head to head · open source
react vs npkill
react has 250,923 GitHub stars, 51,445 forks, 1,377 open issues and last shipped yesterday. npkill has 9,463 stars, 257 forks, 24 open issues and last shipped 1 months ago. react leads on adoption by 2,552% (250,923 vs 9,463 stars). react is written in JavaScript under MIT; npkill is written in TypeScript under MIT. react has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, npkill 3%. react was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (javascript), 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 | npkill | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 251K | ★ 9.5K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-10-07 | 2026-09-08 |
| Forks | ⑂ 51K | ⑂ 257 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick react if
- You weight community size — 251K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick npkill if
- You want the npkill feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and npkill fits your workflow better
About react
React is a JavaScript library under the MIT licence for building user interfaces, using a declarative, component based model that renders both on the web and, through React Native, on mobile.
read the full react overview →
About npkill
npkill is a command line utility for JavaScript and TypeScript developers who want to find every node modules directory on their machine, see how much disk space each one occupies, and delete the ones they no longer need.
read the full npkill overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is react or npkill more popular?
react has 250,923 GitHub stars and npkill has 9,463. react has the larger community by that measure.
Are react and npkill free?
Both are open source. react is licensed under MIT and npkill under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between react and npkill?
react is written in JavaScript and npkill 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 npkill?
Choose react if you want the larger community (250,923 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose npkill if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.