--- title: "Node.js 20 is fast(er)" publication: "Node Weekly" issue: 487 published_at: "2023-05-23" canonical_url: "https://nodeweekly.com/issues/487" --- Plus playing catchup with Node compatibility, RATs in the npm attic, and a way to write type-safe SQL? | #​487 — May 23, 2023 [Read on the Web](https://nodeweekly.com/issues/487) Together with [![Retool logo\](https://res.cloudinary.com/cpress/image/upload/c_fill,g_auto,w_250,h_80/e_make_transparent/co_white,e_outline:7/xujzqhybod6rrw1uttra.png)](https://retool.com/reports/state-of-internal-tools-2023/?utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=sponsor&utm_campaign=node) ![Node.js Weekly](https://res.cloudinary.com/cpress/image/upload/v1653576619/lgfqinzbdqttwmhvljxb.png) [![\](https://res.cloudinary.com/cpress/image/upload/w_1280,e_sharpen:60,q_auto/p8neiavvi3hacpoumwwi.jpg)](https://blog.rafaelgss.dev/state-of-nodejs-performance-2023) [The State of Node.js Performance in 2023](https://blog.rafaelgss.dev/state-of-nodejs-performance-2023) — Nearform’s Rafael Gonzaga reflects on the recent release of Node 20 and puts it through its paces against v18.16 and v16.20 with a few different benchmark suites running on a pretty typical EC2 instance. He goes into a _lot_ of depth that’s worth checking out, but if you haven’t got time: _“Node 20 is faster.”_😁 Rafael Gonzaga [![\](https://copm.s3.amazonaws.com/4e4b6af9.jpg)](https://retool.com/reports/state-of-internal-tools-2023/?utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=sponsor&utm_campaign=node) [Companies Spend 4.5 Trillion Dollars on IT Annually](https://retool.com/reports/state-of-internal-tools-2023/?utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=sponsor&utm_campaign=node) — Find out how they’re building internal tools to increase developer productivity & impact. Explore Retool’s 2023 State of Internal Tools report. Retool sponsor [Bun v0.6.0: Upping Its Node.js Compatibility Game](https://bun.sh/blog/bun-v0.6.0) — A ‘_biggest release yet_’ of the popular alternative JS runtime adds a built-in bundler and minifier, standalone executable generation, and more enhancements to its Node.js compatibility (something Bun boasts as a feature as a ‘drop-in replacement’, as opposed to Deno where it’s more of a late addition). Jarred Sumner [How to Build Leaner Node Container Images with UBI and Podman](https://developers.redhat.com/articles/2023/05/17/build-lean-nodejs-container-images-ubi-and-podman) — UBI being Red Hat’s _Universal Base Images._ Evan Shortiss **IN BRIEF:** - It's not just Bun and Deno trying to offer more Node.js support, but [Cloudflare Workers now has support for three more Node APIs](https://blog.cloudflare.com/workers-node-js-apis-stream-path/) too: `node:path`, the Streams API, and StringDecoder. - The folks at ReversingLabs wrote about [how their researchers found some 'RATs' hiding in the npm attic](https://www.reversinglabs.com/blog/rats-found-hiding-in-the-npm-attic) – specifically, the TurkoRat 'infostealer.' - [Fusion](https://fusionssg.com/) is a promising looking Node.js-based static site generator sent in by a Node Weekly reader. We'll cover it properly when it hits 1.0. [A Guide to Visual Regression Testing with Playwright](https://lost-pixel.com/blog/post/playwright-visual-regression-testing) — The Playwright browser control library can form the basis of an end-to-end testing mechanism all written in JavaScript, and comparing the visual output of tests can show where things are going wrong. Dima Ivashchuk (Lost Pixel) [Benchmarking a 'Compiled' Node vs Bun App](https://decode.sh/benchmarking-node-js-vs-bun) — The latest release of [Bun](https://bun.sh/blog/bun-v0.6.0) (also above) has the ability to compile apps into a single executable (something [Node 20 added too](https://nodejs.org/api/single-executable-applications.html), though the author uses Vercel’s [pkg](https://www.npmjs.com/package/pkg) instead). This isn’t a particularly insightful benchmark, but does provide a data point. Decode [Server-Sent Events with Node](https://blog.endpts.io/server-sent-events-with-nodejs) — Server-Sent Events (SSE) enable a web server to send real-time updates to the client but without the two-way connection overhead of WebSockets. endpts Team 🛠 Code & Tools [Better SQLite3 8.4: Fast and Simple SQLite3 Library](https://github.com/WiseLibs/better-sqlite3) — With [good docs too](https://github.com/WiseLibs/better-sqlite3/blob/master/docs/api.md). Supports a lot of SQLite specific functionality, has a _synchronous_ API that boasts better concurrency than an async one ([?](https://github.com/WiseLibs/better-sqlite3#why-should-i-use-this-instead-of-node-sqlite3)) and worker thread support. v8.4 updates it to [SQLite v3.42.0](https://www.sqlite.org/releaselog/3_42_0.html) standard. Joshua Wise [❤️ Postgres](https://crunchybridge.com/start?utm_source=cpnd-lnk-0523) — You need a database provider that loves Postgres as much as you do. Fully managed on public cloud with amazing support. Crunchy Bridge sponsor [![\](https://res.cloudinary.com/cpress/image/upload/w_1280,e_sharpen:60,q_auto/pwxhlgiqh5jafb3s9iur.jpg)](https://ts-sql-query.readthedocs.io/en/stable/) [ts-sql-query: Type-Safe SQL Query Builder](https://ts-sql-query.readthedocs.io/en/stable/) — Want to build dynamic SQL queries in a type-safe way with TypeScript verifying queries? This is for you. Supports numerous SQL-based database systems and _isn’t_ an ORM itself. _(Comes from a direct recommendation from a reader who uses it.)_ Juan Luis Paz Rojas [Joplin: An Open Source Note Taking and To-Do System](https://joplinapp.org/) — Essentially an open source _Evernote_, complete with numerous client apps (desktop and mobile) and a server supporting synchronization via cloud services. [GitHub repo.](https://github.com/laurent22/joplin) Laurent Cozic [HyperExpress 6.7: High Performance Server Powered by uWebSockets.js](https://github.com/kartikk221/hyper-express) — Aims to be a simple yet performant HTTP and WebSocket Server. Kartik 💻 Jobs [Find Tech Jobs with Hired](https://hired.com/join/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=sponsor&utm_campaign=%28b2c%29%28l-all%29%28r-all%29%28cooper-nodeweekly%29&utm_content=find-your-next-job) — Hired makes job hunting easy-instead of chasing recruiters, companies approach you with salary details up front. Create a free profile now. Hired - [Mongoose 7.2](https://github.com/Automattic/mongoose) ↳ MongoDB object modelling library. - [Nodejs SQL Parser 4.7](https://github.com/taozhi8833998/node-sql-parser) ↳ Parse SQL into syntax trees. - [Eta (η) 2.2](https://github.com/eta-dev/eta) ↳ Embedded JS template engine. - [Ts.ED 7.29](https://github.com/tsedio/tsed) ↳ TypeScript framework on top of Express. - [zip-it-and-ship-it 9.6](https://github.com/netlify/zip-it-and-ship-it) ↳ Prepare Node Lambda functions for deployment. - [AdminJS 7.0.4](https://github.com/SoftwareBrothers/adminjs) ↳ Admin panel for Node-based apps. - [rimraf 5.0.1](https://github.com/isaacs/rimraf) ↳ `rm -rf` util for Node. - [node-sass 9.0](https://github.com/sass/node-sass) ↳ Still deprecated, but adds Node.js 20 support. - [Axios Cache Interceptor 1.1](https://github.com/arthurfiorette/axios-cache-interceptor) **Got a link for us?** Reply and tell us. We can't include everything but we'll look at anything you send. _Thanks!_ --- **Sponsorship:** Email `[kristina@cooperpress.com](mailto:kristina@cooperpress.com)` for details. --- Published by Cooper Press Ltd. Fairfield Enterprise Centre, Louth, LN11 0LS, United Kingdom [Cancel your subscription](https://nodeweekly.com/leave/*|UID|*) or [change your address.](https://nodeweekly.com/edit_subscription/*|UID|*)