# What compiler should I use? Fortran Setup **URL:** \ **Category:** Help\ **Created:** [March 1, 2025, 5:48am UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/what-compiler-should-i-use-fortran-setup/9275 "2025-03-01T05:48:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![f-ei8ht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c67d28/32.png) [@f-ei8ht](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/f-ei8ht)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2025, 5:48am UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/what-compiler-should-i-use-fortran-setup/9275/1 "2025-03-01T05:48:15Z")
Hello everyone, I had downloaded the gfortran compiler and had setup vscode for fortran with fortran intellisence and modern fortran extension along with fortls and fortran breakpoint extension. Any suggestions what should be the best to get started? ---
**Author:** ![Harper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Harper](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/Harper)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2025, 8:06am UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/what-compiler-should-i-use-fortran-setup/9275/2 "2025-03-01T08:06:30Z")
I use and recommend several different compilers. Reasons: 1: They often give different error messages for the same bug in your program. One may be easier to understand than another. 2: One may detect a bug in your program that another does not. 3. If two compilers run your program but give different results it is always worth investigating. You may have just done something that is valid Fortran but compilers are allowed to interpret it differently. There may be a bug in your program that different compilers treat differently. Occasionally you may have found a bug in a compiler. 4. One compiler may run your program faster than another. ---
**Author:** ![nbehrnd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e0b2c6/32.png) [@nbehrnd](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/nbehrnd)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2025, 3:40pm UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/what-compiler-should-i-use-fortran-setup/9275/3 "2025-03-01T15:40:37Z")
Though I don’t have the reference on me to share, I recall one selling point of [fpm/fortran package manager](https://fpm.fortran-lang.org/index.html) is to easily switch back and forth between the compilers to be used all along while gradually developing a project. With eventually more comfort than a setup and use of a Makefile (or crossplatform CMake).