Dead Code Detection

Mapnostics scans every file and flags exports, functions, classes, and entire files that are never referenced anywhere. Each flag includes a confidence score so you know exactly what is safe to delete.

What is dead code

Dead code is any code that exists in your repository but is never executed at runtime. It accumulates over years of feature flags, refactors, and abandoned experiments. Left untouched, it misleads engineers, inflates bundle sizes, and introduces hidden risk.

NOTE

Dead code is not the same as zombie code. Dead code is never called. Zombie code is called but produces stale or unused outputs. Mapnostics detects both separately.

Live demo

Watch Mapnostics scan a repository and surface dead code flags in real time. The scan bar shows progress — each flag appears as it is confirmed with a confidence score.

mapnostics.com/repo/mapnostics-app/dead-code

Dead Code Detection

mapnostics-app · last scan 2 min ago · 312 files indexed

0

Total Flags

0

Reviewed

95%+

Confidence

SCANNING…

src/utils/legacy-format.ts · L12–14100% confident

Unused export: formatDateLegacy

export

src/components/old-table/index.ts · L498% confident

Unused export: OldTableExport

export

src/hooks/useDeprecated.ts · L895% confident

Function declared but never called

function

src/pages/Beta.tsx · L1–112100% confident

Entire file — no inbound imports found

file

src/middleware/old-auth.ts · L697% confident

Exported class never instantiated

class

Reading the results

Confidence score

Confidence is calculated by checking whether the export or function is referenced anywhere — direct imports, dynamic requires, re-exports, and barrel files. A 100% score means zero references were found across the entire codebase.

Flag types

export — a named or default export that no other file imports.
function — a declared function that is never called.
class — a class definition that is never instantiated or extended.
file — the entire file has zero inbound imports anywhere in the repo.

What to do next

Run the Impact Simulator on a flagged file to confirm it has zero dependents before deleting.
Mark items as "confirmed dead" and track cleanup progress over time.
Start with 100% confidence flags — safe to delete immediately.
Share the report link with a tech lead for async review.

TIP

Teams that delete dead code in their first week see an average health score improvement of 8–12 points.