With a host of Linux distributions swarming the market, it is difficult to judge which one is doing the best. Moreover, there is no survey that could establish the fact so far. So, for that the best aid to help judge you is the DistroWatch, the master Linux desktop tracking site for useful desktop Linux use data. Even the site states: "The DistroWatch Page Hit Ranking statistics are a light-hearted way of measuring the popularity of Linux distributions and other free operating systems among the visitors of this website. They correlate neither to usage nor to quality and should not be used to measure the market share of distributions. They simply show the number of times a distribution page on DistroWatch.com was accessed each day, nothing more.”


This list has been recorded keeping in mind the figures in DistroWatch along with a bit of chit chat here and there. Let’s have a look:

Mint Linux: The last time EFYTimes had carried the top Linux distributions, one name that kept coming up was Mint Linux and this time, it is right on the top of the chart. Mint Linux has become even more popular with the downfall of Ubuntu due to the Unity factor. Mint has an outstanding desktop interface of its own, Cinnamon, which reminds you of the classic GNOME 2.x interface.

Mageia: Mageia was released in September 2010, which emerged as a part of Mandriva Linux, a commercial Linux distribution. This distro bailed out Mandriva of its business issues and has been a preferred choice ever since. It has an easy to use user interface and uses KDE 4.8 desktop.

Ubuntu: This distro was on the top spot  but this time it is on number 3. Many Linux enthusiasts don’t like the new Unity interface, as they feel it gets in the way of easy computing. Having said that, Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth is sure that the operating system will see 20 million new PCs sold with Ubuntu in 2012. This figure is sans the people who will install it, especially the new converts.

Fedora: This Red Hat's community Linux distribution has the GNOME 3.x, the desktop interface that people love to hate. This makes all the sense, especially for those who work on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) development, as they will be able to see RHEL's future.

Debian: The DistroWatch clearly shows Debian at number 5 in the popularity list. The distro recently turned 19 and clearly takes the cake as it is the foundation for many other Linux distributions.

While we have presented the top five list, we want to tell you that the most popular Linux distro is in your hand, an Android device! Keep pouring your views on your favourite Linux distro...