---
title: 'TypeScript & Golang'
excerpt: 'Microsoft just supercharged TypeScript compilation with Golang steroids!'
summary: "Microsoft's tsgo, a native Go port of the TypeScript compiler, builds up to about 10x faster - and what that means for Appwrite's codebases."
date: 2025-03-14
categories: web
featureImage: '/images/typescript-and-golang.webp'
prev:
text: 'Post-Quantum Cryptography (Part 2)'
link: '/blog/post-quantum-cryptography-2'
next:
text: 'Appwrite Q&A Feature'
link: '/blog/qna'
---
You've likely heard a lot of buzz around TypeScript lately—so let's dive into what makes it exciting.
---
Microsoft recently introduced a native port of the TypeScript compiler (`tsgo`), built with `Golang`.
The TypeScript compiler (`tsc`) is itself written in TypeScript, and while this "dogfooding" approach has worked well
for small to medium projects, it has always struggled with performance at scale. Its reliance on a single-threaded event
loop limits compilation speed, making large projects sluggish.
With `tsgo`, Microsoft aims to remove these bottlenecks by porting the compiler and tools in a compiled
language. The results? Up to **10x faster compilation**, **substantially reduced memory usage**, and far better
scalability for massive TypeScript projects. If you spend time in JetBrains IDEs (iykwim), you'll probably notice
snappier startup times too :wink:.
For instance, `tsgo` cuts VS Code's compilation time from 77.8s to just 7.5s - a staggering **10.4x** speedup. Here's
how other popular projects compare -
| Project | LOC | `tsc` | `tsgo` | Speedup |
|------------------------|-----------|-------|--------|---------|
| VS Code | 1,505,000 | 77.8s | 7.5s | 10.4x |
| Playwright | 356,000 | 11.1s | 1.1s | 10.1x |
| TypeORM | 270,000 | 17.5s | 1.3s | 13.5x |
| date-fns | 104,000 | 6.5s | 0.7s | 9.5x |
| tRPC (server + client) | 18,000 | 5.5s | 0.6s | 9.1x |
| rxjs (observable) | 2,100 | 1.1s | 0.1s | 11.0x |
These numbers highlight a fundamental shift in TypeScript development; dramatically faster builds and smoother
workflows.
---
Beyond raw speed, `tsgo` substantially reduces memory usage, making it more efficient for large-scale projects.
Developers using `IntelliSense` will also notice major improvements in responsiveness, as type checking becomes
significantly snappier.
Switching to `tsgo` is as simple as updating your build script -
```
{
"scripts": {
"build": "tsc -p tsconfig.json" // [!code --]
"build": "tsgo -p tsconfig.json" // [!code ++]
}
}
```
With **TypeScript 7.0**, `tsgo` will become the fully native toolchain, while **TypeScript 6.x** remains an option for
compatibility.
---
### But... why Golang?
> [!IMPORTANT] A burning question
> Why not `Rust`, `Zig`, or something from the `C-family`?
The answer is simple - `Golang` is structurally close to the existing TypeScript codebase, so the team could port it
file by file instead of rewriting it. It also compiles into a fast, standalone binary.
More importantly, Golang **excels at `concurrency`**. Its lightweight **goroutines** and built-in
**parallel execution model** making it ideal for compilers, efficiently handling tasks without complex threading.
---
### What does this mean for us at Appwrite?
At `tooltip(
text: Appwrite,
content: Appwrite is an open-source backend platform for building modern apps.
Try Appwrite Cloud.
)`, we use `TypeScript` extensively on our frontend, alongside `Svelte` for the UI. While our codebase isn't
particularly TypeScript-heavy, `tsgo` could still offer noticeable performance benefits.
| Project | LOC | `Svelte` | `TypeScript` | `Other` | TS LOC |
|---------|---------|----------|--------------|---------|-------------------|
| Console | 71,143 | 83.2% | 16.3% | 0.5% | **11,596** |
| Website | 176,958 | 83.6% | 9.1% | 7.3% | **16,103** |
Given our relatively lean TypeScript footprint, the impact might not be as dramatic as in larger codebases. Still, any
boost in build times and developer experience is always a win.
---
### Official Announcement