React table comparison — AG Grid, TanStack, MUI

How AdaptTable compares to popular React table libraries — scoped to what each ships built-in. Every one of these projects is excellent at what it targets; the table below is about scope fit, not quality. A “✗” means “not a built-in feature” — most gaps can be closed with custom code or third-party libraries.

Feature	AG Grid	TanStack Table	mantine-datatable	MUI X DataGrid	AdaptTable
Headless core	✗	✓	✗	✗	✓
Works across UI kits	✗	✓ (you build the UI)	Mantine only	MUI only	✓ via ready adapters
Responsive mobile card layout	partial	build it yourself	partial	partial	✓ automatic + tunable
Client and server data, same API	partial	wire it yourself	✗	partial	✓ (`TableSource`)
URL-synced state (shareable links)	✗	✗	✗	✗	✓
Filter drawer + removable chips	✗	✗	✗	partial	✓ built-in
Infinite scroll and paged (auto by device)	✓	✓ (manual)	partial	✓ (paid)	✓ auto by device
Optional row/card virtualization	✓	✓ (manual)	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ built-in opt-in
i18n + RTL / Arabic first-class	partial	✗	✗	partial	✓
Dark mode	✓	n/a	✓	✓	✓ seamless
MIT / free	open-core	✓	✓	open-core	✓
Pivoting	✓ (paid)	✗	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ engine + panel, MIT
Cell-range selection	✓ (paid)	✗	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ MIT (cell nav on)
Fill handle (drag to fill)	✓ (paid)	✗	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ MIT (cell nav+edit)
Clipboard copy / paste of a range	✓ (paid)	✗	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ MIT (paste writes)
Excel (.xlsx) export	✓ (paid)	✗	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ MIT
Tree data (self-referencing rows)	✓ (paid)	build it yourself	✗	✓ (paid)	✓ MIT

_{Comparison as of August 2026, based on each project’s public documentation; capabilities evolve, so verify against the latest docs. “Open-core” means a free, MIT/community edition plus paid Enterprise/Pro tiers (AG Grid Enterprise; MUI X DataGrid Pro/Premium); the advanced server-side data and infinite-loading features sit in those paid tiers. Verified against their own docs in August 2026: AG Grid puts pivoting, cell-range selection, the fill handle, tree data, clipboard operations and Excel export in Enterprise; MUI X puts pivoting, cell selection, the fill handle, clipboard paste and Excel export in Premium. AdaptTable ships all of them under MIT, with the prerequisites stated: cell-range selection, the fill handle and range copy all need cellNavigation, and anything that writes — paste, cut, fill — goes through editable columns and onCellEdit, the channel inline editing already uses. Pivoting is a separate engine plus its own panel rather than a one-line toggle. AG Grid and MUI X remain the more integrated spreadsheet-style products. Spotted something outdated or wrong? Please open an issue — we will correct it promptly.}

A plain AdaptTable adapter DataTable is 69–79 kB min+gzip (measured 2026-09-15 from packed fixtures; React and the kit stay external). Competitor bundle sizes are not listed here — they depend on which paid modules you licence and are not produced by this repo’s fixtures. Method and the rest of the grid: FAQ.

Head-to-head

AdaptTable vs TanStack Table

TanStack Table is a headless engine — framework-agnostic and the closest in philosophy. The difference is what you ship: with TanStack you build every cell, header, filter, and pagination control yourself. AdaptTable gives you native, batteries-included UI for Mantine, MUI, Chakra, Ant Design, Radix, Base UI, and shadcn/ui out of the box — and still exposes a headless core with prop-getters when you want to drop down. Pick TanStack for non-React or total-control builds; pick AdaptTable when you want the UI done for your kit without losing the escape hatch.

→ Migrate from TanStack Table.

AdaptTable vs AG Grid

AG Grid is the enterprise heavyweight, and its spreadsheet stack is the more integrated one. It puts pivoting, range selection, the fill handle, tree data, clipboard operations and Excel export in the paid Enterprise tier, and it renders its own look rather than your design system’s. AdaptTable ships those same capabilities under MIT — assembled from parts rather than one spreadsheet surface — plus an interactive grouping strip with header drag-and-drop, keyboard/mobile controls, aggregation choices, URL state, and Saved Views. AdaptTable is free end to end, server data and infinite scroll included, rendering as your UI kit’s real components. Reach for AG Grid when you want its more mature integrated spreadsheet product and are happy to licence it; reach for AdaptTable for application data tables that match your app and stay free.

→ Migrate from ag-Grid (CRUD tables only — the guide starts with when to stay).

AdaptTable vs MUI X DataGrid

MUI X DataGrid is a strong choice if you’re all-in on MUI — but it’s MUI-only, and its server-side data, tree data, and infinite loading sit behind the paid Pro / Premium tiers (open-core). AdaptTable’s MUI adapter gives a DataGrid-style experience for free, and the same API also renders in Mantine, Chakra, Ant Design, Radix, Base UI, and shadcn/ui, with server data and shareable URL state built in at no cost.

→ Migrate from MUI X DataGrid. Coming from the older MUI table generation instead? → mui-datatables · material-table.

AdaptTable vs mantine-datatable

mantine-datatable is a polished, popular table — but it’s Mantine-only. AdaptTable renders natively in Mantine and six other kits from one API, and adds client/server data behind a single contract, shareable URL state, saved views, and first-class RTL. If you’re on Mantine and staying there, either works; if you want the same table across kits (or those extra batteries), AdaptTable covers more ground.

→ Migrate from mantine-datatable.

Every adapter, every feature

The point of AdaptTable is that the feature set never changes when you switch kits — only the look does. Every adapter ships the same batteries:

Feature	Mantine	MUI	Chakra	Ant Design	Radix	Base UI	shadcn/ui	Unstyled
Filter popover	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Filter drawer	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅¹	✅	✅	✅
Active-filter chips	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Column menu (show/hide, reorder, pin)	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Column resize	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Saved views	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Bulk action bar	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Summary / footer row	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Row expansion	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Inline cell editing (opt-in)	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Row grouping + per-group aggregates	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Interactive grouping panel	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Pinned summary rows	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Row virtualization	✅	✅	✅	✅²	✅	✅	✅	✅
Card virtualization (mobile)	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
RTL / Arabic	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Skeleton / empty / error states	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Mount entrance animation	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅

_{¹ Radix Themes ships no Drawer primitive, so filtersMode="drawer" renders
as a Radix Dialog restyled into a side panel — same dimming backdrop and focus
trap. ² Ant Design maps virtualize to its own native virtual table for desktop
rows; mobile cards window through the shared engine like every other adapter.}

shadcn/ui is the unstyled adapter pre-wired with the shadcn class preset, so it matches unstyled feature-for-feature.

When to choose AdaptTable

You use Mantine, MUI, Chakra, Ant Design, Radix, Base UI, or shadcn/ui and want a table that matches your kit without building it yourself.
You need the same table for both in-memory and server-paginated data.
You want shareable, deep-linkable table state for free.
You want tables that stay usable on phones without horizontal-scroll hacks.
You need RTL / Arabic done properly.
You want a headless escape hatch when the defaults aren’t enough — the same core powers both the batteries-included components and your own custom markup.

When another library may fit better

You want a mature, deeply integrated spreadsheet-analytics product and are happy to licence it → AG Grid Enterprise / MUI X Premium. AdaptTable has an interactive grouping panel, pivoting, range selection, the fill handle, clipboard and Excel export under MIT, but they are assembled from composable features rather than one spreadsheet surface.
You’re on a framework other than React → TanStack Table (multi- framework). AdaptTable is React-only.
You need a spreadsheet-like editing surface today, not a responsive data table for application lists.

Migration guides

Also: Mobile cards · URL state · Virtualization · i18n & RTL · Accessibility · Realtime · Limitations and boundaries · Live demo