Comparing Radix vs shadcn/ui. Which one is better in 2025?

Radix shadcn/ui

Looking for a Radix alternative? This page compares Radix and shadcn/ui, 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.

Radix
shadcn/ui
MIT
License
Open source MIT License
MIT
License
Open source MIT License
Only React
Frameworks
Radix Themes only works with React
Only React
Frameworks
shadcn only works with React
28
Unique components
Radix Themes has 37 components, 28 of them are unique – for example radio and radio group are considered as same.
43
Unique components
shadcn has 50 components, 43 of them are unique – for example pagination and button group are considered as same.
2
Built-in Themes
Radix has 2 themes, colors are customizable but either for light or dark themes.
2
Built-in Themes
shadcn has 2 themes
No
Supports more than two themes
Does not support more than 2 themes at the same time
No
Supports more than two themes
Does not support more than 2 themes at the same time
284kB
JavaScript size
Imported JavaScript bundle size (minified)
2000kB
JavaScript size
Imported JavaScript bundle size (minified) of dependencies installed by shadcn CLI
72
Dependencies
Radix Themes has 72 third-party dependencies. Using more third-party dependencies increases the risk of security vulnerabilities, compatibility problems, and long-term maintenance headaches from deprecated packages.
159
Dependencies
shadcn CLI installs 159 third-party dependencies (Not including React and Tailwind CSS). Using more third-party dependencies increases the risk of security vulnerabilities, compatibility problems, and long-term maintenance headaches from deprecated packages.
11.9MB
Dependency size
91MB
Dependency size
6600
GitHub stars
84900
GitHub stars
?
Used by open source projects
No data available
22600
Used by open source projects
Based on GitHub's public repositories
165000
NPM downloads
Weekly downloads from NPM
173000
NPM downloads
Weekly downloads from NPM
No
CDN
Radix Themes CSS file is not available on CDN
No
CDN
shadcn CSS file is not available on CDN
No
Semantic class names
Radix Themes does not use semantic CSS class names. Using semantic and descriptive CSS class names improves readability and maintainability of code independent of the current framework.
No
Semantic class names
shadcn does not use semantic CSS class names. Using semantic and descriptive CSS class names improves readability and maintainability of code independent of the current framework.
No
Global customizations
Radix Themes requires changing JavaScript props one by one at build time to do design token customization
No
Global customizations
shadcn requires changing JavaScript props one by one at build time to do design token customization
No
works without Node.js
Radix Themes requires a Node.js environment
No
works without Node.js
shadcn requires a Node.js environment
No
No-build version
Radix Themes does not provide micro CSS files for each component
No
No-build version
shadcn does not provide micro CSS files for each component
Yes
P3 colors
Radix Themes uses wide-gamut P3 colors
No
P3 colors
shadcn does not use wide-gamut P3 colors by default
Yes
RTL support
Radix Themes supports right-to-left (RTL) layouts
No
RTL support
shadcn does not supports right-to-left (RTL) layouts by default
No
Runtime CSS customization
Radix Themes customizations requires changing JavaScript props at build time
No
Runtime CSS customization
shadcn customizations requires changing JavaScript props at build time
No
Native CSS nesting
Radix Themes doesn not use native CSS nesting
No
Native CSS nesting
shadcn doesn not use native CSS nesting
104
Open GitHub issues
As of April 2025
895
Open GitHub issues
As of April 2025
No
Automatic install and update
Components are installed individually via the CLI tool rather than as a package. This requires installing more dependencies for each component.
Yes
Requires maintenance
shadcn components exist in your codebase meaning you should manually maintain, debug and develop them. They will not receive updates and bug fixes automatically .Updating them manually according to shadcn changes means resetting all your customizations on each update.
No
Semantic versioning for components
shadcn works as a registry of components, rather than a library. The CLI tool generates component files in your project. After that, there's no versioning, no updates, and no compatibility guarantees between components.

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.