Angular CLI vs Angular Webpack Starter
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
Command-line tool to create, develop, and maintain Angular web applications.
Open source · MIT
A starter project for building Angular apps with TypeScript and Webpack, from an older Angular 6 era.
The short answer
Choose Angular CLI if you need…
- Developers starting a new Angular web application
- Teams maintaining existing Angular projects who want standard commands
- Developers who want the official, Angular-team-maintained project setup
Choose Angular Webpack Starter if you need…
- Developers who want to study a hand-configured Webpack and Angular setup
- Learners exploring how Angular, TypeScript and Webpack fit together
- Teams maintaining an existing Angular 6-style project that uses similar tooling
Side-by-side
| Angular CLI | Angular Webpack Starter | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | CLI | App |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 27k | 10.2k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Clone and build from source |
| Main language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last code update | 4 days ago | 3 years ago |
What each one is
Angular CLI
The Angular CLI is a command-line tool for starting, building, and maintaining Angular applications from a terminal. It can create a new project workspace, run a local development server, and scaffold parts of an app. It is the official tooling for the Angular web framework and is maintained by the Angular team.
Angular Webpack Starter
This is a template project that gives you a pre-configured Angular app using TypeScript and Webpack as the build tool, so you do not have to wire those pieces together yourself. It includes example components, unit tests with Karma and Jasmine, and end-to-end tests with Protractor. The README itself says the Angular CLI is the preferred way to start a new Angular app, and the project targets Angular 6 and Node 8 era tooling.
Best for
Angular CLI
- Developers starting a new Angular web application
- Teams maintaining existing Angular projects who want standard commands
- Developers who want the official, Angular-team-maintained project setup
Angular Webpack Starter
- Developers who want to study a hand-configured Webpack and Angular setup
- Learners exploring how Angular, TypeScript and Webpack fit together
- Teams maintaining an existing Angular 6-style project that uses similar tooling
Strengths
Angular CLI
- Official tool from the Angular project, maintained alongside the framework
- Simple, documented starting commands in the README
- Open source under the MIT license with a large community (about 27,000 stars)
Angular Webpack Starter
- Clear, documented file structure separating dev, prod and test configs
- Covers many common pieces (AoT compile, tree shaking, testing, HMR) in one template
- MIT licensed and widely starred, so it is easy to read and reuse
Not ideal for
Angular CLI
- People who do not use Angular, since the tool only works with that framework
- Non-developers looking for a visual app builder, because it is driven by terminal commands
- Those needing a non-Node.js toolchain, since the README's setup relies on Node.js and npm
Angular Webpack Starter
- Anyone starting a new Angular app today: the README says to use the Angular CLI instead, and this project was last pushed in October 2023 with Angular 6 references
- Beginners who want the simplest path: the README points to angular-seed as an easier option
- Projects needing current Node or Angular versions, since the README lists Node 8 and npm 5 as requirements
Trade-offs
Angular CLI
- Requires Node.js and npm, and is only useful if you are building with Angular
- The README is largely links to external documentation, so detailed usage must be read elsewhere
- The README is auto-generated and points to docs for most details, so this entry relies on limited information
Angular Webpack Starter
- The README targets Angular 6, Webpack 4 and Node 8, which are very outdated for current use
- The README recommends the Angular CLI for new apps, so this is more of a reference than a recommended starting point
- Several linked resources and badges (Travis CI, Gitter, david-dm) appear stale
Getting started
Angular CLI
Install the Angular CLI globally
npm install -g @angular/cliCreate a new workspace
ng new [PROJECT NAME]Angular Webpack Starter
Clone the repo (shallow)
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/gdi2290/angular-starter.gitChange into the project directory
cd angular-starterFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Angular CLI and Angular Webpack Starter?
Angular CLI: Command-line tool to create, develop, and maintain Angular web applications. Angular Webpack Starter: A starter project for building Angular apps with TypeScript and Webpack, from an older Angular 6 era. Angular CLI suits developers starting a new angular web application, while Angular Webpack Starter suits developers who want to study a hand-configured webpack and angular setup.
Are Angular CLI and Angular Webpack Starter free?
Angular CLI: Free and open source. Angular Webpack Starter: Free and open source.
Which is easier to set up, Angular CLI or Angular Webpack Starter?
Angular CLI is easier to get started with (rated beginner); Angular Webpack Starter is rated intermediate and usually needs more setup.
Is Angular CLI or Angular Webpack Starter more popular?
Angular CLI has more GitHub stars (27k) than Angular Webpack Starter (10.2k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Angular CLI and Angular Webpack Starter?
Other options people compare them with include Vite, Nx.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.