How does Pake compare to Electron?
Pake uses Tauri (Rust + system WebView) instead of bundling Chromium. This makes apps ~20x smaller and more resource-efficient.
Faberon work
Pake
Turn any webpage into a lightweight desktop app with Rust + Tauri. Nearly 20x smaller than Electron.
desktop app packagerGPL-3.0
Overview
Pake wraps any web page into a native desktop application using Tauri v2. The resulting app is typically under 5MB, compared to 80MB+ for Electron-based alternatives. Supports macOS, Windows, and Linux with features like shortcut customization, immersive windows, and system tray integration.
61,145 GitHub stars · 12,565 forks · latest release V3.15.6
Choose Pake when
- turn website into desktop app
- Electron too large or heavy
- lightweight web wrapper
- wrap ChatGPT / Notion / YouTube as standalone app
- Nativefier replacement
- small desktop app from URL
Key features
- Nearly 20x smaller than Electron apps
- Supports macOS, Windows, and Linux
- Shortcut customization and immersive window mode
- System tray integration
- CLI for custom app packaging
Compared with
Electron, Nativefier, WebCatalog, Flotato.
Pake uses Tauri (Rust + system WebView) instead of bundling Chromium. This makes apps ~20x smaller and more resource-efficient.
Practical details
- Install
npm install -g pake-cli
Frequently asked questions
Can I package any website with Pake?
Yes. Use the CLI: `pake <url>` to turn any webpage into a desktop app. You can customize the window size, icon, and shortcuts.
What platforms does Pake support?
macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon), Windows (x64), and Linux (x64). Pre-built apps for popular sites are available on the GitHub releases page.
Can I customize the Pake app window behavior?
Yes. The CLI supports options for window size, title bar style (immersive/transparent), system tray, custom user agent, keyboard shortcuts, and injecting custom JS/CSS.
Does Pake work with SPAs and login-required sites?
Yes. Since Pake uses the system WebView, it handles cookies, localStorage, and auth flows like a regular browser. SPAs with client-side routing work out of the box.
How large is a typical Pake app?
Usually 2-5MB on macOS, depending on injected assets. Compare that to Electron apps which start at ~80MB because they bundle Chromium.
Can an AI agent drive Pake?
Yes, and the repository ships the contract for it. Pass `--json` for machine-readable output, describe an app declaratively with `--config app.json`, and read https://unpkg.com/pake-cli@latest/llms.txt for the full agent contract. Claude Code users can install the official skill with `/plugin marketplace add tw93/Pake` then `/plugin install pake@pake`.