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Alex Spinov
Alex Spinov

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Tauri Has a Free Framework for Desktop Apps — 10x Smaller Than Electron

#tauri #rust #desktop #webdev

Your Electron app is 200MB. The same app built with Tauri is 20MB.

What is Tauri?

Tauri lets you build desktop apps using web technologies (HTML, CSS, JS) with a Rust backend. Instead of bundling Chromium like Electron, it uses the OS's native webview — making apps dramatically smaller and faster.

Why Developers Are Leaving Electron

1. Tiny Bundle Size

App Type Electron Tauri
Hello World 180MB 3MB
Todo App 195MB 8MB
Complex App 250MB+ 15-30MB

Tauri uses the system's WebView (WebView2 on Windows, WebKit on macOS/Linux).

2. Rust Backend Power 

#[tauri::command]
fn read_file(path: String) -> Result<String, String> {
    std::fs::read_to_string(&path).map_err(|e| e.to_string())
}

#[tauri::command]
fn calculate_hash(data: String) -> String {
    use sha2::{Sha256, Digest};
    let result = Sha256::digest(data.as_bytes());
    format!("{:x}", result)
}
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// Call from frontend
import { invoke } from '@tauri-apps/api/core';
const content = await invoke('read_file', { path: '/tmp/data.txt' });
const hash = await invoke('calculate_hash', { data: content });
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3. Security First 

{
  "tauri": {
    "security": {
      "csp": "default-src 'self'; script-src 'self'",
      "dangerousDisableAssetCspModification": false
    },
    "allowlist": {
      "fs": { "readFile": true, "scope": ["$HOME/Documents/**"] },
      "shell": { "open": true },
      "http": { "request": true, "scope": ["https://api.example.com/**"] }
    }
  }
}
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Explicit permissions for every capability. No blanket filesystem access.

4. Cross-Platform 

# Build for all platforms
cargo tauri build

# Outputs:
# macOS: .dmg, .app
# Windows: .msi, .exe
# Linux: .deb, .AppImage, .rpm
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5. Any Frontend Framework 

# React
npm create tauri-app -- --template react-ts

# Vue
npm create tauri-app -- --template vue-ts

# Svelte
npm create tauri-app -- --template svelte-ts

# SvelteKit, Next.js, Nuxt — all work
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6. Tauri v2: Mobile Support 

# iOS
cargo tauri ios dev
cargo tauri ios build

# Android
cargo tauri android dev
cargo tauri android build
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One codebase → Desktop + Mobile. Same frontend, same Rust backend.

Tauri vs Electron

Tauri Electron
Bundle size 3-30MB 180-250MB
Memory usage 50-100MB 200-500MB
Backend Rust Node.js
Webview System native Bundled Chromium
Security Allowlist model Full access
Mobile Yes (v2) No
Auto-update Built-in electron-updater

Getting Started 

# Create new project
npm create tauri-app@latest

# Dev mode
npm run tauri dev

# Build
npm run tauri build
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The Bottom Line

Tauri gives you desktop apps that are 10x smaller, use 5x less memory, and work on mobile too. If you're building a desktop app in 2026, Electron is the wrong choice.

Need custom data solutions? I build scraping and data tools. Check my Apify actors or email spinov001@gmail.com.

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