head to head · open source
diagram-design vs plotly.js
diagram-design has 40,762 GitHub stars, 2,602 forks, 42 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. plotly.js has 18,337 stars, 2,031 forks, 769 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. diagram-design leads on adoption by 122% (40,762 vs 18,337 stars). diagram-design is written in HTML under MIT; plotly.js is written in JavaScript under MIT. diagram-design has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, plotly.js 11%. plotly.js was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (data-visualization), 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
| diagram-design | plotly.js | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 41K | ★ 18K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | HTML | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-15 | 2026-09-16 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.6K | ⑂ 2.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick diagram-design if
- You weight community size — 41K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches HTML
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick plotly.js if
- You want the plotly.js feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and plotly.js fits your workflow better
About diagram-design
Diagram Design is a skill for Claude Code, Codex, Factory Droid, Pi, and other Agent Skills compatible hosts that generates editorial quality diagrams as self contained HTML and SVG, aimed at writers, engineers, and designers who need brand consistent visuals without opening Figma.
read the full diagram-design overview →
About plotly.js
Plotly.js is an open source JavaScript charting library that renders interactive figures in the browser and also powers the Python and R packages named plotly in those ecosystems.
read the full plotly.js overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is diagram-design or plotly.js more popular?
diagram-design has 40,762 GitHub stars and plotly.js has 18,337. diagram-design has the larger community by that measure.
Are diagram-design and plotly.js free?
Both are open source. diagram-design is licensed under MIT and plotly.js under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between diagram-design and plotly.js?
diagram-design is written in HTML and plotly.js in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, diagram-design or plotly.js?
Choose diagram-design if you want the larger community (40,762 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose plotly.js if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.