React or Angular? The Frontend for the Future
Have a great idea that you can’t wait to design, develop, and deploy? Giving your idea form via a web or mobile application is certainly the way to go forward, but the dilemma of choosing just the right framework can be downright infuriating.
Angular and React are undoubtedly the hottest in the market for polished, smooth-functioning front-end frameworks based on JavaScript. So, which one to choose?
1. Quick Overview
Developed and maintained by Facebook, React.js is a popular library based on JavaScript that has provisions for building and rendering components for a webpage. Creating React application usually requires the use of additional libraries for functionalities like routing and state management, giving greater scope for user flexibility. It is advisable to make use of JSX, a syntax extension of JavaScript, for a more convenient UI design procedure.
Angular is a framework maintained by Google. It is built on Typescript, which is nothing but a subset of JavaScript. It’s all in one, with built-in tools for routing, state-management, and form validation.
1. Angular
● Learning Curve: Angular has the steepest learning curve because it uses TypeScript rather than JavaScript. The modules, components, and syntax are quite different from what you would be familiar with JavaScript. Angular also doesn’t have a community as vibrant as others for support. However, it does have a lot of built-in features that guide developers into industry-standard coding patterns.
● Single-Page Applications(SPA): When it comes to SPA, the ball land in the court of Angular. Single-page applications are based on a single template being rendered with JavaScript controlling the view. Upon interaction with the webpage, rather than sending a request to the server, the JavaScript code is modified and rendered correspondingly.
Angular was built explicitly for the purpose of creating SPAs. With its built-in tools and services, Angular provides for the rapid development of SPAs.
● Multi-Page Applications (MPA): These are the traditional websites that send requests to the server and render the required page’s HTML. Here, Angular takes a step back;
Compiling TypeScript within an HTML-driven app like an MPA affects performance and throws up complications for the developers, like importing Angular packages with HTML.
● Development Speed and Flexibility: As aforementioned, Angular has built-in processes to produce a working application at a swift pace. However, this also affects the customizability, as you’re restricted to the Angular-provided components.
● DOM: Angular uses real DOM which employs the technique of updating the entire HTML tree structure upon every revision.
● Data Binding: Two-way data binding; Model state changes automatically with a change in UI, and vice-versa.
● Used by: Google, HBO, Sony, Forbes, General Motors.
2. React.Js
● Learning Curve: React can be said to have a milder learning curve than Angular. One has to adapt to using JSX, a hybrid syntax of HTML and JavaScript. It has very well written documentation and a large community for support.
● Single-Page Applications(SPA): Lacking the built-in tools that Angular flaunts, creating SPAs are not as easy as that using Angular, but are in no way extremely complicated.
● Multi-Page Applications (MPA): ReactJs can be used to create complex websites by importing JavaScript-based modules that can be easily integrated with a page’s HTML.
● Development Speed and Flexibility: React.Js also offers quick development, Create-React-App CLI offers a tool for quick setup. Most importantly, the React framework provides the freedom to choose tools, libraries, and architectures for development, paving way for highly customizable apps.
● DOM: React uses virtual DOM which enhances performance drastically as changes can be tracked and updated without affecting other parts of the HTML tree.
● Data Binding: One-way data binding; UI changes can be implemented only after the model state is changed. Although this might seem cumbersome, in the long run, it is efficient to maintain consistency for larger apps.
● Used by: Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Uber, Airbnb, Netflix, Dropbox
In Conclusion,
- Angular is a good option if you have experience with Java, C#. The app complexity lies from low to medium level and if you are looking for ready-to-use solutions.
- React is the way to go if you’re well versed in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, you’re looking to develop an app with non-generic features or a highly customized app.
- React supports you if you’re looking for scalability, where extensive components that exist in variable states like active/inactive navigation items, dynamic inputs, user login, and access permissions, buttons
enabling/disabling are to be shared across multiple applications.
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