Representing a 2D point as an array

1. In Javascript I can represent a 2D point (1,2) either as an object {x:1, y:2} or as an array [1,2]. Is the last one significantly better when it comes to performance?
2. If at some point of my program I decide to add a property to a point v (such as v.next = u) and v is represented as an array, will I loose that [*] performance gain?

[*] assuming the answer to 1 is YES.

1 Answer

Taking my own advice (comment above), googling for 'array object point site:jsperf.com' leads to , which suggests that, at least in Chrome and Node.js (V8) today, objects may be be the better choice.

But if I wanted to put the pedal to the metal and was mostly working with arrays of points, I'd also benchmark code that forces all args to integers (x=x|0) and uses a one-dimensional array, performing the address arithmetic for x/y by hand, and writing an ES6 iterator for it. If done carefully, this can avoid creating an object for most points, even when manipulating them.