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| 1 | +<script type="application/ld+json"> |
| 2 | +{ |
| 3 | + "@context": "https://schema.org", |
| 4 | + "@type": "ComparisonChart", |
| 5 | + "name": "confkit vs envconfig", |
| 6 | + "description": "Feature comparison between confkit and envconfig Go libraries for environment variable configuration", |
| 7 | + "itemListElement": [ |
| 8 | + { |
| 9 | + "@type": "SoftwareApplication", |
| 10 | + "name": "confkit", |
| 11 | + "url": "https://github.com/MimoJanra/confkit", |
| 12 | + "applicationCategory": "ConfigurationManagement" |
| 13 | + }, |
| 14 | + { |
| 15 | + "@type": "SoftwareApplication", |
| 16 | + "name": "envconfig", |
| 17 | + "url": "https://github.com/kelseyhightower/envconfig", |
| 18 | + "applicationCategory": "ConfigurationManagement" |
| 19 | + } |
| 20 | + ] |
| 21 | +} |
| 22 | +</script> |
| 23 | + |
| 24 | +# confkit vs envconfig |
| 25 | + |
| 26 | +confkit is a type-safe configuration toolkit for Go projects that want struct-based config loading, defaults, validation, source merging, and secret redaction. envconfig is a lightweight library that parses struct tags to load configuration from environment variables. |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +## Key Differences |
| 29 | + |
| 30 | +### Scope |
| 31 | + |
| 32 | +**confkit:** Full configuration toolkit — multiple sources, validation, defaults, secret redaction, all built-in. |
| 33 | + |
| 34 | +```go |
| 35 | +cfg, err := confkit.Load[Config]( |
| 36 | + confkit.FromYAML("config.yaml"), |
| 37 | + confkit.FromEnv(), |
| 38 | + confkit.FromFlags(), |
| 39 | +) |
| 40 | +``` |
| 41 | + |
| 42 | +**envconfig:** Environment variables only — no files, no validation, no defaults in the library. |
| 43 | + |
| 44 | +```go |
| 45 | +var cfg Config |
| 46 | +err := envconfig.Process("APP", &cfg) |
| 47 | +// Only reads from os.Getenv(), no other sources |
| 48 | +``` |
| 49 | + |
| 50 | +### Defaults |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +**confkit:** Via struct tags. |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +```go |
| 55 | +type Config struct { |
| 56 | + Port int `env:"PORT" default:"8080"` |
| 57 | +} |
| 58 | +``` |
| 59 | + |
| 60 | +**envconfig:** No built-in defaults — you set zero values or post-process. |
| 61 | + |
| 62 | +```go |
| 63 | +type Config struct { |
| 64 | + Port int `envconfig:"PORT"` // No default support |
| 65 | +} |
| 66 | +// Must manually set defaults after parsing |
| 67 | +``` |
| 68 | + |
| 69 | +### Validation |
| 70 | + |
| 71 | +**confkit:** Built-in validation rules. |
| 72 | + |
| 73 | +```go |
| 74 | +type Config struct { |
| 75 | + Port int `env:"PORT" validate:"min=1,max=65535"` |
| 76 | +} |
| 77 | +``` |
| 78 | + |
| 79 | +**envconfig:** No built-in validation — you write custom code. |
| 80 | + |
| 81 | +```go |
| 82 | +var cfg Config |
| 83 | +envconfig.Process("APP", &cfg) |
| 84 | +if cfg.Port < 1 || cfg.Port > 65535 { |
| 85 | + return fmt.Errorf("port out of range") |
| 86 | +} |
| 87 | +``` |
| 88 | + |
| 89 | +### Error Messages |
| 90 | + |
| 91 | +**confkit:** Structured, human-readable errors with context. |
| 92 | + |
| 93 | +``` |
| 94 | +Invalid configuration: |
| 95 | +
|
| 96 | + Database.Port |
| 97 | + error: must be between 1 and 65535 |
| 98 | + source: env (DATABASE_PORT) |
| 99 | +``` |
| 100 | + |
| 101 | +**envconfig:** Basic Go errors, less context. |
| 102 | + |
| 103 | +``` |
| 104 | +port: parsing "invalid": invalid syntax |
| 105 | +``` |
| 106 | + |
| 107 | +### Secret Redaction |
| 108 | + |
| 109 | +**confkit:** Automatic via `secret:"true"` tag. |
| 110 | + |
| 111 | +```go |
| 112 | +type Config struct { |
| 113 | + Password string `env:"DB_PASSWORD" secret:"true"` |
| 114 | +} |
| 115 | +// Errors and dumps automatically redact this field |
| 116 | +``` |
| 117 | + |
| 118 | +**envconfig:** No secret redaction — passwords appear in error messages. |
| 119 | + |
| 120 | +### Multi-Source Loading |
| 121 | + |
| 122 | +**confkit:** Mix YAML, env, flags, Kubernetes, AWS, Vault, etc. with explicit precedence. |
| 123 | + |
| 124 | +```go |
| 125 | +cfg, err := confkit.Load[Config]( |
| 126 | + confkit.FromYAML("defaults.yaml"), |
| 127 | + confkit.FromEnv(), |
| 128 | +) |
| 129 | +``` |
| 130 | + |
| 131 | +**envconfig:** Environment variables only. To combine sources, you write custom code. |
| 132 | + |
| 133 | +```go |
| 134 | +// No built-in support; load each source separately and merge manually |
| 135 | +``` |
| 136 | + |
| 137 | +### Struct Prefixes |
| 138 | + |
| 139 | +**confkit:** Via struct tags — any nesting level. |
| 140 | + |
| 141 | +```go |
| 142 | +type Config struct { |
| 143 | + DB struct { |
| 144 | + Host string `env:"HOST"` |
| 145 | + } `prefix:"DB_"` |
| 146 | +} |
| 147 | +// Reads DB_HOST from env |
| 148 | +``` |
| 149 | + |
| 150 | +**envconfig:** Also supports prefixes, similar approach. |
| 151 | + |
| 152 | +```go |
| 153 | +type Config struct { |
| 154 | + DB struct { |
| 155 | + Host string `envconfig:"HOST"` |
| 156 | + } `envconfig:"DB"` |
| 157 | +} |
| 158 | +``` |
| 159 | + |
| 160 | +### Type Support |
| 161 | + |
| 162 | +**confkit:** Primitives, slices, time.Duration, nested structs, custom parsers. |
| 163 | + |
| 164 | +**envconfig:** Primitives, slices, basic types. Similar but narrower. |
| 165 | + |
| 166 | +## When to Use confkit |
| 167 | + |
| 168 | +- You need multiple sources (YAML, env, flags, cloud) |
| 169 | +- You want defaults and validation built-in |
| 170 | +- You care about error messages and debugging |
| 171 | +- You use cloud sources (Vault, AWS, Kubernetes) |
| 172 | +- You need secret redaction |
| 173 | +- You want a single struct to describe your entire config |
| 174 | + |
| 175 | +## When to Use envconfig |
| 176 | + |
| 177 | +- You only care about environment variables |
| 178 | +- You want the absolute smallest library for env parsing |
| 179 | +- Your config is simple (no defaults, no validation) |
| 180 | +- You're OK writing validation code yourself |
| 181 | +- You don't need cloud sources |
| 182 | + |
| 183 | +## Feature Comparison Table |
| 184 | + |
| 185 | +| | confkit | envconfig | |
| 186 | +|--------------------------|:-------:|:---------:| |
| 187 | +| **Typed struct loading** | ✅ | ✅ | |
| 188 | +| **Environment variables** | ✅ | ✅ | |
| 189 | +| **YAML/JSON/TOML files** | ✅ | ❌ | |
| 190 | +| **CLI flags** | ✅ | ❌ | |
| 191 | +| **Defaults via tags** | ✅ | ❌ | |
| 192 | +| **Built-in validation** | ✅ | ❌ | |
| 193 | +| **Secret redaction** | ✅ | ❌ | |
| 194 | +| **Cloud sources** | optional | ❌ | |
| 195 | +| **Error context** | ✅ | ⚠️ | |
| 196 | +| **Struct prefixes** | ✅ | ✅ | |
| 197 | +| **Multi-source merging** | ✅ | ❌ | |
| 198 | +| **Lightweight** | ✅ | ✅ | |
| 199 | + |
| 200 | +## Migration Path |
| 201 | + |
| 202 | +If you're moving from envconfig to confkit: |
| 203 | + |
| 204 | +1. Keep your struct definitions as-is |
| 205 | +2. Add support for other sources: |
| 206 | + ```go |
| 207 | + confkit.Load[Config]( |
| 208 | + confkit.FromEnv(), |
| 209 | + // Add YAML, flags, etc. |
| 210 | + ) |
| 211 | + ``` |
| 212 | +3. Add `default` tags: |
| 213 | + ```go |
| 214 | + type Config struct { |
| 215 | + Port int `env:"PORT" default:"8080"` |
| 216 | + } |
| 217 | + ``` |
| 218 | +4. Add `validate` tags: |
| 219 | + ```go |
| 220 | + type Config struct { |
| 221 | + Port int `env:"PORT" validate:"min=1,max=65535"` |
| 222 | + } |
| 223 | + ``` |
| 224 | +5. Replace `envconfig.Process()` with `confkit.Load[T]()` |
| 225 | + |
| 226 | +## Library Size & Dependencies |
| 227 | + |
| 228 | +| Library | Dependencies | Binary overhead | |
| 229 | +|------------|:------------:|:---------------:| |
| 230 | +| confkit | yaml.v3, go-toml/v2 | ~500KB (core) | |
| 231 | +| envconfig | stdlib only | ~100KB | |
| 232 | + |
| 233 | +confkit adds dependencies for YAML and TOML support; envconfig is pure stdlib. |
| 234 | + |
| 235 | +For cloud sources, confkit lets you opt-in. envconfig has no cloud support. |
| 236 | + |
| 237 | +## Use Case Example |
| 238 | + |
| 239 | +**Simple CLI tool:** envconfig is perfect. |
| 240 | + |
| 241 | +```go |
| 242 | +type Config struct { |
| 243 | + ApiKey string `envconfig:"API_KEY"` |
| 244 | +} |
| 245 | +``` |
| 246 | + |
| 247 | +**Production service with config files, env overrides, validation, and Vault:** confkit. |
| 248 | + |
| 249 | +```go |
| 250 | +cfg, err := confkit.Load[Config]( |
| 251 | + confkit.FromYAML("config.yaml"), |
| 252 | + confkit.FromEnv(), |
| 253 | + vault.FromVault(...), // optional |
| 254 | +) |
| 255 | +``` |
| 256 | + |
| 257 | +## Maturity |
| 258 | + |
| 259 | +- **envconfig:** Lightweight, stable, minimal changes |
| 260 | +- **confkit:** Production-ready v0.5.0, actively developed with cloud integrations |
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