Overleaf alternatives: desktop, self-hosted and browser

The main alternatives to Overleaf are a TeX distribution (TeX Live or MiKTeX) with a desktop editor such as TeXstudio, VS Code with the LaTeX Workshop extension, LyX, a self-hosted Overleaf Community Edition, and browser editors such as Scissor LaTeX (made by us). Desktop setups run TeX itself, with its full package collection, offline; Overleaf and its Community Edition offer real-time editing with co-authors; Scissor LaTeX needs no installation and no account.

This page compares the common ways to write LaTeX besides Overleaf. Scissor LaTeX is our own product, so read its row with that in mind. The facts about the other tools come from their own websites and help pages, linked below, and were last checked on 6 November 2026. They can change at any time, so check the linked pages before you decide. We aim to re-check this page every six months. If something here is out of date, tell us.

How to choose

Four questions decide most cases:

• Do you write with co-authors at the same time? Then you want real-time collaboration: Overleaf, or Overleaf Community Edition on your own server.
• Does your document need any TeX package, or must it build exactly as the publisher's TeX does? Then use a TeX distribution (TeX Live or MiKTeX), with any editor you like, or Overleaf, which also compiles with TeX Live.
• Do you need to work without internet? Desktop setups work offline. Scissor LaTeX works offline after your first visit (open it online once after each update). Overleaf's web editor needs a connection; its help pages describe a few minutes of offline editing without compiling, and Git, GitHub or Dropbox sync on paid plans for working offline in other editors.
• Can you install software, or create an account? On a shared or locked-down computer, a browser editor without an account lets you start without installing anything.

At a glance

Facts as of 6 November 2026, from the pages linked in each section below.

TeX Live or MiKTeX with TeXstudio

A TeX distribution is TeX itself, installed on your computer: TeX Live (Unix and GNU/Linux, macOS and Windows) or MiKTeX (Windows, Linux and macOS). An editor such as TeXstudio adds syntax highlighting, an integrated PDF viewer and assistants, and its website lists automatic detection of MiKTeX and TeX Live.

• Price: free. TeX Live is free software, MiKTeX is open source, and TeXstudio is open source under the GPL v2.
• Account: none.
• Offline: yes, once installed. A default TeX Live installation installs everything, which its quick install guide puts at 7 GB or more. MiKTeX's website says its package manager installs missing components from the internet when they are needed, so with MiKTeX, install the packages you need before you go offline.
• Collaboration: not built in for most setups; share the files or use Git. TeXstudio's news says that version 4.9.0 added collaborative editing with teamtype, available on macOS and Linux.
• Good for: theses and papers that need any package or class, and output identical to what a publisher builds with TeX.

VS Code with LaTeX Workshop

LaTeX Workshop is an extension for Visual Studio Code, under the MIT licence, that builds your document with an installed TeX distribution and shows a preview, with completion and error messages. Its install page names a LaTeX distribution, such as TeX Live, as the requirement.

• Price: free; the VS Code FAQ says VS Code is free for private or commercial use.
• Account: none.
• Offline: yes, with a TeX distribution installed.
• Collaboration: through Git, or separate collaboration extensions.
• Good for: people who already write code in VS Code and want LaTeX in the same place.

LyX

LyX describes itself as a document processor that lets you write by the structure of your document (WYSIWYM) rather than its appearance, with a built-in equation editor. It is released under a free software licence, runs on Linux/Unix, Windows and macOS, and is built on TeX/LaTeX.

• Price: free software.
• Account: none.
• Offline: yes.
• Collaboration: its features page does not list real-time co-editing; it lists change tracking and support for external version control such as Git. Share the files or use version control.
• Good for: writers who want LaTeX output with a graphical editor.

Overleaf Community Edition (self-hosted)

Overleaf Community Edition is the open source (AGPL-3.0) version of Overleaf that you run on your own server, installed with the Overleaf Toolkit and Docker. Its README says it is meant for environments where all users are trusted, because sandboxed compiles are not available in it. The paid, officially supported Server Pro adds single sign-on (LDAP or SAML) and tracked changes, and sandboxed compiles are a Server Pro option.

• Price: the software is free; you provide and maintain the server.
• Account: accounts on your own server.
• Offline: it works wherever your server is reachable, for example on a local network.
• Collaboration: yes, real time.
• Good for: a lab, group or school that wants Overleaf's collaboration on infrastructure it controls.

Overleaf

For comparison: Overleaf itself is a hosted LaTeX editor. Its help pages say that its servers compile with TeX Live, and that Auto Compile recompiles your document every few seconds when it is turned on. Its plans page lists a free plan with 1 collaborator per project and a basic compile timeout, and paid Student, Standard and Pro plans with 24 times the basic compile timeout, more collaborators and features such as real-time track changes.

On working offline, Overleaf's help page says you can keep editing the open file for up to 2 minutes on the free plan and up to 10 minutes on paid plans, without compiling, and that in most cases the edits are synced when you reconnect. For longer periods it suggests Dropbox, Git or GitHub sync, which are premium features on paid plans, or downloading the project. See how Scissor LaTeX compares with Overleaf for a closer look.

Scissor LaTeX (ours)

Scissor LaTeX is a free LaTeX editor that runs in your browser. Its own engine, built on Typst, typesets the pages on your device as you type, so there is no installation and no account, and your files stay in your browser or in your own Google Drive.

• Price: free; there is no paid plan.
• Account: none. Google Drive is optional.
• Offline: yes, after your first visit; after each update of the site, open it online once. Some fonts for other writing systems and layouts download the first time a document uses them. See working offline.
• Collaboration: no real-time co-editing. You can send a co-author the project as a .zip.
• Good for: students and researchers writing on their own who want to see the pages while they write.

Where the others are better than Scissor LaTeX

• Package coverage and exact output. Scissor LaTeX is not TeX. It covers the LaTeX that papers, reports and theses usually use, not every package or class (see differences from a TeX installation). A TeX distribution, and Overleaf with TeX Live, run the real packages and give the output a publisher builds.
• Writing together. Overleaf and Overleaf Community Edition have real-time collaboration, and Overleaf's paid plans and Server Pro add tracked changes. Scissor LaTeX has none of this.
• Official templates. Scissor LaTeX has no journal templates yet, and its conference templates are look-alikes for drafting, not the official kits. Overleaf has a template gallery, and a TeX distribution runs the official kits.
• Sync and version control. Overleaf's paid plans sync with Git, GitHub and Dropbox, and desktop setups work with any version control. Scissor LaTeX saves to your own Google Drive or exports a .zip.
• A graphical editor. LyX lets you write by structure, with less raw LaTeX.

Other browser editors

Several other services offer LaTeX editing in the browser. Their plans, where they compile your document and where they store your files differ, so check each one's current plans and privacy policy before you choose.