Compare
D3.js vs Recharts
React-based component library, higher-level API
D3.jsJavaScript library for bespoke data visualization
RechartsComposable charting library built on React componentsWhich to pick
Pick D3.js if you want…
- Low-level, programmable visualizations
- Bespoke visualizations
- Integrations with JavaScript or Observable (on D3.js' list, not Recharts')
Pick Recharts if you want…
- Composable React chart library
- Integrations with React or D3 submodules (on Recharts' list, not D3.js')
D3.js offers low-level data-driven visualizations, requiring more manual work.
Side by side
- What it is
- D3.js:D3.js is a JavaScript library for creating custom, dynamic data visualizations.
- Recharts:Recharts is a composable charting library built with React components and lightweight D3 modules.
- Best for
- D3.js:Low-level, programmable visualizations
- Recharts:Composable React chart library
- Who it’s for
- D3.js:Web developers and data analysts building interactive visualizations.
- Recharts:React developers who need flexible, reusable chart components.
- Pricing
- D3.js:Open source
- Recharts:Open source
- Open source
- D3.js:Yes, 113,789 GitHub stars
- Recharts:Yes, 27,609 GitHub stars
- Works with
- D3.js:JavaScript, Observable
- Recharts:React, D3 submodules
D3.js features
- Selections & Transitions. Create, update, and animate DOM elements based on data without a virtual DOM.
- Scales & Axes. Map data values to visual properties like position, size, and color, with built-in axis generators.
- Shapes & Layouts. Render arcs, lines, pies, treemaps, force-directed graphs and other geometric primitives.
- Interactions. Add panning, zooming, brushing, dragging and other reusable interactive behaviors.
- Geographic Maps. Support many map projections, adaptive sampling and clipping for spatial visualizations.
- Data Utilities. Parse CSV, format dates, work with color spaces, calendars and basic statistics.
- Observable Integration. Runs fully on Observable, enabling collaborative editing, versioning and live data connections.
Recharts features
- Composable. Build charts using decoupled, reusable React components.
- Reliable. Renders charts with SVG elements and minimal D3 dependencies.
- Powerful. Customize charts via component props and custom components.
- Annotations. Add horizontal/vertical lines, circles, rectangles, labels and freeform lines.
- Snap to Data. Optionally snap annotations to data points or axis ticks.
- DevTools Integration. Use RechartsDevtools for inspecting chart state in React.
D3.js vs Recharts FAQ
Is D3.js or Recharts free?+
Yes, both are free and open source.
Is D3.js or Recharts open source?+
Yes, both are open source: D3.js (d3/d3 on GitHub, ISC license) and Recharts (recharts/recharts on GitHub, MIT license).
Do D3.js and Recharts integrate with the same tools?+
Their integration lists don't overlap: D3.js lists JavaScript and Observable; Recharts lists React and D3 submodules.
On DevHunt
Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.