Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Brunch VS SystemJS

Compare Brunch VS SystemJS and see what are their differences

Brunch logo Brunch

Brunch builds, lints, compiles, concatenates and shrinks your HTML5 app in an ultra-simple way. No more Grunt / Gulp mess.

SystemJS logo SystemJS

Configurable module loader enabling dynamic ES module workflows in browsers and NodeJS.
  • Brunch Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-16
  • SystemJS Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-11-06

Brunch features and specs

  • Speed
    Brunch is known for its fast build times due to its minimal configurations and optimized build process.
  • Simplicity
    The framework emphasizes ease of use with its simple configuration and dependency management, making it easy for newcomers to get started quickly.
  • Modular Architecture
    Brunch supports a modular architecture that allows developers to pick and integrate only the tools and plugins they need, reducing bloat.
  • Flexibility
    Brunch offers flexibility in terms of choosing the technologies (like preprocessors, templating engines, etc.) that best suit your project requirements.
  • Active Community
    A relatively active community that contributes plugins and supports developers through forums and GitHub, providing resources and solutions.

Possible disadvantages of Brunch

  • Limited Popularity
    Brunch is less popular compared to other build tools like Webpack or Gulp, which means fewer tutorials, community support, and integrations.
  • Limited Advanced Features
    While great for small to medium projects, Brunch may lack some advanced features and fine-grained control that larger projects might require.
  • Plugin Compatibility
    Not all modern plugins and tools may be compatible or readily available for Brunch, potentially limiting its flexibility in specialized cases.
  • Performance with Larger Projects
    The performance benefits of Brunch might diminish with very large and complex projects, where it may not be as efficient as its competitors.
  • Steep Learning Curve for Advanced Use
    While simple for basic use, mastering advanced configurations and customizations in Brunch can be complex and require a deeper understanding.

SystemJS features and specs

  • Universal Module Loader
    SystemJS supports loading modules in various formats, such as AMD, CommonJS, and ES modules, providing versatility in deploying applications with different module specifications.
  • Dynamic Imports
    SystemJS enables dynamic loading of modules, which allows for lazy loading of parts of applications. This can lead to performance improvements by asynchronously loading only the necessary parts of your application.
  • Compatibility
    SystemJS provides compatibility across different JavaScript environments, making it a suitable choice for projects that require running code on both browsers and Node.js.
  • Extensibility
    With a plugin system that lets developers extend its capabilities, SystemJS can be customized to handle specific loading scenarios or integrate more seamlessly with different build processes or frameworks.

Possible disadvantages of SystemJS

  • Complexity
    The flexibility and extensive feature set of SystemJS can introduce complexity in configurations and require a learning curve for new developers, particularly with its extensive plugin ecosystem.
  • Performance Overhead
    Because SystemJS is a global loader, it introduces additional runtime overhead compared to using native ES modules or simpler bundling solutions, which might impact performance.
  • Reduced Relevance with ES Modules
    With the native support for ES modules in modern browsers, the need for SystemJS has decreased, as developers can often achieve the desired module functionality with built-in browser capabilities.
  • Complex Debugging
    SystemJS's dynamic loading and transformations can make debugging more challenging, as developers may struggle with source mapping or understanding how modules are resolved.

Analysis of Brunch

Overall verdict

  • Brunch is a good choice if you're looking for a lightweight, simple build tool for web development. Its speed and straightforward setup are strong positives. However, for more complex projects that require advanced configurations, other tools like Webpack or Gulp might be more suitable.

Why this product is good

  • Brunch is a fast and simple web development build tool. It's known for its ease of use, speed, and out-of-the-box features that help developers streamline their workflow. It's file-watching and live reload capabilities allow for an efficient development process. Its simplicity and speed make it a go-to option for smaller projects or developers who prefer minimal configuration.

Recommended for

  • Developers seeking a simple and fast setup
  • Small to medium-sized web projects
  • Those who favor minimal configuration over extensive customization

Brunch videos

The BEST Brunch in Los Angeles Review!

More videos:

  • Review - California Grill Brunch Dining Review | Walt Disney World
  • Review - Sunday Brunch by Kierin NYC Fragrance / Cologne Review

SystemJS videos

Javascript Tutorial - SystemJS intro

More videos:

  • Review - Learn Angular 2 in 21 Days: Day 2 Layout, SystemJS and Components

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Brunch and SystemJS)
JS Build Tools
70 70%
30% 30
Web Application Bundler
60 60%
40% 40
Front End Package Manager
Development
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, SystemJS should be more popular than Brunch. It has been mentiond 4 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Brunch mentions (1)

  • 5 Different Tools to Bundle Node.js Apps
    Brunch is a lightweight JavaScript bundler focusing on simplicity and speed. Although it is less popular than Webpack or Browsify, it has an effortless learning curve with fantastic features to help developers focus on feature implementation rather than configuration. Brunch has more than 6.8K GitHub stars. - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago

SystemJS mentions (4)

  • Integrate Web Component/MFE with plain static HTML
    Using the SystemJS library, we can seamlessly integrate a web component or MFE, or even import any module at runtime. - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • Rails upgrade to angular 2
    I would like to upgrade my existing Rails and Angular 1.x application. I'm following the ng-upgrade documentation and seeing that there are many dependencies including systemjs, typescript, tsd and a few other javascript libraries. Ideally there would be a angular-2 gem that would have all the dependencies but I'm not able to find that. Next I looked for gem's for each dependency but there isn't one for tsd. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Modern SPAs without bundlers, CDNs, or Node.js
    There's also https://github.com/systemjs/systemjs if you want more of a ponyfill approach. FWIW bundlers also don't use the browser's functionality to load modules... - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • JS Modules
    A module loader interprets and loads a module written in a certain module format at runtime. Popular examples are RequireJS and SystemJS. - Source: dev.to / almost 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Brunch and SystemJS, you can also consider the following products

npm - npm is a package manager for Node.

RequireJS - RequireJS is a JavaScript file and module loader.

Webpack - Webpack is a module bundler. Its main purpose is to bundle JavaScript files for usage in a browser, yet it is also capable of transforming, bundling, or packaging just about any resource or asset.

Qoopido.demand - Browser only, promise like and extremely lightweight module loader using XHR/XDR requests and localStorage caching to dynamically load JavaScript modules, JSON, HTML, CSS, text and Bundles (single script containing multiple concatenated modules) wit…

rollup.js - Rollup is a module bundler for JavaScript which compiles small pieces of code into a larger piece such as application.

stealjs - Futuristic JavaScript dependency loader and builder. Speeds up application load times. Works with ES6, CommonJS, AMD, CSS, LESS and more. Simplifies modular workflows.