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dop251/goja

An ECMAScript 5.1 JavaScript engine written in pure Go, for embedding JS execution in Go applications.

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What is it?

Goja is a JavaScript engine implemented entirely in Go, targeting ECMAScript 5.1 with most ES6 features still in progress. It lets a Go program load and run JavaScript code, pass Go values into scripts, and read results back out, without relying on cgo or a V8 wrapper.

The engine is aimed at scenarios where scripts drive logic inside a Go application, such as configuration, rules or plugin code. Because it is pure Go, it builds easily and runs on any platform Go supports. It also gives the host fine-grained control over the execution environment, including interrupting long-running scripts and mapping Go struct field names to JavaScript naming conventions.

Goja does not provide setTimeout, setInterval or Node.js APIs; those are supplied by the separate goja_nodejs project. Each Runtime instance is single-goroutine only, and performance is well below V8 for compute-heavy JavaScript.

Key features

  • 01Implements ECMAScript 5.1 with regex and strict mode support.
  • 02Converts Go values to JavaScript and exports JavaScript values back to Go.
  • 03Calls JavaScript functions from Go, with or without a specified this value.
  • 04Maps Go struct fields and methods to JavaScript names via a custom name mapper.
  • 05Interrupts running scripts from another goroutine.
  • 06Supports sourcemaps and can run Babel and the TypeScript compiler.

Use cases

  • Embedding user-defined scripts or rules in a Go service.
  • Running ES5 libraries or build tools inside a Go program without cgo.
  • Building a plugin or configuration system driven by JavaScript in Go.
  • Researching or controlling a JavaScript execution environment from Go.

Topics

#javascript#go#ecmascript#interpreter#scripting#embedding#golang

FAQ

What is goja?
An ECMAScript 5.1 JavaScript engine written in pure Go, for embedding JS execution in Go applications. Goja is a JavaScript engine implemented entirely in Go, targeting ECMAScript 5.1 with most ES6 features still in progress. It lets a Go program load and run JavaScript code, pass Go values into scripts, and read results back out, without relying on cgo or a V8 wrapper.
Is goja free to use? What license does it have?
goja is open source under the MIT license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is goja still maintained?
Actively maintained. The last commit to goja was on Oct 21, 2026.
What can I use goja for?
Embedding user-defined scripts or rules in a Go service. Running ES5 libraries or build tools inside a Go program without cgo. Building a plugin or configuration system driven by JavaScript in Go. Researching or controlling a JavaScript execution environment from Go.
Where can I get goja?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/dop251/goja

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