Dreamweaver vs Visual Studio: Which Is NOT for Your Tasks?

By Ann Young 24 days ago, Apps and Software

After comparing DreamWeaver vs Visual Studio, I can conclude that DreamWeaver is a great choice for novice users who do not have any coding skills and are looking for intuitive software to learn this sphere quickly. You can use it to add charts and illustrations to your documents with ease.

At the same time, Visual Studio is better suited for those who are interested in coding and want to build applications and has already done smth or just tried other tools before. It’s a great solution for users who want to improve their coding skills.

Final Verdict:

I believe that Dreamweaver is the best option as it has an extensive toolset and powerful coding tools, which makes this web design software useful for professionals with different levels of experience and total amateurs.

Key Differences

adobe dreamweaver logo

Adobe Dreamweaver

visual studio logo

Visual Studio

Rating

★★★★☆ 4.5/5

★★★★☆ 4/5

Best For:

Web designers and coding support

Front-end and back-end development

Free Version

Free Trial

✔️

Price

$22.99/mo

$799

Platforms

Windows, Mac

Windows, Mac, Linux

Platforms

Windows, Mac, iOS, Android

Windows, Mac, iOS, Android

Integration with other Adobe CC programs from the subscription. I like the fact that Adobe Dreamweaver is fully compatible with Photoshop, Illustrator, and other software that I can use for different tasks connected with anything, really like this suite. As this is joined with other Creative Cloud products, I am able to import files or export very easily. I can therefore give my colleagues an easy time in collaborating because it enables me to switch from one program to another of Adobe with ease.

Professional coding tools. Another important tool in Visual Studio is CodeLens, which avails me the opportunity of understanding my code even much better through unit testing. This can thus improve my workflow and further enhance teamwork with other members of the group. Especially, if your task is to teach a fresher in your team. Using these features, I can work on technical documents without any lags or constant errors.

Design View mode. Adobe Dreamweaver has a Design View mode that gives me the capability to design web pages through WYSIWYG tools. This view allows me to be in a position to create or edit contents of the web at a professional level, its’ not basic as in Visual Studio.

Price and licensing. Adobe Dreamweaver is an advanced software available through the Adobe Creative Cloud subscription. You can access it after paying a monthly or annual fee. There is no free version available, which is why many users are looking for a Dreamweaver alternative. At the same time, Visual Studio is an open-source coding software created by Microsoft. You can download, install, and use it without paying a dime.

What Is Dreamweaver

dreamweaver interface

As I often need to create documentation and use the tools available in Dreamweaver to streamline my workflow, I believe that this program has plenty of features that can help users create professional guides and manuals. Thanks to code and design preview synchronization, I can see the results of my edits straight away.

I was impressed with the intuitive functionality of this software, as I was able to use it after watching a couple of Dreamweaver tutorials. Using the fluid grid layout tool, I can build websites with a responsive design that looks the same on screens of different sizes. Using the code completion tool, you can write your code more quickly and minimize the number of mistakes. The in-built templates allow you to build websites with a consistent design.

What I don’t like: As a professional who works with documentation, I need to carefully review and check the code created with the help of Dreamweaver to ensure that my documents do not contain any technical mistakes.

What Is Visual Studio

visual studio interface

After comparing DreamWeaver vs Visual Studio, I was glad to discover that the latter has plenty of useful features. This software helped me to boost my productivity and improve the quality of my code. The program supports different programming languages, including C#, VB, and Python, which makes it suitable for solving tasks of different complexity.

The code editor has IntelliSense and refactoring tools that enable me to optimize my workflow. Thanks to its debugging tools, including features for breakpoints and real-time variable inspection, I can quickly troubleshoot errors. Besides, the IntelliTest is perfect for writing unit tests without wasting a lot of time.

What I don’t like: Visual Studio has a convoluted interface and a variety of advanced tools, which makes it hardly suitable for beginners. It was difficult for me to master it at first. I struggled with finding the right features and making the most of the available tools.

Pros & Cons

dreamweaver vs visual studio battle
Pros Cons

Adobe Dreamweaver

Easy to master

Takes up a lot of space on your computer

A variety of coding tools

Pricey subscription 

Compatible with various systems

Customizable workspace

Pre-designed layouts

Visual Studio

Real-time collaboration

Only for Microsoft 

Supports different programming languages

Slow performance, resource-intensive

Advanced debugging

Plugins and add-ons 

UI design features

Price

adobe dreamweaver logo

Adobe Dreamweaver

visual studio logo

Visual Studio

Free Version

Free Trial

✔️

Paid Plan

$22.99/mo

$799

Compatibility

adobe dreamweaver logo

Adobe Dreamweaver

visual studio logo

Visual Studio

Windows

✔️

✔️

Mac

✔️

✔️

Linux

✔️

Web

Integrations

adobe dreamweaver logo

Adobe Dreamweaver

visual studio logo

Visual Studio

Lightroom

✔️

Photoshop

✔️

Adobe Stock

✔️

Adobe Express

✔️

Git

✔️

Alternatives

  • notepad logo
    Notepad ++
    Free
  • bbedit logo
    BBEdit
    Free
  • vim logo
    Vim
    Free
  • wix logo
    Wix
    Free
  • wordpress logo
    WordPress
    Free

Final Thoughts: Overall Winner

I believe that Dreamweaver is more preferable when you have to prepare and compile manuals for users, guidelines, and instructions. This is a very useful software to have on your PC is you work with freshers in your company or teach them new software, etc.

It is a student-friendly program for fast and easy learning of coding, since on YouTube, there are a lot of video lessons; what is more, some of them are translated into different languages.

With a WYSIWYG interface, you are able to add pictures, charts, and diagrams to technical documents without a single line of code. The program also has multiple organizational elements, which are availed in it, making tasks like document creation very streamlined.

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