ora vs cli-spinners vs progress vs cli-progress
Node.js CLI Progress Indicators Comparison
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What's Node.js CLI Progress Indicators?

These packages provide various ways to display progress indicators in command-line interfaces (CLI) for Node.js applications. They enhance user experience by visually representing ongoing processes, making it easier for users to understand the status of long-running tasks. Each package offers unique features and styles for progress indicators, allowing developers to choose one that best fits their application's needs.

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ora33,358,0119,30127.5 kB212 months agoMIT
cli-spinners27,936,7192,49132.8 kB37 months agoMIT
progress21,596,6492,985-716 years agoMIT
cli-progress4,137,5631,17462.2 kB232 years agoMIT
Feature Comparison: ora vs cli-spinners vs progress vs cli-progress

Customization

  • ora:

    ora allows for some customization of spinner styles and text, but it is primarily designed for simplicity and ease of use. You can change the spinner type and add messages, but it does not offer as much flexibility as cli-progress.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners provides a selection of predefined spinner styles but offers limited customization compared to cli-progress. It focuses on simplicity and ease of use, allowing you to quickly add spinners without much configuration.

  • progress:

    progress is straightforward with minimal customization options. It allows you to set the total value and current progress but does not support advanced styling or multiple progress indicators.

  • cli-progress:

    cli-progress offers extensive customization options, allowing you to define the format, colors, and behavior of the progress bar. You can create multiple progress bars and control their appearance and updates individually, making it suitable for complex applications.

Ease of Use

  • ora:

    ora is designed for simplicity and ease of use, allowing developers to quickly add loading indicators with minimal code. It is user-friendly and suitable for all experience levels.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners is very easy to use and requires minimal setup. You can quickly implement it in your application with just a few lines of code, making it ideal for beginners.

  • progress:

    progress is also very easy to use, with a simple API that allows you to create a basic progress bar with just a few lines of code. It is perfect for quick implementations.

  • cli-progress:

    cli-progress has a steeper learning curve due to its extensive features and customization options. However, once understood, it provides powerful tools for creating complex progress indicators.

Visual Appeal

  • ora:

    ora features a clean and minimalist design for loading indicators, making it visually appealing without being overwhelming. It focuses on providing a pleasant user experience with simple animations.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners provides a variety of animated spinner styles that can enhance the visual appeal of your CLI application. The animations are smooth and can add a professional touch to your interface.

  • progress:

    progress offers a basic progress bar that is functional but less visually appealing compared to cli-progress. It is straightforward but may not stand out in terms of design.

  • cli-progress:

    cli-progress offers a visually appealing and highly customizable progress bar that can be styled to fit the aesthetics of your application. It supports colors and formatting, making it suitable for polished applications.

Performance

  • ora:

    ora is also lightweight and performs well, providing a responsive loading indicator that does not impact the application's performance. It is suitable for applications that require minimal resource usage.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners is lightweight and performs well, providing quick and responsive animations without significant overhead. It is ideal for applications where performance is a concern.

  • progress:

    progress is efficient for basic use cases, but it may not perform as well as cli-progress when handling multiple progress indicators or complex updates.

  • cli-progress:

    cli-progress is optimized for performance, allowing for smooth updates even with multiple progress bars. It efficiently handles rendering and updates, making it suitable for high-performance applications.

Use Cases

  • ora:

    ora is perfect for command-line applications that require a simple loading indicator while waiting for asynchronous operations, such as API calls or database queries.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners is ideal for applications that need simple loading indicators, such as CLI tools that perform quick tasks or asynchronous operations.

  • progress:

    progress is suitable for basic applications where you need to provide feedback on the progress of a task, such as batch processing or simple file operations.

  • cli-progress:

    cli-progress is best suited for applications that require detailed progress tracking, such as file uploads, downloads, or long-running tasks where multiple indicators are needed.

How to Choose: ora vs cli-spinners vs progress vs cli-progress
  • ora:

    Opt for ora if you require a straightforward and elegant way to show loading indicators with a focus on simplicity and minimalism. It is particularly useful for displaying status messages alongside spinners, making it great for tasks that involve waiting for asynchronous operations.

  • cli-spinners:

    Select cli-spinners if you want a simple way to add animated spinners to your CLI applications. It offers a variety of spinner styles and is easy to implement, making it ideal for lightweight applications needing basic loading indicators.

  • progress:

    Use progress if you need a simple and straightforward progress bar that is easy to implement and requires minimal configuration. It is suitable for basic use cases where you want to provide feedback on the progress of a task without extensive customization.

  • cli-progress:

    Choose cli-progress if you need a highly customizable and flexible progress bar that supports multiple bars, can be styled, and provides detailed control over the output format and behavior.

Similar Npm Packages to ora

ora is a popular npm package used for creating elegant and customizable loading spinners in command-line applications. It provides a simple way to indicate that a process is ongoing, enhancing the user experience by giving visual feedback during operations that may take some time, such as data fetching or file processing. With its easy-to-use API, developers can integrate spinners into their CLI applications with minimal effort.

While ora is a great choice for adding spinners to command-line interfaces, there are alternative packages that also provide similar functionality:

  • cli-spinners is a lightweight library that offers a collection of spinners for use in command-line applications. It provides a variety of spinner styles that can be easily integrated into any CLI project. Unlike ora, which focuses on a single spinner with customization options, cli-spinners allows developers to choose from multiple spinner designs, giving them more flexibility in terms of aesthetics. This package is perfect for those who want to experiment with different spinner styles without the overhead of additional features.

  • simple-spinner is another alternative that provides a straightforward approach to adding spinners in command-line applications. It is designed to be minimalistic and easy to use, making it an excellent choice for developers who want a no-frills solution for indicating loading states. simple-spinner is particularly useful for small projects or scripts where a lightweight solution is preferred.

To explore how ora compares with cli-spinners and other alternatives, check out the comparison: Comparing cli-spinners vs ora.

Similar Npm Packages to cli-spinners

cli-spinners is a lightweight npm package that provides a collection of spinners for command-line interfaces (CLI). It allows developers to easily add loading indicators to their terminal applications, enhancing user experience by providing visual feedback during long-running processes. The spinners are customizable and can be used in various contexts, making it a versatile tool for any CLI application.

One notable alternative to cli-spinners is ora. Ora is another popular library for creating elegant and customizable loading spinners in CLI applications. It offers a simple API and integrates well with promises, making it easy to use in asynchronous operations. Ora not only provides a variety of spinner styles but also supports text updates, allowing developers to convey additional information to users while the spinner is active.

While both cli-spinners and ora serve the purpose of enhancing CLI applications with loading indicators, they have different strengths. cli-spinners focuses on providing a wide range of spinner styles, while ora emphasizes ease of use and integration with asynchronous code.

For a detailed comparison of these two packages, check out the following link: Comparing cli-spinners vs ora.

Similar Npm Packages to progress

progress is a simple and flexible library for creating progress bars in Node.js applications. It allows developers to easily visualize the progress of long-running tasks in the terminal, enhancing user experience and providing feedback on ongoing operations. While progress offers a straightforward solution for displaying progress, there are several alternatives in the ecosystem that provide similar functionality. Here are a few notable alternatives:

  • cli-progress is a highly customizable and feature-rich progress bar library for Node.js. It supports multiple bars, customizable formats, and various styles, making it a great choice for developers looking for more control over the appearance and behavior of their progress indicators. With cli-progress, you can create complex progress displays that suit your application's needs, whether it's for file uploads, downloads, or any long-running tasks.

  • ora is a library specifically designed for creating elegant loading spinners in the terminal. While not a progress bar in the traditional sense, ora provides a way to indicate that a process is ongoing, which can be particularly useful for asynchronous operations. If you want to provide feedback to users during tasks that don't have a clear percentage of completion, ora is a great choice for adding a touch of style to your command-line applications.

  • progress-bar-webpack-plugin is a plugin for Webpack that displays a progress bar during the build process. This plugin is particularly useful for developers working with large projects that may take a significant amount of time to compile. By integrating this plugin into your Webpack configuration, you can provide real-time feedback on the build process, helping to improve the developer experience.

To explore how progress compares with cli-progress, ora, and progress-bar-webpack-plugin, check out the comparison: Comparing cli-progress vs ora vs progress vs progress-bar-webpack-plugin.

Similar Npm Packages to cli-progress

cli-progress is a versatile and customizable progress bar library for Node.js applications that run in the command line interface (CLI). It allows developers to create visually appealing and informative progress bars to indicate the status of long-running tasks, making it easier for users to understand the progress of operations. With features like customizable styles, multiple bars, and support for asynchronous operations, cli-progress is a popular choice for enhancing the user experience in CLI applications.

While cli-progress is a great option, there are several alternatives that also provide functionality for displaying progress in CLI applications. Here are a few noteworthy alternatives:

  • cli-spinners is a library that offers a collection of spinners for use in command-line applications. Unlike progress bars, which indicate the percentage of completion, spinners provide a visual cue that an operation is in progress. This can be particularly useful for tasks that do not have a clear completion percentage. cli-spinners is lightweight and easy to integrate, making it a good choice for developers looking for a simple way to indicate ongoing processes without the need for a full progress bar.

  • ora is another popular library for creating elegant loading spinners in CLI applications. It allows developers to display a spinner along with a customizable message, providing feedback to users while tasks are being performed. ora is particularly useful for asynchronous operations and can easily be integrated into existing Node.js applications. Its simplicity and flexibility make it a favorite among developers who want to enhance the user experience during long-running tasks.

  • progress is a straightforward library that provides a simple way to create progress bars in the command line. It offers basic functionality to display progress as a percentage, along with customizable formats. While it may not have as many features as cli-progress, it is lightweight and easy to use, making it suitable for simpler applications where a full-featured progress bar is not necessary.

To see how cli-progress compares with cli-spinners, ora, and progress, check out the comparison: Comparing cli-progress vs cli-spinners vs ora vs progress.

README for ora

ora

Elegant terminal spinner



Install

npm install ora

Check out yocto-spinner for a smaller alternative.

Usage

import ora from 'ora';

const spinner = ora('Loading unicorns').start();

setTimeout(() => {
	spinner.color = 'yellow';
	spinner.text = 'Loading rainbows';
}, 1000);

API

ora(text)

ora(options)

If a string is provided, it is treated as a shortcut for options.text.

options

Type: object

text

Type: string

The text to display next to the spinner.

prefixText

Type: string | () => string

Text or a function that returns text to display before the spinner. No prefix text will be displayed if set to an empty string.

suffixText

Type: string | () => string

Text or a function that returns text to display after the spinner text. No suffix text will be displayed if set to an empty string.

spinner

Type: string | object
Default: 'dots'

The name of one of the provided spinners. See example.js in this repo if you want to test out different spinners. On Windows (except for Windows Terminal), it will always use the line spinner as the Windows command-line doesn't have proper Unicode support.

Or an object like:

{
	frames: ['-', '+', '-'],
	interval: 80 // Optional
}
color

Type: string | boolean
Default: 'cyan'
Values: 'black' | 'red' | 'green' | 'yellow' | 'blue' | 'magenta' | 'cyan' | 'white' | 'gray' | boolean

The color of the spinner.

hideCursor

Type: boolean
Default: true

Set to false to stop Ora from hiding the cursor.

indent

Type: number
Default: 0

Indent the spinner with the given number of spaces.

interval

Type: number
Default: Provided by the spinner or 100

Interval between each frame.

Spinners provide their own recommended interval, so you don't really need to specify this.

stream

Type: stream.Writable
Default: process.stderr

Stream to write the output.

You could for example set this to process.stdout instead.

isEnabled

Type: boolean

Force enable/disable the spinner. If not specified, the spinner will be enabled if the stream is being run inside a TTY context (not spawned or piped) and/or not in a CI environment.

Note that {isEnabled: false} doesn't mean it won't output anything. It just means it won't output the spinner, colors, and other ansi escape codes. It will still log text.

isSilent

Type: boolean
Default: false

Disable the spinner and all log text. All output is suppressed and isEnabled will be considered false.

discardStdin

Type: boolean
Default: true

Discard stdin input (except Ctrl+C) while running if it's TTY. This prevents the spinner from twitching on input, outputting broken lines on Enter key presses, and prevents buffering of input while the spinner is running.

This has no effect on Windows as there is no good way to implement discarding stdin properly there.

Instance

.text get/set

Change the text displayed after the spinner.

.prefixText get/set

Change the text before the spinner.

No prefix text will be displayed if set to an empty string.

.suffixText get/set

Change the text after the spinner text.

No suffix text will be displayed if set to an empty string.

.color get/set

Change the spinner color.

.spinner get/set

Change the spinner.

.indent get/set

Change the spinner indent.

.isSpinning get

A boolean indicating whether the instance is currently spinning.

.interval get

The interval between each frame.

The interval is decided by the chosen spinner.

.start(text?)

Start the spinner. Returns the instance. Set the current text if text is provided.

.stop()

Stop and clear the spinner. Returns the instance.

.succeed(text?)

Stop the spinner, change it to a green ✔ and persist the current text, or text if provided. Returns the instance. See the GIF below.

.fail(text?)

Stop the spinner, change it to a red ✖ and persist the current text, or text if provided. Returns the instance. See the GIF below.

.warn(text?)

Stop the spinner, change it to a yellow ⚠ and persist the current text, or text if provided. Returns the instance.

.info(text?)

Stop the spinner, change it to a blue ℹ and persist the current text, or text if provided. Returns the instance.

.stopAndPersist(options?)

Stop the spinner and change the symbol or text. Returns the instance. See the GIF below.

options

Type: object

symbol

Type: string
Default: ' '

Symbol to replace the spinner with.

text

Type: string
Default: Current 'text'

Text to be persisted after the symbol.

prefixText

Type: string | () => string
Default: Current prefixText

Text or a function that returns text to be persisted before the symbol. No prefix text will be displayed if set to an empty string.

suffixText

Type: string | () => string
Default: Current suffixText

Text or a function that returns text to be persisted after the text after the symbol. No suffix text will be displayed if set to an empty string.

.clear()

Clear the spinner. Returns the instance.

.render()

Manually render a new frame. Returns the instance.

.frame()

Get a new frame.

oraPromise(action, text)

oraPromise(action, options)

Starts a spinner for a promise or promise-returning function. The spinner is stopped with .succeed() if the promise fulfills or with .fail() if it rejects. Returns the promise.

import {oraPromise} from 'ora';

await oraPromise(somePromise);

action

Type: Promise | ((spinner: ora.Ora) => Promise)

options

Type: object

All of the options plus the following:

successText

Type: string | ((result: T) => string) | undefined

The new text of the spinner when the promise is resolved.

Keeps the existing text if undefined.

failText

Type: string | ((error: Error) => string) | undefined

The new text of the spinner when the promise is rejected.

Keeps the existing text if undefined.

spinners

Type: Record<string, Spinner>

All provided spinners.

FAQ

How do I change the color of the text?

Use chalk or yoctocolors:

import ora from 'ora';
import chalk from 'chalk';

const spinner = ora(`Loading ${chalk.red('unicorns')}`).start();

Why does the spinner freeze?

JavaScript is single-threaded, so any synchronous operations will block the spinner's animation. To avoid this, prefer using asynchronous operations.

Related

Ports

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