[1] AppleScript Editor provides basic debugging capabilities[2] and can save AppleScripts as plain text (.applescript), as a compiled script (.scpt), as a script bundle (.scptd), or as an application (.app).

[3][4] AppleScript Editor also handles script dictionary files, allowing the user to see what scripting classes and commands are available for each scriptable application installed on the computer.

[5] Prior to Mac OS X 10.3, Script Editor was developed using Carbon.

10.3 introduced a new Script Editor written using Cocoa.

It was called AppleScript Editor from Mac OS X 10.6 to 10.10, when the application added support for JavaScript for Automation.