Frontend Slides vs Marp
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 Claude Code skill that builds single-file HTML slide decks, or converts PowerPoint files to web slides.
Open source · MIT
An entry point to the Marp family of tools for making slide decks from plain Markdown.
The short answer
Choose Frontend Slides if you need…
- Non-designers who want good-looking web presentations without writing CSS or JavaScript
- People who already use Claude Code and want to make slides from a chat
- Users who have an existing .pptx and want to move it to a web format
- Developers who want slides they can edit as plain HTML files
Choose Marp if you need…
- People who prefer writing slides as Markdown text rather than in a visual editor
- Developers who want to generate slide decks from code or scripts
- VS Code users who want a live preview of their slides
- Anyone looking for an overview of the Marp ecosystem before choosing a component
Side-by-side
| Frontend Slides | Marp | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | AI model / agent | Other |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 31.7k | 12.7k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Clone and build from source | See the README |
| Main language | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Last code update | 5 months ago | 3 months ago |
What each one is
Frontend Slides
Frontend Slides is a skill (a set of instructions and support files) for coding agents such as Claude Code that creates presentations as HTML pages. It asks about your content, shows a few visual style previews for you to pick from, and then generates the deck. It can also convert an existing PowerPoint file into a web slideshow while keeping images and text.
Marp
Marp is a set of open-source projects for writing presentations in plain Markdown text and converting them into slides. This repository is mainly a hub that links to the family's parts: the Marpit framework, Marp Core, Marp CLI for exporting to HTML, PDF, PPTX or images, and a VS Code extension for previewing decks. The README also links to the project website and an awesome list of Marp resources.
Best for
Frontend Slides
- Non-designers who want good-looking web presentations without writing CSS or JavaScript
- People who already use Claude Code and want to make slides from a chat
- Users who have an existing .pptx and want to move it to a web format
- Developers who want slides they can edit as plain HTML files
Marp
- People who prefer writing slides as Markdown text rather than in a visual editor
- Developers who want to generate slide decks from code or scripts
- VS Code users who want a live preview of their slides
- Anyone looking for an overview of the Marp ecosystem before choosing a component
Strengths
Frontend Slides
- Output is single HTML files with inline CSS and JavaScript, with no npm or build tools needed
- Style discovery shows visual previews, so you do not have to describe your taste in words
- MIT licensed and free to inspect and modify
Marp
- Slides are plain Markdown files that work with version control and any text editor
- Multiple export formats are supported through the CLI, according to the README
- Released under the MIT license with an active project and a large community
Not ideal for
Frontend Slides
- Users who need a visual drag-and-drop editor, since the README describes a chat-driven workflow
- People without a coding agent installed, because the skill is built to run inside one
- Teams that need slides edited collaboratively in the browser, which the README does not mention
Marp
- Users who need a drag-and-drop slide editor, since this project is text-based (reason: the README describes Markdown writing, not a visual editor)
- People who need the classic Marp app, which the README says is archived (reason: the README points to a gravesite for the old app)
Trade-offs
Frontend Slides
- Depends on a coding agent such as Claude Code; the README says other agents may not use the same command surface
- The README is truncated, so details of the bold template pack and some setup steps are not fully verified here
Marp
- This repository is a directory of links, so you must install the individual components to actually make slides
- The README does not give installation commands for the components, so setup details must come from their own repos
- Some older parts such as Marp Web, Marp React and Marp Vue are listed as outdated or inactive
Getting started
Frontend Slides
Install via Claude Code marketplace (run first)
/plugin marketplace add https://github.com/zarazhangrui/frontend-slidesInstall the plugin (run second, in a separate message)
/plugin install frontend-slides@frontend-slidesMarp
Clone this repository
git clone https://github.com/marp-team/marpFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Frontend Slides and Marp?
Frontend Slides: A Claude Code skill that builds single-file HTML slide decks, or converts PowerPoint files to web slides. Marp: An entry point to the Marp family of tools for making slide decks from plain Markdown. Frontend Slides suits non-designers who want good-looking web presentations without writing css or javascript, while Marp suits people who prefer writing slides as markdown text rather than in a visual editor.
Are Frontend Slides and Marp free?
Frontend Slides: Free and open source. Marp: Free and open source.
Is Frontend Slides or Marp more popular?
Frontend Slides has more GitHub stars (31.7k) than Marp (12.7k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Frontend Slides and Marp?
Other options people compare them with include reveal.js, Slidev, Hermes Agent, AI Berkshire, PPT Master.
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.