head to head · open source
mkdocs-material vs liam
mkdocs-material has 27,596 GitHub stars, 4,154 forks, 1 open issues and last shipped 6 days ago. liam has 5,161 stars, 242 forks, 29 open issues and last shipped yesterday. mkdocs-material leads on adoption by 435% (27,596 vs 5,161 stars). mkdocs-material is written in Python under MIT; liam is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0. mkdocs-material has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, liam 5%. liam was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (documentation), 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
| mkdocs-material | liam | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 28K | ★ 5.2K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-10-30 | 2026-11-04 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.2K | ⑂ 242 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick mkdocs-material if
- You weight community size — 28K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick liam if
- You want the liam feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and liam fits your workflow better
About mkdocs-material
A powerful documentation framework on top of MkDocs Write your documentation in Markdown and create a professional static site for your Open Source or commercial project in minutes – searchable, customizable, more than 60 languages, for all devices. Check out the demo – squidfunk.github.io/mkdocs material . Silver sponsors Bronze sponsors <img src=" height="58"
read the full mkdocs-material overview →
About liam
Automatically generates beautiful and easy to read ER diagrams from your database. Website • Documentation • Roadmap What's Liam ERD? Liam ERD generates beautiful, interactive ER diagrams from your database. Whether you're working on public or private repositories, Liam ERD helps you visualize complex schemas with ease. Beautiful UI & Interactive : A clean design and intuitive features (like panning, zooming, and filtering) make it easy to understand even the most complex databases. Simple Reverse Engineering : Seamlessly turn your existing database schemas into clear, readable diagrams. Effortless Setup : Get…
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Frequently asked questions
Is mkdocs-material or liam more popular?
mkdocs-material has 27,596 GitHub stars and liam has 5,161. mkdocs-material has the larger community by that measure.
Are mkdocs-material and liam free?
Both are open source. mkdocs-material is licensed under MIT and liam under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between mkdocs-material and liam?
mkdocs-material is written in Python and liam 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, mkdocs-material or liam?
Choose mkdocs-material if you want the larger community (27,596 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose liam if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.