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Nikhil Wagh
Nikhil Wagh

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.NET 10 Features You Should Be Using Now

#dotnet #dotnet10 #aspnetcore #csharp

.NET 10 is here, and it’s packed with powerful improvements that make modern development faster, smarter, and more scalable. Whether you're building APIs, cloud-native services, or enterprise apps — these features are worth your attention.

1. Native AOT Improvements

What’s new?

.NET 10 refines Native AOT (Ahead-of-Time) compilation with broader platform support and faster startup times.

Why it matters:

  • Blazing-fast startup performance
  • Smaller app size (great for microservices)
  • Ideal for containerized deployments

Use it when: Performance and cold start latency are critical.

2. Required Members in Records & Classes

You can now enforce required properties directly in class/record declarations.

public class User
{
    public required string Name { get; init; }
    public required string Email { get; init; }
}
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No more null defaults or missing fields when instantiating objects!

3. New LINQ Enhancements

.NET 10 introduces:

  • .TakeLast(), .SkipLast()
  • Performance-optimized .Where() + .Select()
  • Improvements in GroupBy() behavior

Querying collections just got more expressive and efficient.

4. Streamlined Minimal APIs

Minimal APIs continue to evolve with better:

  • Model binding for complex types
  • Built-in validation
  • Output caching 
app.MapPost("/create", (User user) => {
    // now supports validation annotations!
});
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Great for microservices, internal APIs, and prototypes.

5. Built-in Rate Limiting Middleware

Add rate limiting with just a few lines of code:

builder.Services.AddRateLimiter(options =>
{
    options.GlobalLimiter = PartitionedRateLimiter.Create<HttpContext, string>(...)
});
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Helps protect your APIs from abuse without needing 3rd-party tools.

6. Better Observability: OpenTelemetry + Logging

.NET 10 deeply integrates OpenTelemetry for tracing and metrics.

Built-in support for:

  • Structured logging
  • Distributed tracing
  • Correlation IDs for requests

Monitor, debug, and optimize like a pro.

7. Improvements in Source Generators

You can now:

  • Write incremental source generators
  • Use new APIs to introspect code
  • Generate boilerplate at compile-time

Used extensively in JSON serialization, DI, and Blazor!

8. Enhanced JSON Support (System.Text.Json)

Major improvements:

  • Better polymorphic serialization
  • JsonInclude on fields
  • Reduced allocations

Easier to work with complex object hierarchies without Newtonsoft.Json.

9. Parallel.ForEachAsync in TPL

Concurrent async processing just got easier:

await Parallel.ForEachAsync(items, async (item, token) =>
{
    await ProcessAsync(item);
});
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Super useful for batch processing or I/O-heavy tasks.

10. Clean Code with File-Scoped Types and Imports

Say goodbye to unnecessary boilerplate.

file class InternalHelper { ... }
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Keeps your code modular and maintainable.

Bonus: C# 12 Enhancements

.NET 10 ships with C# 12, which includes:

  • Primary constructors in classes
  • Collection expressions
  • Alias directives for any type 
using CustomerList = System.Collections.Generic.List<Customer>;
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Final Thoughts

.NET 10 is more than just a version bump — it’s a productivity boost. From performance to developer experience, these features are built to help you write cleaner, faster, and more reliable code.

What to Do Next?

  • Try out one of these features in a small project
  • Share your experiences with the community
  • Comment your favorite feature or one you're excited to explore!

Top comments (1)

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sarahmatta profile image
Info Comment hidden by post author - thread only accessible via permalink
Sarah Matta • • Edited

It's important to note that .NET 10 is not fully released, it is still in preview.

Rate limiting middleware was introduced with .NET 7

Your information about the C# version with .NET 10 is inaccurate:
C# 12 came out in 2023 with .NET 8 learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/c...
C# 13 came in 2024 with .NET 9
C# 14 comes with .NET 10 with a projected release date of November 2025 learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/c...

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