Asciidoctor vs TypeDoc
Asciidoctor
asciidoctor.orgTypeDoc
typedoc.orgSide by side
| Figure | Asciidoctor | TypeDoc |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Documentation Generators | 8.9 (#1) | 8.0 (#10) |
| Integrations | The project ecosystem includes Maven and Gradle plugins, browser extensions, an IntelliJ plugin, and tools such as Asciidoctor Diagram. | The GitHub Pages option generates a .nojekyll file, and source links can use GitHub or Bitbucket remotes. |
| License | The processor is open source software available under the MIT license. | The TypeDoc repository identifies its license as Apache-2.0. |
| Output formats | The core processor includes HTML 5, DocBook 5 and man page converters; PDF and EPUB 3 converters are provided separately. | The default output is HTML, and TypeDoc can also write a JSON model describing the project. |
| Purpose | Asciidoctor parses AsciiDoc source and converts it into publishable formats such as HTML 5 and PDF. | TypeDoc converts comments in TypeScript source code into HTML documentation or a JSON model. |
| Support | The documentation directs users seeking real-time community support to the project chat’s #users stream. | The project README invites users to open an issue or pull request on GitHub and points contributors to its contribution guide. |
Plans
In their own words
Asciidoctor
Asciidoctor is a free, open-source text processor and publishing toolchain for converting AsciiDoc files or strings into formats such as HTML5, DocBook, PDF, EPUB 3 and manual pages. Its core includes converters for HTML5, DocBook 5 and man pages; PDF and EPUB 3 conversion comes from separate gems. Documents can be processed through a command-line interface or Ruby API. Asciidoctor runs with Ruby, on the JVM through AsciidoctorJ, or in JavaScript environments through Asciidoctor.js, and supports Linux, macOS and Windows. The wider ecosystem includes Maven and Gradle plugins, browser and editor extensions, and diagram tools. Default HTML output includes a stylesheet and integrations such as Font Awesome, highlight.js, Rouge, Pygments and MathJax. It is distributed as a RubyGem, Docker image, Linux packages and macOS packages, and is licensed under MIT. Its security modes include SECURE, SAFE, SERVER and UNSAFE; safe modes do not sanitize generated output or provide a comprehensive security framework.
TypeDoc
TypeDoc is a free TypeScript documentation generator that turns source comments into HTML pages or a JSON model. It builds from project exports and follows re-exports, allowing members declared elsewhere to appear in documentation. TSDoc and JSDoc tags are extracted, Markdown is accepted in comments, and fenced code blocks receive Shiki syntax highlighting. HTML and JSON are built in; Markdown output needs a plugin such as typedoc-plugin-markdown. A default theme is included, while plugins can add themes, alter conversion and symbol organization, or change display. Custom CSS and JavaScript can further adjust generated pages. Configuration can come from an options file, package.json, or tsconfig.json. TypeDoc runs on Node.js, uses the TypeScript compiler, and supports the current Node.js LTS or newer. For npm monorepos, the packages entry-point strategy can combine package documentation into one site. The project is Apache-2.0 licensed. Documentation warns that global installation can separate plugins and themes from the intended TypeDoc installation.