Introduction to Shinylive for R

Run Shiny Applications in the Browser Using WebAssembly

Discover Shinylive for R—an R package that enables you to run Shiny apps entirely in the browser using WebAssembly, without the need for a dedicated server.

Tools
Author
Affiliation
Published

March 17, 2025

Keywords

Shinylive R, serverless Shiny, WebAssembly Shiny R

Introduction

Shinylive for R enables you to run Shiny applications directly in your web browser—without the need for a traditional Shiny server. By leveraging WebAssembly (WASM) through webR, Shinylive converts your Shiny apps into static web pages that still provide full interactivity. This breakthrough allows you to deploy interactive R apps on any static hosting platform, making sharing and collaboration easier than ever.



What is Shinylive?

Shinylive is an R package that simplifies the process of converting Shiny applications for browser-based execution. Its core functionality includes:

  • Exporting Shiny Apps:
    Converts your Shiny app (e.g., your app.R) into a set of static files (HTML, JavaScript, CSS, and WASM) that run entirely in the browser.

  • Asset Management:
    Automatically downloads and caches the necessary Shinylive web assets, ensuring that your app uses the appropriate versions of libraries for WASM-based execution.

  • Serverless Interactivity:
    Allows your Shiny app to run without a dedicated server by handling reactive updates and interactivity client-side.

Key Components

Shinylive consists of several interdependent parts:

  1. Shinylive Web Assets:
    A library of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and WASM files that enable Shiny to run in the browser.

  2. The {shinylive} R Package:
    Helps you export your local Shiny application into a directory suitable for static hosting. It also manages the download and caching of web assets.

  3. Shinylive Quarto Extension:
    Allows you to embed Shinylive applications directly into Quarto documents, making it simple to create interactive, serverless content.

  4. (For Python) The shinylive Python Package:
    Provides similar functionality for Shiny applications written in Python.

Benefits of Using Shinylive

  • Serverless Deployment:
    Run interactive Shiny apps without a Shiny server. This means you can host your apps on static services like GitHub Pages or Netlify.

  • Simplified Configuration:
    The {shinylive} R package automates asset management and deployment, reducing the complexity of configuring WASM environments.

  • Enhanced Portability:
    Your Shiny app becomes a collection of static files, which can be easily shared or deployed across different platforms.

  • Immediate Interactivity:
    Even though the app is served statically, interactivity remains intact, allowing for dynamic, reactive user experiences.

Use Cases

Shinylive is ideal for:

  • Educational Content:
    Embedding interactive Shiny apps in blog posts or e-learning modules.
  • Portfolio Projects:
    Showcasing Shiny applications on personal websites or GitHub Pages.
  • Prototyping:
    Quickly sharing Shiny prototypes without investing in a dedicated server.

Further Reading

For more detailed information and advanced topics related to Shinylive for R, explore these tutorials:

Conclusion

Shinylive for R is a powerful tool that allows you to transform traditional Shiny apps into fully interactive, browser-based applications using WebAssembly. With its streamlined asset management and serverless deployment, Shinylive opens up new possibilities for sharing interactive R content. Explore the further reading resources to continue your journey into serverless Shiny and advanced interactive R applications.

Back to top

Reuse

Citation

BibTeX citation:
@online{kassambara2025,
  author = {Kassambara, Alboukadel},
  title = {Introduction to {Shinylive} for {R}},
  date = {2025-03-17},
  url = {https://www.datanovia.com/learn/interactive/r/shinylive/index.html},
  langid = {en}
}
For attribution, please cite this work as:
Kassambara, Alboukadel. 2025. “Introduction to Shinylive for R.” March 17, 2025. https://www.datanovia.com/learn/interactive/r/shinylive/index.html.