What is the second most loved language in the coding world? It’s TypeScript, according to Stack Overflow’s survey of over 65,000 developers. TypeScript even beat out Python and JavaScript (which came in tenth)!

On NPM – the world’s largest software registry – TypeScript has over 19 million weekly downloads and is rocketing up its rankings in terms of the number of searches for the language.

TypeScript is essentially a superset of JavaScript, which means any JavaScript code is also valid TypeScript code provided the JavaScript configuration is set to be compatible with it. Some refer to Typescript as the new and improved JavaScript. So, is it?

Advantages of using TypeScript over Javascript

Error detection

TypeScript helps detect errors faster. With JavaScript, which is a dynamically typed language, data types used in the code are not checked until the code is run. TypeScript attempts to remedy the problem of runtime type errors in JavaScript code with a static type checker. This “compilation” step helps to flag errors during development, which means fewer runtime errors.

Tooling

TypeScript is a combination of tooling and optional, removable types, which aims to improve developer productivity. It also offers a better experience when writing code thanks to advanced autocompletion, navigation, and refactoring tools, without which large-scale refactorings can be risky.

It’s very JS-like

You could call TypeScript a JavaScript with additional features like strong static typing, compilation, and object-oriented programming. This would mean that any code valid in JavaScript is also valid in TypeScript. So, TypeScript can be used wherever JS is used, for instance, in a web app in a browser or backend code in node.js environment. It offers a modern way to develop JavaScript projects, and it’s easier for JavaScript developers to learn.

Static typing

JavaScript uses dynamic typing, which translates to more runtime errors. TypeScript uses static typing, which means the data type is defined and therefore bugs can be caught and corrected at development. Also, TypeScript doesn’t force declaring types everywhere and you can change the level of type strictness in different parts of the project (an advantage over other statically typed languages). Static typing is one of the reasons it is easier to migrate JavaScript code to TypeScript.

Good support

Microsoft developed both Visual Studio Code and TypeScript. It is supported by all popular JavaScript frameworks including React, Angular, Vue, Svelte, express.js, and other Node.js frameworks. TypeScript is an Object-Oriented Programming language, which is well-suited for programs that are large, complex, and actively updated or maintained.

So why use TypeScript?

1. Fewer compile-time errors: TypeScript won’t forget to check if a value is null, even if you did.
2. Clearer code: TypeScript in a way restricts the freedom of JavaScript, and by doing that, manages to reduce the complexity of the code.
3. Safe refactoring: Typescript shows you where you need to update so you don’t need to manually track your variables all over the code.
4. Efficient autocomplete: This reduces coding errors as it minimizes the number of characters one has to manually type in.
5. Easier debugging: TypeScript simplifies JavaScript code, making it easier to debug. It is also more effective in problem-solving.
6. Reuse of code through inheritance: TypeScript supports the inheritance concept. If components have similar code, It is easy to extend a class and reuse the code.
7. Flexibility through polymorphism: TypeScript supports polymorphism through function overloading and overriding, and project decoupling (separating projects into groups).

TypeScript drawbacks

There are two, but they are so minor you may not even notice them! The first is that the compiler adds an extra step during development, which may slow things down. However, the compiler works fast and so there is minimal time wasted – and since compilation flags errors before deployment, it can even save time.

The second is that creating types and interfaces may also take time for the developer. However, it will save time at a later stage, when other developers are trying to read and understand the codebase.

The bottomline

TypeScript has been built for enterprise-level applications, and though it is similar to JavaScript in terms of syntax, it brings several tools that increase productivity relative to JavaScript. Today, companies like Google and Airbnb have switched to using TypeScript. Google chose it to build Angular, targeted at large-scale applications. In 2020, Airbnb announced that 86% of its frontend codebase (6 million lines of code) were converted to TypeScript.

What about your enterprise – is TypeScript right for your next project? Call our experts at CloudNow for a consultation today.