Electron Boilerplates

Why choose an Electron boilerplate

Electron lets you build cross platform desktop apps with web tech. A boilerplate gives you a working shell with build setup, packaging and common integrations.

What to look for

• Secure preload and IPC setup
• Auto update, code signing and packaging
• File system access and OS menus
• Docs and build scripts for macOS, Windows, Linux

What is Electron?

Electron is a framework for building desktop apps with HTML, CSS and JavaScript. It bundles Chromium and Node, so you can use web UI and system APIs.

Key strengths

• Cross platform builds from one codebase
• Access to file system and native menus
• Auto updates and distribution tooling
• Works with React, Vue and other UI libraries

When Electron is a good fit

• Offline first tools and editors
• Apps that need OS integration and local files
• Cross platform desktop apps with shared web UI

Specialties vs other desktop stacks

• Fast iteration with web tooling
• IPC and preload for safe main to renderer calls
• Rich ecosystem for packaging and updates

Tips for picking an Electron boilerplate

• Context isolation and secure IPC patterns
• Auto update setup and code signing steps
• Build scripts for all target platforms
• Examples for file dialogs and system menus