head to head · open source
react vs Convex
react has 250,602 GitHub stars, 51,379 forks, 1,377 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Convex has 12,583 stars, 814 forks, 220 open issues and last shipped yesterday. react leads on adoption by 1,892% (250,602 vs 12,583 stars). react is written in JavaScript under MIT; Convex is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. react has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, Convex 6%. Convex 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 | Convex | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 251K | ★ 13K |
| License | MIT | Custom / other |
| Written in | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 51K | ⑂ 814 |
| 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 Convex if
- You want the Convex feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Convex 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 Convex
Convex is an open source reactive database for web application developers, with a Rust backend and TypeScript packages, in the backend, database, and TypeScript ecosystem. It combines a database, server functions, and client libraries so developers can fetch data and perform business logic in pure TypeScript while keeping strong consistency and live updating behavior.
read the full Convex overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is react or Convex more popular?
react has 250,602 GitHub stars and Convex has 12,583. react has the larger community by that measure.
Are react and Convex free?
Both are open source. react is licensed under MIT, and Convex has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between react and Convex?
react is written in JavaScript and Convex 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 Convex?
Choose react if you want the larger community (250,602 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Convex if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.