# c3lang/c3c

Compiler for the C3 language

Repository: https://github.com/c3lang/c3c
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/c3c
Homepage: https://c3-lang.org
Language: C3
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: language, compiler, c3
Last push: 2026-08-26T21:57:27+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 94/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 85, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2590, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 21, "gap_med": 32.0, "n_releases_24m": 23}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 5778, forks 396 (observed 2026-08-28T04:09:29.506832+00:00)

## What it is
c3c is the official compiler for the C3 programming language, an evolution of C with modern features like modules, generics, error handling, and built-in slices while keeping full C ABI compatibility. It is built on an LLVM backend and provides project management, build, and run commands via a single command-line tool.

## Use cases
- compile a modern C-like systems language to native binaries
- incrementally convert a C project to a safer language with C ABI compatibility
- write games or native applications with C-level performance
- learn an ergonomic alternative to C with optionals and defer
- mix C3 code into an existing C/C++ codebase
- scaffold and build multi-module projects with c3c init and c3c run

## When to choose
- you want C-like performance and syntax with modern ergonomics like modules, generics, and error handling
- you need seamless interoperability with existing C libraries and ABI compatibility
- you want fast compilation times and an integrated build system without external tooling
- you are a C programmer looking for a gentle evolution rather than a paradigm shift

## When to avoid
- you need memory safety guarantees like Rust's borrow checker or RAII
- you require object-oriented programming with classes and exceptions
- you need a mature, battle-tested language with a large ecosystem and long-term stability guarantees
- your team depends on tooling or libraries that only exist for mainstream languages

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: compiler, programming-language, build-tool, cli
- domain: programming-languages, compilers, developer-tools
- platform: windows, bsd, cli, cross-platform
- tags: c3-language, llvm-backend, c-abi-compatibility, systems-programming, native-code, systems, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- c3lang/c3c (main) score 94

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:29.506832+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T17:52:51.194906+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/c3lang/c3c (fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:29.506832+00:00, sha 459cb79acd8c)
  - homepage: https://c3-lang.org (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.973794+00:00, sha a634b1687045)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/getting-started/introduction (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.983095+00:00, sha 4928c1b04fc8)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/getting-started/hello-world (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.985107+00:00, sha cc08d5614c4c)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/getting-started/compile (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.986880+00:00, sha c61b8a0df0dc)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/getting-started/prebuilt-binaries (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.988830+00:00, sha 3455f91d0455)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/getting-started/projects (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.990598+00:00, sha 826df96d05df)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/faq/allfeatures (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.994358+00:00, sha 2be6fc4e3ab0)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/faq (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.992293+00:00, sha 3ad058404f3c)
  - site_page: https://c3-lang.org/faq/compare-languages (fetched 2026-08-29T08:48:21.996415+00:00, sha c0ecffadf88d)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.