head to head · open source
open-design vs Balloon
open-design has 99,461 GitHub stars, 11,505 forks, 1,090 open issues and last shipped today. Balloon has 4,011 stars, 310 forks, 1 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. open-design leads on adoption by 2,380% (99,461 vs 4,011 stars). open-design is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0; Balloon is written in Kotlin under Apache-2.0. open-design has attracted 12% as many forks as stars, Balloon 8%. open-design 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
| open-design | Balloon | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 99K | ★ 4.0K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Kotlin |
| Last push | 2026-10-05 | 2026-09-28 |
| Forks | ⑂ 12K | ⑂ 310 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick open-design if
- You weight community size — 99K 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 Balloon if
- You want the Balloon feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Kotlin
- You evaluated both and Balloon fits your workflow better
About open-design
OpenDesign is an open source, local first desktop design application for macOS and Windows that turns the coding agent already installed on a developer's machine into the design engine, producing prototypes, dashboards, decks, images, and motion graphics as real files exported to HTML, PDF, PPTX, and MP4.
read the full open-design overview →
About Balloon
Balloon is an open source Kotlin tooltip library for Compose Multiplatform that gives Android, iOS, desktop, and web developers fully customizable, animated tooltips through a single shared artifact.
read the full Balloon overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is open-design or Balloon more popular?
open-design has 99,461 GitHub stars and Balloon has 4,011. open-design has the larger community by that measure.
Are open-design and Balloon free?
Both are open source. open-design is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Balloon under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between open-design and Balloon?
open-design is written in TypeScript and Balloon in Kotlin. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, open-design or Balloon?
Choose open-design if you want the larger community (99,461 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Balloon if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.