HTMX

HTMX is a powerful tool for building dynamic web applications without the complexity of full frontend frameworks.

Compared to a more complete solution, it lacks:

• State Management at all
• Complex UI interactions that are not suitable without a more powerful (and thus heavier) framework
• Component-based architecture: which is not easily achievable. This is not a con per se, but it requires a change in the architecture of the UI.
• Build process and tools: as HTMX focuses on simplicity doesn't provide them as default. Again not cons per se, but it requires common agreement.
• Ecosystem: at the time of writing HTMX lacks a rich ecosystem of plugins and libraries (tests, state mgmt, routing, etc.) and this can impact the DevEx and cause additional work.
• Pyxis support: you can achieve the same graphic result as a Pyxis-supported framework but you'll have to rewrite a considerable amount of code to achieve the same quality in interactions and a11y. In addition, it will be your responsibility to manually keep in sync with Pyxis’ progress and adapt to the common brand identity the company promotes.

In summary, HTMX sacrifices some of the advanced features and conveniences of frontend frameworks in favor of simplicity and direct manipulation of the DOM. It's a trade-off between ease of use and flexibility.

Since all the above, we believe that you should use HTMX when all the below considerations are met:

• Server side rendering: your app heavily relies on SSR and you want to add a few and simple client-side interactions.
• Simple interactivity: your app only supports basic behaviors like showing/hiding a modal, small & simple form submissions, and small inline updates
• SEO Considerations: your app really cares about SEO compliance.
• Minimal JS: your app needs a very small JS footprint and you don't need a high level of interactivity or complex build processes.

In addition HTMX can be used for quick prototyping as the needed setup is minimal and dependencies are reduced to zero.