_If you’re in a hurry, head over to the Github Repo_ [_here_](https://github.com/nebrelbug/squirrelly) _or glance through the documentation at_ [_https://squirrelly.js.org_](https://squirrelly.js.org)_. Or, check out performance comparisons_ [_here_](https://github.com/nebrelbug/squirrelly-benchmarks)_. \[Hint: Squirrelly is fastest\]_

### The need for a new template engine

A while ago, I started searching for the perfect JavaScript template engine. It had to be simple, performant, flexible, **and lightweight**. The problem was, none of the template engines out there really seemed to fit the bill.

One of the main issues was the tradeoff between size and power — most of the popular and flexible template engines add a lot of overhead. According to [Bundlephobia](https://bundlephobia.com/), here are the bundle costs (gzipped and minified) of some notable template engines.

*   Nunjucks: **23.3KB**
*   Pug: **231.8KB**
*   Handlebars: **21KB**
*   Swig: **10.2KB**

In contrast, some of the more lightweight templating engines — like doT or Mustache — lack features like precompilation, helpers, filters, custom delimeters, or running native code.

### Squirrelly to the rescue!

Squirrelly weighs only **2.6KB**, but it’s still incredibly flexible and performant — in fact, in a benchmark developed by MarkoJS, Squirrelly outperforms the other template engines in terms of speed almost every time!

**What makes Squirrelly so fast**

*   **Squirrelly doesn’t use a token parser.** Instead, it has uses one master regular expression to find content between tags.
*   **Squirrelly Precompiles by default.** That’s right, there’s no need to run benchmarks comparing precompiling to compiling anymore! Squirrelly takes a string as input and returns a function as output.

**Features:**

*   Helpers, similar to Handlebars. Helpers can have helper blocks, too, that act as subcategories to the helper content (example `{{#else}}` )
*   Native helpers (helpers that compile directly into JavaScript code.)
*   Custom delimeters (useful for writing in languages like LaTek)
*   Partials
*   Filters (like Nunjucks or Swig)
*   Only **2.6KB Gzipped**
*   **Not whitespace sensitive**
*   Auto Escaping
*   **Works with any language, not just HTML**
*   Comments
*   Supports Express out-of-the box
*   Caching

### Examples

**Comments**

{{!--This is a comment--}}

**References**

{{title}}

**Filters**

{{title|filter}}

**Helpers (like functions, but in the template)**

{{helpername(parameters)}}

Some content

{{#helperblock}}

Other content

{{/helpername}}

**Conditionals (a kind of helper)**

{{if(options.value==="hello")}}  
Hi!  
{{#else}}  
How are you?  
{{/if}}

**Partials**

{{include(mypartial)/}}

### Squirrelly compared to other Template Engines

Performance benchmarks are here, run using tests from MarkoJS: [https://github.com/nebrelbug/squirrelly-benchmarks](https://github.com/nebrelbug/squirrelly-benchmarks). Squirrelly is almost always fastest, and usually has one of the smallest compiled sizes too.

### What Next

Read the documentation at [squirrelly.js.org](https://squirrelly.js.org) for more info. If you liked this post, give it some applause, or star the [Github Repo](https://github.com/nebrelbug/squirrelly)!

Squirrelly could also always use collaborators. Join the team by heading over to the repository and creating an issue or pull request.

Check out Squirrelly, a lightweight JS template engine

Introducing Squirrelly: a fast, lightweight, and simple JS template engine

Too Long; Didn't Read

@nebrelbug

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