Why I Love Bun

By Biraj RaiMarch 15, 2024

I have been using Node.js for years. npm install was a ritual. Wait, wait, wait. Then it was done. Then you realize you need to install types, then a bundler, then a test runner, then a dozen other tools.

Then I found Bun.

The first install

curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash

That was it. One command. No need to install npm, nvm, or anything else. Bun comes with everything.

Speed

The difference is not subtle. A bun install on a project with hundreds of dependencies takes seconds. With npm, it was minutes. The test runner is faster. The bundler is faster. Everything is faster.

TypeScript out of the box

No need for ts-node, tsx, or any transpiler. Bun just runs TypeScript natively. You write .ts files and they work.

One tool instead of many

Bun replaces:

Node.js (runtime)
npm/pnpm/yarn (package manager)
esbuild/webpack/vite (bundler)
jest/vitest (test runner)

One binary. One config. It just works.

When I still use Node.js

Some projects still need Node.js. Some dependencies only work with Node. Some deployment targets only support Node. But for everything else, I reach for Bun.

Getting started

If you haven’t tried Bun, I recommend it. Start a new project, run bun init, and see how fast it feels. Then compare it to your existing workflow.

Common questions

What is Bun?

Bun is a fast JavaScript runtime that combines a bundler, test runner, and package manager into one tool. It is written in Zig and aims to replace Node.js, npm, and associated tools.

Why do I prefer Bun over Node.js?

Bun is significantly faster for many tasks, has built-in TypeScript support, includes a bundler and test runner, and the package manager is extremely fast. For most of my projects, it just works.