After years of using GNOME, I recently made the switch to Hyprland, a modern Wayland-based tiling window manager. In this post, I’ll share why I made the transition, my first impressions, and some setup tips if you’re considering making the same move.
Why I Left GNOME
I’ve always appreciated GNOME for its polish and consistency, but over time it started to feel heavy and rigid. Customization options were limited, and extensions, while helpful, were often brittle after updates. I began looking for a lightweight, highly configurable Linux desktop environment that gave me more control.
Discovering Hyprland: A Dynamic Tiling Compositor
That’s when I found Hyprland, a dynamic tiling Wayland compositor. It immediately caught my attention for its slick animations, modular configuration, and support for modern workflows. Compared to other tiling window managers like i3 or Sway, Hyprland felt more modern and visually refined.
First Impressions and Configuration
The initial experience was surprisingly smooth. Despite being under active development, Hyprland worked well out of the box. The documentation is solid, and I found plenty of community dotfiles to draw inspiration from, including 🔗 my own config here.
Here’s what I set up early on:
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Rofi for launching applications
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Waybar for the status bar
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Foot terminal
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Tmux for session management
Everything runs on Arch Linux with Hyprland installed from the AUR.
Hyprland vs GNOME: What’s Better?
| Feature | GNOME | Hyprland |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | Moderate | Fast and lightweight |
| Customizability | Limited (via extensions) | Extensive (via config files) |
| Tiling Support | Add-on | Native and dynamic |
| Aesthetic | Clean, but static | Sleek, animated, minimal |
Overall, Hyprland offers more flexibility, performance, and fun. It brings joy back into configuring your desktop, something I missed with GNOME.
Tips for Switching to Hyprland
If you’re ready to move from GNOME to Hyprland, keep in mind:
- Expect a learning curve, especially if you’re new to tiling window managers.
- Read the 🔗 official wiki, it’s well-maintained and incredibly helpful.
- Don’t be afraid to tinker. Hyprland rewards customization.
Final Thoughts
Switching from GNOME to Hyprland has been a refreshing experience. If you’re a Linux user craving more control and a sleek tiling workflow, Hyprland is worth a serious look.
