A shadcn/ui alternative for animated React components
shadcn/ui gives you the base components to build a design system on. Nexus UI adds the animated ones, and installs through the same shadcn CLI, so many projects use both. Here is how they differ, and when shadcn/ui on its own is enough.
| shadcn/ui | Nexus UI | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A set of accessible components and a code distribution platform. In its own words, it is not a component library but how you build your component library. | A library of animated React components, blocks and Next.js templates. |
| Stack | Its site lists Next.js, React and Tailwind CSS. | React, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS and Framer Motion. |
| Install | It hands you the component code to edit in your project, and has a CLI to install components across projects. | Copy from each component page, or install with the shadcn CLI through the @nexus-labs registry. |
| Free | Open source, with the source code on GitHub. | 77 of 282 components, 2 of 35 templates and the free blocks. |
| Paid | Its site does not mention a paid plan. | Pro is $49.99 a year, or All-Access is $79.99 once. Either unlocks the 205 Pro components, all 35 templates and the premium blocks (22 block groups in total), plus Pro build prompts. |
Try them before you choose
These run live. Hover, drag or click any of them, then open one to copy it or install it with the shadcn CLI.
Choose shadcn/ui if
- You want accessible base components (buttons, dialogs, forms, menus) to build your own design system on.
- You only want free, open-source code and do not need motion-heavy components.
Choose Nexus UI if
- You want one plan that unlocks every Pro component, block and template, with the choice of a yearly or a one-time payment.
- You want springs and physics-driven components, and full-page Next.js templates, in the same library.
- You install with the shadcn CLI and want Pro build prompts an AI coding agent can work from.
Questions people ask
- Is Nexus UI free like shadcn/ui?
- Partly. 77 of 282 components, 2 of 35 templates and the free blocks. are free, with full source. Pro is $49.99 a year, or All-Access is $79.99 once. Either unlocks the 205 Pro components, all 35 templates and the premium blocks (22 block groups in total), plus Pro build prompts.
- Does Nexus UI work with shadcn/ui?
- Yes. Every component installs with the shadcn CLI through the @nexus-labs registry, or you can copy it from its page. It is React, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS and Framer Motion, so it sits next to your shadcn/ui components.
- Can I use Nexus UI and shadcn/ui in the same project?
- Yes. A Nexus UI component is source code that lives in your own project, not a package you are locked into, so you can mix it with components from any other library.
- Can my AI coding agent add Nexus UI components?
- Yes. Nexus UI has an MCP server, so Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code and Codex can search the library and add a component by name. Free components need no key; Pro members add their API key to get the rest.
What we say about shadcn/ui comes from ui.shadcn.com as we read it in November 2026, and it may have changed since. Anything its homepage did not state is left out. Nexus UI is independent and not affiliated with shadcn/ui.
For a longer read that covers more libraries, see Aceternity UI and Magic UI alternatives for React: the full guide.
Also compared: Magic UI, React Bits, Aceternity UI.