Ubuntu vs Linux Mint: Which Is Better for Desktop Users? My own comparison

infoivonblog.nkfjt@aleeas.com (Ivon Huang) — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 23:00:00 +0800

What Are the Differences Between Ubuntu and Linux Mint? Which One Should Desktop Users Choose?

In this article, Ivon shares my own comparison between Ubuntu and Linux Mint.

Versions at the time of writing:

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
Linux Mint 22

Why should you choose Linux Mint, and where is it better than Ubuntu? I only understood after using Mint recently: this is what the Linux desktop should have become. The first impression Linux Mint gives is that this distribution cares more about desktop users.

1. Linux Mint is what the Ubuntu desktop should have become
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Ubuntu development began in 2004 and is handled by Canonical, a company founded by former Debian contributor Mark Shuttleworth; Linux Mint started in 2006 and is maintained by a group of volunteer developers, without forming a company.

Both distributions are still being updated today, but has Ubuntu’s desktop, especially GNOME, really become easier and easier to use? Ubuntu used to call itself “Linux for Human Beings”, but why does the Linux Mint desktop instead look more like the humane form the Linux desktop should have taken?

Ubuntu desktop

Linux Mint desktop

Twenty years ago, in the context of that time, Ubuntu could be called one of the most newbie-friendly Linux distributions. It worked out of the box, you could finish installation without typing a pile of commands, and you could get it for free!

For a long time in the past, Canonical lost more money than it earned. Back then it was still a small company, much smaller than Red Hat, but it still promoted Ubuntu with real enthusiasm. You could even mail the UK headquarters, and they would send you installation CDs by post.

Old Ubuntu installation CDs. The system logo means a group of people surrounding each other and holding hands

Ubuntu originally used GNOME 2 as its desktop environment, and the system included many convenient graphical tools to help users manage the system. With Ubuntu 14.04, Canonical launched its own Unity desktop environment, replacing GNOME 2 and extending into the phone interface of its own Ubuntu Touch, intending to build a unified cross-platform interface. At the time, Wayland had just appeared and was preparing to replace the X11 protocol. Canonical perhaps wanted to seize the initiative, and even created a fork of the Wayland protocol called Mir. Separately, to solve the cross-platform package problem, it launched Snap. Its ambition was obvious.

Why is Ubuntu’s default taskbar on the left? That design appeared during the Unity era and has continued to this day.

But Ubuntu’s old sense of mission around promoting the Linux desktop (roughly 2008 to 2018) seems to have gradually disappeared, turning into a focus only on enterprise and server users. You can see that from the design of its official website.

This is not to say Ubuntu no longer contributes to Linux desktop development, but the scale of its improvements seems to be less than other Linux distributions. Many desktops developed by later arrivals have surpassed Ubuntu in friendliness.

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Ubuntu vs Linux Mint: Which Is Better for Desktop Users? My own comparison

1. Linux Mint is what the Ubuntu desktop should have become #

1. Linux Mint is what the Ubuntu desktop should have become
#