Best Lightweight Linux Distros in 2023

Hey friends! Today I am going to discuss the top lightweight Linux distros you can try this year on your computer. Although you got yourself a pretty Linux distro already, there is always something new to try in Linux.

Remember I recommend trying this distro in VirtualBox first or with the live boot before messing with your system. All distros that I will mention here will be new and somewhat different from regular distros.  

Best Lightweight Linux Distros To Try In 2023

NuTyX

NuTyX is actually a french Linux distro which was slowly added multi-language support. It is based on the excellent Linux From Scratch books LFS and BLFS. It is small in size, powerful, and feels awesome to use. It comes with its own package manager named cards. You can install any DE of your choice from its repo. It has got good customizations too.

NuTyX lightweight linux

The latest lightweight version starts from 812.6MB, so you won’t feel the burden of downloading it.

Download NuTyX

OBRevenge OS (Discontinued)

OBRevenge OS is another lightweight Linux distro that is based on Arch Linux. Openbox window manager and Xfce panel make it more awesome. It also comes with a live boot feature so you can freely test it. The size of the image file is 1.1GB and it can be downloaded easily from Sourceforge.

OBREVENGE OS Linux

Download OBRevenge OS

Calculate

Calculate Linux is not small in size but runs smoothly on old machines. The distro comes with almost all major Linux desktop environments including Cinnamon, LXQt, MATE, Xfce, even KDE.

The purpose of the team behind Calculate Linux is to provide a comprehensive Linux distro that is good for both, home users and businesses. Hence, they also provide a build for servers and the cloud. If you are planning to host a container, Calculate is something that you can try to get the most out of available resources.

calculate linux distributions

Download Calculate Linux

AntiX

AntiX is one of the best Linux distributions for old computers. It is based on Debian and does not use systemd. AntiX comes in 4 flavors namely, AntiX-full, AntiX-base, AntiX-core, and AntiX-net.

AntiX-full has all you need to start up your system and perform day to day tasks. If you need to customize the distro with your own set of tools, install AntiX-base.

AntiX desktop JWM
AntiX desktop JWM

AntiX-core and AntiX-net have no X system, CLI installation, and no UEFI support. The core flavor supports most wireless cards but the AntiX-net does not. In order to download and configure your net installation, you will need a wired internet connection.

For most of you, AntiX-full will work without any problems. You can easily run it using Live USB or CD and it does not even feel like it’s running on USB or CD. AntiX-full and base also come with 3 other window managers namely, Fluxbox, jwm, and herbstluftwm. Once the system has booted, you can switch between the 4 window managers easily.

Download AntiX

Bodhi Linux

Bodhi Linux is known for its lightweight and support for older hardware. Based on Ubuntu, Bodhi Linux is one of a kind featuring desktop Moksha, which is none like another. Very minimalistic design but it is still very powerful. It offers high-level customizations the same as any other normal distro would.

It has been updated recently. Bodhi comes pre-installed with a very few set of applications, but you can always install your favorite applications from its repositories. It offers very easy control and supports your day to day requirements. A must-try.

bodhi linux lightweight distro

Download Bodhi Linux

Simplicity

Simplicity Linux is based on two famous Linux distros i.e. antiX and puppy. I found that many Linux users don’t know about it very much as they know puppy. Simplicity is really simple, lightweight, and easy to use. Available in desktop and netbook version to download simplicity is still regularly updated despite that last version upgrade was last year. If you are willing something new, you can try this.

simplicity os linux distro

Download Simplicity OS

Conclusion

I will keep this list updated. I am keeping my eye on distros and I will keep mentioning which distros are new and must be tried this year. Also, there are many lightweight Linux distros too that I skipped here, you can find them here. Not all of them are lightweight but are really good.

SHARE THIS POST

MassiveGRID Banner
5 Comments Text
  • My personal Favorite for the older hardware is Bodhi. The Legacy (32-bit) one, while giving you a GORGEOUS desktop (Moksha), takes just 128MB of RAM. 64-bit variants are a bit heavier, but not by that much. Ones, I used hardware that even Body legacy had problems to get installed onto. So, I installed it on the HDD connected to another box, updated, configured it to my liking, put it back into that grandpa – worked without a problem.

  • Also, you should check the BunsenLabs distro. Last time, if I didn’t have Bodhi installed already – Bunsen would be my choice.

  • SOME LINUX DEVELOPPERS SINCE 20 years still did not get/understand that POPULAR LINUX should have SIMPLE INSTALL ….simple LANGUAGE CHOICE, SIMPLE KEYBOARD SETTINGS, SIMPLE WIFI CONNECTOR, without any code lines to enter, and without multiple windows to set up the WIFI (one single window, u click the icone wifi connector where it give u choices of possible internet boxes n where u enter ur box code and miracle, it works;;;; BUT VERY few have this simple set ups, that is why many disappear from the radars

    • Hi Zob,

      All the features you mentioned exist in almost all Linux distributions. This article comprises the list of lightweight Linux distributions that develoeprs have built sacrificing some features to make them faster and lightweight.

  • Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *