Lets-Plot for Kotlin vs XChart
A data-driven comparison of two Java, Kotlin & Scala visualization libraries: popularity, development activity, licensing and installation. Updated .
Lets-Plot for KotlinGrammar of graphics plotting API for Kotlin, built on Lets-Plot.
XChartLightweight Java library for plotting data.
Key differences
- XChart has 3.3× as many GitHub stars as Lets-Plot for Kotlin (1.6K vs 487).
- XChart had more development activity over the last 12 months: 307 commits vs 129.
- Lets-Plot for Kotlin is licensed under MIT; XChart under Apache-2.0.
- Lets-Plot for Kotlin is written primarily in Kotlin, XChart in Java.
- XChart is the older project: its repository was created in 2011, Lets-Plot for Kotlin's in 2019.
By the numbers
- Lets-Plot for Kotlin
- XChart
Show data as a table
| Metric | Lets-Plot for Kotlin | XChart |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | 487 | 1,596 |
| Commits, last 12 months | 129 | 307 |
| Contributors | 15 | 60 |
| Forks | 39 | 398 |
Development activity
Commits per month to each default branch, last 12 complete months.
- Lets-Plot for Kotlin
- XChart
Show data as a table
| Month | Lets-Plot for Kotlin | XChart |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 1 | 11 |
| Nov 2025 | 30 | 0 |
| Dec 2025 | 12 | 0 |
| Jan 2026 | 1 | 0 |
| Feb 2026 | 1 | 0 |
| Mar 2026 | 67 | 0 |
| Apr 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| May 2026 | 5 | 145 |
| Jun 2026 | 11 | 54 |
| Jul 2026 | 1 | 97 |
| Aug 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2026 | 0 | 0 |
Side by side
| Attribute | Lets-Plot for Kotlin | XChart |
|---|---|---|
| Description | Grammar of graphics plotting API for Kotlin, built on Lets-Plot. | Lightweight Java library for plotting data. |
| Category | Java, Kotlin & Scala visualization libraries | Java, Kotlin & Scala visualization libraries |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Kotlin | Java |
| Status | Maintained | Active |
| Latest release | v4.15.0 () | – |
| Last commit | ||
| Repository created | ||
| Open issues | 10 | 48 |
| Install | implementation("org.jetbrains.lets-plot:lets-plot-kotlin-jvm:4.10.0") | implementation("org.knowm.xchart:xchart:3.8.8") |
Which should you choose?
Popularity and activity are only part of the story. Consider which ecosystem you work in, the chart types and interactions you need, how much data you render, and whether the license fits your project. Both tool pages list alternatives if neither is quite right.
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Lets-Plot for Kotlin
Grammar of graphics plotting API for Kotlin, built on Lets-Plot.
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XChart
Lightweight Java library for plotting data.