Electron Forge vs InstallForge
Electron Forge
electronforge.ioInstallForge
installforge.netSide by side
| Figure | Electron Forge | InstallForge |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Software Packaging Tools | 8.6 (#1) | 7.5 (#23) |
| Code signing | The documentation includes guides for configuring code signing and signing Windows and macOS apps. | InstallForge can sign setup packages, uninstallers and packaged Visual Update executables through Microsoft Sign Tool, which must be available on the build system. |
| Customization | Custom build logic can be added through Forge’s Plugin API, and custom build and storage targets can be implemented with Makers and Publishers. | Users can customize setup graphics and create packages with a DPI-aware graphical interface. |
Plans
In their own words
Electron Forge
Electron Forge is a free, open-source tool for packaging and distributing Electron applications on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Its build pipeline brings together code signing, installer creation, and artifact publishing. Makers generate platform-specific distributables, including Squirrel.Windows, ZIP, DEB, RPM, DMG, AppX, and Flatpak formats. Publishers can send outputs from the make command to distribution services, update servers, or storage such as an S3 bucket. Developers can initialize projects with create-electron-app and choose first-party Webpack, Webpack with TypeScript, Vite, or Vite with TypeScript templates. The Plugin API supports custom build logic, and custom Makers and Publishers can address additional build or storage targets. The GitHub Publisher supports GitHub Releases and, with host configuration, GitHub Enterprise. Documented auto-update options include a free Electron team service for open-source GitHub apps, static storage publishers, and a hosted update server; macOS auto-updates require a signed app. Getting started requires Node.js 16.4.0 or later, Git, and a JavaScript package manager. Packaging requires node_modules on disk and does not account for symlinked dependencies or Yarn Plug'n'Play.
InstallForge
InstallForge has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.