remark vs Spectacle (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, remark and Spectacle share a 2.6 GPA, both are free, so the choice depends on which features you need.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Which one is for you
Pick remark if
- Fits if you write notes in markdown
- Works for developers who keep slides in version control
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want to drag shapes around, as there is no visual editor
- Skip it if you need to know it is kept up, since the site does not say
- Watch out: you need HTML and CSS to change how it looks
Pick Spectacle if
- Fits if you already write React
- Works for developers who want decks kept in code
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you do not write React, as there is no visual editor
- Skip it if you need ready-made themes, since the site does not list them
- Watch out: exports are not described in detail on its pages
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAremarkGood | 2.6GPASpectacleGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree under an open licence that anyone can download and run, with no server to host. | AFree under an open licence that anyone can download and run, with no server to host. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe whole thing is free, with no plan to outgrow. | AThe whole thing is free, with no plan to outgrow. |
| Features | CIt shows markdown as slides and does that job fully. The vendor's page is short, and the listing says to check GitHub for maintenance activity. | CIt builds decks in code and does that job fully. The documentation does not list themes or exports in detail, so gaps are likely. |
| Ease of use | DYou write the deck in code or markup and run it yourself, with no visual editor. | DYou write the deck in code or markup and run it yourself, with no visual editor. |
| Platforms and integrations | CRuns in the browser from a file you keep. No apps and no integrations listed. | CRuns in the browser and installs through npm. Works with React and MDX, but there is no desktop or phone app. |
| Best for | slides written in markdown | decks written in React |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: remark and Spectacle. How we grade
Price against what you get
remark has no paid plan and scores 1.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Spectacle has no paid plan and scores 1.7.
On this chart the two sit in the same place: the same score for the same starting price. Of the other presentation tools on the chart, none scores higher than remark for less, and none scores higher than Spectacle for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
At a glance
| remark | Spectacle | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Free under the MIT license. | Free under the MIT license. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | gnab (open-source project) | Nearform |
| Price read from | remarkjs.com | nearform.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
remark
- Aimed at people who know HTML and CSS; there is no visual editor.
- The project's own site describes it simply; check the GitHub repository for current maintenance activity.
Spectacle
- Requires JavaScript and React knowledge; there is no visual editor.
- Decks run in the browser; the pages describe no desktop or mobile app.
- The documentation site does not list ready-made themes or exports in detail.
Key features
remark
- Markdown slides
- Slides are written in Markdown with extensions, separated by lines of dashes.
- Presenter mode
- A presenter view with a cloned slideshow window.
- Syntax highlighting
- Supports a range of languages in code blocks.
- Slide scaling
- Slides scale to different screen sizes.
- Touch support
- Swipe to move between slides on phones and tablets.
Spectacle
- JSX and MDX decks
- Write slides as React components or as MDX.
- Live code preview
- Show the running result of code inside the deck.
- Interactivity
- Add clickable elements to slides.
- Theming
- Includes auto-formatting, theming and image dimming out of the box.
Plans
remark
Open source$0
MIT-licensed code on GitHub.
Spectacle
Open source$0
Installed with npm install spectacle; MIT-licensed code on GitHub.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, remark or Spectacle?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both remark and Spectacle are free to use.
Which has a free plan, remark or Spectacle?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both remark and Spectacle have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.