Madge vs Webpack Bundle Analyzer
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
Draws a graph of your JavaScript module dependencies and finds circular ones.
Open source · MIT
Webpack plugin and CLI that shows your bundle's contents as an interactive zoomable treemap.
The short answer
Choose Madge if you need…
- JavaScript developers untangling a large codebase with many imports
- Teams who want to catch circular dependencies before they cause bugs
- Anyone who wants a picture of how a project's modules fit together
- Projects that use CSS preprocessors like Sass, Stylus or Less
Choose Webpack Bundle Analyzer if you need…
- Frontend developers trying to shrink a slow-loading webpack bundle
- Teams checking whether an unexpected library ended up in their bundle
- Anyone who wants to compare module sizes in a visual, clickable report
Side-by-side
| Madge | Webpack Bundle Analyzer | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Dev tool | Dev tool |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 10.2k | 12.7k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | JavaScript | JavaScript |
| Last code update | 10 months ago | 10 days ago |
What each one is
Madge
Madge reads your source code and works out which files import which others, then shows that as a visual graph. It can also list circular dependencies, orphaned files, and modules with no dependencies. It works with CommonJS, AMD and ES6 modules, and with Sass, Stylus and Less files.
Webpack Bundle Analyzer
When a web app is built with webpack, the output files (bundles) can get large and it is hard to see why. This tool reads the build output and draws an interactive treemap, where each box's size reflects how much space a module takes up, so you can zoom in and spot what is taking the most room. It can also report gzip, Brotli, or Zstandard sizes.
Best for
Madge
- JavaScript developers untangling a large codebase with many imports
- Teams who want to catch circular dependencies before they cause bugs
- Anyone who wants a picture of how a project's modules fit together
- Projects that use CSS preprocessors like Sass, Stylus or Less
Webpack Bundle Analyzer
- Frontend developers trying to shrink a slow-loading webpack bundle
- Teams checking whether an unexpected library ended up in their bundle
- Anyone who wants to compare module sizes in a visual, clickable report
Strengths
Madge
- Supports several module systems (AMD, CommonJS, ES6) and CSS preprocessors
- Offers both a command-line tool and a Node.js API
- Has a configuration file option (.madgerc or package.json) for styling the graph
Webpack Bundle Analyzer
- Shows interactive, zoomable treemap of bundle contents
- Parses minified bundles to estimate real module sizes
- Supports gzip, Brotli, and Zstandard size measurements
Not ideal for
Madge
- Non-developers, since it runs from the command line or Node.js code
- Projects that need dependency analysis for languages other than those listed in the README
- Anyone wanting to generate images without Graphviz installed, since image output depends on it
Webpack Bundle Analyzer
- Projects that do not use webpack, since the tool is built around webpack output
- People who only need a quick number rather than a visual breakdown
- Non-developers, because it requires editing a webpack config or running a build command
Trade-offs
Madge
- Image output requires Graphviz to be installed separately
- The README is truncated here, so details on newer module syntax support are unclear
- Relies on an external dependency-tree library for extraction, so edge cases depend on that library
Webpack Bundle Analyzer
- Requires webpack, so it does not help with other bundlers based on the README
- Needs to be added to a build configuration, which takes some setup knowledge
- README was truncated, so some options and details could not be fully verified
Getting started
Madge
Install madge globally with npm
npm -g install madgeInstall Graphviz on Mac OS X (optional)
brew install graphviz || port install graphvizWebpack Bundle Analyzer
Install with NPM
npm install --save-dev webpack-bundle-analyzerInstall with Yarn
yarn add -D webpack-bundle-analyzerFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Madge and Webpack Bundle Analyzer?
Madge: Draws a graph of your JavaScript module dependencies and finds circular ones. Webpack Bundle Analyzer: Webpack plugin and CLI that shows your bundle's contents as an interactive zoomable treemap. Madge suits javascript developers untangling a large codebase with many imports, while Webpack Bundle Analyzer suits frontend developers trying to shrink a slow-loading webpack bundle.
Are Madge and Webpack Bundle Analyzer free?
Madge: Free and open source. Webpack Bundle Analyzer: Free and open source.
Is Madge or Webpack Bundle Analyzer more popular?
Webpack Bundle Analyzer has more GitHub stars (12.7k) than Madge (10.2k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Madge and Webpack Bundle Analyzer?
Other options people compare them with include webpack, Parcel, Prettier, Stylus, patch-package.
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.