Nocturnus;
All too often, I've found that if you ask which is best, or something similar, on an internet forum, it eventually degenerates into a flame war. <sigh>

I like to look at what each product has to offer, rather than what I think is wrong with it. If I find a product has features or behaviors that I don't like, rather than rant and rave about it, I just choose something else and move on.

At the time I bought JAWS for personal use, I didn't know about NVDA, all I knew about was Windows Narator, and JAWS, . Narator was just a reader, it didn't provide any more functionality than simply reading what was on the screen, other than what comes with Windows, no additional navigation keyboard shortcuts are provided. So I bought JAWS and have been reasonably satisfied. Now if I had known about NVDA, I might have decided to try it in the hopes of saving the $900 JAWS costs, and maybe I'd be a happy NVDA user right now. But it didn't happen that way, and I'm not losing any sleep over spending the money for JAWS instead of finding and using the free NVDA. Nor am I losing sleep because somebody else didn't choose JAWS. To each his own. And I'm definitely not going to bash NVDA just because I use and like JAWS.

I am actually going to look at NVDA before I need to renew my software maintenance agreement for another two years. I have no idea whether I'll continue to use JAWS or switch to NVDA. I'm not doing this because I don't like JAWS or one or more of its features, I'm doing it because if NVDA can fill my needs, it will cost me less than JAWS does. But if NVDA lacks features JAWS has that I value, it won't be worth whatever I'd save by switching. So I won't.

@afrim;
Are you referring to the software maintenance agreements? When I bought it, JAWS was $900 and the two year software maintenance agreement was $150.

@GeneWarner
My intent was to provide a modern day comparison of the two from my perspective.  I have used both side by side on various machines starting with JAWS version 3.7 on a windows 98 machine in 2000.  Back then, NVDA was not an alternative.  I first heard about NVDA in 2008 and was rather skeptical.  I didn't like the way it processed various strings of text or system messages, could not get used to its versions of cursors and the like.  In 2010, I ran out of options and could not obtain a copy of JAWS that worked with my operating system; 32bit and 64 bit systems were becoming a matter of great importance and some stores sold the 64 bit machines quite heavily.  I had no choice but to switch to NVDA permanently because I didn't have the money to shell out for a 64bit version of JAWS, or any version of JAS really.
I have, however, kept up with the releases up until now and, to some extent, used them wherever possible to assist other people who decide to use it.  INdeed, I have a fully functioning and fully licensed coppy of JAWS 16 on this PC.  I once was impressed; I am no longer and I do believe I outlined why.  It is a shame you see such matters as flaming, since that was far from what I wanted to do.  I believe in choice and have always told people to use whatever works best.  Some of us like Chinese food while others enjoy Mexican.  In the end it only matters that they both accomplish what they're intended to do.  I cannot, however, pretend that the price of JAWS is fair, nor that it is truly warranted, when a free alternative exists that does as much as, and in some cases, more than JAWS.  Is it a good screen reader?  Yes.  Is it feature ritch?  I do believe I stated above that it is rather versatile and complys with many different needs.  That is, however, as far as we can realistically go.  I have seen the seasons change, the time turn, and JAWS is no longer what it once was.  It no longer innovates, no longer truthfully provides incentive for many unless they are old time habitual users or have not had any previous knowledge about other alternatives.  How I mis the days when I could go and listen to the FS podcasts regarding JAWS and be thrilled that something new and fresh and uplifting and useful had been added.  Since JAWS 11, however, progress has, in my opinion, haulted and been geared more toward the business branches than the every day consumer, to the point where they have actually started bundling software along with it to try and get you to purchase it, such as their daisy reader.
So what is the best screen reader?  It does not exist.  If you want to look at it from a feature list perspective, JAWS takes the cake.  If you want something snappy and much more reliable, NVDA is for you.  Windoweyes is somewhere in the middle between the two grounds if neither of the other two suit you, and some people, such as myself, use all three whenever necessary to tackle different tasks.  It's personal; it's preferential.  it comes down to what you're doing and why and how much you want to gain in one area and lose in another, like choosing the lesser of two evils in a political race.  Some people don't vote at all.  I know blind people who won't get a PC or experience the internet or technology of any kind because they're afraid of it owing to old habits.  Give them a phone however and they'll gladly take it.  I'm not against JAWS, not against anyone's right to use it, but I do believe that being informed on a matter is of the greatest importance.  Knowledge is a powerful thing to have.

To clarify,
The 120 dollars for a Jaws home licence, is "official," and is the "upgrade" price.

Now, if anyone here is registered for the 75th NFB convention, members who attend it can get a upgrade to Jaws 16 for "75" dollars.
Doesn't matter what Jaws version you have, even if it is one from the HJ days.
Same with Magyc 13 for 50 dollars.

So, with Windows 10 and narrator having scripting in win 10, and possibly Braille support, how many folks will take that offer?

Modern screen readers in the windows world, it'll for sure get interesting really.

The only possible way Narator could ever replace JAWS or NVDA is if Microsoft added a bunch of additional hot keys to make navigating around Windows a lot easier than it is with an off the shelf Windows.

A quick update folks:

For more info bout the Freedom Scientific NFB 75th aniversary offer for the convention week, please see:
http://www.blindbargains.com/bargains.php?m=13026

Yes, you have the option to customise the keyboard shortcuts, but that is a bit boring. Why should I press ctrl+shift+e or +f (don't remember it) to read a line or a paragraph. Why don't they make it easier for all. Only genius people in the world can manage to memorise all those shortcuts.

Well, if you start everything from scratch, you become used to it. It is the same as me when I started to use android and my friends who had iPhones told me that I wouldn't succeed.

@boy;

If JAWS was as bad as you claim, it wouldn't have lasted the 20 years it's been around.

You had problems with JAWS? I wonder why. Especially since I know quite a few people  that use and have no problems with JAWS, and we do play games! Imagine that!

I would be willing to bet that if you did a feature by feature comparison between JAWS and NVDA you'd find that there are as many features in JAWS that are not in NVDA as there are features in NVDA that are not in JAWS. To believe anything else is being foolish.

So you like NVDA better than JAWS, that's great, for you. That's no reason to be so hostile. If you can't state your opinions without resorting to being so hostile, maybe you should just keep your attempt to start a flames war to yourself.

This is supposed to be a discussion among adults, not an immature argument among children.

@superb;

Not all programs install drivers, those that do need to restart your system to start the drivers that were installed. Most drivers have to be started by the system, not a user, during system start up. Thus a restart is needed.

There is a setting that tells JAWS whether to use virtual ribbons or not, if it's turned on and you don't like it, turn it off.

Initially a shortcut key to put JAWS to sleep sounded like a nice idea, but it would be of little value, because once JAWS is asleep, how do you wake it? Simpler to just unload it, then reload it later. Or you can use the configuration manager to tell JAWS to go to sleep when the Windows of programs you specify are active, then let JAWS put itself to sleep and wake up as appropriate with no hot keys needed.

If JAWS was Freedom Scientific's only product, I'd say your idea of free upgrades for life would drive them out of business. However, since they sell a large line of products, I agree that dropping the software maintenance agreement probably wouldn't hurt them very much.

Simply restarting the trial to get another 40 minutes without the anoyance of having to restart first would remove a huge incentive to buy it. Do you or your company sell a product? How about letting everyone use it for free? How long would you have a job or your company stay in business?

I suspect you have a configuration problem with your computer. I have JAWS and all I do when a sighted person needs to help me with my computer is turn off JAWS' voice. I do not have to unload it or put it to sleep and there are no problems with the screen or the mouse.

I've been using JAWS for 18 months now, and I find that it is very rare that I need to adjust the synthesizer. I'd much rather have hot keys used for things I'll use frequently than for things I might need a few times a year.

How JAWS reads a number is configurable . if a number has fewer digits than the setting, it will be read as a number, one hundred twenty three, but if it has as many or more digits than the setting, it is read as digits, one two three. The default setting is five digits.

Does NVDA support UEB? Is it available in more languages than JAWS?

I don't have any problems programming JAWS, it just takes a willingness to learn. When I bought JAWS, I made it a goal to become JAWS certified. It took a while and was hard work because there was so much to learn, but in my day-to-day work doing software development, I have often been thankful I took the time to do it.

I agree with some of the features you wanted.
* A sleep hot key would be handy atr times, but of limited use because if JAWS really goes to sleep, it can't watch for the hot key to wake up.

Hi.

i'm an NVDA user and would not go back to jaws. But saying that I would if I had to. But here are the reasons I will stick to NVDA for as long as I have computers:
1. it's fast. Yes it crashes sometimes but so do other programs. But it lodes in a snap.
2. It's small. i don't know the size of the installer but it does not make you install things you do not need where as jaws and other screen readers, window eyes for example does.
3. It costs nothing.

Do i hate jaws? Honestly no. Do I think it costs to much? Yes.

I had problems in the past with jaws and intersept drivers.

As for who's coppying who, every one coppies from everyone else, so i'm not going to say one screen reader coppies from another.

Is NVDA better than JAWS? It's faster yes. Has more languages, but no, I don't think it is better. I prefer to use it but that's my choice.

@boy
Why do we need mouse support? I never, and I mean never, use the mouse to do anything. I always use the keyboard for my everyday tasks.