BookSetter vs Vivliostyle
BookSetter
booksetter.comVivliostyle
vivliostyle.orgSide by side
| Figure | BookSetter | Vivliostyle |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 7 | 1 |
| Spec score · Book Layout Software | 9.0 (#2) | 8.2 (#10) |
| Integrations | The reviewed maker pages do not identify third-party integrations or retailer upload integrations; payment is through hosted Stripe Checkout. | Viewer can display HTML files hosted on GitHub or Gist, and it can be copied into a public directory on a web server for website use. |
| Maker | The product was built by Tom Maciejewski and is described as an independent publishing compiler. | Vivliostyle Foundation is represented by Shinyu Murakami and was founded in August 2018. |
| Self-hosting | The product is presented as an online web service, with no self-hosted deployment package described. | The Viewer is downloadable and can run from a user-controlled web server, while CLI runs locally or in server-side workflows. |
| What it does | BookSetter is browser-based software that compiles structured manuscripts into validated ebook and print-ready files. | Vivliostyle is an open-source CSS typesetting ecosystem for producing paginated digital and print publications with web technologies. |
Plans
BookSetter
- Free First Edition BetaFree
- Targeted update$9, paid once
- Additional launch book$29, paid once
- Regular single book$49, paid once
- 5-book Series Pack$149, paid once
- 10-book Backlist Pack$249, paid once
- 25-book Publisher Pack$499, paid once
In their own words
BookSetter
BookSetter is web-based software for turning a manuscript into ebook and print-ready files, with validation reports included in eligible packages. It accepts DOCX, Markdown, TXT, RTF, ODT, HTML, reStructuredText, AsciiDoc, Org, and LaTeX. Authors review a detected Book Map, choose an edition direction, compare rendered proofs, then export files such as print-ready PDF, generic EPUB, Kindle-targeted EPUB, or DOCX content. Reports address EPUB conformance, PDF preflight, accessibility, text integrity, font rights, and reproducibility. Optional metered AI can explain readiness evidence and propose DOCX formatting operations for review; deterministic parsing, rendering, and validation remain authoritative. A limited free beta is available to eligible verified creators for one account-bound manuscript package, subject to fair-use limits. Paid options include a $49.00 USD single-book package, alongside one-time targeted updates and multi-book packs. BookSetter prepares files but does not upload or distribute books to retail marketplaces. The terms say users retain manuscript ownership under a limited service license.
Vivliostyle
Vivliostyle is an open-source typesetting project for digital and web publishing based on web standards. Vivliostyle Viewer presents HTML with CSS typesetting in a browser and can display EPUB files and web publications. The command-line tool typesets HTML and CSS and exports PDFs, including PDFs generated from EPUB files. For print production, its PRESS-READY option supports PDF/X-1a output and requires Ghostscript and Xpdf.
Vivliostyle Pub is a web application for editing text, Markdown, or HTML and previewing typesetting; its new version is in alpha. Themes are distributed as npm packages and applied through vivliostyle.config.js. Viewer can display HTML hosted on GitHub or Gist, or be copied into a public web-server directory. The CLI requires Node.js, and the installation tutorial lists macOS, Windows, and Linux. Vivliostyle uses AGPLv3, which allows modification and commercial use subject to reciprocal license terms. Its FAQ says publications made with the software need not publish their HTML or CSS source data. The project is maintained by Vivliostyle Foundation.