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Despia vs Capgo

Despia alternative: Capacitor and Capgo for web apps

Despia wraps any web app in its native runtime and sells one-time packs. Capacitor with Capgo gives you an open-source native project you own, plus live updates with channels, rollback, and cloud builds.

Verdict Choose Despia if you want a one-time price, a no-code dashboard, and a hosted runtime that loads your web build. Choose Capacitor with Capgo if you want an open-source native project, a large plugin ecosystem, and controlled releases with channels, progressive rollouts, and automatic rollback.

  • 1B+ updates per month
  • 4.7K+ apps
  • Founded in 2021

9,400+ teams. 90M+ devices. 3,147+ GitHub stars. Trusted in production by:

  • Kick 20M+ installs
  • Suez 3.2M installs
  • Nana 2.5M installs
  • Snowqueen 1.8M installs
  • Pizza Hut 1M+ installs
  • Shelf 950K installs
  • Janitor 750K installs
  • RemNote 500K+ installs
  • Vella 400K+ installs
  • Revel 250K+ installs
  • IREC 150K+ installs
  • OurLiving 80K+ installs
Top picks

The 6 best Despia alternatives in 2026

Ranked for teams that want to ship mobile apps fast, fix production bugs without waiting on store review, and keep full control of their code.

  1. Capgo Our pick

    Capacitor plus Capgo: one web codebase for iOS, Android, and web, live updates that skip store review, and cloud native builds in 2–3 minutes. Open source, from $12/month.

    Capgo vs Despia →

  2. Median

    Managed web-to-app platform with a free tier for testing. Fits no-code sites, with yearly fees for paid licenses.

    Learn more →

  3. Natively

    Website-to-app wrapper popular with Bubble users, with a free test tier and a lifetime option.

    Learn more →

  4. WebToNative

    Low-cost website-to-app builder with monthly, yearly, and one-time plans. The app loads your live site.

    Learn more →

  5. PWABuilder

    Free, open-source Microsoft tool that packages a PWA for the Microsoft Store, Google Play, and the App Store.

    Learn more →

  6. VoltBuilder

    Cloud builds for Cordova and Capacitor projects without a Mac. No live update service.

    Learn more →
Side by side

Capgo vs Despia at a glance

Capgo vs Despia, as of September 2026. Each Despia fact links to a numbered source listed below the table.
Area Capgo Despia
Pricing From $12/month billed yearly or $14 billed monthly. 14-day free trial, no credit card required. No free plan. One-time payments: Solo Pack $249 (one platform, 200 M2 build minutes) and Hybrid Pack $498 (iOS and Android, 400 M2 build minutes). Platform API for white-label use is quote-based. [1]
OTA live updates Ships JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and asset changes without waiting for store review, with delta downloads and end-to-end encryption. 1B+ updates per month. By default the app loads your current build from your own hosting on launch. The optional Local Server caches the full web build on device and applies a new version atomically on the next launch. Native changes need a store release. [2] [3]
Native builds Capgo Builder builds and signs iOS and Android binaries in the cloud, typically in 2–3 minutes, and can upload them to the stores. Build time is included in plans. Builds run on Apple Silicon M2 machines in the Despia cloud, with one-click submission to the App Store and Google Play. Build minutes come with each pack. [1]
Framework support Capacitor apps built with React, Vue, Angular, Svelte, Ionic, or any web framework. Live updates also work for Cordova and Electron. Not for React Native. Any web stack, including React, Vue, Svelte, and plain HTML. Native features are called from JavaScript through the despia() SDK or no-code plugins. [1]
Open source and self-hosting Updater plugin and Capgo plugins are free under MPL-2.0. Backend source is on GitHub under AGPL-3.0. Run your own update server, or use licensed self-hosting on Enterprise. The JavaScript SDK, the @despia/local bundler, and despia-version-guard are MIT licensed. Full Xcode and Android Studio source export is included; the docs do not state a license for the native runtime. [1] [2]
Rollback and channels Dynamic channels, device and channel overrides, progressive rollouts, automatic rollback when a bundle fails to start, and one-click revert to a previous bundle. No channels or rollback controls are described in the docs. In remote mode the app shows what your hosting serves, so rollback follows your web deploys. [2] [3]
Support Discord and email with the engineers who build Capgo. Priority plugin fixes on any plan, and Premium Support for production deadlines. Documentation, an MCP server for AI tools, and contact by email at hey@despia.com. Enterprise sales for the Platform API. [1] [2]
Company status Independent and bootstrapped, founded in 2021. 9,400+ teams, 4.7K+ apps, and 90M+ devices. SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 on the Enterprise plan. Despia LLC-FZ, based in Dubai, UAE. Formerly Advanced WebView, with the runtime dating back to 2011. [1]

Sources

Competitor details are as of September 2026 and were checked against the vendor pages below. Plans and prices change, so confirm on the vendor site before you decide.

  1. Despia homepage and pricing
  2. Despia documentation
  3. Despia docs: Local Server
Honest take

Where Despia is the better choice

No tool fits every team. These are the cases where we would point you to the other option.

You want to pay once

Despia sells one-time packs from $249 per platform with build minutes included, while Capgo is a monthly or yearly subscription. [1]

You build with no-code or AI tools

Despia offers no-code plugins and an MCP server, so teams working in AI or no-code builders can add native features without touching Xcode. [1] [2]

You need a white-label runtime for your platform

The Despia Platform API adds white-label apps and a custom-branded runtime to a no-code or AI platform. [1]

Migration path

Move from Despia to Capacitor and Capgo

Your web app stays the same. You replace the Despia runtime with a Capacitor native project and swap despia() calls for Capacitor plugins.

  1. Add Capacitor to your web app

    Run bun add @capacitor/core @capacitor/cli @capacitor/ios @capacitor/android, then bunx cap init and add the platforms with bunx cap add ios and bunx cap add android.

  2. Swap despia() calls for plugins

    Replace push, in-app purchases, biometrics, haptics, and deep links with Capacitor plugins, for example @capacitor/push-notifications and @capacitor/haptics.

  3. Set up live updates and builds

    Run bunx @capgo/cli@latest init to install the updater, then ship web changes with bunx @capgo/cli@latest bundle upload and build binaries in Capgo Cloud.

Read the quickstart Browse Capgo plugins
Customer proof

What Capgo customers say

Named reviews from teams that ship Capacitor apps with Capgo.

5.0/5 rated by developer teams 9,400+ teams Read reviews

Since I started using Capgo everything is faster, and I can give my users the time they deserve without neglecting my daily life.

Luis Dominguez El que paga, Anirol

Being able to add Device ID's to certain groups and push the changes to only certain groups is a life saver.

no-tone @ Webincode Developer, Webincode

Being able to push production OTA updates instantly without waiting for full App Store review cycles has been a massive operational advantage.

Kapil Founder, NuTriQ
FAQ

Common questions

Is Despia a webview?
Despia runs your web app inside its native runtime and exposes native features through a JavaScript SDK. Capacitor works the same way at the core, with your web app in a native WebView and plugins for native APIs.
Does Despia have live updates?
Yes. By default the app loads your build from your hosting, and the optional Local Server caches it on device and updates on the next launch. Capgo adds channels, progressive rollouts, update statistics, and automatic rollback on top of bundles that ship inside the app.
Is Despia cheaper than Capgo?
For a single app that rarely changes, the Despia one-time pack can cost less. Capgo is a subscription from $12/month billed yearly, which covers live updates and cloud native builds for apps that ship often.
Can I leave Despia later?
Despia includes a source code export of the Xcode and Android Studio projects. Moving to Capacitor means replacing despia() calls with Capacitor plugins while your web code stays as it is.
When should I choose Capgo?
Choose Capgo when you want an open-source Capacitor app you control, with live updates, channels, rollback, cloud builds, and the option to self-host the update server.

Try Capgo on your own app

Start a 14-day free trial with no credit card. After the trial, plans start at $12/month billed yearly or $14 billed monthly.

  • 9,400+ teams
  • 90M+ devices
  • Native builds in 2–3 min