ClojureScript
Hacker ApprovedRanked 53 of 163 programming languages by recommenders
Developers recommend it for full Clojure power in the browser, immutable data and simple JavaScript interop. Critics note it can require Java.
Developers recommend it for full Clojure power in the browser, immutable data and simple JavaScript interop. Critics note it can require Java.
37 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 31
- criticize it
- 6
- approval share
- 84%
Recommended in 10 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 31 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 5.2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 10 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Shared code across client and server
“use the same language to develop business model code that runs on both the client and the server”
Comment from 31 Mar 2026 in “Clojure: The Documentary, official trailer [video]” “clojurescript lets you write clojure in browsers and on node.js”
Comment from 2 Nov 2025 in “Lisp: Notes on its Past and Future (1980)” “I can re-use model code on the client side (ClojureScript)”
Comment from 15 Dec 2025 in “AI agents are starting to eat SaaS” Simple JavaScript interop, no extra libraries
“This is about using a JS feature without bringing in any additional dependencies like core.async.”
Comment from 8 May 2026 in “ClojureScript Gets Async/Await” “This is important for JavaScript interop without having to include additional libraries”
Comment from 8 May 2026 in “ClojureScript Gets Async/Await” Compiled output often safer than TypeScript
“Clojurescript compiler in many cases emits safer js code despite being dynamically typed.”
Comment from 18 Nov 2025 in “Experiment: Making TypeScript immutable-by-default” “Clojurescript often emit safer code than Typescript does”
Comment from 17 Apr 2026 in “Official Clojure Documentary page with Video, Shownotes, and Links” Immutable, functional style
“Once you start using immutable-first language on the front-end, e.g., Clojurescript - your perspective changes.”
Comment from 5 Dec 2025 in “Thoughts on Go vs. Rust vs. Zig” “functional programming and immutable data are just too good”
Comment from 2 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: Who is hiring? (December 2025)”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Requires Java or the JVM
“As far as I can tell both Clojure and ClojureScript require Java as of now.”
Comment from 25 Apr 2026 in “Clojure: Transducers” “Last i checked, it needed JVM (parts of the library are in Java).”
Comment from 8 May 2026 in “ClojureScript Gets Async/Await” Large, hard-to-read compiled JavaScript
“There is a real need to reduce the size of compiled JS delivered to the browser and eliminate legacy dependency on goog.”
Comment from 12 Jul 2026 in “A pure scheme web programming tool” “transpiled code isn't much more readable than WASM (see also ClojureScript”
Comment from 8 Dec 2025 in “Applets are officially gone, but Java in the browser is better”
Other programming languages people recommend
The four most recommended other programming languages, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 163 programming languages, rankedWhat people said
40 of the 59 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“The closest language that does that is ClojureScript”
“toolchains where the pace of change is slower, like ClojureScript”
“As I see the Lisp language family to be much superior in expressiveness.”
“In Clojurescript it is the only way to have the model at all”
“You don't have to imagine. Clojurescript exists.”
“There is a real need to reduce the size of compiled JS delivered to the browser and eliminate legacy dependency on goog.”
“we no longer rely on anything from NPM, to call this a simplification would be a gross understatement”
“I'd surely have dropped programming as a whole if I didn't discover Clojure and ClojureScript”
“Portal's reagent viewers, which were designed primarily to run in a browser via ClojureScript”
“why not switch to a better language that’s designed for nested tree structures?”
“This is why I use Clojure/ClojureScript to sidestep the issue entirely”
“For like 95% of cases, Clojurescript saves you weeks/months of work.”
“This is about using a JS feature without bringing in any additional dependencies like core.async.”
“I've shipped a few side projects and stuff for family members in it”
“Last i checked, it needed JVM (parts of the library are in Java).”
“ClojureScript while nice is not a major language so I would assume AI would perform worse in it”
“I used to have two REPLs (one for Clojure, one for ClojureScript) and lots of back-and-forth traffic”
“This is important for JavaScript interop without having to include additional libraries”
“I've been using it for 10 years now to compile a complex app into highly-optimized client-side code”
“I struggle to imagine doing so for anything but a personal side project”
“hot reloading _specific targetting things_ tends to get you closer to where you want”
“As far as I can tell both Clojure and ClojureScript require Java as of now.”
“Clojurescript often emit safer code than Typescript does”
“It was so down-to-earth, inexplicably pragmatic and reasonable that it made me want to learn more.”
“I learned Lisp (once) and that opened up path to Clojure, Clojurescript, then Fennel, Janet and Clojure-Dart”
“shit just made sense. It was so down-to-earth, inexplicably pragmatic and reasonable”
“even jack into a live webpage with ClojureScript”
“you just change one part, see the page update and then continue changing”
“use the same language to develop business model code that runs on both the client and the server”
“I can re-use model code on the client side (ClojureScript)”
“transpiled code isn't much more readable than WASM (see also ClojureScript”
“Once you start using immutable-first language on the front-end, e.g., Clojurescript - your perspective changes.”
“functional programming and immutable data are just too good”
“clojurescript works better than many different things I've used”
“I have yet to encounter a problem that genuinely makes it so impossibly slow”
“Cljs practical in the sense that you get the full power of Clojure on the JVM side”
“it's not so dramatically difficult to use. Far more simpler than Javascript, in fact.”
“Clojurescript compiler in many cases emits safer js code despite being dynamically typed.”
“It sees plenty use as Clojure/Clojurescript and Babashka.”
“clojurescript lets you write clojure in browsers and on node.js”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.