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JavaScript
by the Numbers
The history, statistics, and facts behind the language the web runs on — from 1995 to today.
1995
The year the language was created
10 days
How long it took Brendan Eich to write the first version
29 years
The language's age in 2026
#1
Its rank in developer popularity surveys, year after year
1.5M+
Packages in the npm registry
97%
Of websites worldwide use JavaScript on the client side
A language written in 10 days became the foundation for millions of websites and apps worldwide.
— the story of JavaScript's creation, 1995
1995
The language is born
Brendan Eich creates JavaScript at Netscape in 10 days.
1997
Standardization
The language becomes the ECMAScript standard.
2006
The jQuery Era
Working with the DOM becomes simpler and more accessible.
2009
Node.js
JavaScript moves beyond the browser — onto the server.
2015
ES6 / ES2015
The biggest syntax update in the language's history.
2013–2020
The Framework Era
React, Vue, and Angular reshape frontend development.
2020s
TypeScript
Typing becomes the de facto standard.
2026
Today
AI tools speed up the work, JS stays #1.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is JavaScript so widely used?
It's the only language that runs natively in every browser — that made it the default language of the web back in the 1990s, and the ecosystem has only grown since.
Is it true that JavaScript was created in 10 days?
Yes, Brendan Eich wrote the first version of the language in 10 days in 1995 at Netscape — it's been reworked and expanded many times since.
Will JavaScript become obsolete in the coming years?
Unlikely — the language keeps evolving, underpins most web frameworks, and remains the standard for interactivity in the browser.