C clang versus Haskell GHC

How the programs are written matters! Always look at the source code.

If the fastest programs are flagged * possible hand-written vector instructions or "unsafe" or naked ffi, does the host language matter? You might be more interested in the less optimised programs — more seconds, less gz source code.

fannkuch-redux
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
* C clang #6	2.25	8.88	2,933	1582	5.56
* C clang #4	13.39	13.39	2,343	1190	5.32
C clang #5	8.10	32.01—32.15	4,792	917	5.61
* C clang #2	8.68	34.14—34.46	2,703	1563	5.59
C clang #3	34.14	34.19—34.26	2,351	574	5.16
C clang #8	36.35	36.38—36.47	2,347	483	5.08
C clang	36.52	36.54—36.63	2,347	514	5.39
Haskell GHC #3	9.69	38.12—43.54	9,445	1184	17.60
* Haskell GHC #4	40.21	40.76—40.89	9,933	671	17.98
* Haskell GHC #5	10.53	41.54—41.66	9,347	850	18.14
* Haskell GHC #6	12.09	46.43—46.61	27,410	1123	19.48
* Haskell GHC #2	44.79	130.88—133.15	28,713	815	18.51
Haskell GHC	291.63	301.13—301.76	15,524	567	17.60
n-body
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
* C clang #9	2.20	2.20	2,494	1639	6.10
* C clang #5	4.86	4.86	2,417	1436	5.03
C clang #6	5.17	5.17	2,970	1186	5.19
C clang	5.38	5.40	2,974	1179	5.35
C clang #2	5.43	5.44	2,982	1270	5.30
* C clang #4	5.60	5.61	2,941	1398	6.20
C clang #8	5.70	5.70—5.75	2,941	1195	5.20
C clang #3	6.13	6.13	2,978	1214	5.65
Haskell GHC #2	6.41	6.52	10,072	1888	17.71
C clang #7	6.78	6.79	2,974	1250	5.16
* Haskell GHC	7.21	7.32	9,781	1713	17.86
spectral-norm
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
* C clang #6	0.39	1.52—1.56	4,706	1203	6.40
* C clang #5	0.73	2.87	5,206	576	5.85
* C clang #4	0.73	2.88—2.92	5,366	1145	5.86
* C clang #2	0.73	4.15—6.50	5,411	941	6.35
C clang #8	5.41	5.42	3,211	389	5.20
Haskell GHC #4	1.49	5.71	10,052	994	18.09
C clang #3	1.45	5.74	5,390	470	5.53
* C clang #7	1.85	8.31—9.99	5,399	906	6.27
* Haskell GHC #2	15.99	16.10	12,648	410	17.83
mandelbrot
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
C clang #9	1.23	4.91	36,614	700	5.36
* Haskell GHC #3	1.39	5.44	58,700	1985	18.21
C clang #5	1.54	6.10	36,893	788	5.17
* C clang #4	3.49	13.85—13.93	36,458	805	5.13
* C clang	3.50	13.95	35,627	828	5.30
* C clang #7	3.53	14.02	36,758	1000	5.70
* C clang #3	3.56	14.16—14.22	35,484	769	5.23
C clang #8	25.48	25.50—25.55	2,359	412	5.04
Haskell GHC #2	6.64	26.40	51,057	789	17.03
Haskell GHC	36.39	36.79—38.05	271,733	628	18.33
* C clang #6		Empty
fasta
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
C clang #3	0.78	0.78	2,257	1469	5.10
C clang #5	1.20	1.20	2,208	1286	5.41
C clang #2	2.44	2.44	2,200	1299	5.46
* Haskell GHC #4	0.87	2.76	47,927	2017	21.22
* Haskell GHC #6	0.87	2.83	14,414	1885	21.14
* Haskell GHC #5	0.93	2.86—2.90	16,990	2004	21.58
C clang #6	1.05	3.05	5,104	1936	5.36
C clang #7	0.83	3.28—3.32	5,947	2276	5.40
C clang	3.47	3.47	2,396	1213	5.07
Haskell GHC	5.46	5.57	15,274	975	17.39
Haskell GHC #3	6.80	7.06—7.32	638,120	1091	17.86
C clang #8	8.09	8.19—8.30	2,200	839	4.95
Haskell GHC #2	6.72	18.98—19.19	452,608	1323	17.98
C clang #4		Empty
k-nucleotide
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
C clang	6.34	13.99—14.10	134,189	1512	5.85
Haskell GHC	25.42	89.71—90.59	813,838	1067	20.05
* Haskell GHC #2	23.30	90.19—90.33	864,707	1492	22.17
* Haskell GHC #3	35.14	130.99—134.04	432,185	2266	33.57
reverse-complement
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
* C clang #7	0.46	0.65	514,040	1899	6.27
C clang #9	0.48	0.72	514,277	1551	5.42
C clang #2	1.19	1.72	1,021,899	757	5.27
C clang #5	2.01	2.07—2.12	1,020,629	654	5.18
* Haskell GHC #4	3.11	3.22	523,076	1047	17.73
* C clang #4	3.79	3.80	514,073	716	5.07
C clang #6	1.08	4.26—4.30	699,249	828	5.14
* Haskell GHC #2	6.55	6.77—6.87	3,131,236	998	17.45
binary-trees [ Contentious. Different approaches. ]
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
Haskell GHC #4	2.16	5.32—5.41	227,852	807	17.49
C clang #2	1.68	5.26—6.08	176,222	816	2.58
C clang #3	1.92	5.90	138,723	842	5.80
Haskell GHC #7	2.66	6.82—7.40	237,572	817	16.89
Haskell GHC #6	3.92	7.67—7.81	246,542	601	17.23
Haskell GHC	12.58	14.52—14.71	702,763	500	17.12
Haskell GHC #2	12.84	14.95—15.94	274,993	498	16.86
Haskell GHC #5	7.22	16.01—16.39	684,757	567	16.76
Haskell GHC #3	6.97	17.04—18.17	697,176	544	17.51
C clang	17.86	17.75—18.31	271,938	660	5.22
C clang #5	9.24	33.44—33.54	361,550	914	5.00
pidigits [ Contentious. Different libraries. ]
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
C clang #2	0.74	0.74	3,990	422	5.46
C clang	0.75	0.75	3,719	459	5.06
Haskell GHC #6	1.49	1.59	22,946	368	16.99
Haskell GHC #4	1.70	1.79	22,778	355	17.33
Haskell GHC #3	2.07	2.17	22,929	387	17.05
Haskell GHC #2	2.09	2.19	22,790	592	17.75
Haskell GHC	2.08	2.22	22,962	466	17.86
* Haskell GHC #5	98.98	99.14—99.18	15,741	934	17.63
regex-redux [ Contentious. Different libraries. ]
	elapsed	Mean or 95% CI
source	secs	cpu secs	mem	gz	make
* Haskell GHC #3	1.10	2.35—2.39	357,376	2219	20.33
C clang #5	0.84	2.84	159,756	1403	5.28
C clang #2	3.23	3.23	106,799	1121	5.07
C clang #4	1.00	3.84—3.89	159,789	1237	5.30
C clang #3	1.76	4.33—4.37	109,871	1273	5.44
C clang	Ubuntu clang version 19.1.1 (1ubuntu1)
Haskell GHC	The Glorious Glasgow Haskell Compilation System, version 9.10.1 LLVM version 19.1.1