What Is Boilerplate in Coding? (And Why It’s the Necessary Evil of Programming)

A Dive into the Repetitive Code We Can’t Live Without

Photo by Hannes Wolf on Unsplash

Let’s time travel to the 19th century. Back then, “boilerplate” wasn’t about code; it was about literal metal plates — steel sheets to be precise. These plates were used in making boilers (think old-school industrial steam engines). Why does this matter to programming? Stay with me.

Fast forward to newspapers. Editors realized they could save time by reusing pre-written sections, like legal disclaimers, advertisements, or even filler content. Instead of rewriting them every time, they printed these on durable metal plates — boilerplates. The term stuck around to describe anything standardized, repeatable, and kind of dull.

Programmers, being the metaphor-loving creatures we are, borrowed this term to describe the code we repeatedly write but don’t particularly enjoy writing. So now, boilerplate code refers to the necessary, yet mind-numbing, building blocks that kickstart your project.

What Exactly Is Boilerplate in Programming?

Boilerplate code is the unglamorous, reusable scaffolding you write over and over again to make things work. It’s the digital equivalent of laying down a base layer…