Side-by-side NPM package comparison
Version 10.28.4
Fast 3kb React-compatible Virtual DOM library.
Version 19.2.4
React is a JavaScript library for building user interfaces.
Choosing between Preact and React? Here's a data-driven comparison based on real npm data — downloads, bundle size, health scores, and more — to help you decide which package fits your project best.
React leads with 93.9M weekly downloads — roughly 6.8x more. Preact has 13.7M weekly downloads. Higher download counts generally indicate broader community adoption and a larger ecosystem of tutorials, plugins, and support.
React has the smallest gzipped bundle at 2.9 KB. Preact comes in at 4.6 KB. A smaller bundle size means faster page loads, which improves user experience and Core Web Vitals scores.
Preact has an overall health score of 85/100 (very good), with strong maintenance, security, popularity scores. React has an overall health score of 85/100 (very good), with strong maintenance, security, popularity scores. Health scores are calculated from maintenance activity, code quality, security posture, popularity, and stability metrics.
Choose Preact if you value massive community and ecosystem, minimal bundle footprint, actively maintained, strong security track record. Choose React if you value massive community and ecosystem, minimal bundle footprint, actively maintained, strong security track record.
Both Preact and React are solid choices for JavaScript development. Preact has the edge in overall health score (85/100), while each package brings unique strengths to the table. Evaluate them based on your project's priorities — whether that's community size, bundle efficiency, or maintenance activity — and choose the one that aligns best with your requirements.