and remote SSH sessions.¹⁵⁸ Users appreciate its dual-pane design, VFS for networks/archives, and keyboard efficiency for server management.⁴⁹ Criticisms are minimal but include its text-only nature limiting appeal in GUI-preferred environments and a learning curve for function key shortcuts.¹⁰

Sources (10)