edX vs Element

edX (Online learning at https://edx.org, powered by the Open edX platform https://openedx.org) and Element (Founded by the creators of Matrix, we build digitally sovereign, secure and interoperable real-time communication solutions for large organisations.) both appear on the Smoower Developer Ecosystem Index.

Element (rank #189) holds a narrow lead over edX (rank #338) on the overall Smoower ecosystem score (50 vs 43). The gap of 7 points reflects composite signals across code, docs, community and reach.

On code quality (the state of repositories, tests, releases and polish), Element is ahead of edX. On education (docs, guides and learning material for developers), Element is ahead of edX. On community (issue response, PR reviews and discussion health), Element is clearly ahead of edX. On reach (how visible the ecosystem is beyond its own repos), Element is ahead of edX. On momentum (release cadence and how fast the ecosystem moves), Element is ahead of edX.

edX carries 392 GitHub stars across 250 public repos, with 52 repositories active in the last 90 days and 22 external contributors on record. Element shows 34,608 stars across 137 public repos, 33 active in the last 90 days and 97 external contributors. The star gap on its own does not decide the comparison, but Element's footprint is roughly 88.3x larger, which usually shows up in downstream signals like inbound issues and third party integrations.

edX is worth a look for teams already invested in its stack. Element looks better where community is the deciding factor. The table below breaks the scores down pillar by pillar; the linked profiles cover the underlying repos, docs and community signals in full.