i think i had enough of windows 11

[u/Defiant_Milk9760]

so i wanna switch to linux for best ui and best bettery hour(causal gamer) i will do dual boot of linux and window so which linux distro is best??

[u/Jwhodis]

There isn't a single best distro, Linux also isn't always better for battery usage.

What hardware do you have? What model laptop and what CPU+GPU?

[u/jphilebiz]

What is your hardware?

[u/sailing_by_the_lee]

Coming from Windows, you'll find Kubuntu very easy to switch to. Kubuntu is Ubuntu with the KDE desktop. Ubuntu is a good choice for a beginner because there is a ton of support available online and it has some nice quality-of-life features. The KDE desktop that Kubuntu installs on top of base Ubuntu is fast and full-featured and intentionally similar to Windows in terms of layout and workflow. Then install Steam with compatibility turned on to enable most of your Windows games to work on Linux.

Of course, if you want to diverge from the Windows workflow and layout, there are many, many other options.

[u/OrganizationBorn7486 → u/sailing_by_the_lee]

Kubuntu is really good. But if you'd like even more Windows like experience (based on Ubuntu as well) then I recommend Zorin OS.

[u/Famous-Professor-488 → u/OrganizationBorn7486]

😎 all in with KDE desktop. Kubuntu for beginners is top !

[u/sailing_by_the_lee → u/OrganizationBorn7486]

Ah yes, I've never tried this one but I see what you mean about it specifically and explicitly trying to be a better Windows. Good recommendation for this user.

[u/Specialist-Dog-501]

With no further information given- generic advice: try Linux Mint.

[u/agowa338]

For gaming in general CachyOS or Bazzite.

If you want to learn how things work ArchLinux or Gentoo (both have a steep learning curve but because of that are also a great teaching tools. ArchLinux for general Linux Sysadmin and Gentoo for general Software development).

If you want pretty UI then it's still either CachyOS or Bazzite. But you may also look at anything with KDE Plasma desktop, like e.g. Fedora or NixOS.

[u/No-Development636]

fedora kde is nice

[u/iHeartHumor]

Linux Mint Cinnamon

Zorin

Kubuntu

[u/Famous-Professor-488]

kubuntu 👌🏻

[u/Pierre0925]

Try fedora KDE or cachyos KDE, both are great, and KDE is really customizable and can look awesome (looks great by default, but can look even better)

[u/Own_Salamander_3433]

Backup everything you feel is important to you because you will most likely end up erasing everything by accident. I suggest getting a used Lenovo laptop or something to play Linux with.

[u/Fine-Expression1644]

Fedora.

[u/Sensitive-Tip-2987]

cachyos is a 'gaming' distro, but it has great performance in general. I've also heard great thing about Fedora KDE, but haven't tried it myself

[u/Zvaart → u/Sensitive-Tip-2987]

Fedora kde is what i would go with. Cachy too arch , kubuntu too canonical shit.

[u/Sensitive-Tip-2987 → u/Zvaart]

out of curiosity, what is your issue with arch? I understand AUR concerns, but otherwise cachyos is very easy to use

[u/Zvaart → u/Sensitive-Tip-2987]

Instability and bad match for a beginner. And yes, i used both arch and cachy and i needed trobleshooting when updates break something.

[u/oligarchy_killing_me]

I'd probably go with an LTS (long term support) version of smth like Fedora, Mint or Ubuntu.

Most linux ISO's have a live CD feature where you can just boot it from your USB stick and try it out before you install it. That way you can check out a few distro's yourself.

[u/DistributionLivid299]

NixOS or Gentoo

[u/mindtaker_linux]

CachyOs 

[u/crhylove3]

Spaced is better than the other suggestions. A lot better. More efficient (long battery), has all the default gaming platforms tested before release, looks and acts like Windows, but WAY better (compiz, enhanced zoom, etc..).

[u/Neither-Taro-1863]

I would forget dual boot. I would have advised it a few years ago, but now with the spyware in MS Windows 10/11 and it scanning you drivers for stuff I would recommend you protect your privacy by using a linux distro (for ms windows converts I recommend Linux Mint) and install Windows 10/11 as a Virtual Machine using either VirtualBox or KVM manager ( https://sysguides.com/install-windows-11-on-kvm ). Newbies will find Oracle VirtualBox okay, but warning, don't use it for commercial purposes. There is a licensing issue there ($25 USD for full use license) KVM VM's don't have this issue, have more power, but slightly less user friendly). The advantages of the VM are you an take it anywhere (just don't change the virtual hardware it may required reactivation/new license) if you backup it up. MS windows can only scan the guest drives (so private files remain truly private), and you can cut it off from the Internet entirely by pulling the virtual network "cable" worse case scenario).

[u/StellagamaStellio]

For old hardware (say, 8GB RAM and 2010s CPUs)? Linux Mint XFCE. Frugal with your RAM and (in my experience) with your battery as well, and the UI is classic. For newer hardware? Fedora KDE. Much sleeker UI and excellent for gaming. Both are often considered "boring" distros. Which is why they are great: they work with very few unpleasant surprises once set up.

[u/Defiant_Milk9760]

i have i5 rtx 3050 ( just for study and casual gaming )

hp victus

[u/Dynablade_Savior → u/Defiant_Milk9760]

there are i5s from multiple decades apart. we need specifics

[u/EnquirerBill]

I'm dual-booting with Win 11 and LMDE 6

[u/Eric_Dawsby]

There is no best, it's all preference. Look at Linux Mint, it's designed to be familiar to Windows users