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.NET MAUI vs Capgo

.NET MAUI alternative: Capacitor and Capgo

.NET MAUI lets C# teams build native apps for Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows from one project. Capacitor with Capgo takes the web route: your existing web app becomes the mobile app, and fixes reach users through live updates instead of store releases.

Verdict Choose .NET MAUI if your team lives in C#, XAML, and Visual Studio and you need Windows desktop from the same codebase. Choose Capacitor with Capgo if your product is already a web app, you want one codebase for web and mobile, and you need to ship fixes in minutes with channels and rollback.

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

9,400+ teams. 90M+ devices. 3,143+ GitHub stars. Trusted in production by:

  • Kick 20M+ installs
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  • RemNote 500K+ installs
  • Vella 400K+ installs
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  • IREC 150K+ installs
  • OurLiving 80K+ installs
Top picks

The 6 best .NET MAUI 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 .NET MAUI →

  2. Flutter

    Google framework with its own rendering engine and Dart. Strong UI consistency, but no web-skills reuse and no official live updates.

    Learn more →

  3. React Native

    Native UI from React and JavaScript. A good fit for React teams; live updates come from third-party services after CodePush retired.

    Learn more →

  4. Kotlin Multiplatform

    Share Kotlin business logic across Android and iOS while keeping native UI, or use Compose Multiplatform for shared UI.

    Learn more →

  5. Native iOS and Android

    Swift and Kotlin with the platform UI kits. Maximum control and performance, at the cost of two codebases.

    Learn more →

  6. NativeScript

    JavaScript or TypeScript with direct access to native APIs and native UI components.

    Learn more →
Side by side

Capgo vs .NET MAUI at a glance

Capgo vs .NET MAUI, as of September 2026. Each .NET MAUI fact links to a numbered source listed below the table.
Area Capgo .NET MAUI
Pricing Capacitor is free and MIT-licensed. Capgo live updates and cloud builds start at $12/month billed yearly or $14 monthly, with a 14-day free trial and no credit card. Free and open source under the MIT license. You still pay the Apple and Google developer account fees, and building for iOS requires a Mac. [1] [2]
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. No built-in live update service. iOS apps are fully ahead-of-time compiled to native code, so app changes ship as a new store release. [2]
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. You build and sign locally with the .NET SDK and Visual Studio, or set up your own CI. Android compiles to IL with JIT, iOS is AOT compiled, and iOS builds need a Mac. [2]
Framework support HTML, CSS, and TypeScript with any web framework: React, Vue, Angular, Svelte, or Ionic. The same code runs on the web, iOS, and Android. C# and XAML with .NET MAUI controls. Blazor Hybrid can render Razor components in a BlazorWebView, but standard web frameworks like React or Vue are not the main path. [2] [4]
Open source and self-hosting Capacitor is MIT. The Capgo updater plugin is MPL-2.0 and the backend is AGPL-3.0, so you can self-host the update server. MIT-licensed, developed in the open in the dotnet GitHub organization. [1]
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 update rollback, because there are no update bundles. A bad release is fixed with a new build through App Store and Google Play review. [2]
Support Discord and email with the engineers who build Capgo. Priority plugin fixes on any plan, and Premium Support for production deadlines. Microsoft Modern Lifecycle Policy. Each major version ships with .NET and is supported for at least 6 months after the next one ships. MAUI 10 support ends May 11, 2027. [3]
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. Microsoft, as part of .NET. MAUI is the evolution of Xamarin.Forms. [1] [2]

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. .NET MAUI GitHub repository
  2. Microsoft Learn: What is .NET MAUI?
  3. .NET MAUI support policy
  4. Microsoft Learn: ASP.NET Core Blazor Hybrid
Honest take

Where .NET MAUI is the better choice

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

Your team is all-in on C# and .NET

MAUI shares C# business logic, tests, and XAML layouts across platforms inside Visual Studio, with .NET and XAML hot reload during development. [2]

You need Windows and macOS desktop from one project

A single MAUI project targets Android, iOS, macOS through Mac Catalyst, and Windows through WinUI 3. [2]

You already have Blazor components

Blazor Hybrid in MAUI renders Razor components in a BlazorWebView with full .NET access to device APIs, so Blazor teams can reuse UI across web, mobile, and desktop. [4]

Migration path

Move from .NET MAUI to Capacitor and Capgo

There is no automatic converter from XAML to web UI, so this is a UI rewrite in web technologies. Your C# backend and APIs can stay as they are.

  1. Add Capacitor to your web app

    In your web project, run bun add @capacitor/core @capacitor/cli @capacitor/ios @capacitor/android and bunx cap init, then bunx cap add ios and bunx cap add android.

  2. Replace MAUI device APIs with plugins

    Map MAUI cross-platform APIs to Capacitor plugins: @capacitor/preferences for plain settings, @capgo/capacitor-native-biometric for credentials in the iOS Keychain and Android Keystore, and @capacitor/geolocation for location.

  3. Turn on live updates and cloud builds

    Run bunx @capgo/cli@latest init to install the updater, then upload each web build with bunx @capgo/cli@latest bundle upload.

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

Can I ship live updates to a .NET MAUI app?
MAUI has no built-in live update service. iOS builds are ahead-of-time compiled to native code, so changes go through a new App Store and Google Play release. Capacitor apps run web code, which Capgo can update without a store release.
Is .NET MAUI free?
Yes. MAUI is open source under the MIT license. You still need Apple and Google developer accounts, and a Mac to build for iOS.
How long is a .NET MAUI version supported?
MAUI follows the Microsoft Modern Lifecycle Policy and ships with each .NET release. A major version is supported for at least 6 months after its successor ships. MAUI 10 support ends May 11, 2027.
What about Blazor Hybrid?
Blazor Hybrid renders Razor components in a web view inside a MAUI app. It is a good path for Blazor teams. If your UI is built with React, Vue, Angular, or Svelte, Capacitor runs it directly with no .NET layer.
When should I choose Capgo over .NET MAUI?
Choose Capacitor with Capgo when your product is a web app, your team writes TypeScript, and you want fixes to reach users in minutes with channels, progressive rollouts, and automatic rollback.

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