Comparing MUI vs daisyUI. Which one is better in 2025?

MUI daisyUI

Looking for a MUI alternative? This page compares MUI and daisyUI, two popular UI component libraries. We are comparing features, size, efficiency and usage data to help you choose which component library is better for your next project.

MUI
daisyUI
MIT
License
Open source MIT License
MIT
License
Open source MIT License
Only React
Frameworks
MUI only works with React
ALL
Frameworks
daisyUI is framework agnostic and works everywhere
32
Unique components
MUI has 51 components, 32 of them are unique – for example pagination and button group are considered as same.
57
Unique components
daisyUI has 61 components, 57 of them are unique – for example pagination and button group are considered as same.
2
Built-in Themes
MUI has 2 themes
35
Built-in Themes
daisyUI has 35 themes
No
Supports more than two themes
Does not support more than 2 themes at the same time
Yes
Supports more than two themes
daisyUI supports unlimited themes at the same time, allowing for dynamic theme switching.
575kB
JavaScript size
Imported JavaScript bundle size (minified)
0
JavaScript size
daisyUI doesn't ship JavaScript to browsers
85
Dependencies
MUI has 85 third-party dependencies. Using more third-party dependencies increases the risk of security vulnerabilities, compatibility problems, and long-term maintenance headaches from deprecated packages.
0
Dependencies
daisyUI has no dependencies. It's immune to 3rd party vulnerabilities, dependency version mismatch, and deprecation issues.
22.8MB
Dependency size
0
Dependency size
95300
GitHub stars
36000
GitHub stars
In GitHub's top 400 repositories of all time
1400000
Used by open source projects
Based on GitHub's public repositories
392000
Used by open source projects
Based on GitHub's public repositories
5000000
NPM downloads
Weekly downloads from NPM
390000
NPM downloads
Weekly downloads from NPM
No
CDN
MUI CSS file is not available on CDN
Yes
CDN
daisyUI CSS file is available on CDN
No
Global customizations
MUI requires changing JavaScript props one by one at build time to do design token customization
Yes
Global customizations
daisyUI provides tokens, root-level CSS variables and component-level CSS variables that let you adjust colors, sizes, spacing, radius, and other styles to match your design.
No
works without Node.js
MUI requires a Node.js environment
Yes
works without Node.js
daisyUI can be used as a standalone file, with Tailwind CSS standalone version. This is useful for projects without a Node.js environment.
No
No-build version
MUI does not provide micro CSS files for each component
Yes
No-build version
daisyUI provides micro CSS files for each component
No
P3 colors
MUI does not use wide-gamut P3 colors by default
Yes
P3 colors
daisyUI uses wide-gamut P3 colors
Yes
RTL support
MUI supports right-to-left (RTL) layouts
Yes
RTL support
daisyUI supports right-to-left (RTL) layouts
No
Runtime CSS customization
MUI customizations requires changing styles at build time
Yes
Runtime CSS customization
daisyUI uses CSS variables for design customization at runtime
No
Native CSS nesting
MUI doesn not use native CSS nesting
Yes
Native CSS nesting
daisyUI uses native CSS nesting, reducing the CSS file size
1700
Open GitHub issues
As of April 2025
22
Open GitHub issues
As of April 2025

Install daisyUI

1. Install daisyUI as a Node package:

npm i -D daisyui@latest
pnpm add -D daisyui@latest
yarn add -D daisyui@latest
bun add -D daisyui@latest
deno i -D npm:daisyui@latest

2. Add daisyUI to app.css:

@import "tailwindcss";
@plugin "daisyui";

This comparison page is for informational purposes only and does not mean to criticize libraries or projects. Information is based on GitHub public data, NPM registry data and official documentation websites of the libraries. If you found any outdated information, please open a PR to update it. All trademarks, logos and brand names are the property of their respective owners.