Creating Standalone Executables

QuickJS-ng provides two methods for creating standalone executables from JavaScript code:

Using qjs -c - Simple, single-file bundling (recommended)
Using qjsc -e - Full C compilation with custom modules

Method 1: Using qjs -c (Recommended)

The simplest way to create a standalone executable is using the qjs interpreter’s compile flag.

Basic Usage

qjs -c app.js -o app

This creates a standalone executable named app that bundles your JavaScript file with the QuickJS runtime.

How It Works

Compile to Bytecode

The JavaScript file is compiled to QuickJS bytecode

Append to Executable

The bytecode is appended to a copy of the qjs executable with a trailer to help locate it

Create Executable

The result is a self-contained executable with the same runtime dependencies as qjs

Complete Example

console.log('Hello from standalone executable!');
console.log('Arguments:', execArgv);

Using a Different Base Executable

By default, qjs -c uses the current qjs executable as the base. You can specify a different one:

qjs -c app.js -o app --exe /usr/local/bin/qjs

The --exe parameter expects an absolute path, such as ~/bin/qjs or $HOME/bin/qjs.

This is useful for:

Cross-compilation for different platforms
Using a custom-built qjs with specific features
Creating executables with different runtime configurations

Limitations

No JavaScript bundling is performed. The specified JS file cannot depend on other files via import or require.

To work around this limitation, use a bundler:

Bundling Multiple Files

Since qjs -c only compiles a single file, you need to bundle dependencies first.

Using esbuild

npm install -g esbuild

Important esbuild Options

--bundle

flag

Bundle all dependencies into a single file

--external:qjs:*

string

Mark QuickJS built-in modules (qjs:std, qjs:os, qjs:bjson) as external to avoid bundling errors

--format=esm

string

Output ES module format (recommended for QuickJS)

--target=es2023

string

Target ECMAScript 2023 (QuickJS supports most ES2023 features)

--minify

flag

Minify the output to reduce executable size

Method 2: Using qjsc -e

For more control, you can use qjsc to generate a complete C program and compile it.

Basic Workflow

Compile to C

Use qjsc -e to generate C source code:

qjsc -e -o app.c app.js

Compile C to Binary

Compile the C file with a C compiler:

cc app.c -lquickjs -o app

Run

Execute the standalone binary:

./app

Complete Example

console.log("Hello World");

Advantages of qjsc -e

Full control over C compilation flags
Can integrate with C modules
Can customize the runtime initialization
Can compile multiple JavaScript files together

With External C Modules

You can embed custom C modules in the executable:

#include <quickjs.h>

#define countof(x) (sizeof(x) / sizeof((x)[0]))

static int fib(int n) {
    if (n <= 0) return 0;
    else if (n == 1) return 1;
    else return fib(n - 1) + fib(n - 2);
}

static JSValue js_fib(JSContext *ctx, JSValue this_val,
                      int argc, JSValue *argv) {
    int n, res;
    if (JS_ToInt32(ctx, &n, argv[0]))
        return JS_EXCEPTION;
    res = fib(n);
    return JS_NewInt32(ctx, res);
}

static const JSCFunctionListEntry js_fib_funcs[] = {
    JS_CFUNC_DEF("fib", 1, js_fib),
};

JSModuleDef *js_init_module_fib(JSContext *ctx, const char *module_name) {
    JSModuleDef *m = JS_NewCModule(ctx, module_name, NULL);
    if (!m) return NULL;
    JS_SetModuleExportList(ctx, m, js_fib_funcs, countof(js_fib_funcs));
    return m;
}

Optimizations

Strip Source Code
Strip Debug Info
Minimal Runtime

Remove source code from bytecode to reduce size:

qjsc -s -e -o app.c app.js

This removes the original JavaScript source but keeps debug info (line numbers, function names).

Remove both source code and debug info for minimum size:

qjsc -ss -e -o app.c app.js

This makes stack traces less useful. Only use for production builds where size is critical.

Exclude standard library modules:

qjsc -P -e -o app.c app.js

This removes std, os, and bjson modules, creating a smaller executable.

Comparison of Methods

Feature	qjs -c	qjsc -e
Ease of use	⭐⭐⭐ Very easy	⭐⭐ Requires C compiler
Single command	✅ Yes	❌ Two steps required
Bundle multiple files	❌ Needs bundler	✅ Built-in
C module integration	❌ No	✅ Yes
Custom runtime config	❌ Limited	✅ Full control
Cross-compilation	✅ Via —exe	✅ Via C cross-compiler
Executable size	Same as qjs	Can be smaller with -P

Advanced Examples

Full Application with Bundler

my-app/
├── src/
│   ├── index.js
│   ├── utils.js
│   └── config.js
├── package.json
└── build.sh

With Standard Library Access

app.js

import * as std from 'qjs:std';
import * as os from 'qjs:os';

const [file, err] = std.open('data.txt', 'r');
if (err) {
  console.error('Failed to open file:', err);
  std.exit(1);
}

const content = file.readAsString();
file.close();

console.log('File contents:', content);

qjs -c app.js -o readfile
./readfile

Platform-Specific Builds

# Build for Linux
qjs -c app.js -o app-linux --exe /usr/bin/qjs

# Build for macOS (if you have a macOS qjs binary)
qjs -c app.js -o app-macos --exe /path/to/macos/qjs

# Build for custom embedded system
qjs -c app.js -o app-embedded --exe /path/to/embedded/qjs

Distribution

The resulting executables are self-contained and have the same runtime dependencies as the base qjs executable:

libc (standard C library)
libm (math library)
pthreads (if threading is enabled)
libdl (if dynamic module loading is enabled)

You can check dependencies with:

ldd ./myapp  # On Linux
otool -L ./myapp  # On macOS

Troubleshooting

”Module not found” errors

If you get module errors when running a bundled executable:

Make sure you used --external:qjs:* in esbuild
Check that all imports use the correct module specifiers
Verify the bundle works with qjs before compiling

# Test the bundle first
qjs dist/app.js

# Then compile
qjs -c dist/app.js -o myapp

Linking errors with qjsc

If you get linker errors when compiling C code:

# Make sure QuickJS library is installed
sudo make install  # In QuickJS source directory

# Or specify library path explicitly
cc app.c -I/path/to/quickjs -L/path/to/quickjs -lquickjs -o app

Large executable size

To reduce executable size:

Use --minify in esbuild
Use -s or -ss flags with qjsc
Use -P to exclude standard library (if not needed)
Strip the final executable:

strip myapp

Overview

Core Concepts

CLI Tools

Standard Library

Advanced Topics

Platform Support

Creating Standalone Executables

Creating Standalone Executables

Method 1: Using qjs -c (Recommended)

Basic Usage

How It Works

Complete Example

Using a Different Base Executable

Limitations

Bundling Multiple Files

Using esbuild

Important esbuild Options

Method 2: Using qjsc -e

Basic Workflow

Complete Example

Advantages of qjsc -e

With External C Modules

Optimizations

Comparison of Methods

Advanced Examples

Full Application with Bundler

With Standard Library Access

Platform-Specific Builds

Distribution

Troubleshooting

”Module not found” errors

Linking errors with qjsc

Large executable size

See Also

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

Core Concepts

CLI Tools

Standard Library

Advanced Topics

Platform Support

​Creating Standalone Executables

​Method 1: Using qjs -c (Recommended)

​Basic Usage

​How It Works

​Complete Example

​Using a Different Base Executable

​Limitations

​Bundling Multiple Files

​Using esbuild

​Important esbuild Options

​Method 2: Using qjsc -e

​Basic Workflow

​Complete Example

​Advantages of qjsc -e

​With External C Modules

​Optimizations

​Comparison of Methods

​Advanced Examples

​Full Application with Bundler

​With Standard Library Access

​Platform-Specific Builds

​Distribution

​Troubleshooting

​”Module not found” errors

​Linking errors with qjsc

​Large executable size

​See Also

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Creating Standalone Executables

Method 1: Using qjs -c (Recommended)

Basic Usage

How It Works

Complete Example

Using a Different Base Executable

Limitations

Bundling Multiple Files

Using esbuild

Important esbuild Options

Method 2: Using qjsc -e

Basic Workflow

Complete Example

Advantages of qjsc -e

With External C Modules

Optimizations

Comparison of Methods

Advanced Examples

Full Application with Bundler

With Standard Library Access

Platform-Specific Builds

Distribution

Troubleshooting

”Module not found” errors

Linking errors with qjsc

Large executable size

See Also