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Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) VS highlight.js

Compare Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) VS highlight.js and see what are their differences

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Contents:
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  2. » Reviews
  3. » Alternatives

Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) logo Chroma (Syntax Highlighter)

Chroma takes source code and other structured text and converts it into syntax highlighted HTML, ANSI-coloured text, etc.

highlight.js logo highlight.js

Highlight.js is a syntax highlighter written in JavaScript. It works in the browser as well as on the server.
Not present
  • highlight.js Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-25

Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) features and specs

  • Language Support
    Chroma offers extensive support for many programming languages, making it a versatile choice for syntax highlighting in diverse projects.
  • Go Implementation
    Implemented in Go, Chroma ensures fast performance and seamless integration in Go-based projects, benefiting developers working in the Go ecosystem.
  • Ease of Use
    Chroma is designed with simplicity in mind, allowing users to easily implement syntax highlighting in their applications without a steep learning curve.
  • Compatibility
    It's compatible with styles from popular syntax highlighters, such as Pygments, which eases the transition for users migrating from those tools.
  • Playground Feature
    The Chroma Playground allows users to test and experiment with syntax highlighting in real-time, facilitating easier customization and evaluation of results.

Possible disadvantages of Chroma (Syntax Highlighter)

  • Limited Ecosystem
    Compared to some long-established syntax highlighters, Chroma's ecosystem of plugins and community contributions is more limited, potentially affecting feature richness.
  • Go Dependency
    For projects not using Go, incorporating Chroma might introduce an additional dependency, which could be cumbersome for some development environments.
  • Less Community Support
    Being a relatively newer tool, Chroma might not have as extensive community support or documentation as older, more established syntax highlighters.
  • Customization Complexity
    While it offers many styles, deeply customizing these styles may require more effort and understanding of its workings than some other highlighters.

highlight.js features and specs

  • Wide Language Support
    Highlight.js supports a comprehensive range of programming languages out of the box, making it versatile for various projects.
  • Automatic Language Detection
    It can automatically detect the programming language of a code block, reducing the setup time and effort for developers.
  • Customization
    Highlight.js offers numerous themes and customization options, allowing developers to easily tailor the syntax highlighting to match their application's aesthetic.
  • Lightweight and Fast
    The library is lightweight and performs efficiently, ensuring quick load times and a seamless user experience.
  • Open Source
    As an open-source project, Highlight.js benefits from community contributions and is free to use, modify, and distribute.

Possible disadvantages of highlight.js

  • Limited Dynamic Features
    Highlight.js is primarily used for static code block highlighting and lacks advanced features like real-time editing or complex code analysis.
  • Manual Updates
    New languages or updates may not be immediately available, requiring users to manually update the library or find alternatives for less common languages.
  • Performance Degradation on Large Files
    Highlight.js may experience performance issues when rendering very large code files, potentially slowing down page load times.
  • Dependency Management
    As with many JavaScript libraries, managing dependencies and ensuring compatibility with other libraries or frameworks can be challenging.

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) and highlight.js)

Chroma (Syntax Highlighter)

highlight.js

Customer Feedback
25 25%
Customer Feedback
75% 75
App Reviews
23 23%
App Reviews
77% 77
Marketing Tools
21 21%
Marketing Tools
79% 79
Documentation
57 57%
Documentation
43% 43

User comments

Share your experience with using Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) and highlight.js. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, highlight.js seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 55 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.

Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) yet. Tracking of Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) recommendations started around May 2025.

highlight.js mentions (55)

  • A better pkg.go.dev
    Every time a request come in, we forward it to the pkg.go.dev server, then append the highlight.js script to the response before sending it back to the client. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • Day 19: Highlight'em up! 🔖
    It supports 192 languages, just like a browser highlighter:. - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
  • YouTube Embeds Are Bananas Heavy and It's Fixable
    Now we only need to force bloggers to stop using GitHub Gist embeds. Hugo (and probably other static site generators) has built-in support for code snippets with syntax highlighting, and more dynamic sites can rely on highlight.js which removes dependence on third-party services. It's just insane, using heavy iframes for small code snippets. https://gohugo.io/content-management/syntax-highlighting/... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Glimmer DSL for Web Ruby Integration with JavaScript Libraries
    Glimmer DSL for Web is a Ruby-in-the-Browser Web Frontend Framework that enables Rubyists to finally have Ruby productivity and happiness in the Frontend via a simpler, more intuitive, more straightforward, and more productive library than all JavaScript libraries like React, Angular, Ember, Vue, Svelte, etc.... Glimmer DSL for Web's Rails sample app "Sample Selector" has been upgraded with Code Syntax... - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Code Syntax highlighting in Next Js
    Let's get started by installing the highlight js. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Chroma (Syntax Highlighter) and highlight.js, you can also consider the following products

Shiki - A beautiful syntax highlighter based on TextMate grammar, accurate and powerful.

prism.js - Prism is a lightweight, extensible syntax highlighter, built with modern web standards in mind.

Context.io - Context.IO is a REST email API that makes it easy and fast to integrate your user's email data in your application

Torchlight.dev - Torchlight is a VS Code-compatible syntax highlighter that requires no JavaScript, supports every language, every VS Code theme, line highlighting, git diffing, and more.

code-prettify - Code Prettify is an embeddable script that makes source-code snippets in HTML prettier.

Re-Highlight - Re-Highlight is a powerful text syntax highlighting library.

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