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Dev tools · April 13, 2026

CA

CJIT, a single-binary C compiler that can self host

CJIT started as a hobby project around Fabrice Bellard’s tinyCC and slowly grew into something much more practical. It is now a small portable C compiler and runner that works across Linux, macOS, and Windows, can self host, and is packaged as a single executable. What mattered most to me was keeping the barrier to entry low. You can take one small binary, drop it onto a system, and compile or run C code using the libraries already available there, without setting up a full toolchain or installing a large stack of dependencies. I find that useful for quick prototyping, testing, auditing,…

What it does

In the maker’s words, at launch

CJIT started as a hobby project around Fabrice Bellard’s tinyCC and slowly grew into something much more practical. It is now a small portable C compiler and runner that works across Linux, macOS, and Windows, can self host, and is packaged as a single executable. What mattered most to me was keeping the barrier to entry low. You can take one small binary, drop it onto a system, and compile or run C code using the libraries already available there, without setting up a full toolchain or installing a large stack of dependencies. I find that useful for quick prototyping, testing, auditing, learning, and generally exploring real systems with less friction. The codebase also reached a point where it feels solid and maintainable, not just experimental. It is still a small project, and I want to keep it that way: simple, useful, and easy to carry around. A fun extra: it works nicely with raylib as well. Interested in feedback from people here, especially on the single-binary approach and whether this kind of tool feels useful in practice.

Does the same job

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