Wails

Judgement

What it is

Framework or platform

What it does

A framework for building desktop apps with a Go backend and a web frontend (React, Vue, Svelte and others), compiled into one binary that uses the system webview.

Adopt it when

Your team writes Go and wants small desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux without shipping a full Chromium like Electron.

Watch out

Version 3 is new and changed many APIs from v2, and system webviews render slightly differently on each platform.

Ready for

Usable

Runs as

Library and command line

Built with

Go, TypeScript, WebView2 and WebKit

How established

Established: started 8 years ago, latest release v3.1.0.

What the license allows

You can build it into a product you sell, as long as you keep its copyright notice.

Judged on 2026-11-06 from the project's README and GitHub data. The license and age lines are worked out directly.

Built from

Follow it down: Wails → Go → runs on a microchip

How compilers were built, back to punched paper tape

Open-source alternatives to Wails

1. 1
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   :electron: Build cross-platform desktop apps with JavaScript, HTML, and CSS

   Framework or platform Production-ready You want one web codebase to ship desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux.

   ★ 124k MIT C++ Active, pushed today
   
2. 2
   Tauri tauri-apps

   Build smaller, faster, and more secure desktop and mobile applications with a web frontend.

   Framework or platform Production-ready You want Electron-style apps with much smaller binaries and lower memory use.

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