Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

highlight.js VS Terser

Compare highlight.js VS Terser and see what are their differences

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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.

Terser logo Terser

JavaScript parser, mangler, optimizer and beautifier toolkit for ES6+
  • highlight.js Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-25
  • Terser Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-25

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.

Terser features and specs

  • Highly Effective Minification
    Terser provides comprehensive minification capabilities, significantly reducing JavaScript file sizes, which can lead to faster load times and improved application performance.
  • ES6+ Support
    Terser supports modern JavaScript syntax, making it suitable for projects using ES6 features and beyond, ensuring compatibility with the latest JavaScript standards.
  • Source Maps
    Terser can generate source maps, allowing developers to map minified code back to the original source code, which is crucial for debugging and maintaining large codebases.
  • Plugin Friendly
    Terser integrates well with various build tools like Webpack, Rollup, and others, offering seamless integration into existing development workflows.
  • Configurable
    Terser offers a high degree of configurability, enabling developers to tailor the minification process according to their specific needs and restrictions.

Possible disadvantages of Terser

  • Complex Configuration
    The array of options and configurations available in Terser can be overwhelming for new users or those unfamiliar with JavaScript minification processes.
  • Potential Bugs
    As with any complex minification tool, there's a risk of bugs or issues being introduced, especially if certain advanced or experimental features are used.
  • Performance Overhead
    Minification, in general, requires additional processing time during build steps, which can increase CI/CD pipeline durations, particularly for large projects.
  • Readability Loss
    Minified code is difficult to read and debug without source maps, so reliance on Terser makes generating source maps a necessity, which might not always be desired or feasible.
  • Dependency Maintenance
    Keeping Terser and its related dependencies updated can be a maintenance burden, especially if breaking changes occur between versions.

Category Popularity

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User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, highlight.js should be more popular than Terser. 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.

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 / 3 months ago
  • Day 19: Highlight'em up! 🔖
    It supports 192 languages, just like a browser highlighter:. - Source: dev.to / 5 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 / 11 months 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 / about 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

Terser mentions (13)

  • 10 Bad Habits That Can Slow Down Your JavaScript Applications 🐌
    Example: You've got a main.js file that's as long as a Tolstoy novel. Fix: Use tools like UglifyJS or Terser to minify your code. They'll squeeze out all the unnecessary bits and give you a sleeker, faster-loading file. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Things you forgot because of React
    They can do it, it is just turned off by default and require more advanced configuration. https://github.com/terser/terser#cli-mangling-property-names.... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Understanding Source Maps: Simplifying Debugging
    Minifying is a common practice for optimizing production code. (for example, using Terser to minify and mangle JavaScript). - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
  • Minify private methods in a TypeScript class
    Terser is JavaScript compressor that can minified specific method names. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • React Native CI/CD build speed improved by 22% with one line of code
    Every release build of React Native uses terser to reduce the size of your JavaScript. And it operation can be omitted for Staging/Beta builds. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing highlight.js and Terser, you can also consider the following products

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

JavaScript Obfuscator - JavaScript Obfuscator is a free online tool that obfuscates your source code, preventing it from being stolen and used without permission.

Asklayer - Get real answers from your customers with Asklayers surveys, quizzes, polls and more. Works on any website with zero code and includes enterprise level features such auto-segmentation, user tagging, branching, NPS & CSAT calculation.

UglifyJS - JavaScript minifier, beautifier, mangler and parser toolkit.

Promolayer - Create fast & high-converting popups, banners, bars, coupon wheels etc. Work less, convert more! Promolayer features hundreds of templates and pre-built strategies to kick start your next campaign. Our app is speed and SEO optimized ⚡️

Closure Compiler - The Closure Compiler is a tool for making JavaScript download and run faster.