WordStar
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 5 of 14 word processors by recommenders
Fast, distraction-free DOS word processor that people still write in once its keyboard shortcuts are memorized. Critics say it is irritating on screen and needs rote-learned multi-key commands.
Fast, distraction-free DOS word processor that people still write in once its keyboard shortcuts are memorized. Critics say it is irritating on screen and needs rote-learned multi-key commands.
32 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 28
- criticize it
- 4
- approval share
- 88%
Recommended in 6 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 28 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 7 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 6 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Keyboard shortcuts that stick in memory
“I used it so much as a kid that I still have the WordStar keybindings stuck in my muscle memory.”
Comment from 13 May 2026 in “WordStar” “WordStar was great once you had the keycombos memorized.”
Comment from 27 Jun 2026 in “WordStar: A Writer's Word Processor (1996)” “WordStar's keybindings were easy to learn and remember”
Comment from 27 Jun 2026 in “WordStar: A Writer's Word Processor (1996)” Simple, powerful, does everything needed
“astonishingly powerful considering how long ago it was king of word processors”
Comment from 5 Nov 2025 in “The Microsoft SoftCard for the Apple II: Getting two processors to share memory” “It did pretty much everything you needed, and it didn't get in your way.”
Comment from 13 May 2026 in “WordStar” “the applications are simple, powerful, and pleasing to use”
Comment from 27 Nov 2025 in “Trillions spent and big software projects are still failing” - Comment from 5 Nov 2025 in “The Microsoft SoftCard for the Apple II: Getting two processors to share memory”
Good programming text editor
“my favourite was WordStar (not for Windows), for both word processing and as a programming editor”
Comment from 25 Mar 2026 in “What Happened to Gem?” “Text-mode versions of Wordperfect, Wordstar, and Lotus 1-2-3 were pretty good too.”
Comment from 25 Apr 2026 in “"Plain text has been around for decades and it's here to stay." – Unsung” “Using its text mode, WordStar made a pretty good programming editor.”
Comment from 27 Jun 2026 in “WordStar: A Writer's Word Processor (1996)” Distraction-free writing environment
“It's typing on a keyboard without the confusion of the internet or clicking on glowing icons.”
Comment from 19 Apr 2026 in “College instructor turns to typewriters to curb AI-written work” “These programs are great for sitting down and writing with no distractions”
Comment from 27 Jun 2026 in “WordStar: A Writer's Word Processor (1996)”
Other word processors people recommend
The four most recommended other word processors, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Docs | 144 | 137 | 51% | 13 | 11 yrs4 owners | — |
| Microsoft Word | 129 | 234 | 36% | 12 | 20 yrs5 owners | — |
| Apple Pages | 39 | 27 | 59% | 11 | — | — |
| WordPerfect | 36 | 7 | 84% | 9 | — | Approved |
| WordStarThis page | 28 | 4 | 88% | 6 | — | Approved |
What people said
33 of the 35 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I love how they use the control key & that they shipped a tool to swap capslock/control”
“WordStar was great once you had the keycombos memorized.”
“Worked great for a few more years”
“I can still tear through WordStar”
“WordStar's keybindings were easy to learn and remember”
“I fondly remember writing, mostly poetry, with wordstar”
“Wordstar you just applied a predefined style to a block of text”
“the multi-key-stroke commands you had to learn by rote”
“Useful but also irritating to attention and screen real estate.”
“Using its text mode, WordStar made a pretty good programming editor.”
“I think it was like 20 discs and painfully slow.”
“These programs are great for sitting down and writing with no distractions”
“they simply don't measure up nor would their charms be worth the transition pain”
“I used it so much as a kid that I still have the WordStar keybindings stuck in my muscle memory.”
“It did pretty much everything you needed, and it didn't get in your way.”
“not just ANY word processor. But THE word processor: Wordstar!”
“Text-mode versions of Wordperfect, Wordstar, and Lotus 1-2-3 were pretty good too.”
“It's typing on a keyboard without the confusion of the internet or clicking on glowing icons.”
“perfectly happy writing a novel in WordStar under CP/M”
“I was doing spell-checking with WordStar on an CP/M Apple II with zero lag”
“everything dealing with user interaction is fast”
“Only for the 3 primitive styles that were supported?”
“This will forever seem a more coherent editing UI to me.”
“my favourite was WordStar (not for Windows), for both word processing and as a programming editor”
“Maybe you should check Wordperfect or WordStar”
“A lot better then my hand-writing.”
“Wordstar and Pagemaker were two of my favorite programs from that golden era.”
“I used to run Wordstar 2.0 under Wine, and it was smooth.”
“He is a dedicated WordStar user.”
“the applications are simple, powerful, and pleasing to use”
“Imagine if you had something that small and powerful today.”
“WordStar was basically all we needed, and it still is.”
“astonishingly powerful considering how long ago it was king of word processors”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.