Turbopack vs Webpack

Turbopack vs Webpack:

Modern web applications routinely manage thousands of modules, making build speed a critical factor for developer productivity. Webpack has been the dominant bundler for React, Vue, and Next.js ecosystems for over a decade. However, its JavaScript-based architecture struggles at scale.

Enter Turbopack: Vercel's Rust-powered successor, delivering 50x faster cold starts and 2-5x faster production builds in Next.js 15.5+.

Turbopack is used only during development mode when you run npm run dev. It makes your app start faster and reload changes instantly while you are coding. When Turbopack is enabled, it works for the entire project, not for individual pages. All pages you open during development use Turbopack automatically.

Webpack is used when you build and deploy your app using npm run build and npm start. It creates optimized, minified files for production so your website loads fast for users. Like Turbopack, Webpack works at the app level, meaning every page in the live website is bundled using Webpack.

Webpack: The Battle-Tested Workhorse

Webpack processes complex dependency graphs through an extensive ecosystem of loaders and plugins, producing optimized code chunks.

Key Strengths

• Powers 80% of JavaScript frameworks
• 50,000+ plugins available
• Production-proven across 10+ years

Performance Limitations

• Cold starts: 2-3 seconds (medium apps)
• Hot Module Replacement (HMR): ~1 second average
• Memory usage: 1.2GB+ (large projects)

Turbopack: Rust-Powered Performance Revolution

Turbopack's Rust core enables true incremental compilation—processing only changed modules for dramatic speed gains.

Vercel Benchmarks (Next.js 15.5+)

Tailwind CSS + App Router stacks run instantly through Turbopack's unified content pipeline.

One-Line Setup

90% of Next.js applications work out-of-the-box, including Tailwind, next/image, SWC, and PostCSS.

Feature Comparison 

Seamless Migration Path

Zero-configuration support for:

• Tailwind CSS + PostCSS
• App Router + Server Actions
• next/image, ESLint, TypeScript
• 99% Webpack plugin compatibility

Most developers report no configuration changes required.

Decision Framework

Choose Webpack when:

• Working on legacy non-Next.js projects
• Using rare, decade-old plugins
• Maximum plugin ecosystem control is critical

Choose Turbopack when:

• Next.js 15.5+ projects (development + production)
• 1,000+ modules
• Tailwind CSS + App Router stacks
• Large monorepos

Known Limitations

Turbopack (affects 0.5% of projects):

• Rare CSS-in-JS library edge cases
• Exotic Webpack loader chains

Ecosystem maturity: 99% test coverage, with daily improvements.

The Rust Bundler Future

Turbopack and Rspack herald the Rust-native bundling era:

• Standalone CLI (Next.js independent)
• WebAssembly plugin support
• Full Webpack feature parity expected by 2026

Get Started Today

| cd your-nextjs-projectnpx next dev --turbo |

Conclusion:

Webpack is reliable and well-tested, but it becomes slow as projects grow.

Turbopack is much faster, uses less memory, and works almost automatically with modern Next.js apps. For Next.js 15.5+ projects, especially large ones, Turbopack gives a better and smoother developer experience.