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Fumadocs vs Scalar

OCT 2026 audit

A comparison of Fumadocs and Scalar built from values read directly from each provider's own documentation, with the source recorded against every figure.

Reviewed by Palash BagchiUpdated 17 criteria compared

Our interest in Fumadocs

inetGeek's documentation at inetgeek.com/docs is built with Fumadocs. This record was written by the people who use it, and nothing below is sourced differently because of that: every figure comes from Fumadocs' own site and documentation like every other record here, and where those pages are silent the cell is empty.

The short answer

Choose Fumadocs if…

A team that already builds in React or Next.js and wants to own its documentation site: Fumadocs is an open-source framework you deploy yourself, with an OpenAPI reference and playground, llms.txt and MCP integrations, and no paid plan.

Editorial · Palash Bagchi · approved

Choose Scalar if…

A team that wants OpenAPI-driven docs, an API client, SDK generation and MCP servers from one toolchain with an MIT-licensed core. Pro is $150 a month for 15 APIs and 5 editor seats.

Editorial · Palash Bagchi · approved

Consider something else if…

  • Fumadocs: You want someone to host and run it. Fumadocs sells no hosting, so deploying and keeping the site up is your work, SDK generation is not described, and its AI assistant needs a model you supply.
  • Scalar: You need SAML SSO, which starts at Business, or a SOC 2 Type II report, where Scalar states a Type 1. Publishing a docs site needs a paid plan after the 7-day trial, so the free plan is not a way to host docs.

Neither quite fits? Every other option, ranked by iScore: Fumadocs alternatives · Scalar alternatives

7 sourced criteria separate them — see where, with sources, below.

Visit Fumadocs documentationVisit Scalar documentation

No affiliate links, sponsored placements or paid rankings appear on this site. Ordering follows the sourced data and the stated criteria.

01.

At a glance.

CriterionFumadocsScalar
Pricing
Free tierYesYes
Kind of free offerAlways freeFree tier
What the free plan includesThe framework is open source and free to adopt; no hosting is included, you deploy and run your own app on the hosting of your underlying React framework. The AI chat model is likewise not provided.The Free plan costs $0 with no credit card: hosted OpenAPI docs, built-in API client, landing pages, up to 3 APIs, 1 SDK up to 25 endpoints, 50 Agent Scalar credits and 1 editor seat. Publishing a Docs site needs a paid plan after the 7-day trial every new team gets.
Entry paid planNo paid plan is listed: fumadocs.dev shows no plans or prices and presents Fumadocs as an open-source project powered by its community.Pro is $150/month ($125/month billed yearly): 5 editor seats, up to 15 APIs, 1 SDK up to 100 endpoints, custom domains, Git Sync, Markdown and MDX, hosted MCP servers. Business is $600/month.
Pricing modelNo pricing model: the framework is open source and the site lists no plans, tiers or prices; the homepage shows a Sponsors section and a contributors list.Priced per plan by APIs published, SDK size (endpoints in the OpenAPI document) and editor seats: Free 3 APIs and 1 seat, Pro 15 APIs and 5 seats, Business 25 APIs and 10 seats, Enterprise custom. Each plan includes 1 SDK; extra SDKs are $150/month each up to 100 endpoints or $600/month each for 101-250. Billed monthly or yearly.
Observability
Self-hostable
Supported
Limited — MIT-licensed core only; no page says the hosted Docs platform itself can be self-hosted.
Documentation
Docs as code in a git repositorySupportedSupported
API reference from an OpenAPI specSupportedSupported
Interactive API playgroundSupportedSupported
Client SDK generation
Limited — Generates example request code in several languages; no SDK generation is described
Supported
llms.txt and markdown for AI toolsSupportedSupported
MCP server for the docs or APISupportedSupported
Built-in AI assistant over the docs
Limited — Installable AI chat UI; Fumadocs supplies no model, you bring your own
Supported
Multiple documentation versionsSupportedSupported — Docs plan table lists versions from Pro upward, not on Free.

Only criteria both providers publish appear here; a tinted cell marks a real difference. Criteria only one of them documents are listed below, and an absence there means we found no source — not that the feature is missing. How we source this.

The small bar above a value is inetGeek's own lean toward that side — computed from the same facts shown, never a number the provider published. See the picker below "The short answer" to weigh only the criteria you care about.

02.

Where they differ.

Kind of free offer

Fumadocs
Always free
Scalar
Free tier
Sources (2) →

What the free plan includes

Fumadocs
The framework is open source and free to adopt; no hosting is included, you deploy and run your own app on the hosting of your underlying React framework. The AI chat model is likewise not provided.
Scalar
The Free plan costs $0 with no credit card: hosted OpenAPI docs, built-in API client, landing pages, up to 3 APIs, 1 SDK up to 25 endpoints, 50 Agent Scalar credits and 1 editor seat. Publishing a Docs site needs a paid plan after the 7-day trial every new team gets.
Sources (2) →
  • Deploying | Fumadocs ↗

    “Your Fumadocs app is powered by the underlying React framework (e.g. Next.js), you will need to check the relevant docs of your React framework for deployment guides.”

    Read 2026-10-25 · official docs · Report a correction

  • Scalar Pricing — Free & Paid Plans for API Docs & SDKs ↗

    “Hosted OpenAPI docs Built-in API client Landing pages Up to 3 APIs, 1 SDK up to 25 endpoints 50 Agent Scalar credits 1 editor seat [...] Every new team starts with a 7-day trial with Pro limits, including Docs publishing. After the trial, publishing a Docs site needs a paid plan.”

    Read 2026-10-25 · official pricing · Report a correction

Entry paid plan

Fumadocs
No paid plan is listed: fumadocs.dev shows no plans or prices and presents Fumadocs as an open-source project powered by its community.
Scalar
Pro is $150/month ($125/month billed yearly): 5 editor seats, up to 15 APIs, 1 SDK up to 100 endpoints, custom domains, Git Sync, Markdown and MDX, hosted MCP servers. Business is $600/month.
Sources (2) →

Pricing model

Fumadocs
No pricing model: the framework is open source and the site lists no plans, tiers or prices; the homepage shows a Sponsors section and a contributors list.
Scalar
Priced per plan by APIs published, SDK size (endpoints in the OpenAPI document) and editor seats: Free 3 APIs and 1 seat, Pro 15 APIs and 5 seats, Business 25 APIs and 10 seats, Enterprise custom. Each plan includes 1 SDK; extra SDKs are $150/month each up to 100 endpoints or $600/month each for 101-250. Billed monthly or yearly.
Sources (2) →
  • Fumadocs ↗

    “Open Source Forever. Made Possible by You. Fumadocs is 100% powered by passion and open source community. Sponsors Contributors”

    Read 2026-10-25 · official site · Report a correction

  • Scalar Pricing — Free & Paid Plans for API Docs & SDKs ↗

    “Pricing scales with how many APIs you publish and the size of each SDK, measured by the number of endpoints in your OpenAPI document. [...] Additional SDKs are priced by each SDK's endpoint count: $150 per month each for up to 100 endpoints, or $600 per month each for 101–250 endpoints.”

    Read 2026-10-25 · official pricing · Report a correction

Client SDK generation

Fumadocs
Limited — Generates example request code in several languages; no SDK generation is described
Scalar
Supported
Sources (2) →

Built-in AI assistant over the docs

Fumadocs
Limited — Installable AI chat UI; Fumadocs supplies no model, you bring your own
Scalar
Supported
Sources (2) →
  • AI & LLMs | Fumadocs ↗

    “You can install the AI chat dialog using Fumadocs CLI. [...] Fumadocs doesn't provide the AI model, it's up to you.”

    Read 2026-10-25 · official docs · Report a correction

  • Ask AI ↗

    “Ask AI adds an AI-powered assistant to your documentation site. [...] Ask AI is enabled by default for all Scalar Docs projects. No setup required.”

    Read 2026-10-25 · official docs · Report a correction

Self-hostable

Fumadocs
Supported
Scalar
Limited — MIT-licensed core only; no page says the hosted Docs platform itself can be self-hosted.
Sources (2) →

When these numbers change, hear about it. Sources are re-checked monthly; a repricing goes out as a short note.

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03.

Documented by only one.

These criteria are published by one provider and not the other. An absence here means we have not found a source, not that the feature is missing — except where we say we read the other provider's own page on a given date and it does not state it. Those rows lean, and the provider can correct them with a link.

Sites or apps includedScalar: Pro, the entry paid plan, allows up to 15 APIs and 5 editor seats; Free allows 3 APIs and 1 editor seat, Business 25 APIs and 10 seats.
SAML single sign-onScalar: Supported — Business and Enterprise plans; not on Free or Pro.
SOC 2Scalar: SOC 2 Type 1 report received for controls relevant to security; no Type 2 stated. GDPR privacy rights are described, no data-residency region is stated.
04.

Questions this comparison answers.

Entry paid plan: Fumadocs or Scalar?

Fumadocs: No paid plan is listed: fumadocs.dev shows no plans or prices and presents Fumadocs as an open-source project powered by its community.

Scalar: Pro is $150/month ($125/month billed yearly): 5 editor seats, up to 15 APIs, 1 SDK up to 100 endpoints, custom domains, Git Sync, Markdown and MDX, hosted MCP servers. Business is $600/month.

Should I choose Fumadocs or Scalar?

Pick Fumadocs if A team that already builds in React or Next.js and wants to own its documentation site: Fumadocs is an open-source framework you deploy yourself, with an OpenAPI reference and playground, llms.txt and MCP integrations, and no paid plan.

Pick Scalar if A team that wants OpenAPI-driven docs, an API client, SDK generation and MCP servers from one toolchain with an MIT-licensed core. Pro is $150 a month for 15 APIs and 5 editor seats.

Provider pages

FumadocsOpen-source React.js documentation framework (Next.js, React Router, TanStack Start, Waku, Astro) that you self-host, with an OpenAPI integration, llms.txt and an MCP server.ScalarAPI documentation platform and OpenAPI toolchain: hosted docs, SDK generator, API client and MCP servers built from an OpenAPI document.

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Comments

Every page here is sourced and dated.