From distrowatch : Based on: Independent So, it's a independent distro, like Arch and Debian. Answer from Deleted User on reddit.com
Reddit
reddit.com › r/linux4noobs › is opensuse arch based or debian based?
r/linux4noobs on Reddit: Is openSUSE Arch based or Debian based?
July 5, 2022 -
I'm trying to figure out which installation guides I should follow on the web in order to get the programs I want.
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From distrowatch : Based on: Independent So, it's a independent distro, like Arch and Debian.
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I think OpenSUSE is unique, it kinda follows the path of RHEL but it's diferent. It uses RPM, but maybe not all RPM packages will work on OpenSUSE, search for specific guides for that OS
StackShare
stackshare.io › stackups › debian-vs-opensuse
Debian vs openSUSE | What are the differences? | StackShare
In summary, Debian excels in stability, minimalistic configuration, and a community-driven approach, while openSUSE focuses on providing cutting-edge features, an easy-to-use configuration tool, and a corporate-backed development process.Read more ...
Videos
02:34
Debian vs OpenSUSE: Which Linux Distro Wins? - YouTube
05:54
Debian vs openSUSE: Ultimate Linux Distro Showdown (2025) - YouTube
09:10
Debian VS Ubuntu VS Fedora VS ArchLinux VS OpenSuse - YouTube
Debian Testing vs OpenSuSe Tumbleweed vs Arch Linux ...
18:21
Why I Love openSUSE - YouTube
33:58
2 Years on openSUSE! - What's Next? - YouTube
Reddit
reddit.com › r/opensuse › opensuse leap 15.2 vs debian 10?
r/openSUSE on Reddit: Opensuse Leap 15.2 vs Debian 10?
June 30, 2020 -
Opensuse Leap 15.2 vs Debian 10? i'm thinking of installing Leap 15.2. Both Leap and Debian are LTS distributions and have KDE wich i prefer, what i'm wondering is what Leap can offer that Debian can't :)
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openSUSE has one of, if not the best, KDE implementation.
Also btrfs rollbacks and so on ;)
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Some good reasons to select OpenSUSE:
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Implementation of several desktop environments in the same distribution meaning you don't have to select a different distro to try out a different DE. KDE, Gnome, Xfce, Enlightenment, MATE, amoung several others available.
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Actively supports KDE while most distros don't.
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Yast - one of the best administration tools out there.
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Actively supported by a large corporation. Some Linux folks don't like this, but I do. When a company actively creates a community around their Linux distro then you end up with a much more solid distro.
DEV Community
dev.to › kaustubhyerkade › suse-vs-debian-58c3
The Battle of Linux Distros: SUSE vs. Debian for Developers - DEV Community
November 18, 2024 - Debian: Strong emphasis on free software and stability. OpenSUSE: Developers, system administrators, and desktop users who need a flexible and user-friendly distribution.
Slant
slant.co › versus › 2692 › 2695 › ~debian-gnu-linux_vs_opensuse
Slant - Debian GNU/Linux vs OpenSUSE detailed comparison as of 2026
OpenSUSE has a VERY active user community. Questions on forums are generally answered in minutes. If you want the newest packages, you'll have to do a minimal installation of Debian stable then upgrade to testing or you need to install testing directly.
Debian
wiki.debian.org › OpenSUSE
OpenSUSE - Debian Wiki
December 14, 2019 - openSUSE, is a general purpose operating system built on top of the Linux kernel, developed by the community-supported openSUSE Project and sponsored by Novell.
openSUSE
en.opensuse.org › openSUSE:OpenSUSE_and_other_distributions
openSUSE:OpenSUSE and other distributions - openSUSE Wiki
October 1, 2017 - openSUSE Leap is for those who need to "get work done", as it has a longer release cycle and more focus on stability than Fedora. It has better tools (OBS, Studio, YaST) and much more flexibility than Ubuntu. openSUSE Tumbleweed is for those that want to have the latest software, yet still want enough system stability so that they are not constantly wrangling bugs. It follows a rolling release model, yet offers superior system stability to Fedora Rawhide. Debian offers fair performance on a server (although it offers no enterprise grade support), however, it can be either outdated ("Debian Stable") or unstable and unpredictable ("Unstable" and "Testing" development trees).
LinuxQuestions.org
linuxquestions.org › questions › suse-opensuse-60 › just-wondering-is-suse-related-to-debian-357647
Just wondering - is SUSE related to Debian?
November 13, 2016 - Just wondering, but I read somewhere (sorry, I forgot where; either in a book or on the internet) that SUSE was closely related to Debian, with YaST
Reddit
reddit.com › r/linux4noobs › debian vs opensuse, what should i use?
r/linux4noobs on Reddit: Debian vs OpenSUSE, what should I use?
October 9, 2023 -
Okay, I'm tired of feeling uncool for using only fork distros that overwhelm me with things that I wont use. I want to use something original and minimal and stick with It! Note: I use a Nvidia GTX 1060 6gb and like Gnome. Probably the best for me is using Xorg instead of Wayland. I like apt and I liked the Zypper from OpenSUSE as well. I want to be able to do some gaming, and also study and develop for my computer science degree. I am a Linux newbie that hás been using Mint and distrohopping arround some "gaming distros" since 2 months Ago. What should I use?
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If "minimal" is your priority, then Debian. Debian is so minimal, it will only give you half of your chosen DE, forcing you to complete it yourself. Your pipewire (which is NOT installed by default) will also be very old. OTOH, OpenSuSE will give you a complete desktop experience out of the box. The KDE experience is probably the best in all of *nix (including KDE Neon). Wayland and X11 are well supported. Pipewire is installed by default and current.
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Debian has better community support in the sense that you'll often find deb packages instead of rpms made for opensuse for apps that aren't in the official repos or instructions for debian, guides, etc. Nowadays most stuff is distributed as flatpaks or appimages though. That said, debian is supposed to be super stable. You have to consider that in a year or two all those packages are gonna be very outdated. Personally it's a deal breaker. You could consider using the unstable branch, debian sid, if you're comfortable with the risks
openSUSE
en.opensuse.org › openSUSE:Build_Service_Debian_builds
openSUSE:Build Service Debian builds - openSUSE Wiki
December 15, 2022 - This page provides info on packaging for the Debian-based Linux distributions supported by the openSUSE Build Service, currently Debian itself and Ubuntu.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/linuxquestions › is opensuse tumbleweed a good choice compared to debian?
r/linuxquestions on Reddit: Is openSUSE Tumbleweed a good choice compared to Debian?
December 19, 2025 -
I'm moving from Windows and was considering starting off with Arch, but after doing some research I found that openSUSE Tumbleweed I think would fit me better as a beginner. While I’m still fairly new to Linux, I do have a decent amount of experience using Mint and Ubuntu in VMs. Right now I’m debating between openSUSE Tumbleweed and Debian. I’d love to hear the pros and cons of each.
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OpenSuse is my main. I have not used Debian much so here are my thoughts on OpenSuse. Leap is the long term stable version, Tumbleweed the rolling release. Due to the popularity of Debian and having a hundred variants it has more information online when you need to look for instructions. Opensuse has a relatively big community too, mostly based in Europe and especially Germany, but not as big as Debian. The forums are pretty helpful though so it is easy to get help. OpenSUSE being an independent distro not based on anything except SUSE makes it a little bit different and unique. One problem with openSuse is that it is in a bit of a transition stage right now with Leap deprecating Yast but lots of docs still telling users to use it. Tumbleweed still has Yast so it is a bit confusing for users. Yast is a versatile system configuration tool that has been the main selling point of SUSE for ages, it is being replaced by a new browser based tool called Cockpit but we'll see if it catches on, it is already pretty cool but a lot of people loved the ancient feeling of Yast. Another big selling point is that OpenSuse has used Btrfs filesystem for a long time, it automatically takes snapshots of your drive so if something breaks it should be easy to revert, which can happen with a rolling distro like Tumbleweed. SUSE has been a KDE patron for ages and OpenSuse is often considered one of the best and most stable ways to run KDE.
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The main point of OpenSUSE Tumbleweed is that it comes with batteries included. Both unlike Arch and unlike Debian.
StackShare
stackshare.io › stackups › debian-vs-opensuse-vs-ubuntu
Debian vs Ubuntu vs openSUSE | What are the differences? | StackShare
Ubuntu benefits from the support of its parent company, Canonical, providing commercial support and regular updates. openSUSE combines both community contributions and corporate backing from SUSE, offering extensive documentation and support. Installation Process and Configuration Tools: Debian and Ubuntu use the Debian Installer, known for its flexibility and customization options. Ubuntu adds a user-friendly graphical installer alongside the text-based installer.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/opensuse › debian vs leap
r/openSUSE on Reddit: Debian vs leap
June 12, 2023 -
What are the advantages and the disadvantages comparing this two ?
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Debian uses .deb packages. openSUSE uses .rpm. Debian manages packages with apt. openSUSE manages them with zypper. These are trivial differences. What's important is the philosophy behind each distro and what they strive to do and how they accomplish it. Debian wants to provide a stable distribution for long term support. That takes a lot of testing and freezing of software to make sure that the end user gets the most stable experience possible. Debian does this over a long period, testing numerous software in their unstable branch before its moved into their testing branch and only after that being moved into its stable branch which it still needs to go through numerous testing before being approved to be released as the next version of Debian. openSUSE has a similar process but it isn't quite as rigorous. New software is published to the factory repo. Factory is not comparable to Debian Unstable because unlike Unstable, Factory is a repo for publishing new software ONLY. Using it to update a distro is likely to break the operating system.This is the difference between openSUSE factory and Debian Unstable Btrfs when formatting your / partition. If you do this, this allows for rollbacks which helps mitigate issues with incompatibility if you failed to identify these issues before hand.I don't know what format Debian uses by default but personally I find Btrfs overly complex and choose not to use it, but I'm lazy and don't want research it and educate myself when ext4 did everything I ever wanted. Perhaps you may choose otherwise. Between Debian Stable and openSUSE LEAP, it still comes down to approach. Debian, like I said uses Unstable to Testing to determine what is stable enough to be included in the stable release. openSUSE is more messy in my opinion. Tumbleweed is the testing bed for what will be included into the SUSE Linux Enterprise distribution. Once that's accepted, openSUSE LEAP then takes the SLE base and add a few things that are generally desired by basic desktop users and that in turn creates LEAP. Anyone please correct me if I've made mistakes as this is not my area of expertise. I'll also add that everything I've said in regards to openSUSE will probably change in the future as SLE migrates to the ALP structure proposed. Either way, you need to look at the philosophy behind these design decisions and decide for yourself which one you prefer. Only you can do that. It doesn't hurt to trial both though. That's the best way to experience the differences in my opinion. I hope this help explain things a little bit. Good luck.
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Leap has more polished desktop experience, better installer, YaST administration, high reliability thanks to btrfs rollback support, more often refreshed packages, great KDE backports, great and responsive kernel maintainers. Debian is much mooore predictable. Every 2 years release with refreshed packages, with 3 years of support, sometimes for limited number of packages, for 5 years. And that is last 15 or 20 years. openSUSE had regular release when is ready, every 6 months, every 8 months, after year, changed for Leap from version 13.2 into version 42.1, back to version 15.0. Release every year, with major rebase every four years, so after 15.3 should be 16.0, but replaced by 15.4. Version 15.5 was last planned version, now 15.6 is last planned version in 15 series, Leap 16 was cancelled, then reintroduced. I use Leap thanks to better desktop experience, but I really don't like that uncertainity.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/distrohopping › opensuse tumbleweed vs. fedora vs. debian; which do you prefer and why?
r/DistroHopping on Reddit: OpenSUSE Tumbleweed vs. Fedora vs. Debian; which do you prefer and why?
December 23, 2025 - I'm just now realizing that I've never met an OpenSUSE user. ... Hello there. ... Obi-wan? Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time. Thanks for the chuckle! ... Heh... Debian for the packages and the support. Fedora for the awesome big community + enterprise work. Makes a fantastic base for atomic and image-based systems. Tumbleweed is a very nice rolling, but it's a pain every time. I discovered Solus and I'm much much much much much happier. I go for Fedora only because I appreciate Universal Blue.
Quora
quora.com › What-are-the-differences-between-Debian-Ubuntu-Fedora-and-openSUSE-Which-is-the-best-operating-system-for-a-newbie-computer-user
What are the differences between Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, and openSUSE? Which is the best operating system for a newbie computer user? - Quora
Answer (1 of 7): None of them is absolutely the best. They're all rock-solid and decent Linux distributions. It really depends on your own experience and goals. All of them primarily run as servers in data centers around the world. Historically, the developers of openSUSE were the first to make S...
TrustRadius
trustradius.com › compare-products › debian-os-vs-opensuse-leap
Debian OS vs openSUSE Leap | TrustRadius
Compare Debian OS vs openSUSE Leap. 39 verified user reviews and ratings of features, pros, cons, pricing, support and more.
openSUSE
opensuse.org
openSUSE - Free Linux operating systems for desktops, servers and containers
openSUSE makes open source Linux operating systems, available for free in several flavors.
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › OpenSUSE
openSUSE - Wikipedia
2 days ago - It can configure settings and updates ... running on. It can also shut down and check the status of the host. ZYpp (or libzypp) is a Linux software management engine. ZYpp is the backend for zypper, the default command line package management tool for openSUSE. The Open Build Service provides software developers with a tool to compile, release and publish their software for many distributions, including Mandriva, Ubuntu, Fedora and Debian...
openSUSE Forums
forums.opensuse.org › english › open chat
What makes Debian so popular? - Open Chat - openSUSE Forums
March 12, 2013 - Hey all, Why is Debian so popular? What makes it so popular? The guys at the Linux Action Show run Debian, or Debian based distro’s. The guys over at Hak5 do the same. The Raspberry Pi uses Debian, and other things tha…
MakeUseOf
makeuseof.com › home › linux › what is opensuse? everything you need to know
What Is openSUSE? Everything You Need to Know
January 6, 2022 - Like many other distros, openSUSE has its own package manager to do this. You can install packages with YaST, but you can also manage packages from the command line with Zypper. It works similar to APT or DNF on Debian/Ubuntu or Red Hat-based systems respectively.