ora vs cli-spinners vs simple-spinner
Node.js CLI Spinner Libraries Comparison
1 Year
oracli-spinnerssimple-spinner
What's Node.js CLI Spinner Libraries?

CLI spinner libraries are used in Node.js applications to provide visual feedback during long-running processes in the command line interface. They enhance user experience by indicating that a task is in progress, preventing users from thinking that the application has stalled. These libraries offer various spinner styles and customization options, making it easy to integrate into any CLI application. They help maintain user engagement and provide a more polished look to command-line tools.

Package Weekly Downloads Trend
Github Stars Ranking
Stat Detail
Package
Downloads
Stars
Size
Issues
Publish
License
ora32,785,1979,26127.5 kB21a month agoMIT
cli-spinners27,102,5192,47432.8 kB36 months agoMIT
simple-spinner4,8979-310 years ago-
Feature Comparison: ora vs cli-spinners vs simple-spinner

Customization Options

  • ora:

    ora provides extensive customization options, including the ability to change the spinner text, color, and style. You can also control the spinner's behavior, such as starting and stopping it programmatically, making it very flexible for different scenarios.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners offers a variety of spinner styles that can be easily customized. You can choose from different animations and colors, allowing you to match the spinner's appearance with your application's theme.

  • simple-spinner:

    simple-spinner has limited customization options, focusing on simplicity. It allows basic changes like spinner text but does not offer extensive styling or animation options.

Ease of Use

  • ora:

    ora is also easy to use, with a clear API that allows you to start and stop spinners with simple method calls. Its design focuses on developer experience, making it intuitive for new users.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners is straightforward to use, requiring minimal setup. You can quickly integrate it into your project and start using it with just a few lines of code, making it great for quick implementations.

  • simple-spinner:

    simple-spinner is designed for simplicity, making it very easy to implement. It requires very little configuration, which is ideal for developers who want a no-fuss solution.

Performance

  • ora:

    ora is efficient and performs well, but it may introduce slight overhead due to its additional features. However, this is generally negligible for most applications.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners is lightweight and optimized for performance, ensuring that it does not significantly impact the execution speed of your CLI application, even when multiple spinners are used.

  • simple-spinner:

    simple-spinner is highly performant due to its minimalistic design, making it suitable for applications where performance is a critical concern.

Community and Support

  • ora:

    ora has a larger community and more extensive documentation, making it easier to find support and examples online. This can be beneficial for developers looking for help or inspiration.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners has a smaller community compared to ora, but it is still actively maintained. Documentation is available, although it may not be as extensive as that of larger libraries.

  • simple-spinner:

    simple-spinner has a limited community and support resources. While it is easy to use, developers may find less guidance and fewer examples available.

Dependencies

  • ora:

    ora has minimal dependencies, but it may require additional libraries for advanced features. This can be a consideration if you want to keep your project lean.

  • cli-spinners:

    cli-spinners has no external dependencies, which makes it lightweight and easy to include in any project without worrying about additional packages.

  • simple-spinner:

    simple-spinner is also dependency-free, allowing for straightforward integration into projects without adding bloat.

How to Choose: ora vs cli-spinners vs simple-spinner
  • ora:

    Select ora if you want a more feature-rich library that provides a simple API for creating spinners with customizable text and styles. It's suitable for projects that require more control over the spinner's appearance and behavior, including the ability to handle multiple spinners simultaneously.

  • cli-spinners:

    Choose cli-spinners if you need a lightweight library that offers a variety of spinner styles and is easy to integrate into any project without additional dependencies. It is ideal for simple use cases where you want to quickly add a spinner without much overhead.

  • simple-spinner:

    Opt for simple-spinner if you prefer a minimalistic approach and want a straightforward implementation. It is best for projects where you need a basic spinner without any complex features or configurations.

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 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