Development · head-to-head
Kroki vs Statically
Kroki puts a single unified HTTP API in front of two dozen open-source diagram-as-code renderers, including PlantUML, Mermaid, GraphViz, D2, BPMN, Excalidraw, and WaveDrom, so callers send diagram source text and get back an image with no local toolchain to install. A GET request embeds the (deflate+base64-encoded) diagram directly in the URL, making it trivial to drop live diagrams straight into Markdown or HTML. The project and its public instance at kroki.io are free and open source, with self-hosting via Docker documented for anyone who needs a private instance.
Statically is a free CDN that serves raw files straight from GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and GitHub Gist repositories, plus any npm package, via simple path-based URLs like `cdn.statically.io/gh/:user/:repo@:tag/:file` — no key or account needed. It runs on bunny.net and Cloudflare edge infrastructure; the vendor disabled its former `/img/` image-processing endpoint after sustained abuse, so only the Git/npm file-serving routes remain live today.
| Kroki | Statically | |
|---|---|---|
| Authentication | None | None |
| Pricing | free | free |
| Formats | SVG, PNG, PDF, JPEG | JavaScript, CSS |
| CORS | yes | yes |
| HTTPS | Yes | Yes |
Kroki supports 4 response formats, while Statically offers fewer — pick Kroki for more integration flexibility.