twenty vs next-js-boilerplate
Two of the top projects in SaaS and app starters, side by side: who leads on each score part and who each one suits, then setup, license, activity and what each review found.
twenty
Open-source CRM extensible with objects, views and agents defined as code
next-js-boilerplate
Next.js 16 starter with Clerk auth, Drizzle ORM, Tailwind 4 and tooling
Verdict
Both score 69; twenty ranks higher on stars, 58,769 to 13,085. Of the 5 score parts we measure for both, twenty leads on 3, next-js-boilerplate on 1 and 1 is even.
- Adoptiontwenty leads by 27 points, 96 to 69: a wide gap.
- FreshnessEven at 100.
- Maintenancetwenty leads by 10 points, 96 to 86.
- Easy to runnext-js-boilerplate leads by 33 points, 33 to 0: a wide gap.
- Agent-readytwenty leads by 15 points, 85 to 70: a wide gap.
Pick twenty if you are
Technical teams building a custom, code-defined CRM
- Objects, fields and views defined in TypeScript and published with `npx twenty app:publish`
- Cloud and self-hosted options; Docker Compose guide in the docs
Pick next-js-boilerplate if you are
Developers starting a Next.js app with auth, database and tooling set up
- Runs locally with embedded PGlite database, no Docker or extra setup
- Broad dev tooling preconfigured: Vitest, Playwright, Storybook, Commitlint, Knip, i18n-check
| What we compare | twenty | next-js-boilerplate |
|---|---|---|
| Score parts, out of 100 | ||
| Adoption | 96, widely used | 69, popular |
| Freshness | 100, active | 100, active |
| Maintenance | 96, healthy | 86, healthy |
| Easy to run | 0, hard | 33, some setup |
| Agent-ready | 85, ready | 70, partly |
| Facts from GitHub and the README | ||
| Stars | 58.8k | 13.1k |
| License | custom license (read the license) | MIT (permissive) |
| Last commit | Oct 2026 | Oct 2026 |
| Last release | Oct 2026 | Oct 2026 |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Docker | No | No |
| GPU | Not needed | Not needed |
| arm64 or Apple Silicon | Not stated | Not stated |
twenty
Twenty is a CRM built on NestJS, React, PostgreSQL and Redis, with BullMQ for jobs. Teams define custom objects, fields and views in TypeScript with twenty-sdk, scaffold apps with `npx create-twenty-app`, and publish them to a workspace from the CLI. It also includes workflows, AI agents and chat, and runs as a cloud service or self-hosted via Docker Compose.
Who it is for: Technical teams building a custom, code-defined CRM
Strengths
- Objects, fields and views defined in TypeScript and published with `npx twenty app:publish`
- Cloud and self-hosted options; Docker Compose guide in the docs
- Official agent skills for Claude Code, Codex and Cursor to build Twenty apps
- Standard stack: NestJS, PostgreSQL, Redis, React, Nx monorepo
Weaknesses
- License is reported as NOASSERTION; terms need manual checking
- README gives no RAM, CPU or port requirements for self-hosting
- Self-hosting needs PostgreSQL and Redis alongside the app
- README does not name supported AI providers or models
- TypeScript
- Needs PostgreSQL, Redis
next-js-boilerplate
A clone-and-edit Next.js App Router starter in TypeScript with Tailwind CSS 4, Clerk authentication, and Drizzle ORM on PostgreSQL (PGlite locally, Neon suggested for production). It also wires in next-intl i18n, Vitest, Playwright, Storybook, Sentry, LogTape and Arcjet. It includes no AI features beyond agent instruction files and CodeRabbit review.
Who it is for: Developers starting a Next.js app with auth, database and tooling set up
Strengths
- Runs locally with embedded PGlite database, no Docker or extra setup
- Broad dev tooling preconfigured: Vitest, Playwright, Storybook, Commitlint, Knip, i18n-check
- Drizzle ORM supports PostgreSQL, SQLite and MySQL, with migration scripts
- Includes instruction files for Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, OpenCode and Copilot
Weaknesses
- Auth depends on a hosted Clerk account and API keys
- No billing; Stripe, teams, RBAC and shadcn UI are in the paid Pro kit
- No built-in AI features such as chat or model calls
- Many sponsor-linked services (Sentry, Arcjet, Crowdin, Better Stack) to configure or strip out
- TypeScript
- Needs Node.js 24+, npm, Clerk, PostgreSQL (PGlite locally, Neon optional), Sentry, Crowdin, Arcjet
- GitHub template
- ⚠️ .env file committed
- sign-in: Clerk
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