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Web Development · head to head

Preact vs Tilt

Preact logo

Preact

Web Development

3kB alternative to React with the same modern API

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tilt logo

Tilt

Developer Tools

Local Kubernetes development loop that rebuilds and live-updates containers on save

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Preact compatibility through preact/compat is good but not total, and some React libraries break in ways that are hard to diagnose; Tilt docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • They diverge on capability: Preact covers 3kB runtime, Tilt covers Live update.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Preact and Tilt actually diverge.

Attributes where Preact and Tilt differ
AttributePreactTilt
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows
CategoryWeb DevelopmentDeveloper Tools

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Open source, no licence fee), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Preact

  • 3kB runtime
  • preact/compat
  • Same modern API
  • Fast rendering

Only in Tilt

  • Live update
  • Tiltfile as code
  • Unified web UI
  • Selective rebuilds
  • Local and remote clusters
  • Resource dependencies
  • Extensions registry
  • Custom buttons and triggers

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Preact

  • Embedded widgets that load inside someone else’s page and must stay smallnot Tilt
  • Marketing and content sites where JavaScript payload affects Core Web Vitalsnot Tilt
  • Applications targeting low-bandwidth or low-powered devicesnot Tilt

Tilt

  • A team of ten or more engineers whose application is fifteen microservices on Kubernetes and who currently wait on CI to test a changenot Preact
  • An organisation onboarding new developers who want a single command that stands up the whole stack from a committed Tiltfilenot Preact
  • A platform team giving product engineers a consistent local environment against a shared remote development clusternot Preact
  • A codebase where one repository contains several services and rebuilding all of them on every edit is the main source of lost timenot Preact

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Preact

  • Compatibility through preact/compat is good but not total, and some React libraries break in ways that are hard to diagnose
  • Behavioural differences from React exist in edge cases, particularly around event handling
  • A much smaller community, so unusual problems have fewer existing answers than React

Tilt

  • Docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • The Tiltfile is Starlark, a Python dialect, so non-trivial setups become real programs that need reviewing and maintaining, and the person who wrote yours becomes a single point of failure.
  • Live update only works when the running container can accept synced files and restart the process; compiled languages, distroless images and read-only filesystems often force you back to a full image rebuild, which removes the main benefit.
  • It assumes Kubernetes. If your development target is plain Docker Compose or serverless functions, Tilt adds a cluster you did not need and a layer of abstraction with no payoff.
  • There is no commercial support contract, no SLA and no paid tier, so when a Kubernetes version upgrade breaks something you are dependent on GitHub issues and a Slack channel rather than a vendor you can escalate to.

Pricing, plan by plan

Preact

Free
  • PreactFree
    • Full library
    • Commercial use permitted
    • No usage limits

Tilt

Free
  • TiltFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed
    • All features, no paid tier
    • Community support via the Kubernetes Slack #tilt channel

Which should you pick?

Choose Preact if

  • You need 3kb runtime.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want preact/compat.
Preact review

Choose Tilt if

  • You need live update.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want tiltfile as code.
Tilt review

Questions people ask

Is Preact or Tilt better?
Neither clearly leads. Preact starts at Free and Tilt at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Preact or Tilt?
Preact starts at Free and Tilt at Free.
Does Preact or Tilt run on more platforms?
Preact runs on Web. Tilt runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Preact for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Preact best used for?
Preact is most often used for embedded widgets that load inside someone else’s page and must stay small, marketing and content sites where javascript payload affects core web vitals, applications targeting low-bandwidth or low-powered devices. Of those, embedded widgets that load inside someone else’s page and must stay small and marketing and content sites where javascript payload affects core web vitals are not what Tilt is typically brought in for.
What can Preact do that Tilt cannot?
Preact covers 3kB runtime, preact/compat, Same modern API, Fast rendering. Tilt covers Live update, Tiltfile as code, Unified web UI, Selective rebuilds.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Preact: Is Preact free?

Yes, open source under the MIT licence.

Tilt: Is Tilt free?

Yes, entirely. It is Apache 2.0 open source with no paid tier and no licence fee.

Preact: Can I use React libraries with Preact?

Most, through the preact/compat layer. Compatibility is good but not complete, so libraries relying on React internals can break.

Tilt: Who owns Tilt now?

Docker, which acquired it in May 2022. It remains open source and the repository is still actively maintained.

Preact: Why choose Preact over React?

Bundle size, almost always. If payload is not a binding constraint, React’s ecosystem is usually the better trade.

Tilt: Do I need a remote cluster?

No. It works against a local cluster such as kind, minikube or Docker Desktop, and also against a shared remote development cluster if your services are too heavy to run locally.

Tilt: How is it different from Skaffold?

Both automate the build-deploy loop. Tilt puts more weight on the live-update path and a multi-service dashboard; Skaffold is more configuration-driven and closer to Google's tooling.

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