Best Alternatives to Overleaf for Theses
Date Published
Writing a Thesis? Your Editor Matters
A thesis is the longest document most people ever write. The wrong tool will cost you dozens of hours. Here's what you need and which tools deliver.
What Thesis Writing Requires
• Multi-file project handling: Chapters, appendices, front matter
• Bibliography management: Hundreds of references
• Cross-references: Figures, tables, equations, sections
• Long document stability: Won't break at 100+ pages
• Version control: Track changes over months/years
• Speed: Fast compilation for frequent iteration
#1: Octree — Best for AI-Assisted Thesis Writing
Why it works for theses:
• Full multi-file project support
• AI understands project-wide context
• Cross-file operations (rename labels everywhere)
• Fast compilation regardless of length
• Bibliography integration with AI cleanup
Standout feature: "Find all undefined references in my thesis" → AI scans all chapters.
Best for: Thesis writers who want AI to handle the tedious parts.
#2: TeXstudio — Best Free Desktop Option
Why it works for theses:
• Excellent for long documents
• Structure view for navigation
• Stable with large projects
• Free and full-featured
Drawback: No cloud sync, no AI, manual everything.
Best for: Writers who prefer desktop and don't need cloud.
#3: Overleaf — Best for Advisor Collaboration
Why it works for theses:
• Share with advisor for comments
• Track changes feature
• Familiar to most academics
Drawback: Slow with large documents, expensive for full features.
Best for: When your advisor requires Overleaf.
#4: VS Code + LaTeX Workshop — Best for Technical Writers
Why it works for theses:
• Git integration for version control
• Highly customizable
• Fast local compilation
Drawback: Requires setup, no built-in collaboration.
Best for: CS students comfortable with development environments.
Thesis-Specific Feature Comparison
| Feature | Octree | Overleaf | TeXstudio | VS Code |
|---------|--------|----------|-----------|---------|
| Multi-file | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Large doc speed | Fast | Slow | Local | Local |
| AI assistance | ✅ | Basic | ❌ | ❌ |
| Bibliography AI | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Cross-file refs | AI-aware | Manual | Manual | Manual |
| Version control | Coming | ✅ | External | ✅ |
| Advisor collab | Coming | ✅ | ❌ | External |
Thesis Writing Pain Points
Pain: My thesis compiles slowly
100+ pages with figures = minutes of waiting on Overleaf.
Octree solution: Intelligent caching means incremental compiles in <1 second.
Pain: Managing hundreds of references
Duplicate entries, missing fields, inconsistent formatting.
Octree solution: "Audit my bibliography for issues" → AI finds and fixes problems.
Pain: Cross-references break constantly
Changed a label in chapter 3, broke references in chapter 7.
Octree solution: "Rename label 'eq:old' to 'eq:new' throughout the project" → AI updates all references.
Pain: Lost work
No version control, accidental deletions, corrupt files.
Octree solution: Auto-save, project snapshots, version history (coming soon).
Thesis Template Support
Octree includes templates for:
• University thesis formats (customizable)
• Book/report classes
• Memoir class
• KOMA-Script classes
Migration from Overleaf
Already have a thesis on Overleaf?
1. Export as .zip from Overleaf 2. Import to Octree (File → Import Project) 3. AI scans for issues and offers fixes 4. Continue writing with better tools
Our Recommendation
For thesis writing in 2025, Octree offers the best combination of speed, AI assistance, and long-document handling. The ability to run project-wide operations with AI saves countless hours over a multi-year thesis project.
Your thesis deserves better tools. Try Octree at https://useoctree.com and write your thesis faster.