The JavaScript ecosystem is buzzing with exciting new features.
Check out the hottest JavaScript trends right now.
JavaScript is the world’s most used programming language. In 2022, 17.4 million software developers (of nearly 30 million) used JavaScript around the world. It is used as client-side programming language in over 98% of websites globally, and there are 1.4 million JavaScript libraries available.
Created in 1995 by Mozilla co-founder Brendan Eich, JavaScript was influenced by older programming languages such as Self, Python, Java, Scheme or C. Its influenced is felt even on recent languages such as ActionScript, TypeScript, JS++, Dart or Jscript. There are also dozens of JavaScript frameworks in use today.
As more and more features are added and released, JavaScript and JavaScript-based frameworks keep evolving – becoming more functional, flexible – and more demanded by employers all over the world. It’s obvious JavaScript isn’t going anywhere but forward, so we’ve put together a list of trends going strong this year. Check out the hottest JavaScript trends right now.
10 JavaScript trends to watch for
The JavaScript ecosystem moves fast, with cool new features popping up everywhere. But beyond the “next-big-thing” run some deeper trends worth watching out for.
1. TypeScript is catching up!
It may sound weird that one of the JavaScript trends is the rise in popularity of another language, but if you look closely, you’ll understand why. TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript (meaning it contains all the features of JavaScript and expands it with additional features). While JavaScript is still the “king of web”, TypeScript has risen in popularity over the last years, going from 12% usage in 2017 to 34% in 2022. While JavaScript is used to build interactive web pages, in conjunction with HTML and CSS, TypeScript is more focused on large-scale web apps.
2. Parallax Websites going mainstream
In computer graphics, parallax refers to a technique where multiple layers move at different rates while scrolling up and down the page, creating an interesting visual effect or optical illusion that adds movement and three-dimensional depth. While this is not new – Super Mario Bros mastered parallax in the 80’s – the ever-demanding world of web design is now making parallax websites a JavaScript trend for this year and more to come.
3. Single-Page Applications
A single-page app (SPA) is an application that loads only one single page and rewrites the page content from a web server as the user interacts with it, instead of reloading a new page for each interaction. A SPA renders JavaScript directly in the browser, making it an interesting option for businesses, because of its simpler structure, easy navigation, and use of fewer resources.
From a technical point of view, SPAs are easier and cheaper to develop since they use repetitive layouts. SPAs are also more mobile-friendly than typical websites. Do we need to say more? So, yes, expect SPAs as a major JavaScript trend.
4. Progressive Web Applications
Progressive Web Apps (PWA) are a recent type of web apps that blend the best of web and native app development. PWAs can be installed and used in the same way that native apps do, while being lighter and operating offline with cached data. The point of PWAs – mostly written in JavaScript – is to enrich user experiences, just like SPAs. PWAs are accessible from any device, from smartphones, to tablets and desktop computers, which makes them not only a JavaScript trend but also a web development trend.
5. The return of Server-Side Rendering
Next on JavaScript trend-list: server-side rendering (SSR). SSR is the ability of a website to load completely on the server and be presented as a static HTML on the client side, as opposed to Client-side rendering (CSR) which means the webpage is rendered entirely on the browser with JavaScript. SSR lost popularity to CSR in the mid-2010s, with the rise of SPAs.
However, SSR is making a comeback, especially because of SEO, since SSR allows Googlebot to consider the content of the page faster and HTML content is not empty. So, while the most popular JavaScript frameworks default to CSR, we are seeing an uptake in JavaScript server-side rendering.
6. Dark Mode in JavaScript
Dark Mode has gained a lot of traction over the last decade, and it’s recently become a JavaScript trend. The main reasons for implementing dark mode are minimizing device energy consumption, reducing eye strain, and – let’s be real here – aesthetic purposes. Some UI design just looks really sleek in dark mode. Whatever the reason, dark mode is a must nowadays, and there are a number of ways to achieve it. There are a couple of libraries such as Darkmode.js or Nightly.js that can do the trick, but everyday developers all over the world come up with smarter, more creative ways of doing it.
7. Svelte on the rise
Svelte is a library-turned-framework, just like React and Vue. Despite being a relative newcomer to the JavaScript world, Svelte is quickly becoming an attractive JavaScript staple because of the way it works. Just like React or Vue, Svelte allows devs to build fast, lean, interactive web apps; however, Svelte converts the code into pure JavaScript at build time, instead of interpreting the code at runtime. For this reason, Svelte is also called a compiler. Additionally, Svelte was designed to work on low-power and low-capacity devices.
8. Webpack still leading
Webpack is a module bundler for JavaScript apps that runs on Node.js. It is a development tool that packages many JavaScript modules into a bundle and serves it to the browser. Webpack is great because it transforms front-end assets such as HTML, CSS, and images into a format that is convenient for the browser, keeping everything neat and tidy and, thanks to a dependency graph, error-free. The popularity of webpack isn’t new – it has consistently been the preferred module bundler for JavaScript since its launch in 2014. The trend is that it will probably maintain its status for years to come.
9. More JavaScript Runtimes
Node.js has been the default choice for a JavaScript runtime since… forever? But other runtimes are stepping up. New names like Deno and Bun are making some noise. Deno gets brownie points for first-class TypeScript support, while Node.js needs to transpile TypeScript to JavaScript. Note that Node.js and Deno were created by the very same person, Ryan Dahl, 10 years apart. Bun, on the other hand, promises “three to four times faster runtimes” than Node.js or Deno. But there are more, namely some JavaScript embeddable runtimes like Duktape, Elk, and Espruino.
10. JavaScript Meta-Frameworks boom
Meta frameworks are web development frameworks that are built upon one or more frameworks. React, for example, is a JavaScript framework with a meta-framework called Next.js. There’s also Nuxt.js (Vue, Node), analogjs (Angular), SolidStart (SolidJS), SvelteKit (Svelte), Astro (React, Vue, Svelte), Remix, Qwik… You get the gist. Well, an undeniable JavaScript trend for this year (and we are sure for many to come) is the absolute explosion of JavaScript meta-frameworks. While it can get a tad overwhelming with so many meta-frameworks to choose from, it is also great; having more options means you get to be as picky as your project requires. We are actually very curious about what new meta-frameworks are coming and what exciting features they bring to the table.
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