head to head · open source
imgui vs GDevelop
imgui has 76,934 GitHub stars, 12,107 forks, 1,227 open issues and last shipped yesterday. GDevelop has 28,355 stars, 1,641 forks, 633 open issues and last shipped yesterday. imgui leads on adoption by 171% (76,934 vs 28,355 stars). imgui is written in C++ under MIT; GDevelop is written in JavaScript under a custom or non-standard licence. imgui has attracted 16% as many forks as stars, GDevelop 6%. GDevelop was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (game-development, game-engine, gamedev), 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| imgui | GDevelop | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 77K | ★ 28K |
| License | MIT | Custom / other |
| Written in | C++ | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 12K | ⑂ 1.6K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick imgui if
- You weight community size — 77K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick GDevelop if
- You want the GDevelop feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and GDevelop fits your workflow better
About imgui
Dear ImGui ===== "Give someone state and they'll have a bug one day, but teach them how to represent state in two separate locations that have to be kept in sync and they'll have bugs for a lifetime." ryg (This library is available under a free and permissive license, but needs financial support to sustain its continued improvements. In addition to maintenance and stability there are many desirable features yet to be added. If your company is using Dear ImGui, please consider reaching out.) Businesses: support continued development and maintenance via invoiced sponsoring/support contracts: E mail: contact @…
read the full imgui overview →
About GDevelop
GDevelop is a full featured, no code, open source game development software. You can build 2D, 3D and multiplayer games for mobile (iOS, Android), desktop and the web. GDevelop is designed to be fast and incredibly intuitive: make games using an easy to understand yet powerful event based system and modular behaviors. Create with AI that assists or builds alongside you. Getting started Are you interested in contributing to GDevelop for the first time? Take a look at the list of good first issues , good first contributions or the "🏐 not too hard" cards on the Roadmap. Games made with GDevelop Find GDevelop games…
read the full GDevelop overview →
More in Miscellaneous
Related comparisons
More Gaming projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Gaming field.
Frequently asked questions
Is imgui or GDevelop more popular?
imgui has 76,934 GitHub stars and GDevelop has 28,355. imgui has the larger community by that measure.
Are imgui and GDevelop free?
Both are open source. imgui is licensed under MIT, and GDevelop has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between imgui and GDevelop?
imgui is written in C++ and GDevelop 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, imgui or GDevelop?
Choose imgui if you want the larger community (76,934 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose GDevelop if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.