{"slug": "slint", "name": "Slint", "category": "dev-libs", "category_name": "Libraries and frameworks", "description": "", "recommenders": 3, "commenters": 6, "warners": 0, "score": 3.396, "rising": -0.98, "first": "2025-12-10", "latest": "2026-08-22", "why": "I use Slint and tried a bunch of the other frameworks and nothing worked as well in embedded and also as mac/linux apps.", "why_is_quote": true, "has_verdict": false, "sentiment": {"recommend": 3, "neutral": 3, "compare": 1, "warn": 0}, "spark": [0, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0], "listed": true, "loved": [], "caveat": "", "short_quote": "I use Slint and tried a bunch of the other frameworks and nothing worked as well in embedded and also as mac/linux apps.", "icon": true, "domain": "slint.dev", "github_repo": null, "official_url": "https://slint.dev", "pricing": "", "aliases": ["Slint"], "verdict": null, "praise": [{"label": "", "summary": "", "quotes": [{"id": 776779184, "item_id": 48548699, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48548699", "by": "evereverever", "date": "2026-06-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I use Slint and tried a bunch of the other frameworks and nothing worked as well in embedded and also as mac/linux apps.", "excerpt": "I use Slint and tried a bunch of the other frameworks and nothing worked as well in embedded and also as mac/linux apps. It really accelerated development to have it running as a mac app and then be able to deploy it on real hardware.", "context": "", "use_case": "embedded and desktop UI", "switched_from": "", "story": "The state of building user interfaces in Rust"}, {"id": 748271616, "item_id": 46766976, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46766976", "by": "ogoffart", "date": "2026-01-26", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I suggest Slint (https://slint.dev)", "excerpt": "> I wish that there was some native alternative to the Web-based everything. I suggest Slint (https://slint.dev)", "context": "", "use_case": "native GUI toolkit", "switched_from": "", "story": "Web-based image editor modeled after Deluxe Paint"}, {"id": 746494960, "item_id": 46655935, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46655935", "by": "cyber_kinetist", "date": "2026-01-16", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "There is Slint (https://slint.dev/), which was a company founded by ex-Qt devs and seem to be trying to make a better alternative to Qt.", "excerpt": "There is Slint (https://slint.dev/), which was a company founded by ex-Qt devs and seem to be trying to make a better alternative to Qt. The core engine is built wiht Rust, but they also provide C++ and JS bindings and also have a QML-like scripting language you can use to design UI quickly. So far I think they've solidified their revenue model by catering to embedded devices, but I haven't seen a solid usecase for d", "context": "", "use_case": "native GUI toolkit", "switched_from": "", "story": "High-Level Is the Goal"}, {"id": 739557984, "item_id": 46222374, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46222374", "by": "joeld42", "date": "2025-12-10", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Take a look at Slint or Avalonia if you miss this experience.", "excerpt": "Take a look at Slint or Avalonia if you miss this experience. And I'll take needing an internet connection over having to install Visual Basic from a stack of CDs.", "context": "", "use_case": "native GUI apps", "switched_from": "", "story": "You used to be able to just create a Native GUI App in 10 seconds"}]}], "caveats": [], "who": [], "tags": [], "use_cases": ["native gui toolkit", "music player ui", "gui toolkit for native client", "embedded and desktop ui", "ui framework", "embedded ui with software renderer"], "compared": [{"slug": "qt", "name": "Qt", "co": 3, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}, {"slug": "iced", "name": "iced", "co": 2, "switched_from": 0, "switched_to": 0}], "makers": [{"id": 791707264, "item_id": 49481704, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49481704", "by": "ogoffart", "date": "2026-08-28", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "UI renders natively (without a browser)", "excerpt": "There is Slint - https://github.com/slint-ui/slint/ - UI renders natively (without a browser) - Slint uses a declarative UI that should be intuitive to use for developers / designers / agents. - Can be interfaced from different languages such as Rust / JS / TS / Python (disclaimer, I am working for Slint)", "context": "works for Slint", "use_case": "native UI instead of Electron", "switched_from": "", "story": "Ask HN: Any true alternatives to electron JavaScript?"}], "threads": [{"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49478014", "title": "Ask HN: Any true alternatives to electron JavaScript?", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49332812", "title": "Using an old Android phone as a music player", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48987649", "title": "AI Is Changing the Economics of Native Apps", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48479008", "title": "The state of building user interfaces in Rust", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47741527", "title": "Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (April 2026)", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47682719", "title": "Xilem \u2013 An experimental Rust native UI framework", "mentions": 1}], "sentiment_by_month": {"2025-11": {}, "2025-12": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-01": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-02": {}, "2026-03": {}, "2026-04": {"compare": 1, "neutral": 1}, "2026-05": {}, "2026-06": {"recommend": 1}, "2026-07": {"neutral": 1}, "2026-08": {"neutral": 1}, "2026-09": {}, "2026-10": {}}, "quotes": [{"id": 790409905, "item_id": 49400619, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49400619", "by": "sandreas", "date": "2026-08-22", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "I managed to compile my WIP Rust / Slint music player app [1] to run on the HiBy framebuffer", "excerpt": "Just to give you a start: https://github.com/bidhata/Hiby-R1-Mod https://github.com/yetisoldier/Hiby-R1-Audiobook-Mod The latter also has great documentation in the repo. You can enable developer mode / adb by (this may differ in non 1.6 firmware versions): Go to about Tap 10 times on the version / HiBy Logo (dev options) Tab 10 times on \"about\" beneath the back arrow (enable adb) After this you can adb devices # lis", "context": "", "use_case": "music player UI", "switched_from": "", "story": "Using an old Android phone as a music player"}, {"id": 783808113, "item_id": 48988007, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48988007", "by": "edukite", "date": "2026-07-20", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "to create native client for Mattermost using Slint with Rust bindings", "excerpt": "I used AI, namely Claude Opus 4.8, to create native client for Mattermost using Slint with Rust bindings. To create such application you don't need AI, it's GUI and cross-platform and for exercise purposes it was perfect. I manage to create functionally correct application but it fall very short in performance and required constant logic validation. GUI components also required constant oversight and manual fixing si", "context": "", "use_case": "GUI toolkit for native client", "switched_from": "", "story": "AI Is Changing the Economics of Native Apps"}, {"id": 776779184, "item_id": 48548699, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48548699", "by": "evereverever", "date": "2026-06-15", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I use Slint and tried a bunch of the other frameworks and nothing worked as well in embedded and also as mac/linux apps.", "excerpt": "I use Slint and tried a bunch of the other frameworks and nothing worked as well in embedded and also as mac/linux apps. It really accelerated development to have it running as a mac app and then be able to deploy it on real hardware.", "context": "", "use_case": "embedded and desktop UI", "switched_from": "", "story": "The state of building user interfaces in Rust"}, {"id": 763996353, "item_id": 47749772, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47749772", "by": "Shorel", "date": "2026-04-13", "stance": "neutral", "quote": "Written in C++ and Slint, it was also a testbed of slint as an UI framework.", "excerpt": "Apikulture. A small, fast alternative to Postman/Insomnia that doesn't upload your data to the cloud. Written in C++ and Slint, it was also a testbed of slint as an UI framework. Having used wxWidgets in the past, and Qt recently, it is certainly a different thing. I just wish there was a native C++ alternative to slint. I need to integrate the CI to produce binaries, but you can compile it yourself for now.", "context": "", "use_case": "UI framework", "switched_from": "", "story": "Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (April 2026)"}, {"id": 763094769, "item_id": 47693423, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47693423", "by": "sandreas", "date": "2026-04-08", "stance": "compare", "quote": "`Slint` is also usable, however I'm not sure about the licensing approach", "excerpt": "While I love seeing many alternatives regarding UI frameworks, I'd love to see one general purpose \"market leader\". I love `iced` for its simplicity and flexibility, but unfortunately there is no official software renderer, which makes it impossible to use for my little embedded side project. `Slint` is also usable, however I'm not sure about the licensing approach that makes you pay for non open source projects (whi", "context": "embedded side project", "use_case": "embedded UI with software renderer", "switched_from": "", "story": "Xilem \u2013 An experimental Rust native UI framework"}, {"id": 748271616, "item_id": 46766976, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46766976", "by": "ogoffart", "date": "2026-01-26", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I suggest Slint (https://slint.dev)", "excerpt": "> I wish that there was some native alternative to the Web-based everything. I suggest Slint (https://slint.dev)", "context": "", "use_case": "native GUI toolkit", "switched_from": "", "story": "Web-based image editor modeled after Deluxe Paint"}, {"id": 746494960, "item_id": 46655935, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46655935", "by": "cyber_kinetist", "date": "2026-01-16", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "There is Slint (https://slint.dev/), which was a company founded by ex-Qt devs and seem to be trying to make a better alternative to Qt.", "excerpt": "There is Slint (https://slint.dev/), which was a company founded by ex-Qt devs and seem to be trying to make a better alternative to Qt. The core engine is built wiht Rust, but they also provide C++ and JS bindings and also have a QML-like scripting language you can use to design UI quickly. So far I think they've solidified their revenue model by catering to embedded devices, but I haven't seen a solid usecase for d", "context": "", "use_case": "native GUI toolkit", "switched_from": "", "story": "High-Level Is the Goal"}, {"id": 739557984, "item_id": 46222374, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46222374", "by": "joeld42", "date": "2025-12-10", "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Take a look at Slint or Avalonia if you miss this experience.", "excerpt": "Take a look at Slint or Avalonia if you miss this experience. And I'll take needing an internet connection over having to install Visual Basic from a stack of CDs.", "context": "", "use_case": "native GUI apps", "switched_from": "", "story": "You used to be able to just create a Native GUI App in 10 seconds"}]}