LaunchDarkly Technology Intelligence

What is LaunchDarkly?

LaunchDarkly is a feature management platform that enables teams to control feature releases through feature flags. Founded in 2014 by Edith Harbaugh and John Kodumal, LaunchDarkly helps organizations separate code deployment from feature release.

LaunchDarkly provides feature flags, A/B testing, targeted rollouts, and experimentation capabilities. Teams can release features to specific users, gradually roll out changes, and instantly disable problematic features. Over 4,000 companies including IBM, Atlassian, and Microsoft use LaunchDarkly to reduce deployment risk and accelerate development.

Key Features

Feature Flags

• Boolean Flags: Simple on/off toggles
• Multivariate: Multiple variations
• Targeting: Rules-based targeting
• Segments: Reusable user groups

Progressive Delivery

• Percentage Rollouts: Gradual release
• Canary Releases: Test with subset
• Ring Deployments: Expand gradually
• Kill Switch: Instant rollback

Experimentation

• A/B Testing: Compare variations
• Metrics: Track impact
• Statistical Analysis: Significance testing
• Holdout Groups: Control groups

Platform

• SDKs: All major languages
• Edge: Fast flag evaluation
• Audit Logs: Change tracking
• Workflows: Approval processes

Use Cases

Controlled Releases

Engineering teams release features gradually. Start with internal users for testing. Expand to beta users for feedback. Roll out to all users with confidence.

Risk Mitigation

Teams reduce deployment risk with instant rollback. Feature flags disable problematic code immediately. No redeployment required for fixes. Incidents resolve in seconds instead of minutes.

A/B Testing

Product teams run experiments to validate ideas. Compare conversion rates between variations. Statistical analysis determines winners. Data-driven decisions improve products.

Trunk-Based Development

Developers merge incomplete features safely. Flags hide work-in-progress from users. Long-lived branches become unnecessary. Continuous integration improves.

Personalization

Products customize experiences for users. Premium features for paid subscribers. Regional variations for global products. User preference toggles.

Entitlement Management

SaaS companies manage feature access by plan. Trial users see limited features. Upgrades unlock capabilities instantly. Enterprise features for specific customers.

Code Examples

JavaScript SDK

import * as LDClient from 'launchdarkly-js-client-sdk';

const client = LDClient.initialize('CLIENT_SIDE_ID', {
    key: 'user-123',
    email: '[email protected]',
    custom: {
        plan: 'premium'
    }
});

await client.waitForInitialization();

// Check feature flag
if (client.variation('new-checkout', false)) {
    showNewCheckout();
} else {
    showOldCheckout();
}

// Listen for changes
client.on('change:new-checkout', (value) => {
    updateUI(value);
});

Server-side SDK (Node.js)

import * as ld from 'launchdarkly-node-server-sdk';

const client = ld.init('SDK_KEY');

await client.waitForInitialization();

// Evaluate flag for user
const user = {
    key: 'user-123',
    email: '[email protected]',
    custom: { plan: 'premium' }
};

const showFeature = await client.variation('new-api', user, false);

if (showFeature) {
    return newApiHandler(req, res);
} else {
    return oldApiHandler(req, res);
}

React Integration

import { withLDProvider, useFlags } from 'launchdarkly-react-client-sdk';

function App() {
    const { newDashboard, experimentVariation } = useFlags();

    return (
        <div>
            {newDashboard ? <NewDashboard /> : <OldDashboard />}
        </div>
    );
}

export default withLDProvider({
    clientSideID: 'CLIENT_SIDE_ID'
})(App);

Platform Comparison

LaunchDarkly vs Split.io

• Market: Both enterprise-focused
• Experimentation: Split stronger analytics
• SDKs: LaunchDarkly broader support
• Performance: Both highly performant

LaunchDarkly vs Flagsmith

• Self-host: Flagsmith open-source option
• Cost: Flagsmith more affordable
• Features: LaunchDarkly more mature
• Enterprise: LaunchDarkly stronger

Strengths

• Industry-leading feature management
• Excellent SDK support
• Fast flag evaluation
• Strong enterprise features
• Excellent documentation

Considerations

• Premium pricing
• Can be complex for simple needs
• Learning curve for teams
• Flag cleanup becomes necessary
• Requires process changes