Deno vs. Node.js — Five Major Differences You Should Consider
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Deno vs. NodeJS has been a hot topic for comparison, both are created by Ryan Dahl. Moreover, NodeJS was the first created Run script by him and he has been working on Node since 2009 but in 2018, he gave a speech on 10 Things I Regret About Node.js, in which he also announced Deno as a modification to Node.js.
Deno is a new JavaScript & TypeScript Runtime and in this Deno, he fixed the regrets he had with NodeJS. Deno was launched on may 2020 with a lot of improvements, like node, deno is also built on the V8 engine and there are a lot of similarities between both the projects. In this article, we are going to see in detail about?Deno vs. NodeJS.
What Is Deno?
Deno?is a newer framework built by?Ryan Dahl, who also developed?Node.js. Deno was designed to have a better package management system and more secure runtime than Node. Additionally, Dahl wanted to make Deno a more modern platform by forgoing many of the legacy libraries available in Node.
In order to offer a simple, secure runtime, Deno uses web platform standards, ships with a single executable file, and offers built-in development tooling. It has an alternate set of standard modules that are guaranteed to work within the Deno runtime. Deno can also run TypeScript files natively without any additional configuration.
What Is Node?
Described as "an asynchronous event-driven JavaScript runtime," Node is an extremely popular JavaScript runtime, considered the standard by most JavaScript developers. Node can be used to build server-side or desktop applications, and it's been available to JavaScript users since 2009.
Node has been a hit among developers because it offers a module system to use third-party code as a library, as well as the?require()?function to import modules from other files, Node packages, or third-party libraries.
Similarities between Node and Deno
On a basic level, Node and Deno are pretty similar—both offer package management, a system for importing modules and other third-party code, and a solid standard library.
Additionally, both Node and Deno can use TypeScript, which is a popular superset of JavaScript developed by Microsoft. It's slightly more difficult to get started with TypeScript when using Node, though.
Both Deno and Node use the V8 JavaScript engine created by Google. This means that in-browser performance should be just about the same between the two frameworks.
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Differences between Node and Deno
Where Node and Deno differ is that Node is built using C and C++, while Deno is built using the newer language?Rust. Rust is a multi-paradigm, low-level programming language originally built by Mozilla to be a memory-safe and statically typed alternative to other system level languages. This allows the underlying architecture of the Deno binary to catch internal errors at compile time. These improvements affect Deno's internals only, not the performance of your code. The performance of TypeScript and JavaScript code using Deno is about the same as code running in Node.js.
On a higher level, Node uses npm for package management, while Deno technically does not have a package manager. Unlike Node, Deno can import packages directly from their source—the?deno.land?CDN, GitHub, or any URL that resolves to a compatible module.
Should You Use Node or Deno?
When it comes to choosing between Node and Deno, there isn't a clear winner. Both systems have their advantages and disadvantages. Node is a much more mature framework that developers have used successfully since 2009, but with that maturity comes security issues that may compromise sensitive applications.
Deno is a newer framework created specifically to fix some issues that developed in Node. Deno has an easier import system and uses TypeScript by default, with no extra effort on your part. But it also may not have the battle-tested stability of Node. Additionally, if you rely on the Node standard library, you may be left wanting more from the Deno standard library.
Having said that, there are a few scenarios where Node is a better choice than Deno:
Likewise, there are situations where Deno is the clear winner over Node:
Conclusion
Node and Deno both have a lot to offer for your projects. As the comparison in this article points out, there are situations where one framework is a clear choice over the other. Keep your specific use case and the needs of your organization in mind when you make your selection.