In plain words
Linux is not a single system: it is an engine (the kernel) around which teams assemble complete cars, the distributions. Some are reliable saloons you keep for ten years (Debian, AlmaLinux), others demonstration models always up to date (Arch, Fedora), others still city cars that are easy to get used to (Mint, Zorin). They all run on the same engine: what changes is the finish, the pace of updates and the way you install software.
The questionnaire
Answer the five questions: the three best-suited distributions appear immediately, with their strengths and limits.
The main families
Most distributions descend from four lines. Knowing the family already tells you how software is installed and where to look for help.
| Family | Distributions | Package manager | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian | Debian, Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Pop!_OS, Zorin OS, elementary OS, Kali, Raspberry Pi OS, Proxmox VE | apt |
.deb |
| Red Hat | Fedora, RHEL, AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, Bazzite | dnf (or rpm-ostree on immutable systems) |
.rpm |
| SUSE | openSUSE Leap, openSUSE Tumbleweed, SUSE Linux Enterprise | zypper |
.rpm |
| Arch | Arch Linux, CachyOS, EndeavourOS, Manjaro, SteamOS | pacman (and the AUR, a community repository) |
.pkg.tar.zst |
| Independent | Alpine, NixOS, Gentoo, Void | apk, nix, emerge, xbps |
specific to each |
On top of these managers come universal formats shared by all distributions: Flatpak (the Flathub repository, the most widespread on the desktop), Snap (promoted by Ubuntu) and AppImage (a self-contained executable file).
Versions and support in October 2026
| Distribution | Current version | Shipped kernel | Pace | Support for the version |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu LTS | 26.04 "Resolute Raccoon" (April 2026) | 7.0 | One LTS every 2 years | 5 years; 10 with Ubuntu Pro (free for 5 personal machines); 15 with the paid Legacy add-on |
| Ubuntu (interim) | 26.10 "Stonking Stingray" (15 October 2026) | 7.3 | Every 6 months | 9 months |
| Debian | 13 "Trixie" (August 2025), point release 13.6 in July 2026 | 6.12 LTS | About every 2 years | 3 years, then 2 years of Debian LTS (until 2030) |
| Linux Mint | 22.3 "Zena" (January 2026), Ubuntu 24.04 base | Ubuntu 24.04's, with its hardware enablement updates | Yearly from Mint 27 "Adrien", planned for Christmas 2026 on an Ubuntu 26.04 base | Until April 2029 for the 22 series |
| Fedora | 44 (April 2026); 45 planned for late October 2026 (target date: the 27th) | follows recent kernels (7.x series) | Every 6 months | About 13 months |
| openSUSE Leap | 16.0 (October 2025) | 6.12 LTS | One minor version a year up to 16.6 (2031) | Each minor version about 2 years |
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | rolling | always recent | Continuous | No end of life: you keep updating |
| Arch Linux | rolling | the latest stable (7.3 at the moment) | Continuous | Same |
| RHEL, AlmaLinux, Rocky | 10.x (RHEL 10 released in May 2025, AlmaLinux 10.2 in 2026) | 6.12 (kernel maintained by Red Hat) | One minor version every 6 months | 10 years per major version |
| Pop!_OS | 24.04 LTS (December 2025), Ubuntu 24.04 base, COSMIC desktop | Ubuntu's, newer for recent hardware | Follows Ubuntu LTS releases | That of Ubuntu 24.04 |
| Zorin OS | 18.1 (April 2026), Ubuntu 24.04 base | 6.17 (Ubuntu HWE kernel) | Follows Ubuntu LTS releases | At least until April 2029 |
| Alpine Linux | 3.24 (June 2026) | 6.18 LTS since 3.23 | Every 6 months | 2 years |
| NixOS | 26.05 (May 2026) | 6.18 LTS | Every 6 months (May and November) | Until 31 December 2026 |
LTS or rolling?
An LTS (long-term support) version freezes the software and only receives fixes: ideal for a server or a computer you do not want to babysit. A rolling release distribution has no version: everything updates continuously and you always have the latest features, at the cost of a little attention at each update.
The Linux kernel in brief
The kernel is the core shared by all distributions: it drives the hardware, memory and processes. On kernel.org, the mainline version is 7.3, and several LTS branches are maintained for years: 6.18, 6.12, 6.6, 6.1, 5.15 and 5.10.
- Stable distributions (Debian, RHEL, Leap) keep the same LTS branch for their whole life and backport security fixes to it.
- Ubuntu LTS offers newer HWE (hardware enablement) kernels along the way, for new machines.
- Rolling distributions and Fedora follow the latest versions: better support for recent hardware, especially graphics cards and processors released within the year.
uname -r # version of the running kernel
cat /etc/os-release # name and version of the distribution
Basic commands by family
| Action | Debian, Ubuntu, Mint | Fedora, RHEL | openSUSE | Arch, CachyOS | Alpine |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Install | sudo apt install name |
sudo dnf install name |
sudo zypper install name |
sudo pacman -S name |
apk add name |
| Update everything | sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade |
sudo dnf upgrade |
sudo zypper update (Leap), sudo zypper dup (Tumbleweed) |
sudo pacman -Syu |
apk update && apk upgrade |
| Search | apt search name |
dnf search name |
zypper search name |
pacman -Ss name |
apk search name |
| Remove | sudo apt remove name |
sudo dnf remove name |
sudo zypper remove name |
sudo pacman -Rs name |
apk del name |
On Alpine, these commands are run as root or with doas. On NixOS, you describe the software in /etc/nixos/configuration.nix, then apply it with sudo nixos-rebuild switch.
Recommendations at a glance
| Need | First choice | Alternatives |
|---|---|---|
| Leaving Windows, family computer | Linux Mint | Zorin OS, Ubuntu LTS |
| Developer workstation | Fedora Workstation | Ubuntu LTS, Pop!_OS, NixOS |
| Gaming | Bazzite | CachyOS, Fedora |
| Server, homelab | Debian | Ubuntu LTS, AlmaLinux |
| Business server, certified software | AlmaLinux or Rocky Linux | RHEL, Ubuntu LTS with Ubuntu Pro |
| Old PC | Linux Mint Xfce | Zorin OS Lite, Debian with Xfce |
| Containers | Alpine | Debian (slim image) |
| Learning Linux in depth | Arch Linux | Minimal Debian, NixOS |
Try before you install
All these distributions boot into a "live" session from a USB stick, without touching the disk. Check Wi-Fi, sound, sleep and the screen before installing. Before any installation alongside Windows or in its place, back up your data: see The 3-2-1 backup rule.
Once the distribution is installed, Essential Linux commands for beginners gives you the first reflexes, and the Workstation builder installs your software in a single command.
Sources
- kernel.org: current Linux kernel versions
- Canonical: Ubuntu 26.04 LTS ships with the 7.0 kernel
- Phoronix: Ubuntu 26.10 released with Linux 7.3 and GNOME 51
- Debian: Debian 13.6 released
- Phoronix: Fedora 44 released
- Linuxiac: Fedora 45 pushed back to 27 October 2026
- endoflife.date: Linux Mint versions and support
- Linuxiac: Linux Mint 27 "Adrien" planned for Christmas 2026
- Linuxiac: openSUSE Leap 16.0 released
- AlmaLinux: 10.2 release notes
- endoflife.date: Alpine Linux versions and support
- Linuxiac: NixOS 26.05 released
- OMG! Ubuntu: Zorin OS 18.1 released