# GrapesJS vs Silex: an engine to embed or an application to host

*Source: https://www.editorstack.cc/compare/grapesjs-vs-silex — last updated 2026-08-19. Licensed CC BY 4.0 with attribution to EditorStack.*

## Summary

- Silex is built on GrapesJS, so this is not a comparison of editing engines — it is a comparison of layers: an application you host against a library you embed.
- GrapesJS is BSD-3-Clause and asks nothing of you; Silex is GPL-3.0 or MPL-2.0, which is a question for your lawyers if you intend to build a commercial product around it.
- If you want a builder to use, Silex. If you want a builder inside your product, GrapesJS.

## At a glance

| Product | Type | Licence | Frameworks | Bundle (min+gzip) | Price from | Self-hosted | White label | Score |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [GrapesJS](https://www.editorstack.cc/libraries/grapesjs) | library | BSD-3-Clause | Any (framework-agnostic) | 294.6 kB gzip | Free (open source) | Yes | Yes | 7.5 |
| [Silex](https://www.editorstack.cc/libraries/silex) | library | GPL-3.0 OR MPL-2.0 | Any (framework-agnostic) | Not measurable | Free (open source) | Yes | Yes | not scored |

## Two layers of the same stack

Silex is what you get when someone takes the GrapesJS engine and builds the application nobody hands
you: a workspace, storage connectors, a publication step, and an interface aimed at people rather
than developers.

That makes the comparison unusually clean. The editing experience is largely shared. What differs is
everything around it, plus the licence.

## Choose Silex when

**You want a finished builder to run.** Agencies, non-profits and small teams who need a website
builder rather than a component to integrate.

**Free software governance matters to you.** Silex Labs is a non-profit, there is no contributor
licence agreement, and the dual licensing is structured to keep it free. For organisations that have
been through a licence change elsewhere, this is substantive.

**Static publishing fits your workflow.** Output goes to a host or a repository, so sites are cheap to
serve and portable.

**You do not want to build an application.** The 480 hours our
[calculator](/use-cases/build-vs-buy-visual-editor) attaches to a GrapesJS build is largely what Silex
already is.

## Choose GrapesJS when

**The editor goes inside your product.** Silex is not designed for that, and the licence complicates
it further.

**You need a permissive licence.** BSD-3-Clause against GPL-3.0 or MPL-2.0 is the difference between
"ship it however you like" and "ask your lawyer".

**You want to control the interface.** Silex's application shell is the product; changing it is
modifying a product rather than configuring a library.

**You need commercial support options.** A non-profit project is the wrong procurement shape for teams
that require a contractual response time.

## The licence question in practical terms

BSD-3-Clause imposes attribution and nothing else. You can build a closed commercial product on
GrapesJS, resell it, and never publish a line.

GPL-3.0 imposes reciprocal obligations that depend on how you distribute. MPL-2.0 is file-level
copyleft and more permissive in practice. Dual licensing means you may choose, which softens the
issue considerably — but "we chose MPL" is still a decision your legal team should make rather than
your architect.

For an internal tool or an agency using Silex to produce client sites, none of this is likely to
bite. For a SaaS product built on it, get advice first.

## Migration

Because Silex is built on GrapesJS, exported sites are HTML and CSS, and moving from Silex to a
custom GrapesJS build means keeping the output and rebuilding the application layer. That is
substantial work, but it is not a content migration.

## Verdict

Silex if you want a free, well-governed website builder to run and use. GrapesJS if you are building
a product and the editor is a component of it. The two are not competitors so much as adjacent floors
of the same building — and if what you want is the Silex experience with commercial support and a
permissive licence, [Studio SDK](/compare/grapesjs-vs-grapesjs-studio-sdk) is the third option, with
the funding disclosure that page carries.

## Decision checklist

1. **Are we building a product or using a tool?** Building means the engine; using means the
   application.
2. **Has our legal team reviewed GPL-3.0 and MPL-2.0?** Do this before the architecture decision,
   not after.
3. **Do we need commercial support with a response time?** A non-profit project is the wrong
   procurement shape for that.
4. **Who hosts it?** Silex is an application you run; GrapesJS is a library you embed in something
   you already run.
5. **Is publication to a host or repository our workflow?** That is Silex's design centre, and
   rebuilding it on the engine is real work.

## The number that matters

Two licences against one. GrapesJS's BSD-3-Clause asks for attribution and nothing else; Silex's dual
GPL-3.0 or MPL-2.0 gives you a choice that your lawyers rather than your architects should make. For
an internal tool it will not bite. For a commercial product built on top, get advice before you write
code.


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Silex just a GrapesJS wrapper?

It is more than a wrapper — an application with project management, hosting connectors and a publication workflow — but the editing experience is inherited from GrapesJS.

### Can I embed Silex in my SaaS?

It is not designed for embedding, and the copyleft licensing makes a commercial embed a legal question rather than a technical one. For embedding, use GrapesJS directly.

### Which licence is more permissive?

GrapesJS's BSD-3-Clause, clearly. It permits commercial use, modification and redistribution inside closed-source products with no reciprocal obligation.