Question

I've recently been experimenting with different desktop environments on my Linux machine, but I'm curious about your recommendations. What's your favorite desktop environment, and why do you prefer it over others? I'm open to trying out new ones and would love to hear your thoughts and experiences!

Looking forward to your insights!

https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...ar-4175705709/
https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...ar-4175705714/

You can go down two different roads with desktops. There are proper desktop environments like gnome, kde and xfce, and there are simple window managers like fluxbox and ice, perhaps with a file manager/desktop manager to provide icons. I have noticed over the years that people who like proper DEs don't like WMs and vice versa. Which kind are you?

PS: Please edit your title. It's a silly one.

It depends entirely on a combination of requirements and personal taste. I don't use a window manager because they don't give adequate control with multiple keyboard drivers. I don't use Gnome because it's not configurable enough. I don't use Gnome, Mate, or Cinnamon because they don't have plain-text configuration files, which are the easiest way to repair things if you've broken your GUI. I can't remember why I don't use KDE! So I use Xfce — the original Linux DE, the old dependable.

I seem to be an exception, I like all of them. I actually RUN a custom fluxbox desktop when I need simple ans fast, but Plasma from KDE more often. Lately on Plasma, because Plasma is the most complete and ready to fly option for Wayland.

KDE has mostly refined or eliminated the kind of bloat that is still a characteristic of main GNOME, so it is leaner and faster in general. Not as lean and fast as FLUXBOX, and some of the tiling desktops (sway etc) are leaner and faster yet but take some getting used to.

Bottom line, it is SO much a matter of personal choice and personal taste that no one can advise you on what YOU should choose! Try a few, possibly in live sessions off of a Ventoy device so you need not install anything to your hard drive until you have made your choice.

DE = XFCE

WM that looks a bit like a DE = JWM or IceWM

WM = Fluxbox

DE=Xfce

WM=Openbox

Change them up every 3-4 months. Bonus points from going from X -> Wayland and back. Hard mode: let none of them be native to your distro.

Fluxbox for a window manager. Plasma for a desktop environment.

As an aside, I really do not like Gnome, but that's just me.

As has been pointed out, it's a matter of taste and preference.