head to head · open source
react vs devtools
react has 252,360 GitHub stars, 51,904 forks, 1,377 open issues and last shipped yesterday. devtools has 671 stars, 55 forks, 55 open issues and last shipped 3 months ago. react leads on adoption by 37,510% (252,360 vs 671 stars). react is written in JavaScript under MIT; devtools is written in TypeScript under MIT. react has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, devtools 8%. react was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (react), 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
| react | devtools | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 252K | ★ 671 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-07 | 2026-08-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 52K | ⑂ 55 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick react if
- You weight community size — 252K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick devtools if
- You want the devtools feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and devtools fits your workflow better
About react
React · React is a JavaScript library for building user interfaces. Declarative: React makes it painless to create interactive UIs. Design simple views for each state in your application, and React will efficiently update and render just the right components when your data changes. Declarative views make your code more predictable, simpler to understand, and easier to debug. Component Based: Build encapsulated components that manage their own state, then compose them to make complex UIs. Since component logic is written in JavaScript instead of templates, you can easily pass rich data through your app and…
read the full react overview →
About devtools
Performant, flexible and extensible forms with easy to use validation. Goal This React Component will help you to debug forms when working React Hook Form, and give you more insight about your form's detail. Install $ npm install @hookform/devtools D Quickstart Backers Thanks goes to all our backers! [Become a backer]. Organizations Thanks goes to these wonderful organizations! [Contribute]. Contributors Thanks goes to these wonderful people! [Become a contributor].
read the full devtools overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is react or devtools more popular?
react has 252,360 GitHub stars and devtools has 671. react has the larger community by that measure.
Are react and devtools free?
Both are open source. react is licensed under MIT and devtools under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between react and devtools?
react is written in JavaScript and devtools 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, react or devtools?
Choose react if you want the larger community (252,360 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose devtools if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.