compare
mdBook vs Starlight
The same facts for both, read from GitHub every night, and the relation a person reviewed.
| Fact | mdBook | Starlight |
|---|---|---|
| Language | Rust | TypeScript |
| Licence | MPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Stars | 22k | 9.4k |
| Latest | v0.5.4 | @astrojs/starlight@0.42.5 |
| Last push | 2026-10-05 | 2026-10-06 |
| Release cadence | about 35 days between releases | about 4 days between releases |
| Active contributors | 23 commit authors on the default branch in the last 90 days | 35 commit authors on the default branch in the last 90 days |
| Flags | none | none |
How they relate
Both replace GitBook. Alternatives to GitBook →
Full replacementmdBookBuilds a book from Markdown files and a SUMMARY.md, as the original GitBook did.
Full replacementStarlightDocumentation from Markdown in your own repository, deployed as a static site.
mdBook
- v0.5.42026-07-06See for a complete list of changes.
- v0.5.32026-05-19See for a complete list of changes.
- v0.5.22025-12-11See for a complete list of changes.
- v0.5.12025-11-20See for a complete list of changes.
- v0.5.02025-11-17The 0.5.0 release is the next major release of mdBook, containing over 130 PRs since 0.4.52! The primary focus for this…
Starlight
- @astrojs/starlight@0.42.52026-10-01
- @astrojs/starlight@0.42.42026-09-24
- @astrojs/starlight@0.42.32026-09-22
- @astrojs/starlight@0.42.22026-09-18
- @astrojs/starlight@0.42.12026-09-15
mdBook
✓ signed The latest release, v0.5.4, carries a signature GitHub verified.
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Starlight
✓ signed The latest release, @astrojs/starlight@0.42.5, carries a signature GitHub verified.
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