1 - DroidEdit
A very aptly named app to edit regular text and source code files directly
on your Android device. The app has a very good syntax highlighting.
DroidEdit supports several languages like Python, Javascript, PHP, C, C++,
Java, C#, HTML, CSS, SQL, etc.
To edit a file, simply open it using DroidEdit. It will automatically detect
the file type and adjust the syntax highlighting accordingly.
DroidEdit has built-in support for SFTP/FTP so that you can connect to your
server and editor source files. Using the built SSH terminal, you can execute
commands.
Other features of the app include HTML previews, auto indentation, custom
themes, preserve file state between sessions, search and replace with regex
support, bracket match highlighting, etc.
Price: The base app is free but some features like SFTP, FTP, SSH, custom
themes, support for cloud services are behind the paywall. You can unlock them
with an in-app purchase of $2.
2 - anWriter HTML
Editor
If you are mainly looking for an editor to edit HTML and other related
technologies like Javascript, CSS, jQuery, Bootstrap, and Angular with
autocompletion support then anWriter is for you.
There is also built-in support for FTP to browse, download, and upload files to
a server. While working with HTML, CSS, and Javascript you can preview web
pages in the internal viewer which also has a handy Javascript error console.
Other than web technologies, the editor also syntax highlighting support for
other languages like Python, PHP, LaTeX, C, C++, and Java.
Features of anWriter include but not limited to unlimited undo, line numbering,
hardware keyboard support, search and replace with regex support, ability to
edit and move between multiple source files, customizable font size settings,
etc.
Price: anWriter is free and contains ads. To get rid of ads and get access to
additional features like support for line wrap, autocompletion support for PHP
and SQL, syntax color settings, unlimited redo, etc., you need to purchase the
pro version which costs $5.
3. QuickEdit
QuickEdit is a fully-featured and lightweight text editor and source editor
for Android. It supports 50+ different languages including popular languages
likes C, C3, C++, Python, Swift, Java, HTML, CSS, PHP, Javascript, XML, Perl,
etc.
QcuikEdit also supports Markdown so that you can quickly create HTML documents
using Markdown syntax. While editing HTML, CSS, or Markdown files, you can
preview them in your favorite browser with a single tap.
The app also has support for tabs so that you can easily open multiple files
and move between them easily. One of the things I really like about QuickEdit
is that there is no limit on undos or redos. If need be, you can connect to
servers using the built-in FTP or cloud services like Google Drive, Dropbox,
and OneDrive.
Other features of the app include customizable indentation, ability to change
fonts and font size, smooth scrolling, support for handling large files, basic
search and replace functionality, ability to edit Android system files as long
as you have root access, etc.
4. Turbo Editor
Turbo Editor is a minimal and open-source editor for Android that has all
the basic and powerful features you will need. Just like other source editors
shared here, Turbo Editor supports many different languages with
autocompletion, auto indentation, syntax highlighting support. Compared to
other editors, what makes Turbo Editor special is that it has no complicated
settings panel.
Just swipe to the right and you will get access to all the options like line
wrapping, keyboard suggestion, line numbers, font size, etc. At the bottom, you
will get access to additional options to quickly type special characters like
tab, angle brackets, semi-colon, trailing slash, etc.
Additionally, Turbo Editor has built-in support for Markdown editing, multiview
for Samsung devices, basic search and replace, go to the line, and read-only
mode.
So, if you are looking for an open source, lightweight, powerful, and material
themed code editor for Android then give Turbo Editor a try and see if it fits
your needs.
Price: The app is free and has no ads. However, some features might only be
available to pro users. Unfortunately, the app is not clear about what those
features are and I couldn’t find any locked features in my usage. In fact, I
could access all of them. If you find any feature behind the paywall, you can
unlock them with an in-app purchase of $1.
5. Quoda Code
Editor
Quoda is yet another code editor for Android. Unlike other code editors,
Quoda has predefined templates for various languages like CSS, C#, HTML, Java,
PHP, Python, Visual Basic, and XML.
This makes it very easy to create new files from scratch. Just like Turbo
Editor, Quoda has a bottom bar with all the essential keys to type brackets,
quotes, special characters, and symbols.
Quoda supports syntax highlighting and code completion for various languages
like Perl, C, C++, Java, JavaScript, Lisp, C#, Lua, Markdown, CSS, Haskell,
ActionScript, Objective-C, HTML, PHP, Python, Google Apps Script, etc.
Quoda built-in support for Google Drive, Dropbox, and SFTP/FTP. Using the
SFTP/FTP feature, you can browse, download, and update files to and from your
server.
Other features of Quoda include the ability to download source code from URL,
markdown support, syntax themes, find and replace with regex support, auto
indentation, bracket matching, line bookmarking, etc.
Price: The app is free with feature limitations and has ads. To remove ads and
get access additional features like support for FTP/SFTP, Google Drive,
Dropbox, and GIT integration you need to subscribe to the pro version for $4
per year.
6. AWD
AWD or also known as Android Web Developer is a code editor and IDE
(Integrated Development Environment) that supports web technologies like HTML,
CSS, Javascript, JSON, and PHP.
So, if you are someone that heavily works with these web technologies then you
should give AWD a try. Being an IDE, AWD can perform error checking while or
after editing the source files and also allows you to preview files within the
app.
AWD can integrate with your web server and connect to it in a variety of ways
like FTP, SFTP, FTPS, WebDev, etc.
Other features of AWD are auto code completion, syntax highlighting, support
for hardware keyboard and keybindings, search and replace with regex support,
auto-saving, support for code beautification with a single tap, GIT
integration, unlimited undo and redo, etc.
If you work with a lot of HTML, Javascript, PHP, JSON, and CSS then AWD is a
good choice as it can also act as an IDE and show errors.
Price: The app is free with feature limitations and has ads. To remove ads and
unlock premium features, you need to upgrade to the pro version by paying $6.
The pro version gives access to features like code formatting, support for the
hardware keyboard, color picket, git integration, auto-saving, ability to run
PHP code, etc.
Wrapping Up: Best
Android Text Editor for Programming
That’s it for now. In general,
I would go for DroidEdit. It has everything you need in a basic text editor for
Android. It’s free and has no ads.
If you think I missed any of your favorite apps then comment below and share
them with me.
