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TypeScript Showdown: Type vs Interface — Why 'Type' Wins
- In the TypeScript debate of 'TypeScript Type vs Interface,' 'Type' comes out as the winner due to its flexibility, expressive power, and alignment with modern practices.
- Type and interface both define object shapes or function signatures, but type offers more versatility in describing unions, primitives, tuples, mapped types, and conditional types.
- Type is safer and prevents accidental redefinitions, while interface supports declaration merging which can lead to hard-to-debug surprises.
- Type can extend both types and interfaces, making it more consistent for various scenarios, especially in functional and React patterns.
- Although type is generally preferred, interface still holds value in public APIs, libraries, OOP patterns, and classes that implement contracts.
- In OOP-heavy codebases, interface is favored for its semantic clarity and support for extension via extends or declaration merging.
- Type in TypeScript excels in handling complex scenarios like unions, tuples, mapped and conditional types, making it a preferred choice in most cases.
- Unless exposing a public OOP-style API or requiring declaration merging, it is recommended to stick with type for better consistency and clarity in codebases.
- For more insights on TypeScript practices, the article suggests exploring topics like asynchronous JavaScript, overloading vs overriding, and effective use of 'as const' in TypeScript.
- Overall, the article advocates for the usage of 'type' over 'interface' in TypeScript codebases, emphasizing its superior handling of various type scenarios and prevention of unexpected behaviors.
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