Slidev vs Spectacle (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Slidev and Spectacle share a 2.6 GPA, both are free, so the choice depends on which features you need.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and 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 Slidev if
- Fits if you give talks with code on screen and write slides in a text editor
- Works for developers who want slides as a web page with live components
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you do not use a command line, as it needs Node.js 22.12 or later
- Skip it if you want drag-and-drop, as there is no visual editor
- Watch out: the default PPTX export turns slides into pictures, so text is not selectable
- Watch out: interactive features may not survive export, so the web build is the safe way to share
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
| 2.6GPASlidevGood | 2.6GPASpectacleGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree under the MIT licence, with no paid plan. You can run it locally with Node.js or start in the browser through StackBlitz. | AFree under an open licence that anyone can download and run, with no server to host. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree outright, with no account and nothing to buy. | AThe whole thing is free, with no plan to outgrow. |
| Features | COne Markdown file, code-first slides, Vue components, recording and export. It does that job fully, but it is a smaller one, with no visual editor. | 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 | DNo store rating on record. It needs Node.js 22.12 or later and a command line, and export needs the playwright-chromium package. | DYou write the deck in code or markup and run it yourself, with no visual editor. |
| Platforms and integrations | CRuns on a computer through Node, with a hosted web build for sharing. One kind of device, and no phone or app version. | CRuns in the browser and installs through npm. Works with React and MDX, but there is no desktop or phone app. |
| Best for | developer slide decks in Markdown with Vue | 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: Slidev and Spectacle. How we grade
Price against what you get
Slidev 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 Slidev 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
In commonFree planWebOpen sourceMarkdownPresentations
At a glance
| Slidev | Spectacle | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Free and open source under the MIT license. There is no paid plan. | Free under the MIT license. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Anthony Fu and contributors | Nearform |
| Price read from | sli.dev | nearform.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Slidev
- It is a command-line tool that needs Node.js 22.12 or later, with no visual drag-and-drop editor.
- Exporting to PDF, PPTX or PNG through the CLI needs the playwright-chromium package installed.
- The default PPTX export turns slides into images, so text is not selectable. Editable PPTX is CLI-only, and some elements such as SVG and videos stay as pictures.
- Interactive features may not survive export, so interactive decks are best shared as a hosted web build.
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
Slidev
- One Markdown file
- The whole deck lives in a single plain-text file in an extended Markdown format, so it works with Git and any editor.
- Code-first slides
- Code snippets use Shiki highlighting, and the Monaco editor is built in for live coding during a talk.
- Vue components and interactivity
- Slides can include Vue components and anything else a web app can do, such as iframes or API requests.
- Themes and addons
- Themes and addons are shared as npm packages and applied with a line of configuration. The site keeps a gallery of both.
- Recording and camera view
- Built-in recording and a camera view let you record the screen and camera, or show yourself in the corner while presenting.
- Export and hosting
- Decks export to PDF, PPTX (as images, or as editable shapes through the CLI), PNG and Markdown, or build into a static single-page app.
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
Slidev
Open source$0
The full project, released under the MIT license. Run it locally with Node.js or start in the browser through StackBlitz.
Spectacle
Open source$0
Installed with npm install spectacle; MIT-licensed code on GitHub.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Slidev or Spectacle?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Slidev and Spectacle are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Slidev or Spectacle?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Slidev 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.