Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Live.js VS nodemon

Compare Live.js VS nodemon and see what are their differences

Live.js logo Live.js

Live. js. one script closer to designing in the browser. Say goodbye to Alt-Tab. Live.

nodemon logo nodemon

Nodemon is a utility that will monitor for any changes in your source and automatically restart your server. Perfect for rapid development.
  • Live.js Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-09-29
  • nodemon Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-27

Live.js features and specs

  • Automatic Reload
    Live.js automatically reloads web pages whenever HTML, CSS, or JavaScript files are modified, which enhances developer productivity by immediately reflecting changes without manual refreshing.
  • Easy Setup
    The setup process for Live.js is straightforward, requiring minimal configuration. Developers only need to include a single script tag to start using it.
  • No Build Tools Required
    Live.js does not require any build tools or server environment, making it a lightweight option for quickly setting up live reload functionality without the complexity of integrating with other toolchains.
  • Real-time Preview
    Provides real-time preview of changes, which is beneficial for rapid prototyping and design iterations, improving the workflow for front-end developers.

Possible disadvantages of Live.js

  • Limited Feature Set
    Live.js offers basic functionality focused mainly on live reloading. It may not cover more advanced use cases or features that comprehensive development tools provide.
  • Inefficient for Large Projects
    For larger projects with many files, Live.js can become inefficient as it reloads the entire page, which might interrupt development flow and increase wait times.
  • Not Suitable for Production
    Live.js is meant for development environments and should not be used in production as it can expose internal file structures and is not optimized for performance.
  • No Customization
    Offers little to no options for customization or configuration, which might be a drawback for developers who need more control over the development environment behavior.

nodemon features and specs

  • Automatic Restarts
    Nodemon automatically restarts the application when file changes are detected, allowing developers to instantly see the results of their changes without manual restarts.
  • Ease of Use
    Nodemon is simple to set up and use, often requiring minimal configuration for basic use cases, which makes it accessible for beginners and convenient for experienced developers.
  • Customization
    Developers can customize nodemon's behavior through configuration files or command-line options to suit different project requirements, such as ignoring certain files or directories.
  • Compatibility
    Nodemon is compatible with most Node.js applications and fits well into existing development workflows without needing significant changes.
  • Community Support
    Being a popular tool, nodemon has a large community and plenty of resources available, including documentation, forums, and tutorials.

Possible disadvantages of nodemon

  • Resource Usage
    Nodemon actively monitors files and folders, which can consume additional system resources, potentially affecting performance on larger projects or less powerful machines.
  • Complexity with Large Projects
    For very large projects with many files, configuring which files to watch and which to ignore can become complex and error-prone.
  • Potential Overhead
    Repeated restarts in quick succession may introduce unnecessary overhead, especially if changes are being made frequently and rapidly.
  • Dependency Management
    Nodemon is another dependency to manage in a project, which means staying up to date with its updates and potential breaking changes.

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Live.js and nodemon)
Image Optimisation
65 65%
35% 35
Monitoring Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Developer Tools
71 71%
29% 29
Design Tools
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Live.js should be more popular than nodemon. It has been mentiond 3 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Live.js mentions (3)

  • Can I skip the system checks?
    There's a crusty old script out there called Live.js. IIRC it sends a request to the server every second or so and if it detects a different content-length header it reloads the page. It's like a poor man's version of hot reloading. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Are there any lesser-known tools you use a lot in your work?
    Live.js - automatically refreshes the page when we edit the sources. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Is there a way to see your webpage while your edit it?
    Livejs (not tested it myself) looks like what your are looking for. Source: about 3 years ago

nodemon mentions (1)

  • Tell HN: Emmet, the HTML editing plugin, gets $100k/yr in donations from casinos
    Welp... Looks like the rabbit hole is even deeper than this. Those casinos are donating serious amounts to other famous open-source projects as well. A few examples: - https://opencollective.com/date-fns - https://opencollective.com/socketio - https://opencollective.com/nodemon So Emmet is a red herring... The money laundering operation looks like is endemic at OpenCollective. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Live.js and nodemon, you can also consider the following products

CodeKit - CodeKit allows you to optimize the performance of your website by automatically and efficiently compiling a variety of popular languages.

LiveReload - LiveReload 2 proudly presents… The Web Developer Wonderland. (a happy land where browsers don't need a Refresh button). CSS edits and image changes apply live. CoffeeScript, SASS, LESS and others just work.

Prepros - Compile Less, Sass, Scss, Stylus, Jade, Coffeescript, Haml and Markdown with live browser refresh.

Supervisor - Supervisor is a client/server system that allows its users to monitor and control a number of...

Browsersync - Browsersync makes your tweaking and testing faster by synchronising file changes and interactions...

Ghostlab - Ghostlab allows you to test out a newly developed website on a variety of browsers and mobile devices at the same time. To get started, simply drag the web address to the Ghostlab system and press the play button. Read more about Ghostlab.