Could Node.js use a different engine besides V8?
Theoretically yes, but practically no. The ecosystem, tooling, and community built around V8 make a switch impractical. ChakraCore was an experimental attempt that did not gain adoption. V8 is firmly the Node.js engine.
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SpiderMonkey (Mozilla, used in Firefox), JavaScriptCore (Apple, used in Safari), and Chakra (Microsoft, used in old Edge). V8 is Google's engine used in Chrome and Node.js, and it is the dominant engine for server-side JavaScript.
Because of V8's strong performance, Google's investment, and broad adoption. The Node.js ecosystem built tooling around V8, which solidified its position. Deno also uses V8, confirming its dominance for server-side JavaScript.
For most developers, the engine is an implementation detail. But understanding V8's JIT, hidden classes, and garbage collection helps you write faster code, especially in performance-critical applications. Understanding the engine is a sign of senior-level depth.
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