esbuild
An extremely fast JavaScript and CSS bundler and minifier.
359.2M weekly downloads · 14.7 KB gzip · Health 79/100
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Comparison guide
Esbuild vs Rollup
Side-by-side NPM package comparison
Quick Verdict
Smallest Bundle
Esbuild
14.7 KB gzipped
Most Popular
Esbuild
359.2M weekly downloads
Best Maintained
Rollup
100/100 maintenance score
Highest Quality
Esbuild
50/100 quality score
Overall Pick
Esbuild
Best all-around based on popularity, size, maintenance & quality
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Choosing between Esbuild and Rollup? Here's a data-driven comparison based on real npm data — downloads, bundle size, health scores, and more — to help you decide which package fits your project best.
Downloads & Popularity
Esbuild leads with 359.2M weekly downloads — roughly 2.4x more. Rollup has 151.9M weekly downloads. Higher download counts generally indicate broader community adoption and a larger ecosystem of tutorials, plugins, and support.
Bundle Size
Esbuild has the smallest gzipped bundle at 14.7 KB. Rollup comes in at 118.4 KB. A smaller bundle size means faster page loads, which improves user experience and Core Web Vitals scores.
Health Score Comparison
Rollup has an overall health score of 85/100 (very good), with strong maintenance, security, popularity scores. Esbuild has an overall health score of 79/100 (very good), with strong maintenance, security, popularity scores. Health scores are calculated from maintenance activity, code quality, security posture, popularity, and stability metrics.
When to Choose Each
Choose Esbuild if you value massive community and ecosystem, strong security track record. Choose Rollup if you value massive community and ecosystem, actively maintained, strong security track record.
Our Verdict
Both Esbuild and Rollup are solid choices for JavaScript development. Rollup has the edge in overall health score (85/100), while each package brings unique strengths to the table. Evaluate them based on your project's priorities — whether that's community size, bundle efficiency, or maintenance activity — and choose the one that aligns best with your requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is esbuild better than rollup?
- It depends on your needs. Esbuild has a health score of 79/100 while Rollup scores 85/100. Esbuild has more recorded weekly downloads (359.2M). Consider your specific requirements — bundle size, community support, and feature set — to decide which is the better fit.
- Which has a smaller bundle size, esbuild or rollup?
- Esbuild has the smaller gzipped bundle at 14.7 KB. A smaller bundle means faster load times for your users, which can positively impact SEO and user experience.
- How many developers use esbuild vs rollup?
- Esbuild has more recorded weekly downloads (359.2M). Download counts reflect package installations, not unique developers.
- Which is better maintained, esbuild or rollup?
- Rollup has a maintenance score of 100/100. Esbuild scores 80/100 and Rollup scores 100/100 on maintenance.
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The 2026 JavaScript Stack Cheatsheet
One PDF: the best package for every category (ORMs, bundlers, auth, testing, state management). Used by 500+ devs. Free, updated monthly.