Open Source Dashboard Builder
Overview
An open-source React library for building customizable dashboards with drag-and-drop widgets, responsive layouts, and real-time data updates.
Motivation
While building internal tools at my company, I noticed we were rebuilding the same dashboard patterns over and over. Existing solutions were either:
- Too opinionated (forced specific design systems)
- Too complex (required weeks to learn)
- Too expensive (enterprise-only pricing)
Features
Core Functionality
- Drag-and-drop grid layout system
- 20+ pre-built widget components
- Real-time data binding
- Responsive breakpoints
- Dark mode support
- Export/import dashboard configs
Developer Experience
- TypeScript-first API
- Comprehensive documentation
- Storybook for component preview
- 90%+ test coverage
- Semantic versioning
Customization
- Bring your own components
- Theme system for styling
- Plugin architecture for extensions
- Headless mode for custom renderers
Adoption
- 2.5K+ GitHub stars
- 50+ companies in production
- 15 active contributors
- 200K+ weekly npm downloads
Technical Highlights
Built with modern React patterns:
- Hooks for state management
- Context for theme and config
- Render props for customization
- React.memo for performance
Used react-grid-layout as foundation but added:
- Better TypeScript support
- Simplified API surface
- Built-in widgets library
- SSR compatibility
Community
The project has grown beyond my initial vision:
- Contributors added 10+ widgets I never planned
- Community created plugins for Vue and Angular versions
- Used in production at companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500