What is the main difference between Lightdash and Shaper?

Lightdash and Shaper are both data visualization tools but differ in their approach, features, and target audience. Compare their GitHub stats, technology stack, and community adoption to make the best choice.

Which is better: Lightdash or Shaper?

The choice between Lightdash and Shaper depends on your specific needs, technical requirements, and team preferences. Both are quality open source solutions with active communities.

Can I migrate from Lightdash to Shaper?

Migration between Lightdash and Shaper is possible but requires careful planning. Consider data export/import capabilities, feature parity, and potential workflow changes.

Stellar Hosted – Managed Open Source software hosting in the EU: secure, compliant, fast.

Learn more

Lightdash vs Shaper

Learn how Lightdash and Shaper differ in their key features, development activity, technology stack and community adoption, so you can decide which of these data visualization tools is best for you.

Lightdash

Self-serve analytics platform that transforms dbt models into interactive dashboards, enabling data-driven decisions across organizations.

Visit Lightdash Read more

6,198stars+36(+0.6%)

Last 30 days

Last commit
6 hours ago
Repository age
6 years
Version
3.53.6
License
MIT
Self-hosted
Yes
Repository
lightdash/lightdash

Shaper

Build interactive analytics dashboards with SQL and embed them directly into your product. Open-source platform with full data control and DuckDB flexibility.

Visit Shaper Read more

1,265stars+14(+1.1%)

Last 30 days

Last commit
10 hours ago
Repository age
2 years
Version
v0.26.1
License
MPL-2.0
Repository
taleshape-com/shaper

Detailed Comparison

Lightdash appears to have several advantages over Shaper, particularly in popularity, maturity, licensing and features. Consider your specific needs regarding popularity, growth, activity, maturity, licensing and features when making your decision.

Lightdash wins

Community & Popularity

Lightdash significantly outpaces Shaper in community adoption with 6,198 stars compared to 1,265 stars on GitHub. This 4.9x difference suggests Lightdash has a much larger and more active community. In terms of developer contributions, Lightdash has 793 forks, indicating moderate developer engagement.

Shaper wins

Growth Momentum

Shaper is growing faster, adding 14 stars in the last 30 days (+1.1%) against adding 36 stars for Lightdash (+0.6%). Shaper is the smaller project of the two, so it is closing the gap rather than extending a lead.

Comparable

Development Activity

Both projects show recent activity, with Lightdash last updated 6 hours ago and Shaper 10 hours ago.

Lightdash wins

Project Maturity

Lightdash has been in development longer, starting 6 years ago, compared to Shaper which began 2 years ago. This 4.2-year head start suggests Lightdash may have more mature features and established processes.

Lightdash wins

Licensing

Lightdash uses the MIT license, which is more permissive than Shaper's MPL-2.0 license, potentially offering greater flexibility for commercial use and integration.

Comparable

Use Cases & Features

Both tools serve similar use cases in Data Visualization, BI Platforms. However, they also have distinct specializations: Lightdash also focuses on Semantic Layer Platforms.

Lightdash wins

Hosting & Deployment

Lightdash provides self-hosting options for complete data control and customization, while Shaper may be primarily cloud-based or require different deployment approaches.