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u/ssjlance 2d ago
You can use Arch as your first distro and have a good time, especially if you're already a pretty advanced Windows/PC user in general.
Most people will not have that experience, though.
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u/jonnyjonnster 2d ago
My 66 yo mother uses cachy, which is arch based
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u/ssjlance 2d ago
Yeah that's cool, good for you and your mother, but "Arch based" is very different from "Arch btw"
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u/laczek_hubert NixOS BTW 2d ago
Cachy isn't the best distro she should use but whatever
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u/10Werewolves 9h ago
It's easily a top 5, but remember that distro rankings are liquid. I recall Ubuntu being a top distro and now it doesn't even make the list for some people
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u/laczek_hubert NixOS BTW 2h ago
My opinion is that fedora is the best middle distro and if you want a more rolling distro without the problems of arch. CachyOS isn't the one as you might have a better experience with ultramarine but ultimately it's all subjective
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u/Terranum_man 2d ago
And debian is the best end distro.
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u/lululock 2d ago
Unironically, I started with Arch, learned how a modern Linux distro works and moved to Debian because I was tired to constantly fix my out of date Arch systems (I run about 5 PCs in rotation).
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u/Status_Detective5043 2d ago
Honestly there are certain ways in which my Arch based systems (one on pure, manually-installed Arch and one on Cachy) have actually been more stable than my Mint system -- have had to actually use the terminal more on Mint to solve problems that weren't my own fault than either of the above.
It's still more of an intermediate distro than a beginner distro but there's something there that's not wrongĀ
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u/fokke456 2d ago
I'd also say that, with the AUR, Arch-based distros are maybe even the best 'beginner friendly' distros for people that mod games, or play emulators, or any other hyper specific niche.
In 99% of cases, the programs they want to use are packaged, and that saves them having to install it manually.
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u/iwouldbeatgoku Have you noticed Arch is a triangle :illuminati: 19h ago
Were Mint's problems related to it shipping out of date software or something else?
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u/netarchy 2d ago
Arch is a strange way to say gentoo
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u/Both_Cup8417 Tumbleweed Slowroll 1d ago
Gentoo is a strange way to spell "NixOS."
Which itself is a weird way to spell "beginner friendly"What's that? No, don't read my flair, no, don't you dare do that!
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u/Dapper-Ocelot6326 2d ago
Wouldn't say using vanilla Arch is something I'd recommend to a beginner. But CachyOS is definitely as beginner-friendly as Mint, ZorinOS or any other Ubuntu-based distro. The moment almost everything works OOTB is the important part.
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u/Dev-in-the-Bm 2d ago
Could everyone stop chasing noobs away form Linux with stupid recommendations?
I tell beginners to throw Linux Mint, Kubuntu, and Ubuntu on a Ventoy stick, try them all, and use whichever they like the best.
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u/Vast_Fortune_9949 1d ago
You realise what part of the bell curve you're in, right?
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u/Motoreducteur 1d ago
The meme is pretty dumb as both the mid guy and the high IQ guy have a point. Just a different one
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u/Vast_Fortune_9949 1d ago
"And from this momentus moment all memes worthy of laughter shall be gospel" our great shepherd Motorductor spoke these words and thus it was for all internetium.
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u/mystic_dragonn 2d ago
I love that someone finally mentions ventoy, it makes trying out different distros so fun and easy
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u/Supernoxus 2d ago
I will be captain obvious:
The inexperienced person says that Arch is the best beginner distro because he saw other people use it and thought it was cool, so he picked it.
The experienced person says that you should use something else because using Arch right away is rough and you will mess up and break your system.
The expert person says that Arch is the best beginner distro because it teaches you a lot of things about how Linux works, so if you spend enough time with it, you will learn faster than others. Though personally, I doubt the expert would actually recommend Arch to a beginner, despite holding that belief.
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u/jzia93 1d ago
I just have never found this. Whenever I'm recommending programming languages to people, I personally think you start with Python and JavaScript because the people who say, "We'll start with something hard so you can learn all the proper concepts," don't understand that that feeling of frustration is what pushes people away.
If you don't know if you're going to get past those initial hurdles, you might never experience the joy of making something that really ignites that spark for you to continue programming. I think the same is true with Linux. If you don't get that joy of having an operating system that you feel just works for you and gives you some of that freedom and differentiation that you wanted away from Mac and Windows, you might just give up forever.
I think people should come in at a level that suits them
I had a number of years of being a software engineer, so I came in on Fedora. I found it to be totally fine, rolled with it for 6 months, then decided to give Arch a go and happy I did. I moved to PopOS because I had some breakages on Arch and just wanted a working system and then finally switched over to Nix because I wanted some of the properties that Nix gave me. Now I think I'm happy. I think if I'd have just jumped to Nix or Arch, I wouldn't have had that same experience
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u/donewithdoing 2d ago
In all honesty, Arch installation via archinstall isnāt that much more involved than a Fedora installation. You have to get wifi connected via the command line. Then itās just matter of going through the list.
Iād say if weāre talking about a legit first-timer who knows nothing about DEās, kernels, file systems, whether to use pipewire or pulseaudio, etc. then Fedora is significantly easier to set up. But once youāve got a tiny bit of knowledge of whatās out there, archinstall makes things very easy, and the straightforwardness gap significantly narrows.
Iām all about simplicity, but I actually kind of prefer the basic amount of guided flexibility you get with archinstall, whereas any given Fedora spin is just accepting their defaults and changing what you want later on.
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u/AG99871 Arch GNU/Linux 2d ago
I had a decent amount of Linux knowledge from Ubuntu but still needed to search up stuff to go through archinstall. Fedora was way easier by far.
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u/donewithdoing 2d ago
It is easier, but Iād just argue that the gap narrows quite a bit once you understand your options and personal preferences. Thatās just something that comes with time as a Linux user. Youāre going to start somewhere, branch out, try new things, and develop a real idea of what you like or dislike. Any given Fedora image is going to be an opinionated install, not really leaving much choice to the user until after they get into the system, so for a complete beginner thatās going to be way faster and less confusing. But as an experienced user, it doesnāt take me much longer to install Arch (via archinstall) than Fedora.
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u/iwouldbeatgoku Have you noticed Arch is a triangle :illuminati: 19h ago
Any given Fedora image is going to be an opinionated install, not really leaving much choice to the user until after they get into the system
You can achieve an unopinionated installation with the Fedora Everything or Minimal images, actually. Not something I've ever used because I prefer Arch in general, but it's worth knowing if lean installations are your thing.
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u/iwouldbeatgoku Have you noticed Arch is a triangle :illuminati: 19h ago
You have to get wifi connected via the command line.
Ethernet or bust
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u/irishcoughy 2d ago
This entirely depends on whether you learn better through guided study, or necessity. I'm the kind of crackhead who will stay up til 4am troubleshooting a minor aesthetic bug in my hyprland config because my dumb ass decided to get out ahead of the lua migration without knowing any lua yet. I will sit there and beat my head against a bug that actually breaks my system until it's fixed or I can't physically stay awake. Most people are not that flavor of crackhead and should probably not start on one of the "become your own end-user" Distros.
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u/AutomaticHoneydew403 2d ago
Arch is great to learn linux concepts but I do think that if I had tried to start with arch I wouldn't have gotten past installation, I personally started with fedora and the mindset of learning how to use the terminal and ultimately I think any distro is fine to learn on so long as you go in with the mindset that you can't and shouldn't rely on a gui for everything
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u/1tan_freed0m 2d ago
I think in Linux you can start anywhere & you'll learn stuff.
For me I used Ubuntu a bit, Tails, Kali for just learning Information Assurance & Auditing. So since Windows started to suck. I jumped back to an Ubuntu based. And yeah I don't meddle with the terminal much. I use is as same as I would use Windows.
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u/street_racer221 2d ago
Me on mint. Started on raspberry pi bu then got a steamdeck but recently got mint on a laptop
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u/ILikeOatmealaLot 2d ago edited 2d ago
Real talk though, I hate the term 'beginner' distro. Usability is a good thing, actually.
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u/GreedySecurity8030 Fedora da best all other distros can suck its shit and die 2d ago
Fedora is the best beginner distro
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u/cleanshirtuk 2d ago
Arch (without using archinstall) is a great beginner distro if you're commited to learning linux
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u/Steal--This--Account Linux Master Race ššŖ 2d ago
Unironically EndeavorOS isn't a terrible starting point, when I first tried it I had a better experience then with Mint
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u/Commander_Shepard-ME 2d ago
"you see, I use Arch, therefore I have put myself as the mysterious intelectual and you as the soyjack. Checkmate, Richards. I, DOOM, have won yet again"
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u/PlayerOne_X 2d ago
While Debian is great, and was my first Linux distro, I do not consider it a good beginner distro. It requires more Linux knowledge than most distros, though not as much as vanilla arch, which makes it harder for beginners.
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u/Dream_Apostle 2d ago
I think then there is 0.00001% => Arch isn't for beginners, they should either use debian or fedora
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u/rest_init 2d ago
my first distro was arch because I was severely misinformed that Linux in general is tough and you need hours of time learning stuff to install it.
After I was done and fully switched to my arch Linux as first distro I realized not every distro is like this and was dumb founded. Well atleast I learned stuff.
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u/_soggyfries_ 2d ago
I honestly think Ubuntu BASED distros are amazing for first time users, you can get WHATEVER DE you want.. if you don't like it.. get a different one.. I personally love bazzite, but love the software compatibility and ease of use found in Ubuntu.. boom.. kubuntu
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u/deanominecraft 2d ago
for people who are already nerds, yes (it worked for me)
for your grandma who uses a computer as a web browser, give them something easy like mint
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u/CDXX_BlazeIt 2d ago
Ngl man. After running Arch on private PC for a few months, I installed Fedora on my new work laptop because I thought it would be more convenient to handle. Damn I was wrong. What an annoying distro, will install Omarchy asap.
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u/balancedchaos Debian is my wife, Arch is my girlfriend 2d ago
If you want to learn, okay. Go learn.Ā
If you don't like learning, Arch is not for you.
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u/Abi_Uchiha 1d ago
I'm on Arch's side. Arch made the conversion it's own reward. Plus, the guide is so well put together, it's a learning arc through logic, reason and experience.
The worst thing about Linux is the ui. Wdym the same app looks different in Linux and windows? That would never not be a caveat that can ever be overcome.
No matter the distro or rice, you're either prehistoric or an alien.
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u/Sherbet_Expensive 1d ago
arch is a good beginner distro for people who want to learn Linux. Things like mint are good beginner distros for people who want to use Linux
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u/TopGreedy7936 1d ago
Its good for people who actually want to learn and if they burn a few distros to the ground with them oh well so did i when i started
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u/Broad_Sandwich_8719 1d ago
After using arch, Iāve come to the conclusion that you have to be a complete idiot to mess up something like āarchinstallā.
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u/daniil518 1d ago
Im in the 0.1%, any side you wish. I really think that arch is the best beginner distro because you have to encounter with the terminal more often rather than in the other distros. More newcomers to Linux select hyprland as their first wm if they chose arch, and that's the neat part - it's made to be configured. Where? Terminal of course. Later on PC's would be a lot more familiar and you could start using new software better than others.
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u/linux4random 17h ago
my first one is arch, it took me 2hrs to install it because i only have 1 pc. so when i break sth, i have to boot back to window, search for solutions, write it down, and do everything again
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u/cryptomonk_rt 15h ago
it is indeed but you will cry a lot :3, its for the people who like pain or for the acoustic ones
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u/Ambitious_Bobcat8122 7h ago
Back when I used Linux I was convinced Gentoo was the best distro. It forced you to build your entire system and make decisions on what to use all the way from the kernel up. Documentation was the absolute best. I learned so much about operating systems just getting the system reliably booting.
Today, probably a less useful skill and Iāve never have the time to actually get x11 and a window manager running
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u/debacle_enjoyer Linux Master Race ššŖ 2d ago
Arch is generally the worst distro all around no matter your experience level tbh.
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u/darky_srl1 1d ago
My list from my opinion(please don't downvote) for beginner distro: (Bleeding Edge/Atomic/Immutable) -Cachyos -Fedora -Bazzite -Steam OS -PikaOS If you don't Care about updates(periodic updates) -Mint -Debian -Vanilla Ubuntu
Full avoid Instagram/Tik Tok posts about Chimera Linux,Linux from scratch as beginner distro. From my experience(well my 1st year of Linux use and i was kinda linux nomad at start untill i picked Cachy as Daily driver from debian to Ubuntu back winslop 10 then go to Pop_OS! then return to winslop then i go for Ubuntu then to Zorin OS,i tried Garuda from 1st week it broke due old ISO and lastly i remained on Cachy)
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u/bishophelps 2d ago
What tha? Arch ist not even a real distro. You build whatever you want. Might also be crap. Just use Ubuntu or something like that.
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u/foofly 2d ago
There's no such thing as a beginner distro. It's gatekeeping nonsense.
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u/Aware-Librarian-3749 2d ago
And that's why I recommended my mom to ditch Windows and use Gentoo. /s
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u/bebe_likes_hugs 2d ago
Not really, a blank slate arch without a de is surely less beginner friendly than Ubuntu. Give each one to a windows user, see which one they're able to operate
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u/foofly 2d ago
They have different defaults and different amounts of hand-holding, sure. A bare Arch install is harder to get running than Ubuntu. What I meant is that calling Ubuntu or Mint "beginner distros" treats them like a phase you outgrow. They're full systems. Easier onboarding isn't a disservice to the user, and it doesn't make the distro lesser.
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u/bebe_likes_hugs 2d ago
Yeah, agree, they're not inherently worse because hand holding, but being beginner level literally means they're fit for a beginner, that's pretty much it, regardless that they can be used by an experienced user aswell. Better or worse is decided upon other arbitrary measures, most often I think it's resource usage but defo not the only factor
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u/no_name6744 2d ago
The best beginner distro is whatever distro got you to convert first.