Filament vs Livewire
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 PHP framework for building Laravel admin panels and app interfaces quickly.
Open source · MIT
A PHP framework for Laravel that builds interactive web components without writing JavaScript.
The short answer
Choose Filament if you need…
- Laravel developers building internal admin panels
- Teams that want data tables and forms without writing front-end code from scratch
- Developers who already use the TALL stack (Tailwind, Alpine, Laravel, Livewire)
- Projects that need dashboards with live, data-driven widgets
Choose Livewire if you need…
- PHP developers who already use Laravel
- Teams wanting interactive pages without a separate JavaScript frontend
- Developers building forms, dashboards, or other dynamic UI inside Laravel apps
Side-by-side
| Filament | Livewire | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Library | Framework |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 32.4k | 23.6k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | PHP | PHP |
| Last code update | 4 days ago | 5 days ago |
What each one is
Filament
Filament is an open-source UI framework for Laravel, the PHP web framework. It provides ready-made building blocks such as tables, forms, read-only record views, notifications, dashboard widgets, and action modals, so developers can build admin panels and app interfaces without designing every screen from scratch. It is built on Livewire, Alpine.js, and Tailwind CSS.
Livewire
Livewire is a full-stack framework for Laravel, the PHP web framework. It lets developers build dynamic user interface components while staying in PHP rather than writing most of the front-end code by hand. The README describes it only briefly, so details beyond that come from the official documentation it links to.
Best for
Filament
- Laravel developers building internal admin panels
- Teams that want data tables and forms without writing front-end code from scratch
- Developers who already use the TALL stack (Tailwind, Alpine, Laravel, Livewire)
- Projects that need dashboards with live, data-driven widgets
Livewire
- PHP developers who already use Laravel
- Teams wanting interactive pages without a separate JavaScript frontend
- Developers building forms, dashboards, or other dynamic UI inside Laravel apps
Strengths
Filament
- Builds on a well-known Laravel stack, so existing Laravel knowledge transfers
- Provides a broad set of components (tables, forms, infolists, notifications, widgets) out of the box
- Open source under the MIT license with a large community (about 32,000 stars)
Livewire
- Keeps UI logic in PHP, so one language covers much of the stack
- Has an official documentation site linked from the README
- Open-source under the permissive MIT license
Not ideal for
Filament
- Non-PHP projects, since it requires Laravel and PHP (the README lists PHP 8.2+ and Laravel v11+)
- People who want a no-code tool; this is a developer framework
- Projects needing a completely custom visual design system, since it ships with its own opinionated UI
Livewire
- People not using Laravel, since the project is built specifically for it
- Projects needing a heavy client-side single-page app, as this approach keeps logic on the server
Trade-offs
Filament
- Requires familiarity with Laravel and PHP; it is not beginner-friendly for people new to web development
- Tied to the Laravel and Livewire ecosystem, so it is a poor fit for other back ends
- The README is truncated here, so details on version compatibility and upgrade paths are not confirmed in this entry
Livewire
- Tied to Laravel, so it is not useful for other PHP or non-PHP stacks
- README gives little detail on features, so the docs must be read separately
- Contributor setup needs Composer, Node tooling, and ChromeDriver for full test runs
Getting started
Filament
Install via Composer
git clone https://github.com/filamentphp/filamentLivewire
Clone the repository (contributors)
git clone git@github.com:livewire/livewire.git && cd livewireInstall dependencies and set up ChromeDriver (contributors)
composer setupFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Filament and Livewire?
Filament: A PHP framework for building Laravel admin panels and app interfaces quickly. Livewire: A PHP framework for Laravel that builds interactive web components without writing JavaScript. Filament suits laravel developers building internal admin panels, while Livewire suits php developers who already use laravel.
Are Filament and Livewire free?
Filament: Free and open source. Livewire: Free and open source.
Is Filament or Livewire more popular?
Filament has more GitHub stars (32.4k) than Livewire (23.6k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Filament and Livewire?
Other options people compare them with include react-admin, React Hook Form, Rich, daisyUI, Puck.
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.