cli-cursor vs blessed

Side-by-side — pricing, strengths, tradeoffs, and fit.

cli-cursor

Toggle the CLI cursor for better user experience in command-line applications.

blessed

Curses-like library for building terminal UIs in Node.js.

At a glance

Open SourceFree Tier
● Established·From $0
Open SourceFree Tier
◌ Declining·From $0

Overview

One-liner

Toggle the CLI cursor for better user experience in command-line applications.

One-liner

Curses-like library for building terminal UIs in Node.js.

Maturity

Established

Maturity

Declining

Open source

✓ Yes

Open source

✓ Yes

Pricing

Free tier

✓ Available

Open source — free to use

Free tier

✓ Available

Open source — free to use

Starts at

$0

Starts at

$0

Model

Flat rate

Model

Flat rate

Enterprise

✕ None

Enterprise

✕ None

Best for

✓ Best for

Developers building CLI applications that require cursor visibility control for better UX.
Projects needing a simple, cross-platform solution to manage the cursor state.

✓ Best for

Developers building interactive CLIs who need rich UI elements and customization options.
Teams working on terminal-based applications requiring event-driven interactions.

Not ideal for

✕ Not for

Applications requiring complex graphical user interfaces beyond basic terminal functionality
Use cases where the cursor's visibility is not critical or does not enhance usability

✕ Not for

Projects that require real-time collaboration features in the terminal.
Applications needing extensive graphical capabilities beyond what a terminal can provide.

Strengths

↑ Strengths

Toggle CLI cursor visibility
Cross-platform support (Windows, macOS, Linux)
Simple API for easy integration

↑ Strengths

Supports rich terminal UI elements like forms, lists, and buttons.
Highly customizable with theming support.
Event-driven architecture for interactive applications.

Weaknesses

↓ Weaknesses

Limited functionality beyond cursor visibility
Small community and limited support
Lack of comprehensive error handling
No support for additional terminal features

↓ Weaknesses

Steep learning curve for developers unfamiliar with curses-like libraries
Limited documentation and community support
Performance issues with complex UIs
Full cli-cursor profile →Full blessed profile →