Best Tauri Boilerplates for Desktop Apps in 2026

Tauri: The Lean Electron Alternative

Tauri v2 shipped stable in 2024, adding iOS and Android support alongside its desktop targets. In 2026, Tauri is the fastest-growing desktop development framework — GitHub stars exceeded 80k, and production apps include the official Tauri Studio, Clash Verge, Clippy, and hundreds of developer tools.

The value proposition is clear: a Tauri app bundle is 3-30MB compared to Electron's 50-200MB, and memory usage is 10-50MB vs 100-500MB. Tauri achieves this by using the operating system's native webview (WebKit on macOS, WebView2 on Windows, WebKitGTK on Linux) rather than bundling a full Chromium instance.

TL;DR

Use create-tauri-app for any new project — it's the official generator that works with any frontend framework. Pick tauri-nextjs-template if your team is comfortable with Next.js and wants to reuse existing knowledge for the desktop. Choose tauri-svelte-template for SvelteKit shops — the Svelte community has strong Tauri adoption and good tooling. For mobile targets (iOS/Android via Tauri v2), always start from create-tauri-app, which is the only template with first-party mobile support built in.

Quick Comparison

Starter	Price	Frontend	TypeScript	Mobile	Best For
create-tauri-app	Free	Any	✅	✅ v2	Official baseline
tauri-nextjs-template	Free	Next.js	✅	❌	Next.js desktop apps
tauri-svelte-template	Free	SvelteKit	✅	❌	Svelte desktop apps
tauri-react-template	Free	React+Vite	✅	❌	React desktop apps

The Starters

create-tauri-app — Official Baseline

Price: Free | Creator: Tauri team

The official project generator. Choose your frontend framework (React, Vue, Svelte, Solid, Angular, Vanilla), package manager, and TypeScript preference. Generates a minimal working Tauri app with the correct Rust project structure.

npm create tauri-app@latest
# ✔ Project name: my-app
# ✔ Choose which language to use for your frontend: TypeScript / JavaScript
# ✔ Choose your package manager: npm
# ✔ Choose your UI template: React

Project structure:

├── src/              # Frontend (React/Vue/Svelte)
│   ├── App.tsx
│   └── main.tsx
├── src-tauri/        # Rust backend
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── main.rs   # Tauri app entry
│   │   └── lib.rs    # Commands and event handlers
│   ├── Cargo.toml    # Rust dependencies
│   └── tauri.conf.json  # Window config, permissions
└── package.json

What's included: The generated project gives you a working Tauri window, a Vite dev server with hot reload, bidirectional communication between frontend and Rust via invoke, and a tauri.conf.json configured with the correct permissions model. It also sets up the build pipeline so npm run tauri build produces platform-specific installers (.dmg on macOS, .msi on Windows, .deb/.AppImage on Linux).

The plugin ecosystem slots in cleanly on top of this base. tauri-plugin-shell lets you run system commands from the frontend. tauri-plugin-fs provides file system access with per-directory permission scoping. tauri-plugin-notification sends native OS notifications. Add them to Cargo.toml and register them with the builder:

fn main() {
    tauri::Builder::default()
        .plugin(tauri_plugin_shell::init())
        .plugin(tauri_plugin_fs::init())
        .plugin(tauri_plugin_notification::init())
        .invoke_handler(tauri::generate_handler![])
        .run(tauri::generate_context!())
        .expect("error while running tauri application");
}

The updater plugin (tauri-plugin-updater) deserves special mention — see the auto-updates section below.

Choose if: You want the official minimal starting point for any frontend framework.

tauri-nextjs-template — Best Next.js Desktop

Price: Free | Creator: Community

Tauri configured with Next.js for server-side static export. Static export mode (output: 'export') generates HTML/CSS/JS that Tauri's webview loads locally. Includes API routes disabled (expected for desktop), TypeScript, and Tailwind CSS.

The critical thing to understand before adopting this template: Next.js features that depend on a Node.js server don't work in a desktop Tauri context. That means no Server Components (RSC), no server actions, no dynamic routes with server-side rendering, and no API routes that hit a real server. The template sets output: 'export' in next.config.js which enforces static output — if you try to use a server-only feature, the build fails.

In practice, this matters less than it sounds. For a desktop app you don't need server-side rendering — there's no SEO, no cold start, no request/response cycle. You replace server-side data fetching with Tauri commands that call Rust directly. The result is often cleaner: instead of an API route that reads a file, you call invoke('read_file', { path }) from a useEffect hook.

Where this template shines is teams that already have a Next.js component library, routing patterns, and TypeScript setup they want to carry into a desktop app. The familiarity is real value.

Choose if: Your team knows Next.js and wants to reuse that knowledge for desktop apps.

tauri-svelte-template — Best Svelte Desktop

Price: Free | Creator: Community

Tauri configured with SvelteKit in static adapter mode. The Svelte community has unusually strong Tauri adoption — partly because Svelte's compile-to-vanilla-JS approach produces minimal bundles that pair well with Tauri's lightweight philosophy, and partly because SvelteKit's adapter system makes static output straightforward.

The template ships with @sveltejs/adapter-static already configured, which outputs a fully static site that Tauri's webview loads from disk. Routing works via client-side navigation. Stores (writable, readable, derived) work exactly as they would in a browser SvelteKit app — there's no adaptation needed for Tauri's environment.

SvelteKit's file-based routing carries over intact as long as you're doing client-side routing. The exception is +page.server.ts and +layout.server.ts files — these require a Node.js runtime and can't be used in static export mode. The template configures this out of the box, so you won't accidentally use server-only features.

From the Tauri side, the Rust backend is identical to any other Tauri project. Invoke Rust commands with invoke from @tauri-apps/api/core inside your Svelte components, same as any other frontend. The Svelte reactivity model works naturally with async invoke calls.

Choose if: Your team uses SvelteKit, or you want the smallest possible bundle size among the framework options.

tauri-react-template — Standard React Desktop

Price: Free | Creator: Community

Tauri configured with React and Vite. This is the most common combination in the Tauri ecosystem — React is the most-used frontend framework, and Vite is Tauri's recommended bundler. The template uses @vitejs/plugin-react for fast refresh and ships with TypeScript.

This template differs from create-tauri-app's React output primarily in that it's a stable community template with slightly more opinionated defaults — typically including a router (React Router v7) and a few utility patterns for managing Tauri window state. If you need a React desktop app without the Next.js complexity, this is the right starting point.

The Vite dev server proxies correctly to the Tauri process during development. Hot module replacement works. The production build produces an optimized static bundle that the webview loads from disk.

Choose if: You want React + Vite without Next.js, with a slightly more structured starting point than create-tauri-app's React output.

Tauri's Rust Backend

Tauri's core difference from Electron is the Rust backend. Frontend (web UI) communicates with Rust via commands:

// src-tauri/src/lib.rs
#[tauri::command]
fn read_file(path: String) -> Result<String, String> {
    std::fs::read_to_string(&path)
        .map_err(|e| e.to_string())
}

#[tauri::command]
async fn fetch_data(url: String) -> Result<String, String> {
    let response = reqwest::get(&url).await
        .map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;
    response.text().await.map_err(|e| e.to_string())
}

fn main() {
    tauri::Builder::default()
        .invoke_handler(tauri::generate_handler![read_file, fetch_data])
        .run(tauri::generate_context!())
        .expect("error while running tauri application");
}

// Frontend - invoke Rust commands
import { invoke } from '@tauri-apps/api/core';

const content = await invoke<string>('read_file', { path: '/home/user/file.txt' });
const data = await invoke<string>('fetch_data', { url: 'https://api.example.com' });

Setting Up Auto-Updates

Auto-updates are one of the most valuable Tauri features for production apps. The tauri-plugin-updater plugin checks a remote endpoint for new versions and applies updates without requiring users to visit a download page.

First, add the plugin to Cargo.toml:

[dependencies]
tauri-plugin-updater = "2"

Register it in main.rs:

fn main() {
    tauri::Builder::default()
        .plugin(tauri_plugin_updater::Builder::new().build())
        .invoke_handler(tauri::generate_handler![check_for_updates])
        .run(tauri::generate_context!())
        .expect("error while running tauri application");
}

Then invoke from the frontend. A typical pattern is to check silently on startup and show a prompt only when an update is available:

import { check } from '@tauri-apps/plugin-updater';
import { relaunch } from '@tauri-apps/plugin-process';

async function checkForUpdates() {
  const update = await check();
  if (update?.available) {
    const shouldUpdate = await confirm(
      `Version ${update.version} is available. Update now?`
    );
    if (shouldUpdate) {
      await update.downloadAndInstall();
      await relaunch();
    }
  }
}

The updater reads from a pubkey and endpoints you configure in tauri.conf.json. You host a JSON file at the endpoint that describes the latest version and download URLs per platform. GitHub Releases works well as the hosting backend — there are community tools that generate the update JSON from a GitHub release automatically.

Tauri Plugins Ecosystem

The official Tauri plugin registry covers the most common desktop app needs. These are all stable in Tauri v2:

@tauri-apps/plugin-fs — File system access with fine-grained permissions. Read, write, and watch files. Permissions are declared in capabilities/ and scoped to specific directories — users can't access paths you didn't explicitly allow.

@tauri-apps/plugin-shell — Run shell commands and spawn child processes from the frontend. Also handles open for URLs and files via the OS default handler.

@tauri-apps/plugin-notification — Send native OS notifications. Works on macOS (Notification Center), Windows (Action Center), and Linux (libnotify). Supports titles, bodies, and icons.

@tauri-apps/plugin-store — Persistent key-value storage backed by a JSON file. The simplest way to persist user preferences without setting up a database. Survives app restarts, stored in the OS app data directory.

@tauri-apps/plugin-updater — Auto-update support as described above. Handles version checking, downloading, and applying updates. Supports delta updates for smaller download sizes.

@tauri-apps/plugin-http — HTTP client backed by Rust's reqwest. Use this when you need HTTP from the frontend but don't want to write a Rust command — the plugin exposes fetch-compatible API. Respects the same permissions model as other plugins.

All plugins follow the same pattern: add the Rust crate to Cargo.toml, register with the Tauri builder, then import the JavaScript package from @tauri-apps/plugin-* in your frontend.

Do You Need to Know Rust?

For basic apps: No. The default Tauri plugins cover file system, HTTP, shell, notifications, and persistent storage without writing a single line of Rust. A developer who knows JavaScript/TypeScript can build a complete, production-quality desktop app using only the plugin APIs.

For intermediate features: Occasionally. If you need to integrate a native library (say, a PDF renderer, a database, or a hardware SDK), you'll need to write a Tauri command in Rust that wraps the native call. These commands are usually short — 10-30 lines — and the pattern is repetitive once you've written one.

For advanced features: Yes. Custom OS integrations, performance-critical background processing, complex file watching, or anything that needs direct system calls will require Rust fluency. This is the same tradeoff as writing a Node.js native addon — it's a different language you're calling from JavaScript.

Learning curve reality: Rust has a steeper learning curve than most languages due to the borrow checker and ownership model. However, Tauri commands are a narrow subset of Rust. The functions you write are typically synchronous transformations or async I/O calls — patterns that don't stress the borrow checker heavily. Most JavaScript developers can write basic Tauri commands within a week of picking up Rust, using the Tauri docs and the Rust book's first few chapters.

The Tauri community leans toward helping non-Rust developers. The Discord is active, the documentation includes Rust examples with explanations, and there's a growing set of community plugins that cover common use cases so you don't have to write the Rust yourself.

Practical recommendation: Start with the official plugins. If you hit something the plugins don't cover, that's when you invest in learning the specific Rust pattern you need.

Bundle Size Comparison

App	Framework	Bundle Size
VS Code	Electron	~150MB
Notion	Electron	~185MB
Typical new app	Electron	~80MB
Typical new app	Tauri	~5-15MB
Tauri with large assets	Tauri	~30MB

The size advantage is most valuable for distribution (download time, storage) and less critical for developer tools that users install once.

Tauri v2 Mobile Support

Tauri v2 introduced iOS and Android build targets, making it possible to ship a single codebase to macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, and Android. This is a significant differentiator — no other desktop-first framework offers genuine mobile support without a completely separate project.

What's included in mobile targets: The same Rust backend runs on mobile. Tauri commands work identically. Most official plugins have mobile implementations — plugin-fs, plugin-http, plugin-notification, and plugin-store all work on iOS and Android.

What's different on mobile: The webview is WKWebView on iOS and Android System WebView on Android — the same engines used by other hybrid app frameworks (Capacitor, Cordova). The Tauri window model adapts: instead of a desktop window with a title bar and menu, you get a full-screen webview that follows mobile conventions.

Setup: Mobile targets require platform-specific toolchains. iOS needs Xcode and a macOS development machine (Apple's requirement, not Tauri's). Android needs Android Studio and the Android NDK. The tauri android init and tauri ios init commands scaffold the native project files.

Caveats: Mobile support in Tauri is newer than the desktop targets, and the community is smaller. Some community plugins are desktop-only. The development experience (hot reload on device, debugging) is functional but less polished than the desktop DX. If mobile is your primary target and you don't have an existing Tauri app, React Native or Flutter are more mature choices. If you have an existing Tauri desktop app and want to extend it to mobile, v2 makes that a realistic option.

create-tauri-app is the correct starting point for any project targeting mobile — the community templates (tauri-nextjs-template, tauri-svelte-template) are optimized for desktop and don't include mobile configuration.

When to Choose Tauri Over Electron

Tauri wins when:

• Distribution size matters — a 5MB installer vs an 80MB installer is a real UX difference for users on slow connections or constrained storage
• Memory efficiency is important — background apps, menubar apps, and daemons that run continuously benefit significantly from Tauri's 10-50MB vs Electron's 100-500MB baseline
• You need iOS/Android support alongside desktop — Tauri v2 is the only desktop-first framework that extends to mobile without a separate codebase
• Security is a priority — Tauri's permissions model requires explicit opt-in for every capability; Electron apps have full Node.js access by default unless locked down carefully
• Your team is comfortable with some Rust, or willing to learn the narrow subset needed for Tauri commands
• You're building a menubar app, CLI wrapper, or utility tool where footprint matters

Electron wins when:

• You need Chromium-level CSS/JS compatibility everywhere — Electron's bundled Chromium is identical across platforms; Tauri's OS webviews differ slightly, which can cause rendering inconsistencies on older systems
• The npm ecosystem has critical dependencies — Electron gives you full Node.js inside the app process; Tauri requires you to proxy Node.js operations through Rust commands
• Your team has zero Rust experience and no bandwidth to learn even the basics
• You're building a product where VS Code compatibility matters — VS Code's extension ecosystem assumes Electron
• Time to market is the overriding constraint — Electron's JavaScript-everywhere model has less friction for teams coming from pure web development

The honest framing: Tauri is better for new projects where bundle size, memory, or mobile support matters. Electron is better when you're moving fast, your team is all JavaScript, or you need the full Node.js runtime inside the app process.

Conclusion

Tauri is a production-grade framework in 2026, not an experimental alternative. The plugin ecosystem covers the majority of desktop app needs without Rust. The v2 mobile targets make cross-platform more literal than it's ever been for web developers.

For most new desktop projects, start with create-tauri-app — it gives you the official foundation with any frontend framework and full mobile support.

If you're evaluating desktop frameworks more broadly, compare Tauri's approach against Electron boilerplates — the tradeoffs are real in both directions.

Browse the full catalog of desktop boilerplates to compare starters by features, license, and maintenance status.

As your Tauri app grows, two areas of the boilerplate stack deserve attention. Containerized development environments reduce the "works on my machine" problem across macOS, Windows, and Linux — the best boilerplates with Docker support guide covers which starters include Docker Compose for consistent local dev. And if you're adding AI capabilities to your desktop app — local LLM inference, Ollama integration, or on-device ML — the guide to adding AI features to your SaaS boilerplate covers the integration patterns that work in Tauri's process model.