head to head · open source
react vs bb
react has 250,753 GitHub stars, 51,405 forks, 1,377 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. bb has 3,946 stars, 553 forks, 463 open issues and last shipped yesterday. react leads on adoption by 6,255% (250,753 vs 3,946 stars). react is written in JavaScript under MIT; bb is written in TypeScript under MIT. react has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, bb 14%. bb was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
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
| react | bb | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 251K | ★ 3.9K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-25 | 2026-09-26 |
| Forks | ⑂ 51K | ⑂ 553 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick react if
- You weight community size — 251K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick bb if
- You want the bb feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and bb fits your workflow better
About react
React is a JavaScript library under the MIT licence for building user interfaces, using a declarative, component based model that renders both on the web and, through React Native, on mobile.
read the full react overview →
About bb
bb is the agent IDE that builds itself: an MIT licensed TypeScript application that lets developers drive coding agents from a desktop app, a web app, a CLI, or an HTTP API, and extend the tool itself while it runs.
More in Developer Tools
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Frequently asked questions
Is react or bb more popular?
react has 250,753 GitHub stars and bb has 3,946. react has the larger community by that measure.
Are react and bb free?
Both are open source. react is licensed under MIT and bb under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between react and bb?
react is written in JavaScript and bb in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, react or bb?
Choose react if you want the larger community (250,753 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose bb if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.