# Commander.js vs urfave/cli

| Attribute | Commander.js | urfave/cli |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 53.2 (24% (low)) | 69.7 (20% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 0 | 37 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 1,082,389 | 57,081 |
| adoption.github_stars | 28,375 | 24,204 |
| description.long | Commander.js is an open-source npm package that streamlines the creation of Node.js command-line interfaces. It automates command parsing, option processing, subcommand management, and provides integrated help text and error handling for CLI developers. | An open-source Go library that streamlines CLI development with support for commands, subcommands, help text generation, shell completion, and flexible flag parsing. Designed to be simple, fast, and developer-friendly. |
| language.primary | JavaScript | Go |
| license.spdx | MIT | MIT |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true}` | `{"cli":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://github.com/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-08-18T12:49:23.560Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://cli.urfave.org","retrievedAt":"2026-08-18T12:51:42.473Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | free | free |
| pricing.transparent | - | yes |
| release.cadence_days | 77 | 15 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v15.0.0","date":"2026-05-29T09:21:01Z","type":"stable","version":"v15.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v15.0.0-0","date":"2026-02-21T07:24:50Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v15.0.0-0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v14.0.3","date":"2026-01-31T01:49:34Z","type":"stable","version":"v14.0.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v14.0.2","date":"2025-10-25T12:09:28Z","type":"stable","version":"v14.0.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v14.0.1","date":"2025-09-12T07:29:00Z","type":"stable","version":"v14.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v14.0.0","date":"2025-05-18T06:12:07Z","type":"stable","version":"v14.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v13.1.0","date":"2025-01-20T23:31:01Z","type":"stable","version":"v13.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v13.0.0","date":"2024-12-30T05:30:34Z","type":"stable","version":"v13.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v13.0.0-0","date":"2024-12-06T23:14:45Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v13.0.0-0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v12.1.0","date":"2024-05-18T11:18:57Z","type":"stable","version":"v12.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v12.0.0","date":"2024-02-03T09:46:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v12.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v12.0.0-1","date":"2024-01-19T20:17:25Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v12.0.0-1"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v12.0.0-0","date":"2023-11-11T05:46:25Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v12.0.0-0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v11.1.0","date":"2023-10-13T00:32:47Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.1.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v11.0.0","date":"2023-06-16T00:50:24Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v10.0.1","date":"2023-04-15T05:02:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v10.0.0","date":"2023-01-14T01:54:42Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.0.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v9.5.0","date":"2023-01-07T07:07:23Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v9.4.1","date":"2022-09-30T07:29:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/tj/commander.js/releases/tag/v9.4.0","date":"2022-07-15T06:21:02Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.4.0"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.11.0","date":"2026-08-16T14:58:36Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.11.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.10.1","date":"2026-06-29T20:47:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.10.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.10.0","date":"2026-06-14T13:22:28Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.9.1","date":"2026-06-10T12:59:11Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.9.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.9.0","date":"2026-05-12T17:30:51Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.8.0","date":"2026-03-25T13:55:21Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.7.0","date":"2026-03-01T12:27:06Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.6.2","date":"2026-01-18T01:51:44Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.6.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.6.1","date":"2025-11-16T19:11:42Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.6.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.6.0","date":"2025-11-09T12:13:35Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.5.0","date":"2025-10-21T10:23:58Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.4.1","date":"2025-08-12T11:25:03Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.4.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.4.0","date":"2025-08-12T02:18:39Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.4.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.3.9","date":"2025-08-12T02:18:17Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.9"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v2.27.7","date":"2025-06-14T02:48:45Z","type":"stable","version":"v2.27.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v1.22.17","date":"2025-06-14T02:45:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.22.17"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.3.8","date":"2025-06-13T02:16:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.3.7","date":"2025-06-13T02:13:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.3.6","date":"2025-06-13T02:11:28Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/urfave/cli/releases/tag/v3.3.5","date":"2025-06-13T02:10:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v3.3.5"}]` |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | yes |
| security.scorecard | 7.6 | 6.5 |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=npm&package_name=commander&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=go&package_name=github.com%2Furfave%2Fcli&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (CLI Frameworks)

| Capability | Commander.js | urfave/cli |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Capabilities** |  |  |
| Language | - | - |
| Design style | - | - |
| Nested subcommands | - | - |
| Auto generated help | - | - |
| Plugin system | - | - |
| Interactive prompts | - | - |
| Type validation | - | - |
| Styled rich output | - | - |
| Project scaffolding | - | - |
| Test harness | - | - |
| Open source | - | - |
| License | - | - |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T15:21:41.013Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*