What is the Difference Between JavaScript and TypeScript?
A superset of JavaScript, TypeScript extends the language’s capabilities with class-based object-oriented programming and optional static typing. Its popularity among large-scale JavaScript projects has increased dramatically during the last few years. The distinctions between JavaScript and TypeScript, however, might be confusing for many developers who are just learning the language. In this article, we’ll explore the key differences between TypeScript and JavaScript, as well as when and why you would choose to utilize one over the other. Explore our JavaScript course syllabus that enhances your web development skills.
What is JavaScript?
One programming language used to create web applications is called JavaScript. This high-level, interpreted language features dynamic typing and a JIT (just-in-time) compiler. JavaScript was exclusively implemented client-side for a long time, although more recent engines also provide server-side versions. Furthermore, this technology works with all the main browsers and lets you make dynamic, interactive online apps, among other things.
For example, the following describes how to declare text- and numeric-based variables in JavaScript:
let foo = 1
let bar = “text”
bar = 123 // allowed in JavaScript
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Features of JavaScript
Making JS a supplementary scripting language, akin to what Visual Basic is to C++, was the main goal of the language. JavaScript isn’t appropriate for sophisticated, large-scale applications, though. Writing just a few hundred lines of code for an application was the goal.
The following are some special functions that JavaScript provides:
- Dynamic, adaptable, and cross-platform
- It applies to both server-side and client-side
- Lightweight interpretation
- Every browser is compatible with
- Sloppy typing
- JIT assembly
Advantages of JavaScript
Let’s move on to JavaScript now. To make wise choices regarding your tech stack, you must be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of this particular technology.
Widely used: One of the most popular programming languages worldwide is JavaScript.
Simple to learn: JavaScript is renowned for having a low learning curve. It is accessible to beginners due to its straightforward syntax. Learn more about operators and their types in JavaScript.
Versatile: This language can be used to design dynamic and interactive user interfaces for front-end web development.
Extensive: The abundance of libraries and frameworks (such as React, Angular, Vue.js, and Express.js) facilitates the development of intricate applications without requiring the creation of new ones from scratch.
Fast: Modern JavaScript engines enable the development of responsive and highly-performing web apps.
Portable: Because the code is cross-browser compatible and can operate on server-side and other environments with the help of tools like Node.js, it can run on a variety of platforms and devices.
Open source: A large number of the libraries and frameworks that go with JavaScript are open source, as is the language itself.
Community: There is a sizable and vibrant developer community for JavaScript.
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Disadvantages of JavaScript
Dynamic typing: This refers to the fact that variables are not restricted to particular data types.
Readability: When developers don’t adhere to regular coding norms, JavaScript’s permissiveness might result in less legible code.
Scalability: Scaling this language for really large projects can be difficult.
Performance: When utilizing JavaScript for particular applications, it’s critical to take performance bottlenecks into account.
Security: There are some security restrictions when using JavaScript in a browser.
Interoperability: When you need to interface with legacy or non-browser environments, it does not always integrate neatly with other computer languages or systems.
Tool support: Although there is a large ecosystem of libraries and development tools for JavaScript, the tooling environment can be disjointed.
Learning curve: While learning JavaScript is not too difficult, becoming proficient in using it for intricate applications can be difficult.
Bloat: Excessive libraries, dependencies, or features can cause JavaScript codebases to become bloated. It affects its performance and load times.
Fragmentation: The fragmentation of the JavaScript ecosystem is well-known. There are a lot of libraries, frameworks, and build tools available, which can make choosing overwhelming and make it harder to stay consistent between projects.
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Even if JavaScript was present, why was TypeScript developed?
The programming language for the client side, JavaScript, was first introduced. However, once JavaScript was used for web development, programmers discovered that it could also be thought of as a server-side language. Explore our full-stack developer course syllabus.
But the JavaScript code also grew increasingly dense and complicated. Because of this, JavaScript might not be able to meet the requirements of an object-oriented programming language. JavaScript will never be a successful server-side technology in the industry as a result. To close this gap, the TypeScript language was created.
What is TypeScript?
Like any other full-fledged programming language, TypeScript programs typically include modules, functions, variables, comments, expressions, and statements.
Popular frameworks like React, Angular, and Vue may also be utilized with TypeScript, and they offer extra advantages like pre-built components and efficiency optimization. TypeScript is a useful tool in contemporary web development, even though it has a learning curve. In the end, it can provide a more dependable and efficient code.
The identical TypeScript variables are stated and initialized as follows:
let foo: number = 1
let bar: string = “text”
bar = 123 // not possible in TypeScript
All in all, writing JavaScript using TypeScript is more feature-rich and technically sound.
The code must be compiled into JavaScript before a TypeScript application can be run. To assure cross-browser interoperability, TypeScript is just a better way to build ECMAScript-compliant JavaScript code. TypeScript is essentially a JavaScript generator. You can write JavaScript code that works in any environment that supports the JavaScript standard with the aid of TypeScript.
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ECMAScript vs. TypeScript
All JavaScript code must adhere to the ECMAScript standard. It is not possible for a manufacturer like Microsoft to arbitrarily add features to the JavaScript language without violating ECMAScript regulations.
Microsoft, on the other hand, is free to add any new capabilities to TypeScript as long as the JavaScript that is produced complies with ECMAScript. This means that Microsoft can now add as many features to TypeScript as it wants, just like it can add to Java, Rust, Golang, and C.
TypeScript makes JavaScript better
JavaScript is not a rival to TypeScript. Rather, JavaScript is enhanced with TypeScript. When the target runtime needs JavaScript, TypeScript gives the community a more feature-rich, dynamic, and secure approach to creating enterprise-grade apps.
TypeScript is not meant to take the place of JavaScript. Instead, by simplifying the writing, integrating, managing, and maintaining of code, it hopes to promote the spread of platforms that are based on JavaScript.
Platforms powered by JavaScript, such as ReactJS on the client side and NodeJS on the server, are becoming more and more common. One of the reasons TypeScript and JavaScript adoption rates are rising simultaneously is the ability to develop code in one language and convert it to another.
Is TypeScript better for backend or frontend development?
TypeScript is appropriate for both the front end and back end of app development since it compiles JavaScript.
In addition, JavaScript is a favored programming language for web pages and applications’ front ends. Thus, TypeScript may be applied for the same purpose, and in complex and large-scale enterprise projects, it also functions well on the server side.
Types of TypeScript
Numerous fundamental types, like numbers, arrays, tuples, booleans, strings, and many more, are included in TypeScript. There are some of these types that JavaScript does not support. Additionally, the following are some other types that utilize TypeScript expressivity
Any and Unknown
Its type-safe mechanism allows for the covering of the unknown with a type called Any (anything that you wish). In this case, any lets you assign a JavaScript variable to escape the type system whenever you want. It is frequently used to describe incoming variables (from third-party APIs, for example) that have not yet undergone validation and whose type is unknown.
Similar to Any, Unknown prevents you from doing anything with it unless you specifically type-check it.
Void
A void is used when no value is returned. It is typically applied to functions that have no return type.
Never
When something should never happen, like an exception-throwing function, the return type is ‘never’.
Types of Intersection and Union
You can make custom types using these types according to the logic. You can merge many fundamental types into one type by using intersection types. As an example, suppose we build a custom type Person with a first_name:string and a last_name:string.
You can type to take any of the different basic kinds with union types. You may state this as follows, for instance, if a query returns either result:string or undefined: I want my type to be this or that. When you consider all of these types of places, they all make sense.
TypeScript supports both implicit and explicit types. The compiler will use type inference to determine the kinds you’re using if you don’t write your types explicitly.
However, there are advantages to stating them clearly, such as helping other team members who are reading your code and ensuring that the compiler sees what you see.
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Features of TypeScript
TypeScript’s advanced capabilities support additional JavaScript features, including platform independence, JS libraries, and object-oriented programming concepts.
Compatibility
Additionally, TypeScript supports both new and old features. That being said, it works with every JavaScript version, including ES7 and ES12. It can convert the finished ES7 code back to ES5 and vice versa. This ensures linguistic portability and a seamless transition.
Static Typing
When a developer uses static typing, they must declare the variable type. Let’s say we have a variable called str. Until you assign a type to the code—such as an integer, float, list, or anything else—it will not execute. It is also statically typed in TypeScript.
Static typing assists you in detecting issues early on, finishing code more quickly, and more. Let us now provide you with some more noteworthy features:
- It increases project productivity and is simple to maintain.
- The use of static typing and annotations is feasible
- It allows for the support of object-oriented features, including classes, inheritance, and interfaces
- Troubleshooting is easy, and issues are found early on.
- It supports ES6 (ECMAScript), which offers a more user-friendly syntax for managing inheritance and objects.
- Comprehensive IDE functionality
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Advantages of TypeScript
There are many benefits that TypeScript provides that may enable you to design more effective programming languages for web development solutions.
Language Features
TypeScript supports the following features:
- Namespaces
- Interfaces
- Null Checking
- Generics
- Access Modifiers
Optional Parameters
// — TypeScript — //
function log(message: string = null) { }
// — TypeScript compiled output — //
function log(message) {
if (message === void 0) { message = null; }
}
// — JavaScript with Babel — //
function Log(message = null) { }
// — Babel compiled output — //
“use strict”;
function Log() {
var message = arguments.length > 0 && arguments[0] !== undefined ? arguments[0] : null;
}
Classes
// — TypeScript — //
class Article {
name: string;
constructor(name: string) {
this.name = name;
}
}
// — TypeScript compiled output — //
var Article = /** @class */ (function () {
function Article(name) {
this.name = name;
}
return Article;
}());
// — JavaScript with Babel — //
class Article {
constructor(name) {
this.name = name;
}
}
// — Babel compiled output — //
“use strict”;
function _classCallCheck(instance, Constructor) { if (!(instance instanceof Constructor)) { throw new TypeError(“Cannot call a class as a function”); } }
var Article = function Article(name) {
_classCallCheck(this, Article);
this.name = name;
};
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Differences Between JavaScript and TypeScript
The following are some of the numerous factors that need to be taken into account when comparing TypeScript and JavaScript, two programming languages:
| Factor | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Developed By | Netscape – Brendan Eich in 1995 | Microsoft in 2012 |
| File Extension | .js | .tsx and .ts |
| Definition | JavaScript is a programming language that offers top-notch features for developing dynamic webpages. | As a strong superset of JavaScript, TypeScript is an object-oriented language that has both generic and JS capabilities to help overcome JS’s complexity. |
| Ecosystem | JavaScript is an easy-to-read and write language that simplifies code for compatibility. | TypeScript is a more potent and user-friendly language that facilitates static typing. |
| Typing | JavaScript only supports dynamic typing. Loosely typed. | TypeScript is compatible with both dynamic and static typing. Strongly typed. |
| Data Binding | JavaScript does not present such a concept. | TypeScript defines the data it uses by using notions like types and interfaces. |
| Compilation | Compiling JavaScript is not necessary. | It is necessary to compile TypeScript. |
| Learning Curve | It is a versatile language that is simple to learn and use for creating web scripts. | There is a steep learning curve for TypeScript. It also requires scripting expertise. |
| NPM packages | JavaScript offers a build-step-free substitute for search and form code. | Many npm packages with Typescript either have an external, easier-to-install type definition or have static type definitions. |
| Client-side or server-side | Both client-side and server-side applications employ JavaScript. | On the client side, TypeScript is specifically utilized. |
| Prototyping | It is not possible to prototype in JS. | TypeScript offers a prototyping feature. |
| Code Example | <script>function multiply (a, b){ return a\*b;}var result = multiply(a, b);document.write (‘The answer is – ’ + result);</script> | function multiply (a, b){ return a*b;}var result = multiply(a, b);console.log(‘The answer is – ’ + result); |
| IDE Support | Restricted ability to refactor and validate | Extensive refactoring and validation capabilities |
| Companies and Websites | Airbnb, Codecademy, and Instagram | Asana, Clever, Screen award |
| Community Support | A sizable group of software developers use JavaScript. | There is a small software development community for TypeScript. |
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Conclusion
Although TypeScript is a fantastic language that will make creating large-scale apps more efficient, it should not be used in place of JavaScript. It has certain disadvantages, such as longer compilation times, but overall, it will save you time. JavaScript is a well-established and dependable web development technology that comes with an extensive library of instructional resources available online. When using TypeScript or JavaScript, you don’t have to stick to just one of them. Contrary to popular belief, there are not as many differences between TypeScript and JavaScript; yet, certain distinctions can be important. Join us to learn the best JavaScript training in Chennai at Softlogic Systems and explore a wide range of opportunities in the web development domain.
