GitHub Primer vs Singapore Government Design System
GitHub Primer
primer.styleSingapore Government Design System
designsystem.tech.gov.sgSide by side
| Figure | GitHub Primer | Singapore Government Design System |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · UI Kit Libraries | 8.3 (#4) | 8.0 (#7) |
| Accessibility | Primer includes accessibility foundations, policies, principles and frameworks for accessible experiences. | SGDS says its components are designed to meet government accessibility standards by default. |
| Components | The Product UI documentation catalogs dozens of components including buttons, dialogs, forms, navigation, tables and overlays. | SGDS provides reusable interface components for common interaction needs. |
| Support | The Figma libraries page directs questions to GitHub’s #primer-figma Slack channel or the github/primer repository issue tracker. | The component documentation directs feedback to the SGDS Slack channel and bug reports to GitHub issues. |
Plans
Singapore Government Design System
- Singapore Government Design SystemFree
In their own words
GitHub Primer
GitHub Primer is a free, open-source design system for designing and building GitHub interfaces. Its guidance covers product UI components, patterns, and design tokens for color, spacing, and typography. Primer Brand addresses marketing websites and other digital experiences. React documentation explains theming, recommended practices, and component extension. Primer also provides accessibility guidance and tools, along with Octicons, GitHub’s scalable icon set. Product UI documentation includes an MCP server page. Component status is identified as experimental, ready, or deprecated; ready components are described as mature with long-term support expected. Primer Web and Primer Primitives are available through the Primer Figma Community page, while GitHub’s Figma organization is limited to GitHub team members. The Primer Mobile Figma library is internal only. GitHub employees alone can contribute to Primer Web because of Figma’s open-source file handling. GitHub’s Design Infrastructure and Design Engineering teams maintain the CSS framework, documentation, tools, libraries, and component libraries.
Singapore Government Design System
Singapore Government Design System (SGDS) is a shared toolkit for teams creating digital services for Singapore government. Its foundations cover colour, typography, spacing, and design tokens, alongside interface components such as buttons, tabs, forms, cards, and tables. Templates combine foundations, components, and utilities into reusable page layouts; blocks are reusable sections that teams can compose into templates and product experiences. SGDS v3 supports sub-brands and agency-specific requirements while retaining a shared government identity. Developers can install the web component package with npm, pnpm, yarn, or bun. The guide includes integration instructions for React, Vue, Angular, and Next.js, but utility classes require Tailwind CSS v4. GovTech Figma Enterprise users can enable SGDS v3 libraries, while agencies outside GovTech and partners can access the UI Kit through Figma Community. Components are designed to meet government accessibility standards by default. The system also provides guidance and agent skills for AI tools. All .gov.sg digital services must adopt the Official Government Banner and Global Footer. SGDS is free and open source.