head to head · open source
javascript-obfuscator vs plasmo
javascript-obfuscator has 16,257 GitHub stars, 1,741 forks, 24 open issues and last shipped 9 days ago. plasmo has 13,151 stars, 460 forks, 371 open issues and last shipped yesterday. javascript-obfuscator leads on adoption by 24% (16,257 vs 13,151 stars). javascript-obfuscator is written in TypeScript under BSD-2-Clause; plasmo is written in TypeScript under MIT. javascript-obfuscator has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, plasmo 3%. plasmo 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
| javascript-obfuscator | plasmo | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 16K | ★ 13K |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-09 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.7K | ⑂ 460 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick javascript-obfuscator if
- You weight community size — 16K stars and counting
- You want the BSD-2-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick plasmo if
- You want the plasmo feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and plasmo fits your workflow better
About javascript-obfuscator
JavaScript Obfuscator is a free, BSD 2 Clause licensed TypeScript obfuscator for JavaScript and Node.js source code, built for developers who need to ship browser or server side JavaScript that is hard to read, tamper with, or reverse engineer.
read the full javascript-obfuscator overview →
About plasmo
Plasmo is an MIT licensed, TypeScript based browser extension framework that packages the build toolchain, manifest generation, and runtime APIs for Chrome, Edge, and Firefox add ons into a single SDK for React and TypeScript developers.
read the full plasmo overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is javascript-obfuscator or plasmo more popular?
javascript-obfuscator has 16,257 GitHub stars and plasmo has 13,151. javascript-obfuscator has the larger community by that measure.
Are javascript-obfuscator and plasmo free?
Both are open source. javascript-obfuscator is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and plasmo under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between javascript-obfuscator and plasmo?
javascript-obfuscator is written in TypeScript and plasmo 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, javascript-obfuscator or plasmo?
Choose javascript-obfuscator if you want the larger community (16,257 stars) or its BSD-2-Clause licence terms. Choose plasmo if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.