Terrarium vs JSX Viewer
Two desktop apps built for the same job: instantly previewing React components generated by AI tools like Claude. Here's how they compare.
TL;DR
Terrarium auto-installs any npm package and live-reloads on save, making it ideal for iterative Claude Code workflows on macOS. JSX Viewer ships with pre-bundled shadcn/ui, Recharts, and Lucide icons and runs on all three desktop platforms — better if you need cross-platform support or those specific libraries out of the box.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Terrarium | JSX Viewer |
|---|---|---|
| Native desktop app | Yes (macOS) | Yes (macOS, Windows, Linux) |
| Zero configuration | Yes | Yes |
| Live reload on save | Yes | No |
| Drag-and-drop | Yes | Yes |
| Auto npm install | Yes (any package) | No (fixed set only) |
| Tailwind CSS built-in | Yes (v3, build-time) | Yes |
| shadcn/ui built-in | No | Yes |
| Recharts built-in | No | Yes |
| Lucide icons built-in | No | Yes |
| Claude Code integration | Yes (native) | No |
| Error overlay | Yes (with line numbers) | Yes |
| Multi-window | Yes | No |
| Dark mode | System default | Yes (system detection) |
| Zoom controls | No | Yes |
| Homebrew install | Yes | No |
| Cross-platform | No (macOS only) | Yes |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Price | Free | Free |
Where Terrarium wins
Any npm package, automatically
Terrarium scans your component for import statements and installs missing packages on the fly. If your Claude artifact uses date-fns, framer-motion, or any other npm package, Terrarium handles it. JSX Viewer only supports a fixed set of pre-bundled libraries — anything outside that set renders as a placeholder.
Live reload on every save
A file watcher re-bundles and re-renders your component every time you save. This is especially powerful paired with Claude Code — edits from Claude appear in the preview instantly without switching windows or clicking refresh. JSX Viewer requires you to manually re-open or refresh the file.
Claude Code integration
Run Terrarium in one terminal and Claude Code in another. Every save from Claude live-reloads the preview. This two-terminal workflow makes iterative component development feel seamless — describe a change, see it render.
Multi-window support
Open multiple TSX/JSX files simultaneously in separate windows. Compare variants side by side or keep a reference component visible while iterating on another.
Where JSX Viewer wins
Cross-platform support
JSX Viewer runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux with platform-specific installers (.dmg, .msi/.exe, .deb/.AppImage). Terrarium is macOS-only. If your team uses mixed operating systems, JSX Viewer is the more inclusive choice.
Pre-bundled UI libraries
JSX Viewer ships with shadcn/ui, Lucide React, Recharts, Radix UI, and class-variance-authority built in. If your Claude artifacts rely on these libraries (which many do), they render immediately with no install step.
Zoom controls
JSX Viewer includes zoom in/out controls for testing responsive designs at different scales. Useful for verifying how a component looks at various sizes without resizing the window.
Graceful unknown-import handling
When JSX Viewer encounters an import it doesn't recognize, it renders a visible placeholder instead of crashing. This makes it more forgiving when previewing components with uncommon dependencies.
Which should you choose?
Choose Terrarium if you…
- - Use macOS as your primary development machine
- - Work with Claude Code for iterative component development
- - Need components that import arbitrary npm packages
- - Want live reload without manual refreshing
- - Prefer Homebrew for installation
Choose JSX Viewer if you…
- - Need Windows or Linux support
- - Primarily use shadcn/ui, Recharts, and Lucide in your artifacts
- - Want responsive design testing with zoom controls
- - Use multiple AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude, etc.) to generate components
- - Prefer a self-contained app with no npm install step
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Disclosure: This page is published by the Terrarium team. We strive for accuracy and fairness — all competitor information is sourced from public documentation and websites. Pricing and features were last verified in April 2026.