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CMake VS xmake

Compare CMake VS xmake and see what are their differences

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CMake logo CMake

CMake is an open-source, cross-platform family of tools designed to build, test and package software.

xmake logo xmake

🔥 A cross-platform build utility based on Lua. Contribute to xmake-io/xmake development by creating an account on GitHub.
  • CMake Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-09-21

We recommend LibHunt CMake for discovery and comparisons of trending CMake projects.

  • xmake Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-27

CMake features and specs

  • Cross-platform support
    CMake is designed to support multiple operating systems including Windows, macOS, and Linux. This allows developers to write platform-independent CMake scripts.
  • Build tool agnostic
    CMake can generate build files for a variety of build systems including Makefiles, Ninja, and Visual Studio solutions. This means developers are not tied to a specific build tool.
  • Large community and extensive documentation
    CMake has a large user base and an extensive amount of documentation and tutorials available which can be helpful for new and experienced users alike.
  • Integrated testing support
    CMake includes support for testing frameworks such as CTest, which allows for automated testing of code during the build process.
  • Modular and scalable
    CMake is highly modular, enabling users to create reusable and maintainable code by organizing CMake scripts into libraries and modules.

Possible disadvantages of CMake

  • Steep learning curve
    CMake's complexity and its extensive range of features can be difficult for beginners to grasp, leading to a steep learning curve.
  • Verbose syntax
    CMake scripts can often become verbose and difficult to read, especially for large projects. This can make maintenance and debugging challenging.
  • Inconsistent module quality
    The quality and support of different CMake modules can vary, sometimes leading to issues with compatibility or functionality.
  • Performance overhead
    CMake may introduce some performance overhead during the configuration process, especially for very large projects.
  • Complexity in advanced features
    Some of the more advanced features of CMake, such as custom commands and complex dependency management, can be quite difficult to implement correctly.

xmake features and specs

No features have been listed yet.

CMake videos

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CMake for Dummies

More videos:

  • Review - CppCon 2017: Mathieu Ropert “Using Modern CMake Patterns to Enforce a Good Modular Design”
  • Review - Hunter, a CMake driven package manager for C/C++ projects - Daniel Friedrich - Lightning Talks

xmake videos

No xmake videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to CMake and xmake)

CMake

xmake

Front End Package Manager
89 89%
Front End Package Manager
11% 11
JavaScript Package Manager
86 86%
JavaScript Package Manager
14% 14
JS Build Tools
94 94%
JS Build Tools
6% 6
DevOps Tools
0 0%
DevOps Tools
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using CMake and xmake. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, CMake should be more popular than xmake. It has been mentiond 53 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.

CMake mentions (53)

  • Master This Feature of DevEco Studio to Efficiently Implement ArkTS and C++ Glue Code
    For knowledge in this aspect, you can refer to the relevant documents of the CMake build tool: https://cmake.org/. - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • Creating a Native Desktop GUI Using C++ with GTK
    I used CMAKE to define the build configurations. I find it very convenient that CMAKE generates the Makefile on Linux and can also create a Visual Studio project on Windows. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Top 7 C++ Tools to explore in 2024 if it's not already the case.
    CMake stands for "Cross-platform Make" and is an open-source, platform-independent build system. It's designed to build, test, and package software projects written in C and C++, but it can also be used for other languages. Here's an overview of CMake and its features:. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • My first Software Release using GitHub Release
    When doing research for this lab exercise I looked at both vcpkg and conan. Both are package managers that would automate the installation and configuration of my program with its dependencies. However, when it came to releasing and sharing my program my options were limited. For example, the central public registry for conan packages is conan-center, but these packages are curated and the process is very... - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • A little help for a C++ newbie
    Install the CMake program using your system package manager, e.g. Sudo apt-get install cmake. Source: over 1 year ago
View more

xmake mentions (15)

  • Everything You Never Wanted to Know About CMake (Redux)
    We can also try xmake. https://github.com/xmake-io/xmake Xmake can be used to directly build source code (like with Make or Ninja), or it can generate project source files like CMake or Meson. It also has a built-in package management system to help users integrate C/C++ dependencies. - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • A script-only build utility like autotools
    I wrote this tool mainly for the purpose of building xmake's own source code better. https://github.com/xmake-io/xmake. Source: over 2 years ago
  • A build-system for make C++ projects with modules!
    Did you consider skipping the parser part and base it of off another language? Like xmake: https://github.com/xmake-io/xmake/. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Xmake v2.7.3 Released, Package Components and C++ Modules Incremental Build Support
    Xmake is a lightweight cross-platform build utility based on Lua. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • linux c++ devs, what does your dev environment look like?
    Xmake as build backend + project generator + package manager. Source: over 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing CMake and xmake, you can also consider the following products

GNU Make - GNU Make is a tool which controls the generation of executables and other non-source files of a program from the program's source files.

SCons - SCons is an Open Source software construction tool—that is, a next-generation build tool.

Meson - Meson is an open source build system meant to be both extremely fast, and, even more importantly...

SBT - SBT is a build tool for Scala, like Ant or Maven but with hieroglyphics.

MSBuild - MSBuild is the build platform for .NET and Visual Studio.

Ninja Build - Ninja is a small build system with a focus on speed.

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