mustache.js
A tiny, dependency-free JavaScript library that fills {{mustache}} text templates with data.
- Stars
- 16.7k
- Forks
- 2.3k
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- JavaScript
- Last update
- 2.4 years ago
- Type
- Library
No commits in over a year — check for forks or alternatives before adopting.
What it is
mustache.js is a JavaScript implementation of the Mustache template system, which fills placeholders like {{name}} in a text template with values from an object. It is described as logic-less because templates have no if statements or loops, only tags that are replaced with values or repeated sections. It runs in browsers, in Node.js, and in CouchDB views, and can also be used as a command line tool.
- Render a list of items from an array with a {{#list}} section
- Insert escaped user values into an HTML page with {{name}} tags
- Load a template file with fetch and render it with data when it arrives
- Use {{{value}}} to insert trusted raw HTML when escaping is not wanted
Great for
- Developers who need simple text or HTML templating in a browser or Node.js project
- Static websites that want to render small dynamic parts from a template
- Projects that want a zero-dependency templating library
- Developers who want templates that are easy for non-programmers to edit
Not ideal for
- Projects that need complex logic inside templates, since Mustache intentionally has no if statements or loops in the template language
- Users looking for a full web framework, because this only handles rendering strings
How to get it
- 1
Install with a package manager
You'll need: Node.js (version not specified in the README excerpt)
Install from npm
$ npm install mustache --save - 2
Run it
- Install the package with npm install mustache --save
- In your script, load it with const Mustache = require('mustache');
- Create a view object with the data you want to show
- Call Mustache.render(template, view) with a template string and your view object
- Use the returned string in your page or output
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Use triple mustaches {{{name}}} or & only for trusted content, since default output is HTML-escaped
- Override Mustache.escape to change escaping behavior for non-HTML formats, as shown in the README
- Load templates from separate files with fetch or include them in script tags with a custom type
- Use custom delimiters, described in the README's Custom Delimiters section, to avoid conflicts with other {{ }} syntax
Downloads
Strengths
- Zero dependencies, as stated in the README
- Works in browsers, Node.js, and CouchDB, and supports CommonJS, AMD, and ES modules
- Values are HTML-escaped by default, which the README describes as the default behavior
Trade-offs
- The logic-less design means some presentation logic must be handled in code before rendering
- The README is truncated here, so details beyond the core template syntax are not covered in this entry
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mustache.js (this) | 16.7k | Library | beginner | 2.4 years ago | Developers who need simple text or HTML templating in a browser or Node.js project |
| handlebars.js | 18.7k | Library | beginner | 30 days ago | JavaScript developers who need to generate HTML from data in a browser or Node.js app |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.