The State of Rich Text Editors

The AI takeover of rich text editing

For decades, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been quietly impacting numerous fields.

But during the 2022-23 year, AI very publicly shook up the content industry, with the field of rich text editing not exempt from the spotlight. In the shadows, AI had increasingly been used to enhance the capabilities of rich text editors (RTEs), to make them more powerful and efficient.

But those were unseen baby steps, with AI’s true power not yet being felt. Until now.

After ChatGPT by OpenAI’s spectacular release in November 2022, AI’s impact was no longer confined to certain technology spaces. It suddenly became an essential extension that enhances productivity and provides innovative solutions for content – including its creation and enhancement.

It's obvious from the results of the 2023 State of Rich Text Editor Developer Survey, that headline after headline on ChatGPT and OpenAI, impacted the survey participants. Generative AI, also known as GenAI or AGI (artificial general intelligence), holds enormous promise for a wide range of industries – healthcare, finance, manufacturing, business, education, media and entertainment – and that no industry or job function will escape its impact. In fact, a 2023 report from Goldman Sachs predicted the technology could boost annual global gross domestic product (GDP) by 7% over the next 10 years.

What’s the future of rich text editing?

On the immediate horizon, market leading rich text editors will focus on making in-editor generative content, suggestions and improvements more easily available. With numerous Large Language Models (LLMs) now available, it’s no longer difficult to efficiently generate human-like responses from the input of textual stimuli or human-created prompts. But an AI-driven in-editor extension integrates the two technologies and easily generates intelligent recommendations for word choice, sentence structure, and overall content improvement, within an already familiar interface.

Additionally, AI-powered collaboration features are streamlining the collaborative process and allowing multiple users to work on the same document simultaneously. Then there’s formatting and layout changes ahead. By analyzing trends, user preferences, and industry standards, AI algorithms can potentially suggest attractive layouts, font selections, and color schemes. This functionality could empower users to create visually stunning and professional-looking documents, even without prior design experience. AI is potentially also playing a crucial role in content discovery and optimization. Rich text editors equipped with AI algorithms could analyze keyword density, readability, and SEO best practices to suggest improvements for higher search engine rankings and increased readership.

These types of AI-powered assistance are likely rich text editor extensions that will quickly augment and amplify the whole creative process of content creation, by balancing automation (the generating) and human creativity (the editing and refining), without replacing it.

That’s where the future of rich text editing lies, and it’s only just getting started.

1.0 Who's who?

Developers are intrinsic to a rich text editors’ health

Rich text editors (RTEs) are an essential part of modern communication and content creation. It’s expected functionality across numerous platforms, including social media and word processing applications, that users can easily format and style text, embed rich media, and format complex layouts. The interplay of these aspects has an impact on delivering an easy-to-use and efficient user experience.

While the simplicity and versatility of rich text editors is appreciated by users, it’s ultimately the tireless work of developers that makes these tools truly exceptional. Developers are not only integral to the initial creation of rich text editors but they also play a crucial role, over time, in maintaining and improving their functionality. It’s their expertise that ensures these tools continuously evolve to meet the demands of our ever-changing digital landscape.

1.1 Who responded?

Around 26% of participants identify as full-stack developers, while another 25% are either front-end or back-end developers. About 40% hold formal developer titles, while the remaining roles, including product managers and executives, are fairly evenly distributed across multiple roles.

This highlights the diverse range of professionals managing rich text editors and indicates that while developers make up a significant proportion of the users, there’s a wide range of other roles who find themselves managing a rich text editor in the course of their work. It’s worth noting that the distribution of these roles has remained consistent year-over-year, with a slightly higher representation of product managers in this year’s sample.

1.2 What gender do you identify as?

Around 26% of participants identify as full-stack developers, while another 25% are either front-end or back-end developers. About 40% hold formal developer titles, while the remaining roles, including product managers and executives, are fairly evenly distributed across multiple roles.

This highlights the diverse range of professionals managing rich text editors and indicates that while developers make up a significant proportion of the users, there’s a wide range of other roles who find themselves managing a rich text editor in the course of their work. It’s worth noting that the distribution of these roles has remained consistent year-over-year, with a slightly higher representation of product managers in this year’s sample.

Gender Identification

1.3 How many years experience do you have in developing with rich text editors?

Among the participants, there’s a notable split with 40% being new to the job (ie.less than 5 years’ professional experience), and 60% being more tenured professionals with at least 6 years’ experience. This distribution has implications for implementation and onboarding, as it may need to be tailored to accommodate information for less experienced professionals, as well as streamlined for more experienced pros.

Additionally, it emphasizes the need for rich text editor providers to maintain both a high level of continuous innovation, plus staying abreast of the latest developer tools, languages, and feature requirements, because the new entrants may bring new or different expectations and needs to the table.

Years of Experience

1.4 What’s your primary purpose for developing or working with a rich text editor?

The vast majority of professionals are primarily managing rich text editors in a work environment, which indicates a significant audience and usage of this technology in the workplace. It suggests that across a variety of industries, many organizations recognize the value and benefits that WYSIWYG editors offer them – especially in enhancing their productivity, workflows and streamlining content creation.

As more companies incorporate these tools into their workflows and upgrade functionalities, rich text editors will inject further efficiencies into businesses – especially where the productivity benefits can be achieved through the use of AI to reduce manual, repetitive tasks.

Primary Purpose or Use

1.5 How often do you manage, update or develop with rich text editors?

A large percentage of professionals are actively engaged with their rich text editor on a regular basis – with approximately 50% managing, updating, or developing with their editor at least once a month. This frequent interaction with the tools contributes to a stronger integration of the rich text editor within their product/application, effectively making it more "sticky’.

On the flip side though, it calls attention to any bugs or issues encountered during daily use, because they’re encountering them so often. These provide development opportunities (either inhouse or by RTE suppliers) for improvements in the user experience. Regardless, the consistent management of rich text editors by both developers and users, highlights their importance as an integral aspect of numerous workflows.

Frequency of Use

1.6 Approximately how many employees does your company employ?

Small to mid-sized businesses appear to be the predominant users of rich text editors, although nearly 20% of companies utilizing them have 500+ employees.

It’s worth noting that according to the U.S. Census, over 99% of employers have fewer than 500 employees. This suggests that while editors offer value and benefits to a wide range of company sizes, there’s a notable emphasis and usage by larger organizations. It’s these larger companies, who also likely employ a sizable development team, who can maintain a rich text editor much more effectively than smaller businesses.

With rich text editors gaining attention from larger companies, it highlights their ability to address complex needs and provide meaningful solutions that meet the requirements of larger operations and technology teams.

2.0 Stacks a-plenty...

How have the tech stack and text editor usage stats changed?

In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, technology is constantly shaping the way we communicate and create content. One area that’s seen significant change is the tech stack used by developers and the increasing influence rich text editors wield within that stack. However, both digital transformation and speed-to-market have made the old belief in custom-building all your own technology redundant. Neither budget, nor developer resources, are elastic.

As new technologies continue to emerge and user demands evolve, developers are constantly adapting their tech stack choices and integrating rich text editors in various ways within their applications, to enhance user experiences and content creation processes. This section delves into tech stack preferences and explores if the usage stats of rich text editors have transformed over time. By understanding these changes, valuable insights into the direction of software development and the growing importance of rich text editors in the digital world are uncovered.

2.1 What best describes the application, industry and/or use case that you work on?

Although Content Management Systems (CMS) remain the primary use case for rich text editors, the results reveal a remarkably diverse range of applications for this component. Notably ‘database’ has gained prominence compared to the 2022 results, signifying the increasing significance of data management, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), personalization and use of big data.

Of particular note is the presence of AI-related use cases, both in this section and later in the results – likely bolstered by the introduction of ChatGPT in November 2022. This suggests a growing interest in leveraging AI technologies and highlights the expanding possibilities and technology integration opportunities offered by rich text editors, across various industries and domains.

2.2 How would you describe your uses for a rich text editor in the application you work on?

When exploring specific use cases, the data reveals that nearly half the respondents primarily use rich text editors for web publishing. Additionally, approximately 1-in-5 respondents employ rich text editors for document creation/word processing or for internal workspaces/intranets.

These findings provide a clearer picture of how professionals are leveraging rich text editors in their day-to-day tasks, which highlights the significant role they play in web publishing, document creation, and internal collaboration within organizations. 

2.3 How big is the development/scrum team you work in?

More than half the survey participants belong to scrum teams consisting of 2-10 individuals, which is consistent with the industry norms. Nonetheless, close to a quarter of them are part of larger teams which potentially indicates greater potential for the usage of rich text editor components across an organization. It’s worth noting that slightly more participants in the 2023 survey reported not being a part of a development team.

This non-development team trend could reflect the shift in the wider workforce towards solopreneurship, the gig economy, and self-employed consulting, which accelerated during the pandemic and it may suggest the emergence of possibly new types of professionals that could utilize rich text editors in their development and product innovation endeavors.

2.4 What kind of development work does your team do?

More than half the survey participants are involved in website development, or the creation of commercial software/SaaS products. A smaller number are engaged in open-source projects, internal/employee-only software, and OEM software. The hierarchy of these results is consistent compared to the 2022 results.

That said, there are notable shifts in the 2023 survey results. There’s an increase in the number of respondents working on internal software, indicating a growing focus on developing systems for internal use.

On the other hand, there’s also been a decrease in those involved in commercial software/SaaS products. This shift could be attributed to the remote work movement or the increased attention organizations are placing on enhancing their internal systems through digital transformation projects – to better accommodate distributed teams and remote workflows.

Types of Development Work

2.5 What best describes the industry in which you work?

The survey participants are spread across various industries, with a notable presence in Web Development and Developer Tooling. While the prominence of Web Development may be expected, what stands out is the significant increase compared to the previous year. In the 2022 results, Web Development ranked in the middle and was far from being one of the top three industries. This shift could be indicative of broader changes in the job market, especially in the post-pandemic era.

Perhaps the increased emphasis on digital products, services, and accessibility has become deeply ingrained in consumer expectations. As a result, the demand for professionals skilled in Web Development has risen considerably, reflecting the growing need for businesses to meet the evolving demands of the digital landscape.

2.6 What’s your preferred programming language at work?

While there’s a fairly diverse range of programming languages represented, the most commonly used are PHP and JavaScript, which together make up around one-third of the total programming language usage. However, it's worth noting that compared to the 2022 results, JavaScript appears to have been selected less frequently as a preferred programming language.

2.7 What front-end technologies do you use most often at work?

When it comes to front-end technologies, most people use regular HTML, CSS, JS, as well as Bootstrap and JQuery. These are the dominant frameworks in the industry. However, our results reveal there’s a considerable variety of other technologies being used. This suggests that although the industry tends to standardize around popular frameworks, there’s room for different technologies to thrive alongside them.

It's important to note that the popular frameworks are not the only options available and there’s no monopoly in this field.

3.0 What’s your weapon of choice?

How editors are used and what’s being made

Rich text editors have revolutionized the way we create and present content online. They’ve become a feature-rich tool for everyone – allowing developers to seamlessly integrate them into their applications and projects, while also enabling content creators to craft compelling and visually appealing content. From basic text formatting to advanced styling options, they offer a multitude of possibilities for diverse applications, and have become an essential asset across numerous industries and professions.

This section explores the diverse uses of rich text editors and delves into the wide range of creations they enable. Whether it's designing professional documents, writing blog posts, collaborating on articles, or even building entire websites, rich text editors have become an essential tool across numerous industries and professions.

3.1 How important is rich text editing to your platform/product/application?

Rich text editing is an essential component of many applications and products and crucial for any products and users specific needs. According to the results, a significant majority of developers, 77%, believe that rich text editing is critical to their application or product. However, the number of developers who believe it’s not important, is almost negligible. These findings indicate a growing market demand for rich text editing products that can be easily adapted and customized to match their unique application or product.

The results also suggest that users are looking for solutions that can be quickly adopted within their team or organization. They need flexible and user-friendly rich text editing tools that can be seamlessly integrated into existing workflows.

Importance of Rich Text Editing

3.2 Which rich text editor do you use most often or centrally in your projects?

TinyMCE and CKEditor: TinyMCE is the most popularly used editor, with 32% of participants centrally using it in their development projects. This is followed relatively closely by CKEditor, with 26% of responses. The two editors hold a commanding market share, with more than half (58%) of the participants most often using them.

Custom-built editors: In third place, custom-built editors have a 12% share. This indicates there’s a significant group of developers who prefer to create their own editors, tailored to their specific needs.

Less popular editors: The remainder of the market is spread across various other editors. Although these editors may have a smaller market share, it's important to understand that they cater to specific user preferences and needs, and help to deliver a diverse range of choices to users.

Rich Text Editor Used Most Often

3.3 What rich text editors have you ever used, or have experience in using?

Based on the results, it seems developers tend to experiment and try out different options before deciding on a primary provider. Some individuals may try or prefer using open-source editors, however, the majority ultimately choose one of the two major providers that offer a combination of open-source and premium, paid offerings.

This suggests that TinyMCE and CKEditor offer a more comprehensive, fully-featured and extensively supported product that satisfies the needs of most users.

Rich Text Editors Tried or Used

3.4 If asked for a recommendation, which rich text editors would you suggest?

This question captures the intent to recommend, which is a critical metric indicative of brand health and growth potential. It can also indicate satisfaction, or reveal any underlying issues that might be at play preventing a recommendation to others. These results follow roughly the same pattern as the previous ‘’most often or centrally used’ in your projects choices (ie.primary provider), with Tiny being the most recommended rich text editor (47%), closely followed by CKEditor with 39%. All the other editors attract only small support, which suggests that users are generally satisfied with their editor, and that TinyMCE and CKEditor are the top recommended choices.

Most Recommended Rich Text Editor

3.5 What rich text editor did you use for your most recent project?

From the results, it can be easily observed that there is a strong similarity between their primary provider, and the rich text editor that the participants most recently used. This indicates the strength of brand satisfaction and supports the theory that rich text editors aren’t that frequently changed in a tech stack.

Most Recently Used Rich Text Editor

3.6 What are the main reasons you chose/used a particular editor for your most recent project?

As an open text question, developers were encouraged to share the underlying drivers behind their choice of rich text editor. The quotes and results are clustered into thematic groupings:

• Easy to use/user friendly
• Easy to integrate and implement
• Easy to customize
• Powerful and highly customizable
• Many features, richness of features, plug-ins, rich API
• Reliable
• Stability
• Collaboration features
  
  

4.0 The sticking points…

Choices + challenges: are they causing more pain than pleasure?

In today's digital landscape, rich text editors have become a fundamental tool for content creators and developers alike. With a multitude of options available, these editors cater to a diverse range of users, from experienced developers to beginners and web content writers. Some are designed specifically for collaboration, copy-paste, and document management, while others offer scalability and adaptability for various applications. It's clear that no single editor can perfectly solve every situation. The real question is, which one best suits the needs at hand.

4.1 What’s your preferred deployment option for your rich text editor?

Deployment options are an important gauge of the speed of transformation being undertaken across the digital landscape. Despite the continuing race to achieve the fast-pace speeds required for large scale digital transformations, ‘Self-hosted’ remains the preferred option (40%). Cloud deployment (38%) continues to slowly grow, while just under 20% seek a hybrid option.

4.2 In the next two years, is it likely that you’ll change the way you deploy your rich text editor?

This question highlights the intention to change rich text editors and the fluidity of the market. The results reveal that half the users are considering switching editors, indicating:

• Users aren’t completely satisfied and are searching for a better option, with some expressing the need for additional features.
• The rapid pace of innovation across technology and moves towards digital transformation are driving organizations to be on the constant lookout for the next ‘breakthrough’ that offers improved performance, more features, or lower cost.
• In technology, a two-year window is a long time. Therefore it could now be widely accepted that significant changes are a given, so switching essential components like a rich text editor, is a given in that timeframe.

Notably, in 2023, more users are contemplating switching rich text editors as compared to previous years. This change is likely being driven by digital transformation and rapid technology change, which often need a broader feature set and better support, as editors continue to play a central role in applications and products.

4.3 For work projects, do you usually buy a ready-made rich text editor component or build your own in-house?

In general, a majority of developers prefer to purchase a ready-made editor, with more than half of them opting for this option. On the other hand, just over a quarter of them choose to develop their own in-house editor.

4.4 What drives your choice to buy and use a ready-made rich text editor, as opposed to building your own?

The survey results noted that the decision to buy or build is strongly influenced by cost considerations. Cost is seen as the determining factor both in the short-term – with development time and resources – as well as in the long-term, encompassing ongoing development and maintenance expenses. Notably, these cost drivers have experienced a significant increase in 2023, which may reflect the economic volatility in the previous year.

In addition to cost, the speed of development and ease of implementation remain crucial factors that drive the decision to purchase a ready-made editor.

Note: This question allows people to select multiple options.

4.5 Drivers to Build Your Own Rich Text Editor

Those who choose to develop their own rich text editor in-house express a strong need for increased control and flexibility over how the editor interacts with their applications. They possess the internal knowledge and resources required to pursue this approach and believe that utilizing these resources is a preferable alternative to investing funds in a solution that may not fully meet their specific needs.

This highlights the opportunity for more extensive customization options, enhanced control, and use cases that are best served by a headless rich text editor.

Note: This question allows people to select multiple options.

4.6 What do you value most when evaluating a third-party software component?

Several drivers were highlighted in the decision-making process and these factors play a crucial role in determining the selection of third-party software components:

1. Ease of implementation

The foremost driver when choosing third-party software components is the ease of implementation. This is chiefly because the tech industry highly values speed to ship and is constantly seeking ways to save time and resources. Overburdened employees are often looking for solutions that can streamline their workflows without requiring extensive technical expertise.

2. Positive reputation

Another significant factor in decision-making is a positive reputation. Organizations prefer to work with software components that have a proven track record of reliability, performance, and customer satisfaction. A well-regarded reputation instills confidence and reassurance, therefore making it a prominent consideration.

3. Affordability

Affordability is also top-of-mind when it comes to selecting third-party software components. Businesses are conscious of their budgetary constraints and strive to find cost-effective solutions that provide maximum value. By considering the financial aspect, organizations can make informed decisions that align with their overall objectives.

4. Easy adoption by non-technical users

Given that various job titles and positions interact with rich text editors, it becomes crucial to ensure that any third-party tool is easy to adopt and use, even for individuals without a technical background. This consideration acknowledges the reality that individuals from diverse professional backgrounds may be responsible for implementing and utilizing these tools.

By prioritizing factors such as ease of implementation, positive reputation, affordability, and easy adoption by non-technical users, organizations can make well-informed decisions regarding the selection of ready-made rich text editors. These choices can optimize productivity, streamline workflows, save time, and ultimately contribute to shipping their apps and products faster.

5.0 Features and future trends

AI is driving change, but the fundamentals still count

In the ever-evolving world of rich text editors, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) are revolutionizing the landscape. These intelligent systems are driving changes that enhance the user experience and streamline content creation. From AI-powered suggestions and auto-corrections to advanced formatting options, the capabilities of rich text editors are expanding at a rapid pace. However, amidst this wave of innovation, it's important to remember that the fundamentals of a reliable and user-friendly editor still hold significant value.

5.1 What are the most important features needed in a rich text editor?

The 2023 survey results confirm that the three most vital aspects of a rich text editor are its performance, closely followed by security and privacy protections. These fundamentals remain the key to user satisfaction. Additionally, customizability, control, and ease of use are crucial for designing an editing experience that aligns with the needs of professionals and their users, in an intuitive and user-friendly way.

Compared to previous reports, the 2023 findings indicate that customizability has grown in importance over time. And while digital asset management, AI-driven functionality, and collaboration features are overall not as significant, they are still considered very or extremely important by half of our participants.

5.2 What’s the most important thing missing? What new functionality would you like included in your rich text editor?

This open text question encouraged developers to share the features and functionality that are most important as well as what needed to be added. Based on the results, AI is the ‘word of the year’ when asked what’s missing from their current rich text editor. This interest in AI could have been skewed or influenced by the extensive media coverage since November 2022 around ChatGPT, and the growing presence of AI in our culture over the ensuing six months.

However, besides AI, users also expressed a desire for various other features in their editor. These include:

• More drag and drop features
• Improved media management capabilities
• Better support for MS Word pasting
• Enhanced documentation
• Increased integrations with other digital tools/software
• Collaboration features like track changes, comments and mentions

Based on the responses, it appears that users are seeking a more robust and versatile editor that not only harnesses the power of AI but also addresses their specific needs in terms of usability and collaboration.

AI integration/chat GPT

Drag and drop features

Built-in/better image/media management

Better support for MS word pasting/tables

Better documentation

Built-in track changes

Integrations with other tools (like GoogleDoc, Jira, Monday, Symfony)

More collaboration tools

Better spell checker and grammar checker

5.3 What aspects of your rich text editor would you like resolved, removed, or changed?

Another open text question where developers shared their most top-of-mind pain points, as they relate to their rich text editor.

A significant number didn’t report any significant frustrations with their rich text editor. However, the key pain points noted revolve around difficulties in manipulating specific types of content within a rich text editor (RTE). These issues include challenges with handling multimedia files, tables, and fonts. Additionally, users express a desire for the RTE to seamlessly integrate with other software products, mentioning issues with plugin availability, integration with other tools, and difficulties when copy/pasting content from external sources.

Other notable mentions include the lack of comprehensive documentation, absence of autosave functionality, and concerns regarding the speed, security, and stability of the editor. In summary, difficulties included:

• Manipulating specific content (multimedia files, tables, fonts)
• Integration with other software products (plugins, other tools)
• Copy/pasting content from other sources
• Lack of comprehensive documentation
• Absence of autosave functionality
• Concerns about speed, security, and stability
• No major frustrations reported by one-third of respondents
  
  

5.4 What paradigm shifts do you see coming? What big game-changing features do you anticipate in the future?

This open text response question allowed participants to envision the future of the industry and make predictions based on the emerging trends and changing needs that they’re observing today. The most commonly mentioned shift, that’s expected to heavily impact rich text editors, is the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI). It was also suggested that AI integration could manifest in various forms – Generative AI, Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, and other automation techniques – to assist in content creation and integration.

Other themes mentioned include automation, collaboration, and voice-to-text technology. These themes and the corresponding quotes provided, are summarized below.

Quote themes:

AI integration: AI will play a crucial role in streamlining content creation and integration.

Automation: Automation will significantly improve efficiency in rich text editors.

Collaboration: Collaborative tools will enhance communication and teamwork.

Voice-to-text: Voice-to-text technology will simplify data entry processes.

5.5 What features do you expect to become standard in rich text editors within the next two years?

In this open text response question, we asked developers to consider upcoming advancements in technology itself, as well as the rich text editor industry. Once again AI is the star, indicating significant progress is expected over the coming year. Similar themes emerge as in the previous question about paradigm shifts, including voice recognition and transcription, collaboration tools, and enhanced integration with other software. However, new themes also emerge, such as clean copy/pasting, industry-wide adoption of top-notch features, optimization for mobile usage, and multi-language support.

5.6 What future technology would be helpful in collaborative editing?

According to the results, the majority of developers strongly believe that Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be a significant advancement that assists the collaborative editing of rich text content. This reflects similar themes in other parts of the results, indicating that rich text editor users view AI and the future of innovation in rich text editing as being closely connected. More than half the respondents identified AI-powered grammar checking and content generation as a crucial AI application for collaborative editing, with only a meager 10% believing that no technological advancement is needed for rich text editing.