Conan vs npm: What are the differences?

Introduction:

Conan and npm are both widely used package managers in the software development community. While they serve a similar purpose of managing dependencies for projects, there are several key differences between the two.

1. Package Manager Types: Conan is a package manager primarily used for C and C++ projects, focusing on binary package management and supporting multiple package and build configurations. On the other hand, npm is mainly used for JavaScript projects and focuses on managing and distributing Node.js packages, including both frontend and backend dependencies.

2. Language Compatibility: Conan supports different programming languages such as C++, C#, Python, and others, making it a versatile choice for cross-language projects. In contrast, npm is optimized for JavaScript applications, and it may not be as suitable for projects written in other languages.

3. Package Distribution: Conan allows for the distribution of binary packages, which can greatly reduce the time spent on building dependencies. In contrast, npm primarily uses source code distribution, requiring the installation and building of dependencies on the target system.

4. Package Versioning: Conan provides fine-grained versioning control, allowing users to specify exact package versions, dependencies, and package variations for different platforms and configurations. npm, on the other hand, uses semantic versioning, which provides a more flexible approach for specifying package dependencies.

5. Registry and Ecosystem: Conan relies on a decentralized model and can work with different package repositories. It provides support for both public and private package repositories, allowing for more flexibility and customization. npm, on the other hand, has a centralized registry, which may result in a more straightforward and unified experience for package discovery and distribution.

6. Integration with Build Systems: Conan is designed to integrate well with CMake, a popular build system for C and C++ projects, allowing for seamless integration into existing workflows. npm, on the other hand, is tightly integrated with the Node.js ecosystem and works well with other JavaScript build tools such as Webpack and Babel.

In summary, Conan and npm are both powerful package managers but cater to different programming languages and have distinct features such as package distribution methods, versioning approaches, registry models, and build system integrations.