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Comparison · Infra & APIs

Dashy vs Insomnia

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Dashy and Insomnia — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Dashy vs Insomnia: at a glance

FeatureDashyInsomnia
SectorInfra & APIsInfra & APIs
Velocity score6.30.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesself-hosted-dashboard, widgets, oidc-auth, i18ngit-sync, cloud-sync, grpc, api-client
Last editorial update4h ago2d ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Dashy?

After the 4.5.0 drag-and-drop release, Dashy has settled into translations and dependency patches

Dashy's 4.5.0 release was the substantive one — drag-and-drop editing of sections, items and widgets, a rebuilt GitHub stats widget on the official API, and richer number formatting in the custom-api widget. Everything since has been a single-PR patch release: two community translation contributions, three dependency bump batches, an out-of-memory fix from unclosed connection listeners, and OIDC post-logout redirect support. The tail is quiet by design rather than stalled.

Read the full Dashy trajectory →

What is Insomnia?

Insomnia's current work is Git, Cloud Sync and gRPC ergonomics — not headline features.

The one current batch in this window is unglamorous and specific: Git Credentials modal usability, selective deletion of Cloud Sync files locally versus in the cloud, a custom Socket.IO handshake path, organization names shown on connected remotes, certificate path tooltips, middle-click tab opening, and more reliable detection of system changes in the Git Commit modal. A caveat on the data: the remaining entries in this window are archival material from the 2021.1 era — the Designer and Core merge, Electron 9.3.5 for macOS Big Sur — captured by the crawler at present-day timestamps rather than their original dates.

Read the full Insomnia trajectory →

Dashy vs Insomnia: editorial side-by-side

D
Dashy
INFRA · APIS
6.3

After the 4.5.0 drag-and-drop release, Dashy has settled into translations and dependency patches

◆ Current state

Dashy's 4.5.0 release was the substantive one — drag-and-drop editing of sections, items and widgets, a rebuilt GitHub stats widget on the official API, and richer number formatting in the custom-api widget. Everything since has been a single-PR patch release: two community translation contributions, three dependency bump batches, an out-of-memory fix from unclosed connection listeners, and OIDC post-logout redirect support. The tail is quiet by design rather than stalled.

◆ Where it's heading

The project is in the consolidation phase that follows a feature release, shipping one PR per version at a steady clip. Two threads still show forward motion: authentication is being rounded out, with OIDC post-logout redirects following the logout redirect option added in 4.5.0, and translation coverage is being filled in by contributors rather than maintainers. The widget system remains where the feature energy goes when it returns.

◆ Prediction

Expect the single-PR patch cadence to continue until enough widget or editing work accumulates for a 4.6 line. The OIDC additions suggest self-hosted single sign-on is the area most likely to see the next real feature.

Insomnia logo
Insomnia
INFRA · APIS
0.0

Insomnia's current work is Git, Cloud Sync and gRPC ergonomics — not headline features.

◆ Current state

The one current batch in this window is unglamorous and specific: Git Credentials modal usability, selective deletion of Cloud Sync files locally versus in the cloud, a custom Socket.IO handshake path, organization names shown on connected remotes, certificate path tooltips, middle-click tab opening, and more reliable detection of system changes in the Git Commit modal. A caveat on the data: the remaining entries in this window are archival material from the 2021.1 era — the Designer and Core merge, Electron 9.3.5 for macOS Big Sur — captured by the crawler at present-day timestamps rather than their original dates.

◆ Where it's heading

Insomnia's centre of gravity has moved from the API-design surface to the team plumbing around it: Git, Cloud Sync, org identity and certificate handling. The gRPC and protofile work in the archive shows the same instinct applied to protocols — support the awkward real-world setup rather than the demo path. Nothing in these entries suggests a new capability surface is coming; the work is friction removal on collaboration and version control.

◆ Prediction

The Git and Cloud Sync entries point toward more control over what syncs where — the local-versus-cloud deletion split is the sort of change that usually precedes finer-grained sync scoping. Beyond that the entries do not support a confident call.

Alternatives to Dashy and Insomnia

Other Infra & APIs products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Dashy or Insomnia.

See all Dashy alternatives → · See all Insomnia alternatives →

Recent activity from Dashy and Insomnia

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 1d agoDashyTraditional Chinese UI translations completed
  2. 5d agoDashyNine grouped dependency updates
  3. 6d agoDashySingle dependency bump for fast-uri
  4. 9d agoDashyMissing German translations added
  5. 11d agoDashyOut-of-memory crash from unclosed secureConnect listeners fixed
  6. 12d agoDashyTwo grouped dependency updates
  7. 4mo agoInsomniaGit credentials, Cloud Sync deletion and Socket.IO handshake fixes
  8. 4mo agoInsomniaThank You
  9. 4mo agoInsomniaAutomatic request collection generation improvements
  10. 4mo agoInsomniaPortable application support for Windows
  11. 4mo agoInsomniaTemplate tag support for gRPC
  12. 4mo agoInsomniaImproved protofile support

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Dashy and Insomnia?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Dashy is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Dashy better than Insomnia?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Dashy is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Infra & APIs products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Dashy?

Top Dashy alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Dashy alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/dashy for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Insomnia?

Top Insomnia alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Insomnia alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/insomnia for the full list with editorial commentary on each.