Aura UI vs Mary UI
A free daisyUI-powered library vs a standalone Tailwind one with a Pro tier.
Mary UI is a free, open-source Livewire library powered by daisyUI — fast to assemble and great defaults. Aura UI is standalone Tailwind (no daisyUI dependency) and adds a commercial Pro tier, a full Filament theme and AI discoverability.
| Feature |
Aura UI
|
Mary UI |
|---|---|---|
| Stack | PHP · Blade · Livewire 3 & 4 · Alpine.js · Tailwind 4 | Laravel · Livewire · Tailwind · daisyUI |
| CSS dependency | Standalone Tailwind 4 — no extra CSS framework required | Requires daisyUI (Tailwind plugin) for styling |
| License & cost | Free tier (MIT) + commercial Pro | Fully free & open-source (MIT) |
| Distribution | Composer — plus own-the-code CLI (aura:add copies source into your app) | Composer (Blade components) |
| Pro components | DataTable (sort/filter/bulk/export), charts, rich text editor, Scheduler, Kanban, Sidebar, Carousel, Tree View | No separate Pro tier (everything is free) |
| Filament integration | Full Filament theme + plugin (presets, configurator, branded auth, command palette, email theming) | Not a Filament theme |
| AI discoverability | llms.txt · /r/registry.json · public MCP server | Documentation-based |
| Design language | Vibrant Depth — gradients, glow, glass morphism; visual Theme Studio | daisyUI themes (large preset theme library) |
| Accessibility | WCAG 2.1 AA audited, keyboard navigation, ARIA attributes | Inherits daisyUI / Tailwind baseline |
Mary UI is free, MIT-licensed, and remarkably fast to build UIs with thanks to daisyUI. If you are happy adding daisyUI to your stack and want zero cost, it is an excellent choice.
Which should you pick?
No wrong answer — it comes down to scope.
Choose Aura if you prefer standalone Tailwind without a daisyUI dependency, want a commercial Pro tier, a Filament theme, AI-assisted installs, or own-the-code source.
Choose Mary UI if you want a free, MIT-licensed library, are happy to add daisyUI, and value daisyUI's large theme library and rapid assembly.
Get new components in your inbox
New components, Blocks and practical Laravel UI tips. Free, no spam — unsubscribe anytime.