AwesomeDataviz

htmlwidgets

Framework for binding JavaScript visualization libraries to R, for use in R Markdown and Shiny.

Website GitHubCRAN
GitHub stars
800
CRAN downloads / week
170K
Commits, last 12 months
3
Contributors
24
Last commit
Latest release
v1.6.2Oct 30, 2023

Overview

htmlwidgets is an open-source R visualization package released under the MIT license. Its GitHub repository has 800 stars, 204 forks, and 24 contributors. It is maintained with 3 commits in the last 12 months; the most recent commit was on Apr 22, 2026. The latest release, v1.6.2, was published on Oct 30, 2023. On CRAN it is downloaded about 170K times per week.

Its GitHub description: HTML Widgets for R

Install

CRAN
install.packages("htmlwidgets")
v1.6.4

Development activity

Commits per month to the default branch over the last 12 complete months.

012 Oct 2025 Nov Dec Jan 2026 Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep
012 Oct 2025 Jan 2026 Apr Jul
3 commits from Oct 2025 to Sep 2026.
Show data as a table
MonthCommits
Oct 20251
Nov 20250
Dec 20250
Jan 20260
Feb 20260
Mar 20260
Apr 20262
May 20260
Jun 20260
Jul 20260
Aug 20260
Sep 20260

Popularity among R data visualization packages

ggplot2 7K Shiny 5.7K plotly (R) 2.7K patchwork 2.6K ggstatsplot 2.2K rayshader 2.2K htmlwidgets 800
ggplot2 7K Shiny 5.7K plotly (R) 2.7K patchwork 2.6K ggstatsplot 2.2K rayshader 2.2K htmlwidgets 800
GitHub stars for htmlwidgets and the most-starred alternatives.
Show data as a table
ToolStars
ggplot27,005
Shiny5,695
plotly (R)2,682
patchwork2,615
ggstatsplot2,206
rayshader2,182
htmlwidgets800

Alternatives to htmlwidgets

  • ggplot2

    A plotting system based on the grammar of graphics.

    7K starsRMIT

  • Shiny

    Framework for creating interactive applications/visualisations

    5.7K starsRMIT

  • plotly (R)

    Interactive charts (including adding interactivity to ggplot2 output), cartograms and simple network diagrams

    2.7K starsRMIT

  • patchwork

    Composes multiple ggplot2 plots into a single figure.

    2.6K starsRMIT

  • ggstatsplot

    Ggplot2-based plots with statistical test details included in the graphic.

    2.2K starsRMIT

  • rayshader

    2D and 3D mapping and data visualization in R, including 3D renders of ggplot2 plots.

    2.2K starsRGPL-3.0

htmlwidgets FAQ

Is htmlwidgets open source?

Yes. htmlwidgets is released under the MIT license, and its source code is on GitHub.

Is htmlwidgets still maintained?

Mostly. htmlwidgets had 3 commits in the last 12 months; the latest was on Apr 22, 2026.

How do I install htmlwidgets?

From CRAN: install.packages("htmlwidgets").

What are the best alternatives to htmlwidgets?

The most popular alternatives listed in R data visualization packages are ggplot2, Shiny, and plotly (R). See the full ranking.

What language is htmlwidgets written in?

htmlwidgets is primarily written in R, according to GitHub.

Data: GitHub API, CRAN. Updated Oct 5, 2026.