Manifest vs Wasp
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted developer tools & git options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Manifest
Open-source backend defined from a single YAML file
VS
Wasp
Declarative full-stack web framework for React and Node
| Feature | Manifest | Wasp |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 91 · Excellent | 96 · Excellent |
| Category | Developer Tools & Git | Developer Tools & Git |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7,541 | ★ 18,745 |
| First released | 2024 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Firebase, Supabase | Firebase |
What are Manifest and Wasp?
Manifest
Manifest is an open-source backend that lets you define a complete REST API, database and admin panel from a single YAML file. It is self-hosted and aimed at rapid backend development.
- Backend from one YAML file
- Auto-generated REST API
- Built-in admin panel
- Self-hostable
Wasp
Wasp is an open-source language and framework for building full-stack web apps with React, Node.js and Prisma using a concise declarative config. The generated apps are deployed and self-hosted as standard containers.
- Declarative app config
- Full-stack React + Node
- Built-in auth
- Self-hosted deploys
Manifest vs Wasp: key differences
Both projects are written in TypeScript. Wasp is the more established project (first released 2021), while Manifest arrived in 2024. Wasp has the considerably larger community, at 18,745 GitHub stars versus 7,541.
Why pick each one
Choose Manifest if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 7.5k GitHub stars
Choose Wasp if…
- Concise declarative config
- Auth built in
- Full stack from one spec
Watch out for
- Own DSL to learn
- Young evolving framework
Frequently asked questions
Is Manifest or Wasp better?
Neither is universally better. Wasp has the larger community, while Manifest is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Manifest and Wasp free and open-source?
Yes. Manifest is licensed under MIT and Wasp under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Manifest and Wasp with Docker?
Manifest: yes. Wasp: yes.