The ultimate guide to choosing a React component library

The patterns and visual elements used to build user interfaces (UIs) have evolved into a largely standardized set of design paradigms based on what works, and what users expect: Everyone knows what a clickable button looks like, or what icon will expand a menu and how it will behave.

Because of this, it makes less and less sense to build your own UI elements from scratch and more sense to consider a React component library. React component libraries provide pre-built components that conform to these user expectations for usability and aesthetics, while significantly reducing the amount of work you need to do to build great-looking apps and websites. 

This article compares the top React component libraries (as well as some new and interesting entries), and gives you the information to decide which one will suit your React project.

What is a React component library?

A React component library provides pre-built UI elements, including buttons, cards, menus, and tables, that you can use to build your apps and website front ends. This component-based approach enhances code reusability and reduces the development time and effort, allowing developers to build complex and well-designed apps with minimal effort.

Many libraries offer customization to fit your company's style guide and have extensive documentation detailing how to use their components. Additionally, (good) component libraries will follow UI development best practices and have already undergone testing for cross-browser compatibility.

React component libraries usually offer properties (props) that can be passed through to each component to change its behavior, as well as callback arguments to call a function when a user interacts with an on-screen element.

What are the advantages of using a React component library?

Here are a few important advantages to using a React component library:

Faster development

By leveraging pre-built React component libraries, you can assemble user interfaces quickly without having to build components from scratch. If you have a very unique or specific-looking design to build, you may want to consider building those components from scratch; otherwise, for more standardized designs, it makes sense to utilize these pre-built React UI libraries, and then optionally make tweaks to fit them to your brand or theme.

Code reusability

React UI libraries offer predictable reusable components and render consistent interfaces, leading to reliable and consistent UI behavior. They also provide a foundation on top of which you can implement your own reusable components for any custom solutions. Component libraries can also encourage development teams to follow best practices by providing a framework of doing things that can be emulated.

Consistency and best practices

Pre-built UI components in proven, popular libraries will generally follow best practices for design and accessibility. If you use UI components that are consistent and meet modern usability standards, your users will already be familiar with your application and how it works, it will work across mainstream web browsers, and it will be accessible to things like screen readers.

Customization

Many component libraries offer functions for easy customization, allowing you to adjust the appearance and behavior of components to meet specific branding or design requirements. If the library doesn't provide out-of-the-box attributes for customizing components, you can always alter their code to meet your needs, using them as a solid foundation for your own designs.

Comprehensive documentation

Most component libraries come with detailed documentation and examples, including demos where you can test their components live in your web browser without having to install the package locally, making it easier for you to understand and assess libraries before you implement them (and maybe find they don’t do quite what you want them to).

Accessibility

Many components come with built-in functionality for accessibility. This includes features used by screen readers, keyboard navigation, and ARIA attributes, reducing the need to develop them from scratch.

Top 10 most popular React component libraries

The list below is based on the GitHub stars for the repo and number of npm downloads, two good indicators of what developers like and what they are actually using in production.

1. Material UI

Material UI (MUI) is one of the most popular React component libraries. It provides customizable components following Google's Material Design Guidelines. This library is used by a lot of well-established applications and maintained by the MUI team with open-source contributions.

Features:

• Pre-built components: Ready to use, customizable components following Material Design.

• Theming: Advanced theme customization for consistent design and styling.

• Responsiveness: Built-in support for responsive layouts.

• Accessibility: Resources to enhance readability, clarity, and navigation for anyone seeking information..

• Wide ecosystem / documentation: Integration with other tools (styled components); extensive documentation with over 2000 contributors.

• Consistent design and accessibility: Follows Material Design principles, ensuring uniformity.

Use cases:

• Cross-platform apps: With built-in responsiveness, it’s perfect for developing apps that function on both mobile and desktop platforms.

• Versatile web apps: Create highly responsive and scalable applications from simple side projects to enterprise-level applications.

GitHub stars: 93.4k stars 

Npm downloads: 4.1m weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://mui.com/material-ui/getting-started/

2. Ant Design

Ant Design is a comprehensive UI library known for its enterprise-focused design system. It has a wide range of high-quality components, including complex data tables, form controls, and charts. Ant Design is maintained by Ant Group, part of Alibaba, with active contributions from the open-source community.

Features:

• Comprehensive component set: Over 50 customizable components, especially for enterprise-level apps.

• Form and data management: Advanced components for forms, tables and charts.

• Internationalization (i18n): Built-in support for multiple languages.

• Customizable themes: Easy to adjust styles to match brand or specific styles.

Use cases:

• Enterprise dashboards: Ideal for building complex, data-driven interfaces.

• Admin panels: Perfect for creating feature-rich management tools with advanced filtering or sorting.

• Professional apps: Useful for any apps that require a more professional look and functionality, including data tables.

GitHub stars: 91.9k stars 

npm downloads: 1.4m weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://ant.design/components/overview/

3. React Bootstrap

React Bootstrap is a UI library that offers a set of Bootstrap-styled components from the old Bootstrap JavaScript library completely rebuilt as React components. It allows developers to use the Bootstrap design framework while taking full advantage of React component-based architecture. It is maintained by a group of independent developers and the open-source community, based on the initial work of Twitter (Twitter Bootstrap).

Features:

• Bootstrap components: Uses Bootstrap's responsive design system within React.

• Customizability: Easily customizable with Bootstrap utilities and custom CSS.

• Accessibility: Focus on accessibility.

• Modularity: Only includes the Bootstrap components you need, reducing bundle size.

Use cases:

• Quick UI prototypes: Fast development of responsive apps using Bootstrap's familiar design.

• Landing pages: Ideal for marketing websites with standard UI components.

• Responsive apps: Build apps that work well on both mobile and desktop with minimal effort.

GitHub stars: 22.4k stars 

npm downloads: 1.2m weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://react-bootstrap.netlify.app/docs/

4. Chakra UI

Chakra UI is a lightweight UI library designed to make building modular, accessible, and responsive applications easier. It prides itself on simplicity and accessibility. Chakra UI is actively maintained, and supported by a growing open-source community.

Features:

• Accessibility: Focus on accessibility and user experience.

• Customizability: Powerful theming for design changes.

• Responsiveness: Out-of-the-box support for responsive design.

• Modularity: Highly composable and modular.

• Simplicity: Developer-friendly API for fast UI development.

Use cases:

• Accessible applications: Suitable for apps that require a strong focus on accessibility.

• Responsive apps: Ideal for building apps that look good on all devices and screen sizes.

GitHub stars: 37.5k stars 

npm downloads: 570k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://v2.chakra-ui.com/docs/components

5. Mantine

Mantine is a versatile UI library; it offers a set of highly customisable components and hooks for building modern web applications. Mantine is actively maintained, along with contributions from the open-source community.

Features:

• Extensive components: Offers a wide array of different components.

• Customizability: Offers theming and style overriding for deep customization.

• SSR: Built-in support for server-side rendering.

• Dark mode support: Built in support for dark mode.

• Responsiveness and speed: Focus on performance and responsive design.

Use cases:

• Data-rich dashboards: Ideal for building dashboards or apps that require a variety of interactive elements.

• Highly custom apps: Perfect for apps which require a little more customization.

• SSR applications: Great for applications which require server-side rendering.

GitHub stars: 26k stars 

npm downloads: 515k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://ui.mantine.dev

6. Daisy UI

Daisy UI is a lightweight UI library built on top of Tailwind CSS. It builds on Tailwind's utility-first approach with pre-designed components, allowing you to build interfaces quickly while keeping the flexibility of Tailwind. Daisy UI is actively maintained and supported by the open-source community.

Features:

• Tailwind CSS integration: Built directly on top of Tailwind, which allows utility-based styling.

• Customizability: Since it's built on Tailwind, it offers easy customization and a lot of built-in themes that are tweakable.

• Lightweight and fast implementation: Minimal setup and fast performance.

• Responsiveness: Components are designed to be fully responsive by default.

Use cases:

• Tailwind projects: Good for developers already using Tailwind CSS that want pre-built components.

• Themed UIs: Great for apps requiring quick theme customization.

• Fast prototyping: Useful for building quick prototypes with minimal configuration.

GitHub stars: 33.2k stars 

npm downloads: 268k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://daisyui.com/components/

7. Semantic UI React

Semantic UI React is the official React integration of the Semantic UI framework. It provides a rich set of React components built with a focus on semantic HTML. Semantic UI React is maintained by individual contributors and the open-source community (note, however, that it isn’t directly managed by the team behind the original Semantic UI).

Features:

• Declarative syntax: Easy to read, semantic HTML-like code.

• No jQuery dependency: Optimized for modern React apps without jQuery.

• Accessibility: Focus on accessibility.

• Theming support: All components support flexible theming through CSS or JavaScript.

• Clean code: Good for developers who prioritize semantic HTML and readable code.

Use cases:

• Business dashboards: Great for building consistent, professional user interfaces.

• Responsive apps: Build apps that work well on both mobile and desktop with minimal effort.

GitHub stars: 13.2k stars 

npm downloads: 261k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://react.semantic-ui.com/usage

8. Blueprint

Blueprint is a React component library specifically designed for building complex, data-dense interfaces for desktop applications. Blueprint is maintained by Palantir Technologies, with contributions from the open-source community.

Features:

• Desktop-first design: Tailored for desktop applications rather than mobile.

• Advanced components: Contains advanced components such as tables, charts, and graphs.

• Customizability: Supports extensive theming and styling.

• Data-dense interfaces: Optimized for displaying large data sets.

Use cases:

• Enterprise dashboards: Ideal for professional data-heavy business tools.

• Admin panels: Perfect for applications that require complex interactive components.

• Desktop apps: Suited for apps where desktop is the primary focus.

GitHub stars: 20.6k stars 

npm downloads: 183k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://blueprintjs.com/docs/

9. Shadcn/ui

Shadcn/UI is a modern collection of reusable React components. It combines Tailwind CSS with pre-built components, offering both flexibility and speed. Shadcn/UI doesn't consider itself a component library but rather a collection of reusable components that you can copy and paste into your apps on a pick-and-mix basis. Shadcn/UI is actively maintained and supported by the open-source community.

Features:

• Tailwind CSS integration: Integration with Tailwind's utility classes.

• Customizability: Offers full control over component styling, making it flexible for custom designs.

• Modularity: Allows you to only use the components you need which reduces bundle size.

• Developer friendliness: Focuses on ease of use.

Use cases:

• Tailwind projects: Fast development of responsive apps using Bootstrap's familiar design.

• Custom design: Great for projects which require unique designs and branding as components are fully customizable.

• Performance focused apps: Perfect for apps which prioritize performance and modularity.

GitHub stars: 70k stars 

npm downloads: 81k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://ui.shadcn.com/docs

10. Grommet

Grommet is a UI library that is focused on accessibility, responsiveness, and simplicity. Designed as part framework, part design system, it helps developers build modern mobile-first web applications quickly and efficiently. Grommet is maintained by Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and actively supported by a community of open-source contributors.

Features:

• Accessibility: Accessibility is built in.

• Responsiveness: Powerful grid layout for mobile-first responsive designs.

• Theming: Great customization with theming.

• Comprehensive components: Including advanced components like charts and visualization tools.

Use cases:

• Inclusive applications: Good for projects that prioritize accessibility.

• Data visualization: Great for applications requiring complex UI elements.

• Responsive apps: Build apps that work well on both mobile and desktop with minimal effort.

GitHub stars: 8.3k stars 

npm downloads: 29k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://v2.grommet.io/components

New and interesting React component libraries

Popularity takes time, and just because a React component library is popular doesn't mean that it'll always be the best. Here are some recent arrivals on the React scene that target emerging use cases.

1. Forma 36

Forma 36 is a React UI library supported by Contentful for building consistent and accessible user interfaces. It works with any application, including those built in Contentful's ecosystem. Forma 36 is maintained by the Contentful team with contributions from the open-source community.

Features:

• Contentful integration: Components for building UIs within the Contentful platform.

• Accessibility: All components are built with accessibility in mind, and follow user experience design best practices.

• Customizability: Components can be customized to fit different branding or design needs.

• Developer friendliness: Easy to use API and thorough documentation.

• Consistent branding: Useful when consistency in design or user experience is important.

Use cases:

• Contentful projects: Ideal for developers building with Contentful using the App Framework.

• Accessible UIs: Perfect for apps with a focus on accessibility for a broad audience.

GitHub stars: 332 stars 

npm downloads: 26k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://f36.contentful.com/components

2. Aceternity

Aceternity UI is a modern React UI library that combines both Tailwind CSS and Framer Motion to create highly customizable and animated UI components. It focuses on interactivity and aesthetics, providing components that are functional as well as visually appealing.

Similar to shadcn/ui, this library uses the copy-and-paste technique. Aceternity UI is actively maintained, along with contributions from the open-source community.

Features:

• Tailwind and Framer Motion integration: Combines utility-first styling with smooth animations.

• Pre-built animated components: Offers components with animation such as modals, cards, or tooltips, all ready to copy and paste.

• Responsiveness: Responsive designs and modular component use.

Use cases:

• Interactive web apps: Good for creating visually engaging user interfaces.

• Landing pages: Good for building eye-catching immersive landing pages.

• Portfolio or startup sites: Suited to projects where interactivity and aesthetics are key.

npm downloads: 2k weekly downloads 

Documentation: https://ui.aceternity.com/components

3. V0

V0, while not technically a React UI library, is still positioning itself to be used in this space; it uses generative AI to design UI components based on text or image prompts, which you can then copy and paste into your project. It is built and maintained by the Vercel team, and provides an interesting look at what future tools for UI design may provide.

Features:

• Generative UI: AI-powered generation of dynamic, interactive React components based on text or image prompts.

• Tailwind and Framer Motion integration: Provides flexibility and smooth animations in UIs.

Use cases:

• Interactive dashboards: Great for building responsive, animated UIs quickly and efficiently.

• Rapid prototyping: Good for ideating: you can draw something, take a picture of it, and then generate it with this tool.

Documentation: https://v0.dev/docs

What is the best React component library?

The best React component library will depend on your project's needs, but there are several high-level factors that will help narrow down the choice from the wide array of available libraries.

Popularity: If a UI library is popular, it means there is likely to be clear documentation and a large community to help you out if you get stuck.

Longevity: If it has corporate backing or is used by a lot of big applications, and receives frequent updates, you can be sure it will be around for a while.

Purpose: Does it have extensive functionality with a large variety of components to fit your needs?

Design: Does the styling align with your aesthetic brand?

What to consider when choosing a React component library

Once you've narrowed down the list of libraries to choose from, you can choose one that meets the finer specifics of your project. 

• Figure out how customizable the React component library is. If you already have very specific designs, then it may not be possible to bend the library to fit them. 

• Look at the documentation. Is it easy to follow? If you are new to using this library, this will be useful for troubleshooting and will help with the learning curve.

• Does it have components with the properties, callbacks, and other functionality you will need to implement in your code? React Bootstrap may be good for landing pages, whereas for advanced dashboards, you may want to choose a library like Ant Design or Mantine.

• Consider how the library will impact your application's performance. Does it offer features such as tree-shaking, lazy loading, infinite scroll, or modular imports to avoid bloating your bundle size? These considerations are especially important in larger applications.

• You should select a library that will be around for a long time; it would be undesirable to pick a library that ends up unused and unmaintained. Look at its history, the number of contributors, and in particular whether it has a corporate backer; these are all good signs for longevity.

How to implement a React component library

After selecting a library that suits your project's needs, you can install the library via a package manager such as npm or yarn. The components will then be globally available in your project for you to start implementing the user interface.

For instance, if you decided to build a blog, you could use a library to quickly set up an interface with components such as cards, navigational elements, and pagination for easy navigation, and then pair your React app with a headless CMS like Contentful, where you can set up an API to easily manage and display content.

Composable architectures and composable content: A match made for developers

React component libraries often form part of a composable architecture, which allows developers to leverage the work of others to reduce development time while improving the security and usability of their applications.

Composability doesn't end at the front end. The Contentful composable content platform lets you configure a back end, without writing any code, that can deliver your content as you define it, automatically optimized for your users’ devices, and delivered by a high-speed CDN, right from the edge. Our management interfaces are user friendly, developed for content creators and editors so that they can efficiently deploy content to your apps, websites, and other channels from a unified UI.

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