vue-element-admin vs Vuestic Admin
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
Front-end starter template for admin dashboards, built on Vue and Element UI.
Open source · MIT
A free, ready-made admin dashboard template built with Vue 3, Vite, Pinia and Tailwind CSS.
The short answer
Choose vue-element-admin if you need…
- Developers building internal admin dashboards in Vue
- Teams that want a Element UI based layout with login and permissions already sketched out
- Developers who want working example pages for tables, forms and editors to adapt
- Developers learning how a larger Vue single-page app can be structured
Choose Vuestic Admin if you need…
- Developers starting a new internal admin or dashboard in Vue
- Teams that want a ready-made layout instead of building one from scratch
- Learners who want a real Vue 3 project to study
- Projects that want a dark theme and built-in i18n support
Side-by-side
| vue-element-admin | Vuestic Admin | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Other | App |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 90.1k | 11k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Clone and build from source | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | Vue | Vue |
| Last code update | 2 years ago | 8 months ago |
What each one is
vue-element-admin
vue-element-admin is a starter codebase for building admin websites, the back-office pages where people manage data, users and settings. It uses Vue for the interface and element-ui for ready-made components, and includes sample pages such as login, tables, charts and editors. Developers use it as a starting point so they don't have to build login, routing and layout from scratch.
Vuestic Admin
Vuestic Admin is a free, open-source starter template for building admin panels and dashboards in the browser. It is built on the Vuestic UI component library and uses Vue 3, Vite, Pinia and Tailwind CSS. People use it to skip building the basic layout and screens of an admin interface from scratch.
Best for
vue-element-admin
- Developers building internal admin dashboards in Vue
- Teams that want a Element UI based layout with login and permissions already sketched out
- Developers who want working example pages for tables, forms and editors to adapt
- Developers learning how a larger Vue single-page app can be structured
Vuestic Admin
- Developers starting a new internal admin or dashboard in Vue
- Teams that want a ready-made layout instead of building one from scratch
- Learners who want a real Vue 3 project to study
- Projects that want a dark theme and built-in i18n support
Strengths
vue-element-admin
- Covers many common admin needs in one codebase, such as permissions, i18n, multi-level routing and Excel export
- Built on well-known tools (Vue, vuex, vue-router, axios, element-ui, Mock.js) with a large existing community
- MIT licensed with a live demo and documentation site
Vuestic Admin
- Free and MIT licensed, with a large community (about 10,953 stars)
- Uses current, widely adopted tools: Vue 3, Vite, Pinia and Tailwind CSS
- Includes a live demo and documentation to evaluate it before adopting
Not ideal for
vue-element-admin
- Non-developers who want a finished tool to install and use, since this is code to build from
- Projects that need React or another framework, because the README only covers Vue
- Projects that must support Internet Explorer, since the README says low-version browsers are not supported and the browser table is inconsistent on this point
- Anyone who needs the latest Vue 3 stack, since the README badges show Vue 2.6.10 and element-ui 2.7.0
Vuestic Admin
- People who need a non-Vue frontend, since the template is built on Vue and Vuestic UI
- Non-developers who want a no-code dashboard tool, since setup requires running commands
- Projects that need a fully custom design system and don't want to work within a template's structure
Trade-offs
vue-element-admin
- Built on Vue 2 and element-ui 2 per the README badges, which are older than current defaults
- The README contradicts itself on i18n: it says master no longer supports i18n after v4.1.0, yet the feature list includes I18n
- Feature list is long, so you will likely need to remove parts you don't use
Vuestic Admin
- The README is short on detail, so the full list of included screens and features needs checking in the docs or demo
- Tied to the Vuestic UI library, so you take on its conventions and upgrade path
- Commercial support is offered by the maintainer, Epicmax, and the README does not describe free support levels
Getting started
vue-element-admin
Clone the project
git clone https://github.com/PanJiaChen/vue-element-admin.gitInstall dependencies
npm installVuestic Admin
Scaffold a new Vuestic Admin project
npm create vuestic@latestInstall dependencies
npm installFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between vue-element-admin and Vuestic Admin?
vue-element-admin: Front-end starter template for admin dashboards, built on Vue and Element UI. Vuestic Admin: A free, ready-made admin dashboard template built with Vue 3, Vite, Pinia and Tailwind CSS. vue-element-admin suits developers building internal admin dashboards in vue, while Vuestic Admin suits developers starting a new internal admin or dashboard in vue.
Are vue-element-admin and Vuestic Admin free?
vue-element-admin: Free and open source. Vuestic Admin: Free and open source.
Is vue-element-admin or Vuestic Admin more popular?
vue-element-admin has more GitHub stars (90.1k) than Vuestic Admin (11k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to vue-element-admin and Vuestic Admin?
Other options people compare them with include vue-admin-template, Vben Admin, CoreUI Free Bootstrap Admin Template, Vue Admin Better, Shadcn Admin.
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.