How well your page ranks on search engine results relies on the speed of the page to a great extent. So, what are your options if your website is quite slow? One of the most effective ways of making your site load faster is minifying its JavaScript files. It reduces the bloated code, and the page starts loading relatively fast going forward. That said and done, it takes a good minifier to get the job done well. There are many options out there, but these are the best JavaScript minifiers to consider. Check them out!
In this article
1. YUI Compressor
If you are looking for one of the best JavaScript minifiers, consider the YUI compressor. The language used to write this amazing command-line tool is Java. It would be best if you didn’t hesitate to consider it to minify JavaScript and CSS files any time, any day.
Pros
- It compresses both JavaScript and CSS files
- Its compression ratio is higher than that of other minifiers
- The tool is also 100% safe
Cons
- Issues may arise during compilation since it also analyses your code
2. Google Closure Compiler
One must admit that this JavaScript minifier is unique. Whereas most tools compile the source code into the respective machine language, this one does things differently. It compiles the scripts into better ones by analyzing them, removing dead code, rewriting it again, and eventually minimizing the new code.
Pros
- It makes webpages run fast since downloading JavaScript becomes faster
- It notifies you in case of any JavaScript
- The tool analyses the variable types, references, and syntax of your code
Cons
- It turns the script into a non-readable format
3. UglifyJS
It is a complete toolkit perfect for parsing, compressing, or beautifying your JavaScript code. The JavaScript minifier is developed on JS. Its popularity speaks volumes regarding its efficiency when it comes to minimizing the scripts. Its minifying tricks include symbol mangling and whitespace removal, and they are efficient, no doubt.
Pros
- It reduces the source code by about 95% of its original size hence commendable
- It exists in various versions
- Debugging settings
Cons
- You need a platform that supports CommonJS or discards its exports.*lines hence the need for advanced knowledge
4. AjaxminUI
If you plan to reduce your website’s loading time, it is high time you consider this JavaScript minifier. It is among the best since it compresses CSS and JavaScript files simultaneously. You are at liberty to analyze the syntax and variables with its command-line –analyze option
Pros
- It magnifies both JavaScript and CSS files
- It checks the syntax of your code
- Equally important, it also analyses the variables
Cons
- One must admit that there are other JavaScript minifiers with a better compression ratio than the AjaxminUI
5. Packer
Another one of the best JavaScript minifiers is Packer. The tool can convert your source code into a compact version to ensure that the webpage doesn’t take forever to load. It doesn’t need much knowledge to deal with hence great regardless of one’s skills level.
Pros
- It is easy to use and as simple as clicking a button
- It compresses the code automatically
- Its minification is effective and yields great results
Cons
- The developer will have to copy then paste the code for Parker to minify it
6. JSCompress.com
If you are looking for one of the best online JavaScript minifiers, look no further. It is ideal for minifying and compressing the JavaScript files running on your website. In case you are wondering about its efficiency, you have no reason to worry. After all, its reduction rate ranges between 30% and 90%, which is fantastic.
Pros
- It improves the script performance by making it quite fast
- It also reduces the bandwidth usage on your site
- The downloading time also reduces, and the process becomes faster
Cons
- It can’t work offline
7. Gulp
The JavaScript minifier has proven to be an excellent streaming build system. It combines code-over-configuration and streams, and that combination contributes significantly to its simplicity and intuition. Consequently, it becomes easy to manage tasks even when they are complex and sophisticated.
Pros
- It is easy to use
- It is also convenient to use when dealing with complex tasks
- Its simplicity is worth mentioning as well
- The Gulp utilities and plugins are quite many
- Its helper libraries make it effortless to do some common tasks
Cons
- The documentation of Gulp leaves a lot to be desired
- It is also hard to tell if you are facing an issue with the underlying library or the corresponding plugin
8. JavaScript Minify
This JavaScript minifier uses an API to minify your code, thus improving the loading speed of your website and webpages. You can rest assured that it won’t disappoint, and you won’t have to put much effort into ensuring it works well.
Pros
- It is easy to install
- The developer has put over 120 versions so far, which is a clear indication of how often it is updated
- Generally, the minifier is well-maintained
Cons
- The many versions may be confusing to some developers
9. Dojo ShrinkSafe
For anyone looking for a solution to compress JavaScript files and improve the page speed of their webpages, ShrinkSafe is a system that will rise to the occasion. It will reduce the size of the scripts but at least a third. The final scripts will work exactly like the original ones after compression. That’s all thanks to the Rhino JavaScript interpreter, which is quite effective.
Pros
- It changes neither the API nor the public variable
- Its compression is accurate since it uses a JS interpreter
- It reduces the size of the files dramatically
Cons
- Its online service is deprecated
10. JS Min
This JavaScript minifier minifies your source code by eliminating any unnecessary whitespace or comments in your JS scripts.
Pros
- It promotes a relatively expressive programming style
- It reduces the size of your file by half
- The minifier also facilitates the fast download of the files
Cons
- It eliminates even the documentation, which some developers can’t do without.
