Faster.Map 9.0.2

Faster.Map — High-Performance HashMap for .NET

Faster.Map is a high-performance HashMap library for .NET built for speed, predictable latency, and efficient memory usage. It provides specialized map implementations for different workloads, including dense datasets, read-heavy access patterns, lock-free concurrent scenarios, and cache-friendly general-purpose use.

If you need a faster alternative to Dictionary<TKey, TValue> or ConcurrentDictionary<TKey, TValue> for performance-sensitive applications, Faster.Map gives you focused implementations designed to reduce overhead and improve throughput.

Why Faster.Map

Faster.Map is designed for applications where standard dictionary performance is not enough.

It is a strong fit for:

• Real-time systems
• Game engines
• Caching layers
• High-throughput services
• Data-intensive applications
• Low-latency workloads
• Concurrent and multi-core environments

Instead of relying on one general-purpose design, Faster.Map provides multiple implementations so you can choose the right tradeoff for your workload.

Key Benefits

• High-performance lookup, insert, update, and remove operations
• Low allocation overhead on hot paths
• Cache-friendly data layouts
• SIMD acceleration where applicable
• Custom hashing support
• Multiple map strategies for different access patterns
• Support for modern .NET targets

Available Implementations

DenseMap

DenseMap uses SIMD acceleration to compare keys in parallel and reduce lookup latency in dense tables.

Best for:

• High-density datasets
• Real-time lookups
• CPU-bound workloads
• Scenarios where SIMD provides a measurable advantage

RobinHoodMap

RobinHoodMap uses Robin Hood hashing with linear probing to reduce clustering and keep probe distances balanced.

Best for:

• Read-heavy workloads
• Predictable lookup behavior
• Stable latency
• Balanced access patterns

CMap

CMap is a lock-free concurrent HashMap using open addressing, quadratic probing, and Fibonacci hashing.

Best for:

• Multi-threaded applications
• High-throughput concurrent access
• Minimal contention
• Thread-safe performance without coarse locking

BlitzMap

BlitzMap is a flat open-addressing HashMap optimized for cache locality and strong collision handling.

Best for:

• General-purpose high performance
• Low-latency workloads
• Balanced read/write usage
• Fast default performance across many scenarios

Installation

Install Faster.Map from NuGet:

Install-Package Faster.Map

Quick Start

BlitzMap

var map = new BlitzMap<int, string>();

map.Insert(1, "Value One");
map.Insert(2, "Value Two");
map.InsertUnique(3, "Value Three");
map.InsertOrUpdate(2, "Updated");

if (map.Get(1, out var value))
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Key 1 has value: {value}");
}

map.Update(1, "Updated value one");
map.Remove(1);

DenseMap

var map = new DenseMap<int, string>();

map.Emplace(1, "Value One");
map.Emplace(2, "Value Two");

if (map.Get(1, out var value))
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Key 1 has value: {value}");
}

map.Remove(1);

Custom Hashing

Faster.Map supports pluggable hash functions so you can optimize for your data and platform.

Available hashers include:

• WyHash
• XXHash3
• FastHash
• CrcHasher
• DefaultHasher

Example:

var map = new BlitzMap<int, string, XxHash3Hasher.String>();
map.Insert(1, "Value One");
map.Insert(2, "Value Two");

Custom hashing can improve distribution, reduce collisions, and increase lookup performance, especially for large datasets and string-heavy workloads.

Choosing the Right Map

Recommendation: use BlitzMap as the default choice, DenseMap when table density is high, RobinHoodMap for retrieval-heavy workloads, and CMap when thread-safe concurrent access is the priority.

Supported Platforms

Faster.Map supports:

• .NET 7
• .NET 8
• .NET 9
• .NET 10
• x86
• x64
• ARM
• ARM64

Benchmarks

Benchmark results are included in the repository to compare Faster.Map with Dictionary<TKey, TValue> across common workloads such as get, insert, update, remove, and enumeration.

The benchmark suite includes:

• Integer key workloads
• String key workloads
• Custom hash function comparisons
• Multiple load factors
• Dense and large-string scenarios

If your project depends on dictionary performance, the benchmark charts help you choose the right implementation for your workload.

Design Goals

Faster.Map is built around a few core goals:

• Make hot-path operations fast
• Keep memory usage efficient
• Preserve predictable performance under load
• Support specialized hashing strategies
• Offer multiple implementations instead of one compromise design
• Stay practical for real .NET applications

Repository

• GitHub: https://github.com/Wsm2110/Faster.Map
• NuGet package: Faster.Map

Keywords

HashMap, hash table, .NET, C#, high-performance dictionary, memory-efficient collections, SIMD, lock-free concurrent map, fast lookup, low latency, cache-friendly data structures, custom hashing, Dictionary replacement