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Zig VS C

Compare Zig VS C and see what are their differences

Zig logo Zig

Zig is a general-purpose programming language designed for robustness, optimality, and maintainability.

C logo C

One of the most widely used programming languages of all time
  • Zig Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-19

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

  • C Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-17

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

Zig features and specs

  • Performance
    Zig aims to offer high performance comparable to C or C++, allowing it to be suitable for system-level programming.
  • Safety
    It includes modern safety features like optional type checking, bounds checking, and panic handling without a garbage collector.
  • Interoperability
    Zig has excellent interoperability with C, including the ability to directly include C headers and compile C code.
  • Build System
    Zig comes with an integrated build system that simplifies project configuration and management.
  • Cross-compilation
    The language has built-in support for cross-compilation, making it easier to develop for different target environments.
  • Simplicity
    Zig aims for simplicity and explicitness in its design, making code easy to read and understand.

Possible disadvantages of Zig

  • Maturity
    Zig is still relatively new and under active development, which means it may not yet have as many libraries or tools as more established languages.
  • Community
    The community is growing but still small compared to languages like C, C++, or Rust, which may make finding resources or support more challenging.
  • Learning Curve
    Newcomers to system programming or those used to managed languages might find Zig's low-level features and manual memory management challenging.
  • Ecosystem
    While growing, Zig does not yet have as rich an ecosystem of third-party libraries and frameworks as more established languages.
  • Documentation
    Though improving, the documentation is not as comprehensive as more mature languages, which can slow down the learning and development process.

C features and specs

  • Efficiency
    C provides low-level access to memory and is closely aligned with machine instructions, offering high-performance and efficient use of resources.
  • Portability
    Code written in C can be compiled on various platforms with minimal modification, making it highly portable across different systems.
  • Rich Library Support
    The C programming language has a powerful set of standard libraries that facilitate various operations (e.g., input/output, string handling).
  • Control and Flexibility
    C offers extensive control over system resources and hardware operations, allowing fine-tuning and optimization for specific use cases.
  • Foundation for Other Languages
    Many modern programming languages, like C++, Python, and Java, have their roots in C, making it a foundational language that's beneficial to learn.

Possible disadvantages of C

  • Lack of Abstraction
    C provides less abstraction compared to higher-level languages, which may result in more complex and error-prone code for certain tasks.
  • Manual Memory Management
    The programmer is responsible for managing memory allocation and deallocation, which can lead to memory leaks and other errors if not handled properly.
  • No Built-in Support for Object-Oriented Programming
    C does not natively support object-oriented programming paradigms, which can make modeling complex systems less intuitive compared to OOP languages.
  • Safety Issues
    Lack of bounds checking can lead to buffer overflows and other vulnerabilities, posing security risks in C programs if not carefully addressed.
  • Steeper Learning Curve
    Due to its low-level operations, beginners might find C more difficult to learn compared to higher-level languages with simpler syntax and automatic memory management.

Analysis of Zig

Overall verdict

  • Zig is a highly promising language for those interested in system-level programming with a modern toolset. It offers a unique combination of performance and safety features, making it a strong competitor to more established languages in this domain such as C and C++.

Why this product is good

  • Zig is gaining attention due to its focus on simplicity, performance, and robustness. It provides manual control over memory management, which is appealing for system programming. Its tooling, such as a built-in package manager and the compiler's ability to cross-compile, is also praised. Additionally, the language has a strong emphasis on safety features without sacrificing low-level access.

Recommended for

  • System programmers looking for a modern alternative to C/C++
  • Developers interested in low-level programming with safety features
  • Programmers needing robust cross-compilation support
  • Someone who values explicitness and manual control over memory

Zig videos

UNHYPE: CRAZY COLLAB Braindead x REEBOK ZIG Kinetica II REVIEW

More videos:

  • Review - Reebok ZIG Kinetica REVIEW [Conor McGregor Shoes] - Durable Everyday Training Sneakers
  • Review - Zig Dynamica - Full Review

C videos

Mercedes C-Class 2020 in-depth review | carwow Reviews

More videos:

  • Review - New Fractal Define Mini C - Build + Review!
  • Review - Fractal Meshify C Review: Thermals & Noise vs. Define C

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Zig and C)
Programming Language
77 77%
23% 23
OOP
80 80%
20% 20
Generic Programming Language
JavaScript Runtime
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Zig and C

Zig Reviews

We have no reviews of Zig yet.
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C Reviews

Top 5 Most Liked and Hated Programming Languages of 2022
C is one of the oldest programming languages. There are numerous other languages that came in after C like Java, PHP, etc., and have managed to outshine the former. When compared to C, other languages boast of a series of features thereby making it a less favourable one.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Zig seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 156 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.

Zig mentions (156)

  • What is Bun? The Node.js Alternative Explained
    Bun is written from scratch in Zig, a low-level language focused on performance and safety. Instead of using V8 (the engine behind Node and Deno), Bun runs on JavaScriptCore, the engine used in Safari. This choice helps it stay fast and efficient, both in terms of memory and startup time. - Source: dev.to / 12 days ago
  • RawWeb Updates: SimHash and Meilisearch
    For local testing, just run cargo build --release. But cross-platform compilation is much more complicated. Fortunately, the Zig toolchain greatly simplifies C cross-compilation, eliminating the need for musl libc! - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • F8 – an 8 bit architecture designed for C and memory efficiency [video]
    Https://ziglang.org/ is a solid future C-replacement, IMHO. There's pretty much no downsides and all upsides from a C hacker's perspective. It just hasn't reached 1.0 yet! - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • Rust Kernel Policy
    But the situation for Rust-C++ interop is also worse than for Rust-C interop. Why else would Google spend maybe $1 million on improving it in 2024? https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/05/google_rust_donation/ Many years after Rust got support in Mozilla for usage with Firefox written in C++. >My sibling is also correct, language decisions were made in order to keep FFI zero overhead. Yet overhead is only one piece... - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • Ask HN: What are some software projects with impressive websites?
    I am looking for some inspiration at websites for software projects that do a very good of job explaining their product right from the get go. Things like programming language or database home pages/docs or open source projects with good git READMEs. Though I've never used it, I think https://ziglang.org/ is a great example as it explains what makes the language unique, gives a code example right at the beginning,... - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
View more

C mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of C yet. Tracking of C recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Zig and C, you can also consider the following products

Nim (programming language) - The Nim programming language is a concise, fast programming language that compiles to C, C++ and JavaScript.

Python - Python is a clear and powerful object-oriented programming language, comparable to Perl, Ruby, Scheme, or Java.

V (programming language) - Simple, fast, safe, compiled language for developing maintainable software.

Rust - A safe, concurrent, practical language

Crystal (programming language) - Programming language with Ruby-like syntax that compiles to efficient native code.

NIM - GB64.COM is the home of The Gamebase Collection of C64 games.