Is Starlight or Stoplight better?

Neither clearly leads. Starlight starts at Free and Stoplight at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Starlight or Stoplight?

Starlight starts at Free and Stoplight at Free.

Does Starlight or Stoplight run on more platforms?

Starlight runs on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux. Stoplight runs on Web, Cloud.

Can I use Starlight for free?

Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.

What is Starlight best used for?

Starlight is most often used for a developer tool whose docs live in the same repository as the code and are reviewed in the same pull request, a team that already runs astro for its marketing site and wants one build pipeline for both, documentation that must be served from a cdn or an air gapped static host with no search backend, a multilingual open source project that needs per locale content trees and untranslated page fallback. Of those, a developer tool whose docs live in the same repository as the code and are reviewed in the same pull request and a team that already runs astro for its marketing site and wants one build pipeline for both are not what Stoplight is typically brought in for.

What can Starlight do that Stoplight cannot?

Starlight covers File based routing, Pagefind search, Internationalisation, Component overrides. Stoplight covers API Design, API Documentation, Governance, GitHub.

Documentation · head to head

Starlight vs Stoplight

Starlight

Documentation

Documentation site framework built on Astro that ships no JavaScript to the reader by default

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Stoplight

APIs

API design, documentation, and governance platform

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: Starlight there is no editing interface, so every correction requires a git client, a Node install and a CI run, which puts documentation changes out of reach for anyone who does not already work in a repository.; Stoplight the free plan allows one project and one user
They diverge on capability: Starlight covers File based routing, Stoplight covers API Design.
Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Starlight and Stoplight actually diverge.

Attributes where Starlight and Stoplight differ
Attribute	Starlight	Stoplight
Pricing model	Open source, no licence fee	subscription
Platforms	Web, macOS, Windows, Linux	Web, Cloud
Category	Documentation	APIs
Founded	Unknown	2014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), 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 Starlight

File based routing
Pagefind search
Internationalisation
Component overrides
Zero client JavaScript
Expressive Code blocks
Auto generated sidebar

Only in Stoplight

API Design
API Documentation
Governance
GitHub
GitLab
Jenkins
Azure DevOps
Web support

What people use each for

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

Starlight

A developer tool whose docs live in the same repository as the code and are reviewed in the same pull requestnot Stoplight
A team that already runs Astro for its marketing site and wants one build pipeline for bothnot Stoplight
Documentation that must be served from a CDN or an air gapped static host with no search backendnot Stoplight
A multilingual open source project that needs per locale content trees and untranslated page fallbacknot Stoplight

Stoplight

API design and documentationnot Starlight
API governance and standardsnot Starlight
Team collaboration on API developmentnot Starlight
API mocking and testingnot Starlight

Where each one falls short

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

Starlight

There is no editing interface, so every correction requires a git client, a Node install and a CI run, which puts documentation changes out of reach for anyone who does not already work in a repository.
Starlight versions track Astro versions, so an Astro major release becomes a documentation site migration on someone else timeline rather than yours.
Pagefind builds the whole search index at compile time, so build duration and index size grow with page count and large documentation sets pay for it on every deploy.
There is no analytics, no feedback widget and no page level rating built in, so measuring which pages fail readers means wiring a third party script yourself.
Component overrides are limited to the slots the theme exposes, and anything outside those slots means forking the theme and inheriting the merge burden on every upgrade.

Stoplight

The free plan allows one project and one user
Private projects, multi branch support and custom domains start at the Startup plan, $113 a month billed annually
SSO and shared style guides are Pro Team only, at $362 a month billed annually
Seats beyond each plan's allowance are $11 to $27 each per month depending on tier and billing period

Pricing, plan by plan

Starlight

Free

Open sourceFree
- MIT licence
- All features included
- Self hosted on any static host

Stoplight

Free

FreeFree
- 1 project
- 1 user
- Basic API design and documentation features
Basic$56/month
- Annual: $44/user/year
- 3 included users; $14 per additional user (monthly)
- Unlimited projects
Startup$147/month
- Annual: $113/user/year
- 8 included users; $14 per additional user (monthly)
- Private projects
Pro Team$453/month
- Annual: $362/user/year
- 15 included users; $27 per additional user (monthly)
- Up to 20 teams

Which should you pick?

Choose Starlight if

You need file based routing.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux.
You also want pagefind search.

Starlight review

Choose Stoplight if

You need api design.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Web, Cloud.
You also want api documentation.

Stoplight review

Questions people ask

Is Starlight or Stoplight better?: Neither clearly leads. Starlight starts at Free and Stoplight at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Starlight or Stoplight?: Starlight starts at Free and Stoplight at Free.
Does Starlight or Stoplight run on more platforms?: Starlight runs on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux. Stoplight runs on Web, Cloud.
Can I use Starlight for free?: Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Starlight best used for?: Starlight is most often used for a developer tool whose docs live in the same repository as the code and are reviewed in the same pull request, a team that already runs astro for its marketing site and wants one build pipeline for both, documentation that must be served from a cdn or an air gapped static host with no search backend, a multilingual open source project that needs per locale content trees and untranslated page fallback. Of those, a developer tool whose docs live in the same repository as the code and are reviewed in the same pull request and a team that already runs astro for its marketing site and wants one build pipeline for both are not what Stoplight is typically brought in for.
What can Starlight do that Stoplight cannot?: Starlight covers File based routing, Pagefind search, Internationalisation, Component overrides. Stoplight covers API Design, API Documentation, Governance, GitHub.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Starlight: Can a non technical writer publish a page without help?

No. There is no content management interface. Every change is a commit, a pull request and a build.

Stoplight: How much does Stoplight cost?

Stoplight starts with a free plan (1 project, 1 user), then Basic at $56/month per user (or $44/year), Startup at $147/month per user (or $113/year), Pro Team at $453/month per user (or $362/year), and Enterprise at custom pricing.

Source

Starlight: Do I need to know Astro to use it?

Not for basic use. Markdown files and a config file are enough until you want custom components, at which point Astro knowledge becomes mandatory.

Stoplight: How many included users are in each Stoplight plan?

Basic includes 3 users, Startup includes 8 users, and Pro Team includes 15 users. Additional users beyond the included count cost $14/month for Basic and Startup, or $27/month for Pro Team.

Source

Starlight: Is search included or do I pay for it?

Included and free. Pagefind builds a static index at compile time. Algolia DocSearch is optional if you want hosted search instead.

Stoplight: Does Stoplight offer a free trial?

Yes, all paid Stoplight plans include a 14-day free trial. The free plan has no trial period as it is always available.

Source

Starlight: What happens when Astro releases a major version?

Starlight follows it, and your site needs a migration. Read the upgrade guide before pinning a version for a long lived project.

Stoplight: Does Stoplight's free plan have limitations?

Yes, the free plan includes only 1 project and 1 user. Users viewing public documentation anonymously are not counted toward the 1-user limit.

Source

Starlight: Can I self host with no external services?

Yes. The output is static HTML, CSS and a search index. Nothing calls out at runtime unless you add it.

Starlight vs Stoplight

Starlight

Stoplight

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Starlight

Only in Stoplight

What people use each for

Starlight

Stoplight

Where each one falls short

Starlight

Stoplight

Pricing, plan by plan

Starlight

Stoplight

Which should you pick?

Choose Starlight if

Choose Stoplight if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Starlight

More on Stoplight

Keep looking

Other head to heads