head to head · open source
Onlook vs netbeans
Onlook has 27,108 GitHub stars, 2,139 forks, 380 open issues and last shipped 15 days ago. netbeans has 3,145 stars, 944 forks, 1,081 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Onlook leads on adoption by 762% (27,108 vs 3,145 stars). Onlook is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0; netbeans is written in Java under Apache-2.0. Onlook has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, netbeans 30%. netbeans was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (ide), 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
| Onlook | netbeans | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 27K | ★ 3.1K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Java |
| Last push | 2026-10-21 | 2026-11-03 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.1K | ⑂ 944 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Onlook if
- You weight community size — 27K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick netbeans if
- You want the netbeans feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and netbeans fits your workflow better
About Onlook
Onlook The design tool for AI native designers — now in early access. Onlook makes designing on top of your codebase effortless. Craft exceptional experiences with AI in code. → Join the waitlist 👨💻👩💻👨💻 We're hiring engineers in SF! 👩💻👨💻👩💻 View Demo · Report Bug · Request Feature [![Discord][discord shield]][discord url] [![LinkedIn][linkedin shield]][linkedin url] [![Twitter][twitter shield]][twitter url] 中文 Español Deutsch français Português Русский 日本語 한국어 This is the open source visual editor that started Onlook (Next.js + Tailwind). The hosted product we're building next, for AI native…
read the full Onlook overview →
About netbeans
Apache NetBeans Apache NetBeans is an open source development environment, tooling platform, and application framework. Build status GitHub actions Apache Jenkins: Linux: Windows: License Status ( Apache Rat and ant verify libs and licenses ) Requirements Git Ant JDK 21 or above (to build and run NetBeans) Notes: NetBeans license violation checks are managed via the rat exclusions.txt file. Set JAVA HOME and ANT HOME appropriately or leave them undefined. Building NetBeans Build the default release config (See the cluster.config property.) Build the basic project (mainly Java features): Build the full project…
read the full netbeans overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Onlook or netbeans more popular?
Onlook has 27,108 GitHub stars and netbeans has 3,145. Onlook has the larger community by that measure.
Are Onlook and netbeans free?
Both are open source. Onlook is licensed under Apache-2.0 and netbeans under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Onlook and netbeans?
Onlook is written in TypeScript and netbeans in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Onlook or netbeans?
Choose Onlook if you want the larger community (27,108 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose netbeans if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.