Vishal Yadav

Posted on Aug 6

JavaScript vs TypeScript in 2024: Which Should You Choose?

#webdev #javascript #react #beginners

Are you torn between JavaScript and TypeScript for your next web development project? You're not alone! As we dive into 2024, the debate between these two powerhouse languages is hotter than ever. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting your coding journey, this comprehensive guide will help you make an informed decision. Let's explore the key differences, pros, and cons of JavaScript and TypeScript to find out which one is right for you.

JavaScript: The Versatile Veteran

What is JavaScript?

JavaScript is the chameleon of programming languages. It's been the backbone of web development for over two decades, and it's not going anywhere anytime soon.

Key Features

Dynamic Typing: Freedom at Your Fingertips JavaScript gives you the flexibility to change variable types on the fly. It's like having a Swiss Army knife in your coding toolkit!

   let myVariable = 42;
   myVariable = "Now I'm a string!";
   console.log(myVariable); // Outputs: Now I'm a string!

Objects and Prototypes: The Building Blocks of JS JavaScript's object-oriented nature is based on prototypes. It's a unique approach that gives you incredible power once you master it.

   const person = {
     name: 'Sarah',
     greet() {
       console.log(`Hi, I'm ${this.name}!`);
     }
   };
   person.greet(); // Outputs: Hi, I'm Sarah!

Modern Class Syntax: Old Dog, New Tricks With ES6 and beyond, JavaScript now supports class syntax, making it more familiar for developers coming from other languages.

   class Developer {
     constructor(name, language) {
       this.name = name;
       this.language = language;
     }

     code() {
       console.log(`${this.name} is coding in ${this.language}`);
     }
   }

   const dev = new Developer('Alex', 'JavaScript');
   dev.code(); // Outputs: Alex is coding in JavaScript

Asynchronous Programming: Handling the Future JavaScript excels at handling asynchronous operations, crucial for modern web applications.

   async function fetchData() {
     try {
       const response = await fetch('https://api.example.com/data');
       const data = await response.json();
       console.log(data);
     } catch (error) {
       console.error('Oops! Something went wrong:', error);
     }
   }

TypeScript: The Strongly-Typed Superhero

What is TypeScript?

TypeScript is like JavaScript's more disciplined sibling. It adds static typing and other features to help you write more robust code.

Key Features

Static Typing: Catch Errors Before They Catch You TypeScript's type system helps you spot bugs early, potentially saving hours of debugging.

   let userName: string = "CodeNinja";
   userName = 42; // Error: Type 'number' is not assignable to type 'string'.

Interfaces: Blueprint for Your Objects Interfaces in TypeScript help you define clear contracts for your objects and functions.

   interface User {
     id: number;
     name: string;
     email: string;
   }

   function greetUser(user: User) {
     console.log(`Welcome, ${user.name}!`);
   }

Enhanced Class Features: OOP on Steroids TypeScript takes JavaScript's class syntax to the next level with features like access modifiers and generics.

   class GenericStack<T> {
     private items: T[] = [];

     push(item: T): void {
       this.items.push(item);
     }

     pop(): T | undefined {
       return this.items.pop();
     }
   }

   const numberStack = new GenericStack<number>();
   numberStack.push(1);
   numberStack.push(2);
   console.log(numberStack.pop()); // Outputs: 2

Advanced Type Features: Unleash Your Inner Type Wizard TypeScript offers advanced type features like union types, intersection types, and literal types.

   type Status = "pending" | "approved" | "rejected";

   interface Task {
     id: number;
     status: Status;
   }

   function updateTaskStatus(task: Task, newStatus: Status) {
     task.status = newStatus;
   }

JavaScript vs TypeScript: The Showdown

Learning Curve
- JavaScript: Easier to pick up, great for beginners.
- TypeScript: Steeper learning curve, but pays off in larger projects.
Development Speed
- JavaScript: Faster for small projects and prototypes.
- TypeScript: Slows initial development but speeds up maintenance and refactoring.
Error Detection
- JavaScript: Errors often caught at runtime.
- TypeScript: Catches many errors at compile-time, before your code runs.
Ecosystem and Community
- JavaScript: Massive ecosystem with countless libraries and resources.
- TypeScript: Growing rapidly, with increasing support from major frameworks and libraries.
Performance
- JavaScript: Lightweight and fast in the browser.
- TypeScript: Compiles to JavaScript, so runtime performance is similar.

Making Your Choice: JavaScript or TypeScript?

Choosing between JavaScript and TypeScript in 2024 depends on your project's needs and your team's expertise:

Choose JavaScript if:
- You're building a small to medium-sized project
- You need to prototype quickly
- Your team is more comfortable with dynamic typing
- You're working on a project with a short timeline
Choose TypeScript if:
- You're working on a large-scale application
- Your project will be maintained long-term
- You value strong typing and enhanced tooling
- Your team appreciates clear interfaces and contracts

Remember, it's not always an either-or decision. Many projects use both languages, starting with JavaScript and gradually introducing TypeScript as the project grows.

Conclusion: The Best of Both Worlds

In 2024, both JavaScript and TypeScript have their place in the web development ecosystem. JavaScript's flexibility and ease of use make it perfect for quick projects and scripting, while TypeScript's robustness shines in larger, more complex applications.

The good news? Learning one makes you better at the other. So why not dive into both and become a full-stack TypeScript ninja?

What's your take? Are you Team JavaScript, Team TypeScript, or somewhere in between? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!

Happy coding, and may the best language win (for your project)!

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Top comments (28)

dev procedure • Aug 7

Static Typing: Catch Errors Before They Catch You TypeScript's type system helps you spot bugs early, potentially saving hours of debugging.

I do NOT see "real-world" problem being solved by using TypeScript.

All I see are silly examples of a "function that adds or divides 2 numbers' to justify "type checking". e.g., Who writes a function just to do basic math????

Next, developers are testing (aka runtime) their code LINE-BY-LINE anyway, so "compile-time" checking isn't all that beneficial in saving a developer time coding.

In other words, TypeScript adds a layer of complexity that doesn't have that much benefit to JavaScript world.

NEWS FLASH:

Most data on the Client-Side are STRINGS anyway.
NUMBERS and DATES are already validated in the client's browser anyway.
And YES, you are passing data for a KNOWN REASON. So you have a pretty good idea what is to be expected. And those to say you don't OR say you haven't worked with a large code base are justifying passing parameters that you have NO CLUE in what you are passing? If so, that is a sneaky form of "job security". LOL.

And Interfaces and "advanced OOP features" like access modifiers and GENERICS? They are rarely used and they themselves add complexity when they are supposed to reduce complexity via the supposed "reusability." And was NOT needed for at least 5-7 years after C# was introduced back in 1999. In other words, C# grew as a language and adoption and did just fine WITHOUT Generics for many years.

SUMMARY:
So the TOP FEATURE of TypeScript, "type checking" (the name of the language itself), saves no time in the real world and certainly saves no time when programming "CLIENT-SIDE" as you are going to hit the RUN (F5) button anyway.

Vĩnh Nam Trần • Aug 7 • Edited

Strongly disagreed =)))

Most data on the Client-Side are STRINGS anyway.

Nah, I'm working with JSON everyday =)))))

And YES, you are passing data for a KNOWN REASON. So you have a pretty good idea what is to be expected.

That's not mean you can always remember that reason, typescript there to remind you every time you read that code

And Interfaces and "advanced OOP features" like access modifiers and GENERICS?

Nope, I more often use type and interface to structure my JSON data like

interface ObjectA {
  name: string;
  age: number;
  reasonToUseTypescript: string;
}

const a: ObjectA = {
  name: 'John',
  age: 30,
  reasonToUseTypescript: 'Type safety',
};

And last of all

So the TOP FEATURE of TypeScript, "type checking" (the name of the language itself), saves no time in the real world and certainly saves no time when programming "CLIENT-SIDE" as you are going to hit the RUN (F5) button anyway.

Lucky me, it saves me a lot of time for just its typehint e.g. with ObjectA above

a.name // With my type definition, a obviously has name property (not Name or NaMe or Names) =))) and it hint me how to use it

Rene Kootstra • Aug 7

Funny JSON is a readable textual representation of data. So JSON is indeed a string.

NamVTran • Aug 7 • Edited

What is the result of JavaScript (not TypeScript) statement below?

typeof {} === “string”

And JavaScript Object Notation is indeed a string :))) yeah of course it is

Rene Kootstra • Aug 9

Maybe read JSON.org. JSON is used for data exchange. Hence JSON.parse and JSON.stringify. Your example is just a Plain Old Javascript Object so yeah that's not a string. Semantics do matter.

NamVTran • Aug 10 • Edited

Okay, and you handle JSON data as string instead of Plain Old JavaScript Object in JavaScript? I mean when you receive a “{}” you gonna not JSON.parse and handle it as it is? Context of argument is also important too. All I just wanna say is, not “most of” the data on the client should be handled as string like the top comment of this thread said and typescript help me handle JSON data as JavaScript Object a lot easier.

dev procedure • Aug 10

//Nah, I'm working with JSON everyday =)))))

// And YES, you are passing data for a KNOWN REASON. So you have a pretty good idea what is to be expected.

//That's not mean you can always remember that reason, typescript there to remind you every time you read that code

It would be better to have a "comment" right after the variable declaration that shows an example of data.

For example:

var ProductID; // e.g., LIGHTBULB-039484

Now, you really know what the data looks like. As opposed just knowing the type.

Vĩnh Nam Trần • Aug 11 • Edited

How many comments you have to put on your code when your data structure like below?

interface Product {
  id: number;
  name: string;
  description: string | undefined;
  relatedProduct1: Product | undefined;
  relatedProduct2: Product | undefined;
};

dev procedure • Aug 12

My data structure names will match what is in the database.
I would use ProductID and ProductName and so on.

I would NOT use that Interface you have displayed as I almost always use a database.

Vĩnh Nam Trần • Aug 12 • Edited

I can't see how ONLY database and "data structure names will match what is in the database" help here when you have to build something complex like figma.com/ , miro.com/ , visily.ai/... web page apps without above data structures.

You mean when you want to describe a Rectangle, a Circle, a Frame,... with borderRadius, color could be Gradient or PlainStraightHex, width: could be empty or not, height: could be empty or not; all those shape have to draw() on client because server cannot serve even 1% of users usages then you gonna sent to your client some stuff like:

rectangleColor;
rectangleBorderRadius;
rectangleWidth;
rectangleHeight;
circleColor;
circleWidth;
circleHeight;

...
and mess yourself all around with those than

var rectangle = {
  type: "Rectangle",
  width: 10,
  height: 10,
  color: white,
  borderRadius: 10,
};

var circle = {
  type: "Circle";
  ...
};
...

If you think that easier keep yourself on it =)))) I'm really not here to persuade ANYONE to use TypeScript. I just wanna show that your points about TypeScript usages are wrong.

You just don't encounter complex things in your work; that doesn't mean other people don't.
TypeScript there (just like JavaScript) helps someone who need it of course.

And last of all, if someday you have to write a plugin for Figma (an app built with a very complex and strong TypeScript just for PluginAPI which doesn't help any real world problem but make 600 million dollars revenue). Please, please don't use TypeScript and JavaScript Object at all =)))) Just "data structure names will match what is in the database" and string is very enough, even though that database is not yours =)))))))

dev procedure • Aug 15

Does something like a graphic drawing tool like Figma have its data saved to a database? If so, then you have to save that data to a database anyway? Hence, you got to give it a type and hence a descriptive name anyway, so what's the point?

NamVTran • Aug 15

Just hand on and create one plugin for figma with its tutorials you’ll see my point, hint is “data need to be process before saving to server”

Mirko Vukušić • Aug 8

you are going to hit the RUN (F5) button anyway.

From my personal experiance... I "hit and run F5" at least 10x less after switching to TS

dev procedure • Aug 10

Isn't TypeScript is for "type" checking, and not so much spelling or syntax errors?

Hence, are we working with a lot of variables that are UNCLEAR NAMES, or have CONFUSING NAMES?

Bui Dinh Ngoc • Aug 7

TypeScript? Nah fam, pure JavaScript is the real MVP!

Yo coders, wake up and smell the coffee! TypeScript's just extra baggage we don't need on top of our lit JavaScript. ES6 already gives us all the sauce.

Performance: JS runs faster 'cause there's no compilation BS.
Flexibility: JS lets you code at lightspeed without being tied down by some rigid type system.
Community: JS squad's way bigger, with libraries and resources for days.
Simplicity: Why bother learning a whole new "language" when JS is already fire?

TypeScript's just a tool for big corps to micromanage your code. Keep your code free and flexy with pure JavaScript!

JavaScriptFTW #TypeScriptIsMid #ES6IsTheGoat

Fred Lunjevich • Aug 7

Personally, after many years resisting learning TypeScript and finally learning it to a high level, there's no way I'd make anything with just JS.
The advantages of TypeScript are too great to pass up, even on small applications. My main reason for that is it enables me to think like a software developer. TS leads me to as "what am I trying to achieve?" and "how can I best structure my code to make it a reality?"

You can sketch out an entire application structure by just writing the TS interfaces and types out, seeing how they all fit together and then writing the functionality. TS is arguably the best thing to happen to JS, although ES6 is up there too!

dev procedure • Aug 7

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION FOR TYPESCRIPT USERS

Which Variable Name does TypeScript Solve?
Which Variable NAME does TypeScript Solve?
A: mEvent_Date
B: mEvent_Date_of_NameOfEvent
C: mEvent_GuessMyType
D: mEvent_LetsKeepItASecretType
E: mEvent_LetsGiveThisaVagueName2JustifyTypeScript

Mirko Vukušić • Aug 8

for many years I was reluctant to switch. Then I tried TS ona project or two and had mixed feelings ... really good autocomplete was a huge plus. Also, less bugs were created, A LOT less. So, basicaly, when my (new) code passes all checks, in 90% of cases Im done and it works. Before this, i would ping pong often between fixing a line of code, running, finding error, going back, and then cycle the same thing arround. This was "normal". Now I need only one or two iterations. But, ... downside was that often even for sinple functions I'd spend 5x more time to type it correctly, especially in some edge cases. So was wasting time there, insted of wasting time debugging. Hm.

After a year or two, downside is gone. Ive learned TS well enough to write it as fast as pure JS. And then more tools pushed me to next level, like Zod, or Drizzle which "automatically" gives you types (thus also autocompletion and intellisense) for your database. Then tRPC that automates types in backend API responses to frontend.

In short, no way to go back. Faster to write code, less bugs that cause debug/rerun cycles during devrlopment, better UX.

Personally, I believe anybody who learns TS good enough will never go back. Only knowledge/experiance can cause the difference in opinions here. No posts, analisys or online arguments will help you. If you have time to leatn it, just do it and be cosistant on a few projects, then make your own decission.

Rene Kootstra • Aug 7

TS can cause a false sense of security because if you write a webcomponent in TS and its interface is guarded with TS then it is only safe to use with TS. Seen this numerous times and people still say but that is its interface/contract.

My take? Nonsense, everything has a sensible initial state but somehow that is something devs do not like or find difficult.

Abhishek Shah • Aug 11 • Edited

Personally I've used both and JavaScript just works. Typescript just seems a little extra baggage to carry along that you could just as easily have left behind. I mean sure it does make it easier to read the code in some scenarios but in many ways it also makes it a lot more confusing.
We can assume 70-80% of our data is some or the other way a string entity; that includes JSON objects so it Typescript does not really solve a lot. Again I'm not saying it is bad. It is good in many ways but for me I feel that plain JavaScript just works and personally it is a lot easier to create JS modules

saoirse-iontach • Sep 3

I dislike build chain in daily life, but strong typing is very useful.
Meanwhile, you can have both of JavaScript and and Typescript,

Simply write JavaScript with JSDoc type comments,
and check it with Typescript compiler.

You can also write Typescript definition and import them into JSDOC.

So your code can be directly sourced to your browser, without compilation,
but your editor show you type errors, and you can type check your whole project.
I think that should be the next web coding standard.