[en-US] general.skip_to_content

Browser APIs

The features provided by the browser.

Service Workers
Completion percentage: 91.3% (21703)
Completion percentage: 91.3% (21703)

Service workers essentially act as proxy servers that sit between web applications, the browser, and the network (when available). They are intended, among other things, to enable the creation of effective offline experiences, intercept network requests and take appropriate action based on whether the network is available, and update assets residing on the server. They will also allow access to push notifications and background sync APIs.

2019

36.1% 36.1% 54% 54% 9.8% 9.8%

2020

42% 42% 48.7% 48.7% 9.3% 9.3%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Local Storage
Completion percentage: 91.8% (21813)
Completion percentage: 91.8% (21813)

The localStorage read-only property of the window interface allows you to access a Storage object for the Document's origin; the stored data is saved across browser sessions.

2019

88% 88% 10.3% 10.3%

2020

90.6% 90.6% 8.1% 8.1%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Intl
Completion percentage: 91.8% (21825)
Completion percentage: 91.8% (21825)

The Intl object is the namespace for the ECMAScript Internationalization API, which provides language sensitive string comparison, number formatting, and date and time formatting. The Intl object provides access to several constructors as well as functionality common to the internationalization constructors and other language sensitive functions.

2020

31.3% 31.3% 28.5% 28.5% 40.2% 40.2%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Web Audio
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21892)
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21892)

The Web Audio API provides a powerful and versatile system for controlling audio on the Web, allowing developers to choose audio sources, add effects to audio, create audio visualizations, apply spatial effects (such as panning) and much more.

2019

20.6% 20.6% 58% 58% 21.4% 21.4%

2020

20% 20% 56.3% 56.3% 23.7% 23.7%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

WebGL
Completion percentage: 92.2% (21913)
Completion percentage: 92.2% (21913)

WebGL enables web content to use an API based on OpenGL ES 2.0 to perform 2D and 3D rendering in an HTML canvas in browsers that support it without the use of plug-ins.

2019

16.7% 16.7% 68.6% 68.6% 14.7% 14.7%

2020

17.5% 17.5% 67.4% 67.4% 15.1% 15.1%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Web Animations
Completion percentage: 92.2% (21912)
Completion percentage: 92.2% (21912)

The Web Animations API lets us construct animations and control their playback with JavaScript. This article will start you off in the right direction with fun demos and tutorials featuring Alice in Wonderland.

2019

14.2% 14.2% 52% 52% 33.8% 33.8%

2020

16.3% 16.3% 51.8% 51.8% 31.9% 31.9%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

WebRTC
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21880)
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21880)

WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communication) is a technology that enables Web applications and sites to capture and optionally stream audio and/or video media, as well as to exchange arbitrary data between browsers without requiring an intermediary. The set of standards that comprise WebRTC makes it possible to share data and perform teleconferencing peer-to-peer, without requiring that the user install plug-ins or any other third-party software.

2019

10.9% 10.9% 46.3% 46.3% 42.9% 42.9%

2020

14% 14% 49.8% 49.8% 36.2% 36.2%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it
We asked members of the JavaScript community to share their “pick of the year”

My 2020 Pick: Svelte

Svelte is the Space Elevator of frontend frameworks. It helps you ship apps extremely fast.

We asked members of the JavaScript community to share their “pick of the year”

Shawn Wang

Infinite Builder

Web Speech API
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21883)
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21883)

The Web Speech API enables you to incorporate voice data into web apps. The Web Speech API has two parts: SpeechSynthesis (Text-to-Speech), and SpeechRecognition (Asynchronous Speech Recognition.)

2019

7.5% 7.5% 46.8% 46.8% 45.7% 45.7%

2020

8.2% 8.2% 49.4% 49.4% 42.5% 42.5%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

WebVR
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21893)
Completion percentage: 92.1% (21893)

WebVR provides support for exposing virtual reality devices — for example, head-mounted displays like the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive — to web apps, enabling developers to translate position and movement information from the display into movement around a 3D scene. This has numerous, interesting applications, from virtual product tours and interactive training apps to immersive first-person games.

2019

48.4% 48.4% 48.5% 48.5%

2020

49.4% 49.4% 47.4% 47.4%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

WebSocket
Completion percentage: 92.3% (21929)
Completion percentage: 92.3% (21929)

The WebSocket API is an advanced technology that makes it possible to open a two-way interactive communication session between the user's browser and a server. With this API, you can send messages to a server and receive event-driven responses without having to poll the server for a reply.

2019

59.2% 59.2% 33.8% 33.8%

2020

62.6% 62.6% 31.5% 31.5%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Fetch
Completion percentage: 92.4% (21957)
Completion percentage: 92.4% (21957)

The Fetch API provides a JavaScript interface for accessing and manipulating parts of the HTTP pipeline, such as requests and responses. It also provides a global fetch() method that provides an easy, logical way to fetch resources asynchronously across the network.

2019

81.5% 81.5% 11.3% 11.3%

2020

87.1% 87.1% 8.4% 8.4%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Custom Elements
Completion percentage: 92.4% (21952)
Completion percentage: 92.4% (21952)

Web Components is a suite of different technologies allowing you to create reusable custom elements — with their functionality encapsulated away from the rest of your code — and utilize them in your web apps.

2020

33.4% 33.4% 35.2% 35.2% 31.4% 31.4%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Shadow DOM
Completion percentage: 92.6% (22000)
Completion percentage: 92.6% (22000)

Web Components is a suite of different technologies allowing you to create reusable custom elements — with their functionality encapsulated away from the rest of your code — and utilize them in your web apps.

2020

42.1% 42.1% 37.7% 37.7% 20.2% 20.2%
Have used it
Know about it
Never heard of it

Recommended Resources

Creative Coding with Canvas & WebGL
Matt DesLauriers

Creative Coding with Canvas & WebGL

Learn to use Canvas and WebGL with ThreeJS in this JavaScript course on Creative Coding!
Thanks to our partners for supporting us! Learn more.
« Previous: Data StructuresNext: Other Features »
Charts built with Nivo. Hosted by Netlify.
Questions? Found a bug? Leave an issue. Join us on Discord.