Openbox
A barebones stacking window manager. Light, scriptable, and yours to shape.
Openbox is the classic minimal stacking window manager: windows float and stack like a traditional desktop, but there is no panel, no dock, no desktop icons unless you add them. A right-click anywhere summons your menu; a few megabytes of RAM run the whole show. It is the blank canvas that lightweight desktops are painted on.
For years Openbox has been the quiet engine underneath LXDE-era desktops and countless custom setups: pair it with a panel (tint2), a launcher, and a compositor of your choice, and you have a desktop precisely as heavy as you decided. Configuration lives in clean XML, theming is straightforward, and its behavior has been stable for a very long time.
Strengths
- Tiny footprint: one of the lightest usable WMs anywhere.
- Traditional stacking behavior; no tiling learning curve.
- The proven base layer for countless custom lightweight desktops.
- Simple, stable XML configuration and easy theming.
- Right-click root menu keeps everything one gesture away.
Considerations
- X11 only, and development is largely maintenance these days.
- Everything beyond windows is DIY: panels, launchers, compositing.
- Modern niceties (fancy scaling, animations) are not its world.
Standout features
- The definitive minimal stacking WM for two decades.
- obconf and clean XML make it approachable minimalism.
- Backbone of famous lightweight setups (LXDE, CrunchBang lineage).
- Runs a full desktop feel in a rounding error of RAM.
Who it's for
Best for
Minimalists who prefer floating windows, old hardware, and hand-built lightweight desktops.Maybe not for
Wayland-first users and anyone wanting an integrated, ready-made environment.The Openbox player profile
In Distro Fighter's desktop round, Openbox tends to win for people who…
Signature moves
Similar desktops
Is Openbox right for you?
Answer eight quick questions and watch the distro round crown your pick, then five more choose your desktop. No signup, about 60 seconds.