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Checkstyle vs JSHint

Checkstyle

checkstyle.org

JSHint

jshint.com

Side by side

FigureCheckstyleJSHint
Price fromFreeFree
Free planYesYes
Free trial——
Open source—Yes
Web—Yes
WindowsYesYes
macOSYesYes
LinuxYesYes
API—Yes
Self-hosted—Yes
Plans published11
Spec score · Linters8.0 (#9)8.7 (#3)
ConfigurationUsers can choose supplied Google Java Style, Sun Conventions, OpenJDK Style, or Doc Style configurations, or create their own.Projects can configure JSHint with a .jshintrc file, package.json jshintConfig or the CLI --config option.
LicenseThe project license is LGPL-2.1-or-later.JSHint is licensed under the MIT Expat license.
PurposeCheckstyle analyzes Java source code against configurable rules to help teams enforce coding standards.JSHint is a community-driven static analysis tool that detects errors and potential problems in JavaScript code.

Plans

Checkstyle

  • CheckstyleFree

Checkstyle pricing →

JSHint

  • JSHintFree

JSHint pricing →

In their own words

Checkstyle

Checkstyle is a free Java source-code analyzer for programmers who follow a coding standard. It checks naming, imports, Javadoc, formatting, class design, and coding practices against configurable rules. You can select supplied Google Java Style, Sun Conventions, OpenJDK Style, or Doc Style configurations, or create your own. Checkstyle runs from its command-line tool or as an Ant task, with documented Maven and Gradle integrations. Listed IDE and CI integrations include Eclipse, Bamboo, GitHub Actions, Codacy, and Code Climate. It runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows. The current site says it parses Java features through Java 25; versions 13.x and 14.x require Java runtime 21 or newer. Analysis is single-file and source-level, without expression-type determination or a full inheritance hierarchy. Releases are available through GitHub releases and Maven Central, including a standalone all-in-one JAR. It is licensed under LGPL-2.1-or-later and supports only the latest version.

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JSHint

JSHint is a free, open-source static analysis tool for JavaScript. It checks code for syntax errors and potential problems such as implicit type conversion issues and leaking variables. The project aims to help JavaScript developers avoid typos and language gotchas while working on complex programs. JSHint is distributed as a Node module with a library and command-line program, and it can also be used through a JavaScript API. Configuration can come from command-line options, a .jshintrc file, package.json, or inline source directives. Standalone files are available for browser-like environments and Mozilla Rhino, with releases published to npm for Node.js. The install page lists integrations for editors and IDEs including Vim, Emacs, Sublime Text, Visual Studio, VS Code, Eclipse, and JetBrains IDEs, plus build integrations such as Grunt, Ant, Maven, pre-commit, and QUnit. JSHint is licensed under the MIT Expat license. Its documentation cautions that static analysis cannot determine whether a program is correct or fast, or whether it has memory leaks, and recommends using it alongside unit and functional tests and code reviews.

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