head to head · open source
Apache Superset vs plotly.js
Apache Superset has 74,816 GitHub stars, 18,314 forks, 588 open issues and last shipped yesterday. plotly.js has 18,337 stars, 2,031 forks, 769 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Apache Superset leads on adoption by 308% (74,816 vs 18,337 stars). Apache Superset is written in Python under Apache-2.0; plotly.js is written in JavaScript under MIT. Apache Superset has attracted 24% as many forks as stars, plotly.js 11%. Apache Superset was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (data-visualization), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Apache Superset | plotly.js | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 75K | ★ 18K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Python | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-16 |
| Forks | ⑂ 18K | ⑂ 2.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Apache Superset if
- You weight community size — 75K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick plotly.js if
- You want the plotly.js feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and plotly.js fits your workflow better
About Apache Superset
Apache Superset is an open source business intelligence platform that enables self serve data exploration and dashboard creation. It runs as a web application and provides tools for analysts and business users to visualize and analyze data without writing complex code, while also offering advanced capabilities for data engineers and developers. Superset lives in the Apache Software Foundation ecosystem and is licensed under Apache 2.0.
read the full Apache Superset overview →
About plotly.js
Plotly.js is an open source JavaScript charting library that renders interactive figures in the browser and also powers the Python and R packages named plotly in those ecosystems.
read the full plotly.js overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Apache Superset or plotly.js more popular?
Apache Superset has 74,816 GitHub stars and plotly.js has 18,337. Apache Superset has the larger community by that measure.
Are Apache Superset and plotly.js free?
Both are open source. Apache Superset is licensed under Apache-2.0 and plotly.js under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Apache Superset and plotly.js?
Apache Superset is written in Python and plotly.js in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Apache Superset or plotly.js?
Choose Apache Superset if you want the larger community (74,816 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose plotly.js if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.