Comparison between Verdaccio and Github package registry

Question

I'm looking for some comparison between this to registry, did anyone try both?

Why I should use one or another?

What are the pros and cons of each registry?

Answer 1

I'm verdaccio maintainer, so I'll try to give you an un-opinionated answer.

Why I should use one or another?

First of all, both are different in many aspects, thus, the answer would be up to your needs. For what do you need a private registry?

                                       Verdaccio  GitHub Registry

    Host private packages                ✅            ✅ (*)
    Host scoped private packages         ✅            ✅
    Host non-scoped private packages     ✅            ❌
    Proxy packages (npmjs)               ✅            ❌
    SAAS service registry                ❌            ✅
    Self-hosted registry                 ✅            ❌
    Custom authentication                ✅            ❌
    Code Privacy                         ✅            ❌
    High amount of users                 ❌            ✅
    Customization                        ✅            ❌
    Support all npm commands             ❌            ❌
    npm audit                            ✅            ❌
    run locally                          ✅            ❌
    offline                              ✅            ❌

This is just on top of my head. I'm sure there are more differences. Verdaccio can be SASS and also self-hosted, thus, differences are noticeable.

So, now think about your needs, then chose the one the most fits to you.

What are the pros and cons of each registry?

Mostly what I answer above, the big pro for GitHub is a huge infrastructure and most likely will not fail and you don't have to worry about host a registry by yourself. While Verdaccio is highly customizable and can run wherever you want, either for run E2E testing, cache some packages for future travels or minimize issues with npmjs, simply run a private registry in your organization or learn some Node.js publishing locally.

(*) Host private packages: At time of this writing is free, but most likely will turn be a paid service for private packages, and free for public ones. Hopefully my answer helps you to understand the difference between both services.