Slidev

Slidev is an open-source presentation framework built specifically for developers — you write slides in Markdown, embed Vue components, and ship interactive code demos. We rate it 89/100 — the right pick for any developer who can already write Markdown and wants Git-tracked decks with first-class code blocks instead of fighting drag handles in Keynote.

What is Slidev?

Slidev is a web-based slide maker created by Anthony Fu — the same engineer behind Vitest, VueUse, UnoCSS, and a core team member of Vue, Nuxt, and Vite. It launched publicly on April 24, 2021 and has grown into one of the most-starred presentation tools on GitHub, with over 46,000 stars and an active release cadence (the most recent tag, v52.15.0, shipped on April 28, 2026).

The pitch is simple: presentations are still mostly authored in WYSIWYG editors that feel slow and force you to copy-paste code as flat images. Slidev flips that around — your deck is a .md file, version-controlled like any other source, with HMR-powered live editing in your browser and Vue components for any custom layout you want.

Key Features of Slidev

• Markdown-first authoring: Slides are separated by --- in a single Markdown file. Front-matter blocks per slide control the layout, transitions, and assigned components.
• First-class code blocks: Powered by Shiki for VS Code-quality syntax highlighting. Built-in support for line highlighting, click-to-step animations, Monaco-based live editors, and Twoslash type hints right in code samples.
• Vue components anywhere: Drop a <Tweet/>, <Youtube/>, custom chart, or any Vue 3 component directly into a slide. UnoCSS atomic classes work out of the box for inline styling.
• Presenter mode and recording: Notes pane, next-slide preview, drawing layer, and a built-in webcam camera overlay so you can record talks without a separate OBS setup.
• Multi-format export: Export to PDF (with --with-clicks for animation-aware pagination), PPTX (with speaker notes attached per slide), or PNGs via --format png. Static SPA build deploys to Netlify, Vercel, or GitHub Pages with a single command.
• StackBlitz starter: sli.dev/new spins up a working deck in your browser without installing anything — useful for quick experiments before committing to a local setup.

What Users Say About Slidev

Sentiment around Slidev is unusually positive for a presentation tool. On the original Hacker News launch thread, the most-upvoted comments call out the developer workflow — Markdown plus Git diffing — as the killer feature compared to Keynote or Google Slides. A more recent HN discussion notes that "Reveal.js vs Sli.dev seems like a toss up" but credits Slidev for a smoother authoring experience.

The recurring complaints are real: the learning curve is steeper than Marp because Slidev directives are not standard Markdown, and getting the most out of custom layouts requires some Vue knowledge. Independent reviewers and the community-maintained comparison on tonai.github.io flag a missing native table-of-contents helper as a notable gap, although community plugins fill it. On Reddit's r/webdev and r/vuejs, the most-shared sentiment is that decks built once in Slidev are easier to update for the next conference than any WYSIWYG slide tool — a productivity argument that compounds over time.

Slidev Pricing

Slidev is free and open-source under the MIT license — there is no paid tier, no subscription, and no usage limit. You can self-host the static build on any CDN at no cost. The optional StackBlitz starter at sli.dev/new is also free.

Plan	Price	What's Included
Open Source (only tier)	$0	Full framework, all components, all export formats, presenter mode, recording, themes, MIT license — unlimited use commercial or personal.

Who Should Use Slidev?

Best for: Developers, technical conference speakers, dev advocates, university lecturers in CS, and anyone who already lives in Markdown and Git. Teams that maintain a recurring talk track (onboarding, system design reviews, lunch-and-learns) get the most leverage because decks become reusable source files.

Not ideal for: Marketing, finance, or sales teams that need real-time co-editing the way Google Slides offers it — Slidev has no multiplayer mode. Skip it if your audience reviews decks via shared Google Drive comments, or if you need Microsoft 365 organizational templates.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Code blocks render with VS Code-grade Shiki highlighting and Twoslash type hints — the single biggest upgrade over any traditional slide tool.
• Decks are plain text — diff, merge, branch, and review them like any other code.
• Built-in webcam overlay and slide recording remove the need for a separate OBS configuration when shooting talk videos.
• Backed by Anthony Fu and the Slidev team — release cadence has stayed consistent for over four years (v52.15.0 shipped April 28, 2026).

Cons:

• Steeper learning curve than Marp; custom layouts effectively require Vue knowledge.
• No native real-time collaboration — co-editing happens through Git rather than live cursors.
• Built-in table-of-contents support is still a gap that community plugins fill imperfectly.
• PPTX export converts slides to images, so text in exported PowerPoint files is not selectable.

Alternatives to Slidev

Reveal.js is the older, HTML-first alternative with a larger plugin ecosystem but a clunkier authoring experience. Marp is closer to vanilla Markdown and easier to pick up but has fewer interactive features. Excalidraw is the right complement when you need hand-drawn diagrams inside any of these tools.

Verdict: Is Slidev Worth It?

For developers who give technical talks, Slidev is a clear yes — the Markdown workflow plus Shiki-rendered code blocks is genuinely better than the alternatives, and the price tag is zero. The 89/100 score reflects a tool that's best-in-class for its target audience but loses points for the Vue learning curve and the lack of real-time collaboration that non-technical teammates often expect. If you've ever struggled to fit a code block into a Keynote slide without it looking awful, install Slidev today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Slidev free?

Yes. Slidev is open-source under the MIT license with no paid tier, subscription, or usage limit. The hosted starter at sli.dev/new is also free.

What platforms does Slidev support?

Slidev runs anywhere Node.js 20.12 or later runs — macOS, Windows, and Linux for local authoring, plus any modern browser for viewing. The static export deploys to any CDN, and the in-browser starter runs on StackBlitz with no install.

How does Slidev compare to Reveal.js?

Slidev uses an extended Markdown format and Vue components, while Reveal.js encourages writing slides in HTML. Reveal.js has a larger plugin ecosystem after a decade in the wild, but Slidev offers a faster authoring loop and stronger code-rendering out of the box.

Is Slidev open source?

Yes — Slidev is MIT licensed and developed in the open at github.com/slidevjs/slidev, currently sitting at 46,000+ stars.

Can I export Slidev to PowerPoint or PDF?

Yes. The CLI exports to PDF (with optional click-aware pagination), PPTX (with speaker notes attached per slide), and PNGs via --format png. PPTX exports embed slides as images so text is not selectable in PowerPoint.