What is Electrobun?

Electrobun is a desktop application framework that lets you build ultra fast, tiny, and cross-platform applications using TypeScript. It combines the best of native performance with web development simplicity.

The Problem

Traditional desktop app frameworks force you to choose between developer experience and app performance:

• Electron: Great DX but huge bundle sizes (150MB+), slow startup times (2-5s), and massive update downloads
• Native development: Great performance but complex setup, platform-specific code, and limited web technology integration
• Tauri: Better than Electron but still large updates and you have to learn Rust

The Solution

Electrobun provides a third option that doesn't compromise:

• Ultra-small bundles: ~14MB compressed (90%+ smaller than Electron)
• Lightning-fast startup: <50ms cold start vs 2-5s for Electron
• Tiny updates: 14KB patches using custom binary diff vs 100MB+ with Electron
• Pure TypeScript: Write TypeScript for both main process and UI
• Web technologies: HTML, CSS, JavaScript - use any frontend framework
• Native performance: Zig bindings with Bun runtime for maximum speed
• Optional CEF: bundle CEF (Chromium) when cross-platform consistency matters most.

Performance Comparison

Technical Architecture

Electrobun achieves its performance through a carefully designed architecture:

Zig, and Native Bindings

Native functionality like window management, system trays, and app menus writtin in C++ and Objc

Bun Runtime

The main process runs on Bun, providing lightning-fast Typescript execution and built-in bundling without the overhead of Node.js and V8.

System WebView

Instead of distributing Chromium, By default Electrobun uses your system's native WebView (WebKit on macOS, Edge WebView2 on Windows, WebKitGTK on Linux).

Custom Update System

Binary diff updates using a SIMD optimized BSDIFF implementation written in zig to allow for incredibly small update patches - often just kilobytes instead of megabytes.

ZSTD self-extracting distributables

The Electrobun cli bundles your app, then compresses it with state of the art compression making initial downloads as small as possible.

Custom OOPIF Implementation

Use OOPIFs (super iframes) in your html for secure, isolated, webviews across browser engines and platforms.

Key Benefits

🚀 Faster Development

• Fast build times - Electrobun cli uses pre-built binaries for your target platform
• Use any web framework (React, SolidJS, Vue, Svelte, etc.)
• TypeScript throughout - no context switching
• Built-in bundling and optimization

📦 Better Distribution

• 14MB bundles vs 150MB+ with Electron
• Kilobyte updates instead of megabyte downloads
• Built-in code signing and notarization
• Cross-platform builds from any OS
• Built-in ZSTD self-extractor

⚡ Superior Performance

• Sub-50ms startup times
• Minimal memory footprint
• Native-feeling UI responsiveness
• Battery-efficient operation

🔐 Security First

• Process isolation by default
• Secure, encrypted, and typed RPC between processes
• custom views:// schema for loading bundled assets in webviews
• Minimal attack surface

When to Use Electrobun

Electrobun is perfect for:

• Startup MVPs: Ship fast, iterate quickly with small updates
• Developer tools: IDEs, terminals, productivity apps that need native performance
• Cross-platform apps: One codebase, native feel everywhere
• High-performance apps: When Electron is too slow but native development is too complex
• Bandwidth-conscious apps: Frequent updates without user friction
• Multi-tab web browsersBuild multi-tab experiences and mix CEF and Webkit webviews

Getting Started

Ready to build your first Electrobun app? Follow our Hello World guide to create a new project in minutes.