Note: This repository maintains a static feature matrix. For real-time performance benchmarks (Cold Start, Memory, Throughput) and interactive filtering, please visit the WasmRuntime.com Dashboard.
A curated list of the most popular WebAssembly runtimes.
| Runtime | Language | License | Key Features | Best For... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wasmtime | Rust | Apache-2.0 | • WASI Preview 2 • Component Model |
Standard Compliance Security, Server-side |
| Wasmer | Rust | MIT | • WASIX Standard • Pluggable Engines |
Universal Usage Running "Anything" anywhere |
| WasmEdge | C++ | Apache-2.0 | • AI Plugins (TF/PyTorch) • Kubernetes Compatible |
AI Inference & Edge High-perf Edge Computing |
| wazero | Go | Apache-2.0 | • Zero CGO • Pure Go Implementation |
Go Integration Cross-platform Go Apps |
| WAMR | C | Apache-2.0 | • Intel SGX Support • Multiple Execution Modes |
IoT & Embedded Minimum footprint |
View full 15+ runtime leaderboard with performance data →
- Recommendation: wazero
- Why: It is the only mature runtime that requires Zero CGO, solving cross-compilation pain points. Compare compilation speeds here.
- Recommendation: Wasmer (General) or WasmEdge (AI)
- Why: Wasmer has the easiest pip install; WasmEdge supports native AI hardware acceleration for lower inference latency.
- Recommendation: Wasmtime
- Why: The gold standard for WASI Preview 2 and Component Model support.
WebAssembly cold starts are significantly faster than Docker containers.
- Recommendation: Spin (by Fermyon)
- Feature: Sub-millisecond cold starts. See benchmarks vs AWS Lambda.
Run LLMs and ML models with portable binaries.
- Recommendation: WasmEdge
- Feature: Direct GPU/NPU access via plugins.
Based on WasmRuntime.com benchmarks:
- Cold Start: Wasm is 10-50x faster than Docker.
- Density: Wasm allows 50x more instances per server.
- Security: Process-level sandboxing (Capability-based).
Maintained by the WasmRuntime.com team. Found a mistake? Submit a PR or check the site for the latest data.