eww vs Waybar
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
A Rust tool for building your own custom desktop widgets on Linux window managers.
Open source · MIT
A customizable status bar for Wayland desktops like Sway and Hyprland.
The short answer
Choose eww if you need…
- Linux users who run a tiling or minimal window manager and want custom bars or panels
- People who enjoy designing their own desktop look and are comfortable editing config files
- Users who want to replace a default status bar with something fully customized
Choose Waybar if you need…
- Sway or Hyprland users who want a configurable status bar
- People comfortable editing JSON and CSS-style config files
- Users who want modules for battery, network, audio, or media on a Wayland setup
- Tiling window manager users on wlroots-based compositors
Side-by-side
| eww | Waybar | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | App | App |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 12.7k | 12.1k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Clone and build from source | Clone and build from source |
| Main language | Rust | C++ |
| Last code update | 4 months ago | 9 days ago |
What each one is
eww
Eww (Elkowars Wacky Widgets) is a standalone widget system written in Rust. It lets you create custom on-screen widgets such as bars and panels for your desktop, and it is designed to work with any window manager. People use it to build personalized desktop setups, often shared in the Linux customization community.
Waybar
Waybar is a top bar for Linux desktops that use Wayland, the newer display system that replaces X11. It shows workspaces, the clock, battery, network, audio, and many other status items, and you control what appears and how it looks through config and style files. It is aimed at people who run tiling window managers such as Sway and want a bar they can fully customize.
Best for
eww
- Linux users who run a tiling or minimal window manager and want custom bars or panels
- People who enjoy designing their own desktop look and are comfortable editing config files
- Users who want to replace a default status bar with something fully customized
Waybar
- Sway or Hyprland users who want a configurable status bar
- People comfortable editing JSON and CSS-style config files
- Users who want modules for battery, network, audio, or media on a Wayland setup
- Tiling window manager users on wlroots-based compositors
Strengths
eww
- Works with any window manager, not tied to one desktop environment
- Written in Rust and open source under the MIT license
- Has an active community sharing example setups and guides
Waybar
- Supports many compositors, including Sway, River, Hyprland, and Niri, per the README table
- Large library of modules documented on the project wiki
- Released under the MIT license, which permits free use and modification
Not ideal for
eww
- Users who want a ready-made desktop with no configuration, since widgets must be written by hand
- People on Windows or macOS, as the README frames it around Linux window managers and GTK
- Anyone who needs a stable, fully documented configuration format, since the README notes some examples use an old syntax
Waybar
- Users on X11, since the README describes it as a Wayland bar
- Users who want a bar that works without editing config files, since it expects manual setup
- Users on GNOME or KDE desktops, since it is built for Sway and wlroots-based compositors
Trade-offs
eww
- Requires writing your own widget configuration, which has a learning curve
- The README notes some examples still use an older configuration syntax
- The latest release, v0.6.0, has no prebuilt binaries, so you will likely need to build it yourself
Waybar
- Setup requires editing config and style files, and the README points to a wiki for details
- Many optional modules need extra libraries, so the dependency list is long
- The latest release is 0.15.0 and the README notes no binaries are provided, so you typically build or install from a distribution package
Getting started
Waybar
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/Alexays/WaybarEnter the project folder
cd WaybarFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between eww and Waybar?
eww: A Rust tool for building your own custom desktop widgets on Linux window managers. Waybar: A customizable status bar for Wayland desktops like Sway and Hyprland. eww suits linux users who run a tiling or minimal window manager and want custom bars or panels, while Waybar suits sway or hyprland users who want a configurable status bar.
Are eww and Waybar free?
eww: Free and open source. Waybar: Free and open source.
Is eww or Waybar more popular?
eww has more GitHub stars (12.7k) than Waybar (12.1k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to eww and Waybar?
Other options people compare them with include Polybar, giscus, sway.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.