head to head · open source
open-design vs novu
open-design has 105,526 GitHub stars, 12,030 forks, 1,090 open issues and last shipped yesterday. novu has 40,249 stars, 4,522 forks, 105 open issues and last shipped yesterday. open-design leads on adoption by 162% (105,526 vs 40,249 stars). open-design is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0; novu is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. open-design has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, novu 11%. 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 | novu | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 106K | ★ 40K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Custom / other |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 12K | ⑂ 4.5K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick open-design if
- You weight community size — 106K 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 novu if
- You want the novu feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and novu fits your workflow better
About open-design
OpenDesign: The open source Claude Design alternative ⚡ OpenDesign Cloud — the official model service. One recharge to use both agent and image models inside OpenDesign: GPT, Claude, and DeepSeek for agents; GPT Image 2.0, Seedream 5.0 Pro, and Nano Banana 2.0 for images. 🚀 DeepSeek V4 Flash and V4 Pro are now available. Put top tier intelligence to work across prototypes, decks, design systems, and everyday agent tasks. OpenDesign members can use both models without limits for two weeks, directly inside the app. 🧩 DeepSeek Harness is now supported. Connect DeepSeek's official dsh agent harness to OpenDesign…
read the full open-design overview →
About novu
The open source communication infrastructure for agents and products One API and one unified conversation model to connect your products and your agents to every channel your users live on — Inbox, Email, SMS, Push, Chat, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Telegram, and more. Learn More » Report a bug · Docs · Website · Join our Discord · Changelog · Roadmap · X · Contact us Software is becoming more conversational, and user expectations are rising with it. People no longer want static, irrelevant notifications they glance at and forget, they want to engage, ask questions, and go deeper. Instead of a one way report dropped…
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Frequently asked questions
Is open-design or novu more popular?
open-design has 105,526 GitHub stars and novu has 40,249. open-design has the larger community by that measure.
Are open-design and novu free?
Both are open source. open-design is licensed under Apache-2.0, and novu has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between open-design and novu?
open-design is written in TypeScript and novu 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, open-design or novu?
Choose open-design if you want the larger community (105,526 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose novu if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.