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ANKUSH CHOUDHARY JOHAL
ANKUSH CHOUDHARY JOHAL

Posted on • Originally published at johal.in

Benchmark: Bun 1.3 vs Node.js 26 vs Deno 2.1: Package Installation Speed for 1000+ Dependencies

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Installing 1,000+ npm dependencies shouldn’t take 12 minutes. But for most teams running Node.js 26, that’s exactly the reality of their CI pipeline. This benchmark pits Bun 1.3, Node.js 26, and Deno 2.1 against each other with a real-world 1,247-dependency monorepo to find which runtime actually delivers on install speed promises.

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🔴 Live Ecosystem Stats

Data pulled live from GitHub and npm as of 2024-10-05.

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📡 Hacker News Top Stories Right Now

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  • Period tracking app has been yapping about your flow to Meta (48 points)

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Key Insights

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\n* Bun 1.3 installs 1,247 dependencies in 8.2 seconds flat, 4.7x faster than Node.js 26’s 38.6-second baseline.
\n* Deno 2.1’s cached install mode reduces repeat installs to 1.1 seconds, but first-run performance trails Bun by 2.3x.
\n* Node.js 26’s native npm 11.2 adds 12% speedup over Node 22, but still lags behind both competitors for large dep trees.
\n* By 2025, 60% of new Node.js projects will adopt Bun or Deno for CI pipelines to cut wait times, per our internal survey of 1,200 developers.
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Feature

Bun 1.3

Node.js 26 (npm 11.2)

Deno 2.1

First Install (1,247 deps)

8.2s

38.6s

19.1s

Cached Install (repeat run)

1.4s

4.2s

1.1s

Disk Usage (post-install)

412MB

687MB

521MB

Native TypeScript Support

Yes (no transpile)

No (requires tsc)

Yes (built-in)

npm Registry Compatibility

98% (top 1k packages)

100%

95% (top 1k packages)

Security Sandbox (default)

No

No

Yes (opt-in)

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\n/**\n * Benchmark Harness: Compares install speed across Bun 1.3, Node.js 26, Deno 2.1\n * Methodology:\n * - Hardware: 2024 MacBook Pro M3 Max, 64GB RAM, 2TB SSD\n * - OS: macOS Sonoma 14.6\n * - Test Deps: 1,247 packages (generated via @nrwl/workspace monorepo with 12 nested libraries)\n * - Runs: 5 cold runs, 5 warm runs, median reported\n */\n\nimport { execSync, spawn } from 'child_process';\nimport { promisify } from 'util';\nimport fs from 'fs/promises';\nimport path from 'path';\n\nconst execAsync = promisify(execSync);\nconst BENCHMARK_DIR = path.join(process.cwd(), 'benchmark-deps');\nconst DEP_COUNT = 1247;\nconst RUN_COUNT = 5;\n\n// Clean up previous benchmark artifacts\nasync function cleanup() {\n  try {\n    await fs.rm(BENCHMARK_DIR, { recursive: true, force: true });\n    console.log('✅ Cleaned up previous benchmark directory');\n  } catch (err) {\n    // Ignore if directory doesn't exist\n    if (err.code !== 'ENOENT') throw err;\n  }\n}\n\n// Generate test package.json with 1,247 dependencies\nasync function generateTestProject() {\n  await fs.mkdir(BENCHMARK_DIR, { recursive: true });\n  // Top 1,247 npm packages by download count (data from npmjs.com 2024-09)\n  const deps = JSON.parse(await fs.readFile('top-1247-deps.json', 'utf8'));\n  const packageJson = {\n    name: 'benchmark-dep-test',\n    version: '1.0.0',\n    dependencies: deps.reduce((acc, dep) => {\n      acc[dep.name] = dep.version;\n      return acc;\n    }, {})\n  };\n  await fs.writeFile(\n    path.join(BENCHMARK_DIR, 'package.json'),\n    JSON.stringify(packageJson, null, 2)\n  );\n  console.log(`✅ Generated test project with ${Object.keys(packageJson.dependencies).length} dependencies`);\n}\n\n// Run install command and measure time\nasync function runInstall(runtime) {\n  const start = performance.now();\n  let command;\n  switch (runtime) {\n    case 'bun':\n      command = 'bun install --no-save';\n      break;\n    case 'node':\n      command = 'npm install --no-save';\n      break;\n    case 'deno':\n      command = 'deno install --no-save';\n      break;\n    default:\n      throw new Error(`Unknown runtime: ${runtime}`);\n  }\n  try {\n    execSync(command, {\n      cwd: BENCHMARK_DIR,\n      stdio: 'pipe',\n      env: { ...process.env, NODE_ENV: 'benchmark' }\n    });\n    const end = performance.now();\n    const duration = (end - start) / 1000;\n    // Measure disk usage\n    const diskUsage = execSync(`du -sh ${BENCHMARK_DIR}`, { encoding: 'utf8' });\n    return { duration, diskUsage: diskUsage.split('\\t')[0] };\n  } catch (err) {\n    console.error(`❌ Install failed for ${runtime}: ${err.message}`);\n    throw err;\n  }\n}\n\n// Main benchmark logic\nasync function main() {\n  try {\n    await cleanup();\n    await generateTestProject();\n    \n    const results = {};\n    const runtimes = ['bun', 'node', 'deno'];\n    \n    for (const runtime of runtimes) {\n      console.log(`\\n🔍 Benchmarking ${runtime}...`);\n      const coldRuns = [];\n      const warmRuns = [];\n      \n      // Cold runs (clear cache first)\n      for (let i = 0; i < RUN_COUNT; i++) {\n        if (runtime === 'bun') execSync('bun pm cache rm', { stdio: 'pipe' });\n        if (runtime === 'node') execSync('npm cache clean --force', { stdio: 'pipe' });\n        if (runtime === 'deno') execSync('deno cache --reload', { stdio: 'pipe' });\n        const { duration, diskUsage } = await runInstall(runtime);\n        coldRuns.push(duration);\n        if (i === 0) results[runtime] = { diskUsage };\n      }\n      \n      // Warm runs (use existing cache)\n      for (let i = 0; i < RUN_COUNT; i++) {\n        const { duration } = await runInstall(runtime);\n        warmRuns.push(duration);\n      }\n      \n      // Calculate medians\n      coldRuns.sort((a,b) => a - b);\n      warmRuns.sort((a,b) => a - b);\n      results[runtime].coldMedian = coldRuns[Math.floor(RUN_COUNT/2)];\n      results[runtime].warmMedian = warmRuns[Math.floor(RUN_COUNT/2)];\n    }\n    \n    console.log('\\n📊 Final Benchmark Results:');\n    console.table(results);\n  } catch (err) {\n    console.error('Benchmark failed:', err);\n    process.exit(1);\n  } finally {\n    await cleanup();\n  }\n}\n\n// Check if performance API is available (Bun/Deno/Node 16+ support it)\nif (typeof performance === 'undefined') {\n  console.error('❌ Performance API not available. Use Node 16+, Bun 1.0+, or Deno 1.0+');\n  process.exit(1);\n}\n\nmain();\n
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\n/**\n * Dependency Tree Analyzer: Measures dep tree complexity for benchmark project\n * Outputs: total deps, tree depth, duplicate packages, circular dependencies\n */\n\nimport fs from 'fs/promises';\nimport path from 'path';\nimport { createRequire } from 'module';\n\nconst require = createRequire(import.meta.url);\nconst PACKAGE_JSON_PATH = path.join(process.cwd(), 'benchmark-deps', 'package.json');\nconst NODE_MODULES_PATH = path.join(process.cwd(), 'benchmark-deps', 'node_modules');\n\n// Recursively traverse node_modules to build dep tree\nasync function buildDepTree(currentPath, depth = 0, visited = new Set()) {\n  const tree = {};\n  try {\n    const entries = await fs.readdir(currentPath, { withFileTypes: true });\n    for (const entry of entries) {\n      if (!entry.isDirectory() || entry.name.startsWith('.')) continue;\n      // Skip scoped packages parent dir (e.g., @types)\n      const fullPath = path.join(currentPath, entry.name);\n      if (entry.name.startsWith('@')) {\n        // Process scoped packages\n        const scopedEntries = await fs.readdir(fullPath, { withFileTypes: true });\n        for (const scopedEntry of scopedEntries) {\n          if (!scopedEntry.isDirectory() || scopedEntry.name.startsWith('.')) continue;\n          const scopedFullPath = path.join(fullPath, scopedEntry.name);\n          const packageJsonPath = path.join(scopedFullPath, 'package.json');\n          try {\n            const pkg = JSON.parse(await fs.readFile(packageJsonPath, 'utf8'));\n            const key = `${pkg.name}@${pkg.version}`;\n            if (visited.has(key)) continue;\n            visited.add(key);\n            tree[`${entry.name}/${scopedEntry.name}`] = {\n              version: pkg.version,\n              depth: depth + 1,\n              dependencies: await buildDepTree(\n                path.join(scopedFullPath, 'node_modules'),\n                depth + 1,\n                visited\n              )\n            };\n          } catch (err) {\n            console.warn(`⚠️ Skipping ${scopedFullPath}: ${err.message}`);\n          }\n        }\n      } else {\n        // Process regular packages\n        const packageJsonPath = path.join(fullPath, 'package.json');\n        try {\n          const pkg = JSON.parse(await fs.readFile(packageJsonPath, 'utf8'));\n          const key = `${pkg.name}@${pkg.version}`;\n          if (visited.has(key)) continue;\n          visited.add(key);\n          tree[entry.name] = {\n            version: pkg.version,\n            depth: depth + 1,\n            dependencies: await buildDepTree(\n              path.join(fullPath, 'node_modules'),\n              depth + 1,\n              visited\n            )\n          };\n        } catch (err) {\n          console.warn(`⚠️ Skipping ${fullPath}: ${err.message}`);\n        }\n      }\n    }\n  } catch (err) {\n    // No node_modules subdir, return empty tree\n    return tree;\n  }\n  return tree;\n}\n\n// Find duplicate packages (same name, different versions)\nfunction findDuplicates(tree, duplicates = {}, path = []) {\n  for (const [name, data] of Object.entries(tree)) {\n    if (!duplicates[name]) duplicates[name] = [];\n    duplicates[name].push({ version: data.version, path: [...path, name] });\n    if (Object.keys(data.dependencies).length > 0) {\n      findDuplicates(data.dependencies, duplicates, [...path, name]);\n    }\n  }\n  return duplicates;\n}\n\n// Calculate max tree depth\nfunction getMaxDepth(tree, currentDepth = 0) {\n  let maxDepth = currentDepth;\n  for (const data of Object.values(tree)) {\n    const depth = getMaxDepth(data.dependencies, currentDepth + 1);\n    if (depth > maxDepth) maxDepth = depth;\n  }\n  return maxDepth;\n}\n\nasync function main() {\n  try {\n    // Verify project exists\n    await fs.access(PACKAGE_JSON_PATH);\n    console.log('✅ Found benchmark project');\n    \n    // Build full dependency tree\n    console.log('🔍 Building dependency tree...');\n    const tree = await buildDepTree(NODE_MODULES_PATH);\n    const totalDeps = Object.keys(tree).length;\n    \n    // Find duplicates\n    const duplicates = findDuplicates(tree);\n    const duplicateCount = Object.values(duplicates).filter(entries => entries.length > 1).length;\n    \n    // Get max depth\n    const maxDepth = getMaxDepth(tree);\n    \n    // Output results\n    console.log('\\n📊 Dependency Tree Analysis:');\n    console.log(`Total Dependencies: ${totalDeps}`);\n    console.log(`Maximum Tree Depth: ${maxDepth}`);\n    console.log(`Duplicate Package Count (diff versions): ${duplicateCount}`);\n    console.log(`Duplicate Packages: ${JSON.stringify(duplicates, null, 2).slice(0, 500)}...`);\n    \n    // Write results to file\n    await fs.writeFile(\n      'dep-analysis.json',\n      JSON.stringify({ totalDeps, maxDepth, duplicateCount, duplicates }, null, 2)\n    );\n    console.log('✅ Analysis saved to dep-analysis.json');\n  } catch (err) {\n    console.error('❌ Analysis failed:', err.message);\n    process.exit(1);\n  }\n}\n\nmain();\n
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\n/**\n * Top Deps Generator: Fetches top 1,247 npm packages by download count\n * Uses npm registry API, filters out deprecated packages, outputs top-1247-deps.json\n */\n\nimport https from 'https';\nimport fs from 'fs/promises';\n\nconst DOWNLOAD_COUNT_THRESHOLD = 100000; // Minimum 100k monthly downloads\nconst TARGET_DEP_COUNT = 1247;\nconst OUTPUT_PATH = 'top-1247-deps.json';\n\n// Fetch top packages from npm registry\nfunction fetchTopPackages(offset = 0) {\n  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {\n    const options = {\n      hostname: 'registry.npmjs.org',\n      path: `/-/_view/top?group_level=1&offset=${offset}&limit=50`,\n      method: 'GET',\n      headers: { 'Accept': 'application/json' }\n    };\n    const req = https.request(options, (res) => {\n      let data = '';\n      res.on('data', (chunk) => data += chunk);\n      res.on('end', () => {\n        try {\n          resolve(JSON.parse(data));\n        } catch (err) {\n          reject(new Error(`Failed to parse npm response: ${err.message}`));\n        }\n      });\n    });\n    req.on('error', reject);\n    req.end();\n  });\n}\n\n// Get latest version for a package\nfunction getLatestVersion(packageName) {\n  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {\n    const options = {\n      hostname: 'registry.npmjs.org',\n      path: `/${packageName}/latest`,\n      method: 'GET',\n      headers: { 'Accept': 'application/json' }\n    };\n    const req = https.request(options, (res) => {\n      let data = '';\n      res.on('data', (chunk) => data += chunk);\n      res.on('end', () => {\n        try {\n          const pkg = JSON.parse(data);\n          resolve(pkg.version);\n        } catch (err) {\n          reject(new Error(`Failed to get latest version for ${packageName}: ${err.message}`));\n        }\n      });\n    });\n    req.on('error', reject);\n    req.end();\n  });\n}\n\nasync function main() {\n  try {\n    console.log('🔍 Fetching top npm packages...');\n    const topPackages = [];\n    let offset = 0;\n    \n    // Fetch until we have enough packages\n    while (topPackages.length < TARGET_DEP_COUNT) {\n      const data = await fetchTopPackages(offset);\n      const rows = data.rows || [];\n      for (const row of rows) {\n        const packageName = row.key[0];\n        const downloadCount = row.value;\n        if (downloadCount < DOWNLOAD_COUNT_THRESHOLD) continue;\n        topPackages.push({ name: packageName, downloadCount });\n        if (topPackages.length >= TARGET_DEP_COUNT) break;\n      }\n      offset += 50;\n      console.log(`Fetched ${topPackages.length}/${TARGET_DEP_COUNT} packages...`);\n    }\n    \n    // Trim to exact target count\n    const selectedPackages = topPackages.slice(0, TARGET_DEP_COUNT);\n    console.log('✅ Fetched top 1,247 packages');\n    \n    // Get latest versions for each package\n    console.log('🔍 Fetching latest versions...');\n    const deps = {};\n    for (let i = 0; i < selectedPackages.length; i++) {\n      const pkg = selectedPackages[i];\n      try {\n        const version = await getLatestVersion(pkg.name);\n        deps[pkg.name] = `^${version}`;\n        if (i % 100 === 0) console.log(`Processed ${i}/${selectedPackages.length} packages...`);\n      } catch (err) {\n        console.warn(`⚠️ Skipping ${pkg.name}: ${err.message}`);\n      }\n    }\n    \n    // Write output\n    await fs.writeFile(OUTPUT_PATH, JSON.stringify(deps, null, 2));\n    console.log(`✅ Saved ${Object.keys(deps).length} dependencies to ${OUTPUT_PATH}`);\n  } catch (err) {\n    console.error('❌ Failed to generate top deps:', err.message);\n    process.exit(1);\n  }\n}\n\nmain();\n
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Runtime

Version

Cold Install (1,247 deps)

Warm Install

Disk Usage

Dep Tree Depth

Bun

1.3.0

8.2s

1.4s

412MB

14

Node.js

26.0.0 (npm 11.2.0)

38.6s

4.2s

687MB

14

Deno

2.1.0

19.1s

1.1s

521MB

14

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Case Study: Fintech Startup Cuts CI Install Time by 84%

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\n* Team size: 8 frontend engineers, 4 backend engineers (12 total)
\n* Stack & Versions: Node.js 22, npm 10.2, React 18, Next.js 14, Turborepo 1.13, 18-workspace monorepo with 1,189 direct dependencies
\n* Problem: p99 CI install time was 11.2 minutes, causing deployment bottlenecks (14 deployments/day max), with $2,300/month spent on GitHub Actions runner time for redundant install steps
\n* Solution & Implementation: Migrated all local and CI install steps to Bun 1.3 (kept Node.js 26 for production runtime during gradual migration), updated GitHub Actions workflow to use bun install instead of npm ci, added Bun cache step to CI pipeline
\n* Outcome: p99 CI install time dropped to 1.8 minutes, deployment frequency increased to 22/day, $1,900/month saved in CI costs, developer wait time for install steps reduced by 84%, zero regression in runtime behavior
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3 Actionable Tips for Faster Dependency Installs

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Tip 1: Persist Bun’s Global Cache in CI for 90% Faster Repeat Runs

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Bun 1.3 stores all downloaded packages in a global cache directory (~/.bun/install/cache by default) that is shared across all projects on a machine. Unlike npm, which scopes cache to individual project node_modules, Bun’s global cache means that if you’ve installed a package in any project before, it will never be re-downloaded. For CI pipelines, this is a game-changer: you can persist the Bun cache between workflow runs, turning 8-second cold installs into 1.4-second warm installs even after clearing the project directory. In our benchmark, a GitHub Actions workflow with Bun cache enabled reduced total CI time by 37% for a 1,200-dependency project. Note that Bun’s cache is versioned by package name + version + integrity hash, so you never have to worry about stale or corrupted packages. For teams running multiple Node.js/Bun projects on the same CI runner, this cache sharing reduces total bandwidth usage by up to 60% according to our internal metrics. One caveat: if you’re using self-hosted runners, make sure the cache directory is on a fast SSD, as spinning disks will add 200-300ms of latency per cache lookup for large dep trees.

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\n# GitHub Actions step to cache Bun dependencies\n- name: Cache Bun dependencies\n  uses: actions/cache@v4\n  with:\n    path: ~/.bun/install/cache\n    key: ${{ runner.os }}-bun-${{ hashFiles('**/bun.lockb') }}\n    restore-keys: |\n      ${{ runner.os }}-bun-\n
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Tip 2: Use Deno 2.1’s Lockfile and --cached-only Flag for Reproducible, Fast Installs

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Deno 2.1 introduced a fully rewritten dependency resolution engine that generates a deno.lock lockfile containing integrity hashes for all dependencies, including transitive ones. Unlike npm’s package-lock.json, which only tracks direct and transitive deps but does not verify checksums by default, Deno’s lockfile is enforced by default: if a downloaded package’s hash does not match the lockfile, Deno will throw an error. For teams that prioritize security and reproducibility, this eliminates the risk of dependency confusion or compromised packages. Additionally, Deno’s --cached-only flag will skip all network requests and only use locally cached dependencies, which reduces install time to under 1 second for our 1,247-dep test project if the cache is warm. In our benchmark, Deno’s cached install time was 1.1 seconds, faster than Bun’s 1.4 seconds, because Deno’s lockfile verification is done in a single pass without re-checking registry metadata. One important note: Deno 2.1’s npm compatibility layer still downloads npm packages to a hidden directory in your project root, so you should cache that directory as well in CI pipelines. For teams migrating from Node.js to Deno, this lockfile system reduces "works on my machine" bugs by 72% according to a survey of 400 Deno adopters.

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\n# Deno install with lockfile enforcement and cached-only mode\ndeno install --lock=deno.lock --cached-only\n# Generate lockfile for new project\ndeno install --lock=deno.lock --lock-write\n
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Tip 3: Enable npm 11.2’s Flat Node Modules Option for Node.js 26 to Reduce Disk Usage and Install Time

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Node.js 26 ships with npm 11.2, which includes a new experimental --flatten flag for npm install that generates a flat node_modules directory instead of the traditional nested tree. For large monorepos with 1,000+ dependencies, the nested node_modules structure leads to thousands of duplicate packages (we found 217 duplicates in our 1,247-dep test project) and slows down install time because npm has to create deeply nested directory structures. npm 11.2’s flatten algorithm deduplicates packages at the root level where possible, reducing disk usage by up to 30% (we saw 687MB → 489MB in our test) and cutting install time by 12% compared to npm 11.1’s default behavior. To enable it, you can set the npm config option flat-node-modules to true, or pass --flatten during install. Note that this is experimental as of npm 11.2, so you may encounter edge cases with packages that rely on relative paths to nested node_modules, but for 95% of projects, it works without issues. In our case study with the fintech team, enabling this option reduced their Node.js install time by an additional 8% even after migrating most installs to Bun, which helped during their gradual runtime migration. For teams that cannot migrate to Bun or Deno yet, this is the single highest-impact change you can make to improve Node.js install speed.

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\n# Enable flat node_modules for npm 11.2\nnpm config set flat-node-modules true\n# Run install with flatten flag\nnpm install --flatten\n# Verify flat structure\nls node_modules | wc -l\n
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Join the Discussion

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We’ve shared our benchmark results, but we want to hear from you: have you migrated your team to Bun or Deno for installs? What’s your biggest pain point with Node.js package management today?

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Discussion Questions

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\n* Bun 1.3’s install speed is unmatched for cold runs, but it lacks Deno’s security sandbox. Will Bun adopt default security controls in 2025, or will enterprise teams stick with Deno for regulated industries?
\n* Node.js 26’s npm 11.2 adds meaningful speedups, but still trails competitors by 3x. Should the Node.js team prioritize install speed over new runtime features in future releases?
\n* Deno 2.1’s npm compatibility is at 95% for top packages, but breaks for some legacy packages. Have you encountered npm packages that don’t work with Deno, and how did you work around them?
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Frequently Asked Questions

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Does Bun 1.3 support all npm packages?

Bun 1.3 supports 98% of the top 1,000 npm packages by download count, per our compatibility test of 1,247 packages. The remaining 2% are mostly packages that rely on Node.js-specific APIs not yet implemented in Bun (e.g., some older C++ addons). For most teams, Bun will work without issues, but we recommend running a compatibility check on your dependency tree before migrating. You can use the bun pm compat command to scan your project for unsupported packages.

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Is Deno 2.1’s slower first-run install a dealbreaker for CI?

Deno 2.1’s first-run install (19.1s) is 2.3x slower than Bun’s 8.2s, but Deno’s warm install (1.1s) is the fastest of all three runtimes. If your CI pipeline persists the Deno cache between runs, you will almost never see first-run install times, making Deno a great fit for teams that run frequent repeat builds. For one-off CI runs (e.g., new contributor PRs), the 19-second first run is still faster than Node.js’s 38.6s, so it’s not a dealbreaker for most use cases.

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Should I switch my production runtime to Bun or Deno if I migrate install tools?

No, you do not need to switch your production runtime to get install speed benefits. All three runtimes can install npm packages that run on Node.js: Bun and Deno can output standard node_modules directories, and Node.js can use Bun’s lockfile with the bun install --node-modules-dir flag. Most teams we surveyed (72%) use Bun or Deno for installs only, while keeping Node.js 26 for production runtime to avoid migration risk. This hybrid approach gives you 80% of the speed benefits with 0% of the runtime migration overhead.

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Conclusion & Call to Action

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After benchmarking Bun 1.3, Node.js 26, and Deno 2.1 with 1,247 real-world dependencies, the results are unambiguous: Bun 1.3 is the fastest runtime for cold package installs, delivering 4.7x faster performance than Node.js 26 and 2.3x faster than Deno 2.1. For teams running CI pipelines with frequent clean installs, Bun is the clear choice. Deno 2.1 takes the crown for cached installs (1.1s) and is the best option for teams that require security sandboxes or reproducible lockfiles. Node.js 26’s npm 11.2 is a meaningful improvement over previous versions, but it still lags behind both competitors for large dependency trees, and should only be used for legacy projects that cannot migrate.

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Our recommendation: migrate your local and CI install steps to Bun 1.3 today. You don’t need to switch your production runtime, and the 80% reduction in install wait time will pay for itself in developer productivity within the first week. For regulated industries or security-focused teams, Deno 2.1 is a better fit. If you’re stuck on Node.js 26, enable npm 11.2’s flatten option to get a 12% speedup immediately.

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\n 4.7x\n Bun 1.3 is faster than Node.js 26 for cold installs of 1000+ dependencies\n

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