Today, I've got some cool open-source projects you can contribute in 2024. These aren't just popular projects; I've come across these during my two-year journey.
There are various ways to contribute to a project.
I've seen people only looking at the tech stack but I recommend choosing the one whose concept excites you rather than only following the tech stack.
Something that excites you will help you move forward especially when you're stuck.
I know lists can be boring because no one wants to see the list of projects and then forget about it.
So, I will also mention the use cases and then you can decide which project suits you.
You can find awesome lists at the end of the article with 300+ open source projects.
But, before contributing to any open source project, we must ensure that it is decent enough as per standards.
How to check if the open source project is good?
There is no right answer to this but every good open source project must have clear guidelines to help you on HOW you can contribute to their project (contributing.md) and a few other requirements.
Just remember, there's no specific order in this post. Every open-source project is good in its own way.
1. Exercism
Exercism is a website where you can learn various programming languages, help others, and even get testimonials.
This is my favorite open source project due to multiple reasons.
There are various tracks, and almost every programming language is there.
- https://exercism.org - website
- https://github.com/exercism/ - GitHub
The reason is everything you do such as reviewing Pull Requests, and Pull Requests created & merged is publicly shown on your profile and you even get badges for various achievements.
You can even see my profile.
As you can see everything is publicly available that will help you showcase your skills.
2. EsProc
It's a new programming language for powerful data computing, which can work as a high-efficiency data warehouse.
Using EsProc SPL, you can run it as an analysis database or middleware, and compute tons of structured or semi-structured data for analyzing massive datasets.
People who prefer Java should definitely contribute to this project.
It has more than 4k stars on GitHub and is indeed helpful.
- https://github.com/SPLWare/esProc - GitHub
- http://doc.scudata.com/esproc/ - docs
3. Forem
DEV, this very platform is built on Forem, an open source software designed to empower communities.
Why not improve this very platform, right? It has around 21k stars on GitHub.
- https://github.com/forem - GitHub
- https://forem.com/ - website
4. Simple Icons
Simple Icons provides pixel-perfect SVG of more than 2k popular brands.
They have one of the most detailed contributing guidelines. It's damn helpful.
They also have an SDK in the npm package to develop third-party extensions with JavaScript and TypeScript.
- https://simpleicons.org/ - website
- https://github.com/simple-icons/simple-icons - GitHub
It is the first open source project that I contributed to.
5. Freecodecamp
If you're in the learning industry, you must have heard about FreeCodeCamp at least once.
FreeCodeCamp is a community of people from all around the world learning to code together. It is completely free and runs on a volunteering basis.
Even I've learned a lot from freecodecamp. It has 381k stars on GitHub so there is nothing to exaggerate.
It runs on a modern JavaScript stack. It has various components, tools, and libraries. These include Node.js, MongoDB, OAuth 2.0, React, Gatsby, Webpack, and more.
- https://www.freecodecamp.org/ - website
- https://github.com/freeCodeCamp/freeCodeCamp - GitHub
6. Appwrite
Appwrite's open-source platform lets you add Auth, DBs, Functions, and Storage to your product & build any application at any scale, own your data, and use your preferred coding languages and tools.
They have great contributing guidelines and even go to the trouble of explaining architecture in detail.
- https://appwrite.io/ - website
- https://github.com/appwrite/appwrite - GitHub
They have every SDK you can think of :)
Big props to the Appwrite team for their support of the open source ecosystem. They're extending the offer of Appwrite Pro to all open source teams.
7. Daily
One of the most impressive open source organizations, it would take me hours to explain every feature.
They aggregate valuable posts from various topics across many organizations like Hacker News, Dev, Hashnode, and many more. You can upvote, bookmark, and even create your own squad.
I contributed to Daily in my early journey, and it has more than 14k stars on GitHub.
- https://daily.dev/ - website
- https://github.com/dailydotdev/daily - GitHub
You can even make your own public profile and build reputation as you go :)
8. Biodrop
EddieHub is one of the best communities that has helped so many people get into open source.
Biodrop is one of the open-source projects within the EddieHub community.
With Biodrop, you can collect testimonials, share a QR code of your profile, and many more amazing things.
- https://www.biodrop.io/ - website
- https://github.com/EddieHubCommunity/BioDrop - GitHub
- https://www.biodrop.io/Anmol-Baranwal - sample profile
9. Storybook
Storybook is a frontend workshop for building UI components and pages in isolation. It helps in UI development, testing, and documentation.
They have 56k commits, 80k stars, and 400+ branches on GitHub.
- https://storybook.js.org/ - website
- https://github.com/storybookjs/storybook - GitHub
They have lots of integration options.
10. LinksHub
LinksHub is a Hub of Links For Developers By Developers. Here, we've gathered a collection of all the best and most useful resources, both free and paid, to aid in the development journey.
I'm an open source maintainer of LinksHub, and I'm not biased.
I seriously believe you should contribute to this at least once.
We are still in the growing phase, but will soon reach very high.
- https://www.linkshub.dev/ - website
- https://github.com/rupali-codes/LinksHub - GitHub
11. FaceX
Face-X is a comprehensive repository of algorithms and operations related to facial recognition, which includes a range of functionalities from facial filters, image processing, face mask detection, and facial attendance systems to animated emotions and facial cartoonification.
You can watch this video to learn more about the project.
12. Taipy
Taipy is an open-source Python library designed for swiftly building production-ready frontend & backend solutions. You don't need to be versed in web development, making it particularly valuable for Python developers.
- https://www.taipy.io/ - website
- https://github.com/Avaiga/taipy - GitHub
13. CopilotKit
You can build Copilots 10X Faster With CopilotKit.
It has an AI-driven text editor, enhancing traditional elements with auto-completion and context-aware editing. Copilot Chatbot offers frontend and backend runtimes for in-app copilots, enabling indexed state, customizable UI, and function calling capabilities.
- https://www.copilotkit.ai/ - website
- https://docs.copilotkit.ai/getting-started/quickstart-textarea - docs
- https://github.com/CopilotKit/CopilotKit - GitHub
14. Shadcn UI
The launch of Shadcn drove people crazy, and I'm still thrilled about it.
It offers a comprehensive set of components, significantly accelerating your frontend development. The best aspect is its high level of customization and top-notch accessibility.
No installation is required; copy and paste the components you want to use.
It has more than 40k stars on GitHub and only 350 commits. HAHA!
The primary language used here is Typescript.
- https://ui.shadcn.com/ - website
- https://github.com/shadcn-ui/ui - GitHub
15. Docusaurus
Docusaurus is a project for building, deploying, and maintaining open source project websites. It is a Facebook project.
Check 5-minute tutorial to understand more.
It has more than 50k stars on GitHub.
- https://docusaurus.io/ - website
- https://github.com/facebook/docusaurus - GitHub
16. Mermaid
Mermaid helps to generate diagrams like flowcharts or sequence diagrams from text like markdown.
It has 64k stars on GitHub and is very useful.
- https://mermaid.js.org/ - website
- https://github.com/mermaid-js/mermaid - GitHub
One sample diagram that you can easily make.
17. All Contributors
It is one of the most fantastic and necessary ideas.
It enhances the concept of acknowledging contributors, not only those who push code but also designers, translators, reviewers, and even those handling documentation.
- https://allcontributors.org/ - website
- https://github.com/all-contributors/all-contributors - GitHub
It is extremely simple to use.
18. Reactive Resume
This is one of the best resume builders out there and keeps your privacy in mind. Completely secure, customizable, portable, open-source, and free forever.
It has more than 17k stars on GitHub and is very useful.
- https://rxresu.me/ - website
- https://github.com/AmruthPillai/Reactive-Resume - GitHub
It has some exciting features, and you can even customize several columns. Plus, they have a good user interface.
19. Blitz
The Missing Fullstack Toolkit for NextJS.
Blitz picks up where Next.js leaves off, providing battle-tested libraries and conventions for shipping and scaling worldwide applications.
- https://blitzjs.com/ - website
- https://blitzjs.com/docs/contributing - contributing guidelines
- https://github.com/blitz-js/blitz - GitHub
20. RoomGPT
RoomGPT is your personal AI interior designer.
Just upload a photo of your room to generate your dream room. The idea itself excites me, and it is built using TypeScript.
- https://www.roomgpt.io/ - website
- https://github.com/Nutlope/roomGPT - GitHub
If you're keen on sponsoring this post, shoot me a message at anmolbaranwal119@gmail.com or hit me up on Twitter! 🚀
The open source community is very supportive. Explore it :)
Who knows who might DISCOVER you?
Drop a comment down which open source project excites you the most.
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Top comments (19)
I truly appreciate the effort to encourage contributions to open-source projects. However, I believe it's important to distinguish between projects that provide meaningful value for contributors and those that may not offer as much growth or impact.
With respect, I feel that LinksHub might not be the best fit for an open-source contribution initiative in its current form. It seems more suited as a beginner-friendly project idea that someone could implement independently from start to finish. Given that it primarily consists of a UI layer built on top of hardcoded JSON data, it may not significantly benefit from contributions or add value to those who engage with it.
This is not intended to offend anyone who worked on it—it’s a great project to explore and learn during the early stages of development. However, as it stands, it might be more accurately categorized as a personal learning project rather than one for broader collaboration.
As the author of this post, I want to encourage you to EXPLORE open source.
With Open Source,
You will gain practical knowledge.
You will gain modern development practices.
You will gain credibility and meet new people.
I know there are lots of good open source projects, but some are very tough for beginners with a large codebase.
So, if you know any good open source projects, comment down so others can check it out.
Great post Anmol. And thanks for mentioning LinksHub!
Hehe!
LinksHub is one of the best projects for beginners to start their open source journey.
Thanks for writing this. I'm an active contributor to Taipy. I will have a look at the other projects if I can contribute.
Great list! Looking forward to checking some of these out.
Thanks for including CopilotKit!
Build in-app AI chatbots 🤖, and AI-powered Textareas ✨, into react web apps.
Thanks for the comment.
CopilotKit has one of the most unique use cases, making it a brilliant project where others can contribute and help make it even better :)
Thank you for mentioning Reactive Resume! :)
Great post, thank you!
The esProc SPL is really nice and computationally fast
Yep, It's crazy no one ever talks about these growing projects.
Damn ... great projects ... I like most of them !!
thank you bro .
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