Consider Brands for Nominal Typing

Overview

Add phantom types to distinguish semantically different values.

TypeScript uses structural typing, but sometimes you need nominal typing - values that are distinct because you SAY they are, not because they have different shapes. Brands let you do this without runtime overhead.

When to Use This Skill

• Distinguishing paths (absolute vs relative)
• Attaching units to numbers (meters, seconds)
• Preventing 2D/3D vector mix-ups
• Marking validated/sanitized strings
• Creating type-safe identifiers

The Iron Rule

ALWAYS use brands when primitive types have different semantic meanings.

Remember:

• Brands are phantom types (exist only in type system)
• No runtime overhead
• Force explicit conversion/validation
• Make invalid states unrepresentable

Detection: The "Wrong Primitive" Problem

When different primitives can be confused:

// ❌ Any string can be passed
function readFile(path: string) { ... }

readFile('foo.txt');        // Relative path - might fail
readFile('/home/foo.txt');  // Absolute path - works
// TypeScript can't tell the difference!

The Branding Pattern

Basic Brand Structure

type AbsolutePath = string & { _brand: 'abs' };

function isAbsolutePath(path: string): path is AbsolutePath {
  return path.startsWith('/');
}

function listAbsolutePath(path: AbsolutePath) {
  // Can only be called with validated paths
}

Using Branded Types

function f(path: string) {
  // Must check before using
  if (isAbsolutePath(path)) {
    listAbsolutePath(path);  // OK: path is now AbsolutePath
  }
  
  listAbsolutePath(path);
  //               ~~~~ Error: string not assignable to AbsolutePath
}

Why Brands Work

You can't actually create a value that is both a string and has a _brand property:

type AbsolutePath = string & { _brand: 'abs' };

// This intersection is "impossible" at runtime
// But TypeScript still uses it for type checking

The only way to get an AbsolutePath is to:

1. Be given one (from a function that returns it)
2. Use a type guard to validate and narrow
3. Use a type assertion (escape hatch)

Common Brand Patterns

Units of Measurement

type Meters = number & { _brand: 'meters' };
type Seconds = number & { _brand: 'seconds' };
type MetersPerSecond = number & { _brand: 'm/s' };

const meters = (m: number) => m as Meters;
const seconds = (s: number) => s as Seconds;

function calculateSpeed(distance: Meters, time: Seconds): MetersPerSecond {
  return (distance / time) as MetersPerSecond;
}

const d = meters(100);
const t = seconds(10);
const speed = calculateSpeed(d, t);  // OK

calculateSpeed(100, 10);  // Error: number not assignable to Meters
calculateSpeed(t, d);     // Error: can't swap distance and time!

Caveat: Arithmetic operations lose the brand:

const doubled = d * 2;
//    ^? const doubled: number  (brand lost)

Validated Strings

type SanitizedHTML = string & { _brand: 'sanitized' };
type UserId = string & { _brand: 'userId' };
type Email = string & { _brand: 'email' };

function sanitize(html: string): SanitizedHTML {
  // Actually sanitize the HTML
  return html.replace(/<script>/g, '') as SanitizedHTML;
}

function setInnerHTML(el: Element, html: SanitizedHTML) {
  el.innerHTML = html;  // Safe: we know it's sanitized
}

// Can't pass unsanitized strings
setInnerHTML(el, '<script>alert("xss")</script>');
//               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Error!

// Must sanitize first
setInnerHTML(el, sanitize(userInput));  // OK

Type-Safe IDs

type UserId = string & { _brand: 'userId' };
type PostId = string & { _brand: 'postId' };

function getUser(id: UserId): User { ... }
function getPost(id: PostId): Post { ... }

declare const userId: UserId;
declare const postId: PostId;

getUser(userId);  // OK
getUser(postId);  // Error: PostId not assignable to UserId

Sorted Arrays

type SortedList<T> = T[] & { _brand: 'sorted' };

function isSorted<T>(xs: T[]): xs is SortedList<T> {
  for (let i = 0; i < xs.length - 1; i++) {
    if (xs[i] > xs[i + 1]) return false;
  }
  return true;
}

function binarySearch<T>(xs: SortedList<T>, x: T): boolean {
  // Can assume xs is sorted
  let low = 0, high = xs.length - 1;
  while (high >= low) {
    const mid = low + Math.floor((high - low) / 2);
    const v = xs[mid];
    if (v === x) return true;
    [low, high] = x > v ? [mid + 1, high] : [low, mid - 1];
  }
  return false;
}

const nums = [1, 3, 5, 7, 9];
if (isSorted(nums)) {
  binarySearch(nums, 5);  // OK: nums is SortedList<number>
}

Alternative Branding Techniques

Using Unique Symbol (Stronger)

declare const brand: unique symbol;

type Meters = number & { [brand]: 'meters' };

// Can't be faked because brand isn't exported

Using Private Fields in Classes

class ValidatedEmail {
  private readonly _brand!: 'email';
  constructor(public readonly value: string) {
    if (!value.includes('@')) throw new Error('Invalid email');
  }
}

Preventing Vector Mix-ups

interface Vector2D {
  x: number;
  y: number;
  z?: never;  // Explicitly prevent z
}

function norm(v: Vector2D) {
  return Math.sqrt(v.x ** 2 + v.y ** 2);
}

const v3d = { x: 3, y: 4, z: 5 };
norm(v3d);  // Error: z is incompatible with never

Or use brands:

type Vector2D = { x: number; y: number } & { _brand: '2d' };
type Vector3D = { x: number; y: number; z: number } & { _brand: '3d' };

Pressure Resistance Protocol

1. "Just Use Type Aliases"

Pressure: "Type alias is simpler: type UserId = string"

Response: Type aliases don't prevent mixing up different string types.

Action: Use brands when semantic distinction matters.

2. "It's Just Runtime Overhead"

Pressure: "Adding properties to primitives costs memory"

Response: Brands are phantom types - they don't exist at runtime.

Action: Use brands freely; there's no runtime cost.

Red Flags - STOP and Reconsider

• Multiple string/number types that could be confused
• Functions that accept "any string" but expect specific formats
• Validation that happens but isn't tracked in the type system
• Bugs from swapping similarly-typed arguments

Common Rationalizations (All Invalid)

Quick Reference

// Basic brand pattern
type Brand<T, B extends string> = T & { _brand: B };

type UserId = Brand<string, 'userId'>;
type Meters = Brand<number, 'meters'>;

// Type guard pattern
function isX(val: T): val is BrandedT { ... }

// Factory pattern
const meters = (n: number) => n as Meters;

The Bottom Line

Use brands to give semantic meaning to primitives.

Brands add no runtime overhead but prevent mixing up values that happen to have the same underlying type. Use them for IDs, paths, units, validated strings, and any primitive where semantic distinction matters.

Reference

Based on "Effective TypeScript" by Dan Vanderkam, Item 64: Consider Brands for Nominal Typing.