head to head · open source
primitives vs OpenPencil
primitives has 19,466 GitHub stars, 1,297 forks, 356 open issues and last shipped 20 days ago. OpenPencil has 9,551 stars, 1,004 forks, 46 open issues and last shipped yesterday. primitives leads on adoption by 104% (19,466 vs 9,551 stars). primitives is written in TypeScript under MIT; OpenPencil is written in TypeScript under MIT. primitives has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, OpenPencil 11%. OpenPencil 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
| primitives | OpenPencil | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 19K | ★ 9.6K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-10-14 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 1.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick primitives if
- You weight community size — 19K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick OpenPencil if
- You want the OpenPencil feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and OpenPencil fits your workflow better
About primitives
Radix Primitives An open source UI component library for building high quality, accessible design systems and web apps. Radix Primitives is a low level UI component library with a focus on accessibility, customization and developer experience. You can use these components either as the base layer of your design system, or adopt them incrementally. Installation First, install pnpm if you haven't already. Open your terminal and run: Then, install the dependencies: Documentation For full documentation, visit radix ui.com/primitives/docs. Releases For changelog, visit radix ui.com/primitives/docs/overview/releases…
read the full primitives overview →
About OpenPencil
OpenPencil Open source design editor. Opens .fig and .pen design files, includes built in AI, and ships as a programmable toolkit with a headless Vue SDK for building custom editors. Status: Active development. Usable today, with some rough edges as features evolve. Try it online → · Download · Documentation · Roadmap · llms.txt Installation macOS (Homebrew): Or download from the releases page, or use the web app — no install needed. What it does Opens .fig and .pen files — read and write native Figma files, open supported Pencil documents from the app or OS file browser, copy & paste nodes between apps AI…
read the full OpenPencil overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is primitives or OpenPencil more popular?
primitives has 19,466 GitHub stars and OpenPencil has 9,551. primitives has the larger community by that measure.
Are primitives and OpenPencil free?
Both are open source. primitives is licensed under MIT and OpenPencil under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between primitives and OpenPencil?
primitives is written in TypeScript and OpenPencil 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, primitives or OpenPencil?
Choose primitives if you want the larger community (19,466 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose OpenPencil if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.