Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

JSFiddle VS Observable

Compare JSFiddle VS Observable and see what are their differences

Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

JSFiddle logo JSFiddle

Test your JavaScript, CSS, HTML or CoffeeScript online with JSFiddle code editor.

Observable logo Observable

Interactive code examples/posts
  • JSFiddle Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-07-11
  • Observable Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-09

JSFiddle features and specs

  • Easy Sharing and Collaboration
    JSFiddle allows users to share and collaborate on code snippets effortlessly by generating unique URLs for each project.
  • Real-Time Editing
    Changes made to HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are displayed in real-time, providing instant feedback and streamlining the development process.
  • Supports Multiple Frameworks
    JSFiddle supports various JavaScript frameworks and libraries such as jQuery, Vue.js, and React, allowing developers to experiment with different technologies.
  • Embed Feature
    Users can embed their fiddles directly into websites or blogs, enabling easy demonstration of code and concepts.
  • Version Control
    JSFiddle offers version control, allowing users to save different versions of their code and revert to previous versions if needed.

Possible disadvantages of JSFiddle

  • Limited Backend Support
    JSFiddle is primarily focused on frontend development and does not provide robust backend development capabilities.
  • Performance Issues
    With complex or resource-intensive projects, JSFiddle can experience performance lag, impacting the user experience.
  • Basic IDE Features
    Compared to full-fledged Integrated Development Environments (IDEs), JSFiddle lacks advanced features such as code linting, debugging tools, and extensive plugins.
  • File Management
    JSFiddle does not offer comprehensive file management, making it challenging to work on larger projects with multiple files.
  • Dependency Management
    Managing dependencies can be cumbersome, as JSFiddle does not provide built-in tools to handle package management seamlessly.

Observable features and specs

  • Collaborative Environment
    Observable allows multiple users to collaborate in real-time, making it easier for teams to work together on data visualizations and analyses.
  • Reactive Programming
    The platform supports reactive programming, where changes in data automatically trigger updates in the visualizations, enhancing interactivity and reducing the need for manual updates.
  • Built-in Data Visualization Libraries
    Observable integrates seamlessly with popular libraries like D3, Plotly, and Leaflet, providing powerful tools for creating complex and interactive data visualizations.
  • Notebook Interface
    The notebook interface is user-friendly and allows for easy documentation and sharing. Users can combine code, visualizations, and markdown text in a single document.
  • Extensive Resources and Community Support
    Observable has a rich set of tutorials, examples, and a strong community, making it easier for new users to learn and get help.
  • Customizability
    Users have the flexibility to customize their visualizations extensively, thanks to the open-ended nature of JavaScript and the supported libraries.

Possible disadvantages of Observable

  • Steeper Learning Curve for Beginners
    New users, especially those without a background in JavaScript, might find the platform challenging to learn compared to more specialized data visualization tools.
  • Performance Issues
    For very large datasets or highly complex visualizations, performance can become an issue, potentially leading to slow rendering times.
  • Dependency on Internet Connection
    Observable notebooks currently require an internet connection to run, which can be a limitation for users needing offline access.
  • Limited Integration with Other Tools
    While Observable is powerful, its integration with other enterprise tools and platforms is somewhat limited compared to more established data analysis tools.
  • Subscription Costs
    Access to some of Observable's more advanced features requires a paid subscription, which might be a barrier for individual users or small teams with limited budgets.

JSFiddle videos

Dashboard JSFiddle Online JavaScript Editor jQuery, Angular, Backbone, Underscore, Knockout, Y

More videos:

  • Review - 1.3 Using JSFiddle to Create a Simple Web Page

Observable videos

Observable Overview

More videos:

  • Review - observablehq.com review observable hq data analysis
  • Review - Hands-on Data Visualization with Observable Plot

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to JSFiddle and Observable)
Text Editors
100 100%
0% 0
Data Visualization
0 0%
100% 100
Programming
100 100%
0% 0
Data Dashboard
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using JSFiddle and Observable. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare JSFiddle and Observable

JSFiddle Reviews

8 Best Replit Alternatives & Competitors in 2022 (Free & Paid) - Software Discover
Test your javascript, CSS, HTML or coffeescript online with jsfiddle code editor. Jsfiddle – code playground.
12 Best Online IDE and Code Editors to Develop Web Applications
JSFiddle cannot be used to host code on your server. The code has to be on JSFiddle and is public all the time.
Source: geekflare.com
6 Coding Playgrounds For Web Developers
What is missing from JSFiddle is live previews. You have to basically refresh the page by clicking on the play button. And compared to other playgrounds, JSFiddle is probably the slowest. Another slightly frustrating quirk of JSFiddle is its run button, sometimes clicking on it doesn’t work, so you’ll have to click a couple more times before it actually runs the code (and...

Observable Reviews

Top 10 Grafana Alternatives in 2024
Observable is a Grafana alternative that enables users to visualize data via charts and dashboards using code.
Source: middleware.io
Embedded analytics in B2B SaaS: A comparison
A few options were disregarded from the start due to a hefty price tag, these were Looker, Tableau, Power BI, GoodData. A few options like Trevor.io, Preset, Observable were disregarded as they did not seem to fit our criteria (based on the evaluation matrix).
Source: medium.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Observable should be more popular than JSFiddle. It has been mentiond 312 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.

JSFiddle mentions (202)

View more

Observable mentions (312)

  • Apache ECharts
    "Observable is obnoxious if you want to add a D3 pie chart to your Vue application and have to untangle calls to D3’s API from reactive cell values, which look like ordinary JavaScript, but are not, and will cause compilation and runtime errors when copied." Yep - as I wrote: "If you want to just blindly copy and paste d3 code, you may have issues with the docs being hosted on observable." If instead you learn the... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • Natural occurring molecule rivals Ozempic in weight loss, sidesteps side effects
    I'd imagine many nested named capturing groups may trip even the best automated system! I do like the solution though. I would've probably approached it differently, trying to first get the 'inverted' match (i.e. Not matching anything that isn't a currency like pattern) and refine from there. A bit like this one I did a while back, to parse garbled strings that may occur after OCR [0]. I imagine the approach does... - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • Visualizing Data Is an Art – We Should Treat It Like One
    Was looking for some mention of Mike Bostock and his epic odyssey into this space. For those who aren't familiar https://observablehq.com/@mbostock. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • Ohm: A user-friendly parsing toolkit for JavaScript and TypeScript
    I experimented with an Ohm/CodeMirror bridge that would map an Ohm grammar to CodeMirror classes for marks and syntax highlighting. It might be an interesting starting point for you: https://observablehq.com/@ajbouh/editor. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • WebGL Fluid Simulation
    I have a fork of this that inverts the light model from additive to subtractive and suddenly its like ink in water https://observablehq.com/@tomlarkworthy/ink. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing JSFiddle and Observable, you can also consider the following products

CodePen - A front end web development playground.

D3.js - D3.js is a JavaScript library for manipulating documents based on data. D3 helps you bring data to life using HTML, SVG, and CSS.

CodeSandbox - Online playground for React

RunKit - RunKit notebooks are interactive javascript playgrounds connected to a complete node environment right in your browser. Every npm module pre-installed.

JS Bin - Sample of the bin:

Vega-Lite - High-level grammar of interactive graphics