React Native vs Flutter Comparison: Better Development Framework to Succeed in 2020
Without mincing words, there has been an unending debate for or against React Native vs Flutter. The truth is, both of these platforms are popular and used by tons of people around the world. While React Native is backed by Facebook, Google owns Flutter framework. Both platforms are great and come with their limitations.
Now, the million-dollar question is which of these platforms should you opt for? Which one is best for your business? Read on, and you’ll find all the answers to your questions.
React Native, what is it?
Powered by Facebook, React Native is a uniquely designed cross-platform mobile development framework that makes use of components to develop applications bit by bit. This powerful platform allows developers to use JavaScript to develop any app of their choosing. Like we mentioned earlier, this platform is supported by Facebook and boasts of a huge following community.
How React Native Works?
Are you new to app development and thinking about how react native works? Then you’re welcome to read further. To put things simply, apps developed using React Native usually have a specially developed UI thread for displaying elements. That’s not all, it also features JS thread which is used to deal with logic, a Native Modules thread that aids seamless access to platform API and of course a Render thread (Android 5.0) which helps generate OpenGL commands to draw UI. With all these threads interacting together, the app is prepped to run smoothly.
Here is how to get started if you want to make the most of React Native:
- Start by installing Node 10 LTS or a newer version
- Proceed to start the React Native program by running the following command:
npm install -g expo-cli
3. To build your very first app using this platform, run the following command:
expo init AwesomeProject
cd AwesomeProject
npm start #you can also use: expo start
For people still wondering how they can seamlessly run a React Native app once they deploy it, please do well to install Expo clients and follow every bit of instructions laid out.
What is React Native Platform Used for?
This powerful platform is the go-to platform for many developers looking for a cross-platform mobile solution. Cool thing is that React Native has been around for over 5 years and is used by developers to design apps. From Facebook to Instagram to Pinterest and others, these platforms are used by thousands of developers to design their favorite apps.
Advantages and Disadvantages that Come with Using React Native
- Makes use of a single codebase for multiple platforms
- Uses JavaScript, one of the most widely used programing language
- Maturity
- Large, responsive community
- Easy to use
- Limited features
- Includes libraries that are no longer supported
- Apps are bigger than native ones
What is Flutter?
Just like React Native, Flutter app development is a powerful toolkit that developers can leverage to design interfaces for different screen sizes and devices. This exciting app development platform comes with fantastic built-in widgets that can be used to layout any application. With Flutter widgets, developers can easily layout app elements in rows and columns while also aligning them in the best way possible.
For more information, you can explore our article on Flutter vs Xamarin Comparison.
How Does Flutter Work?
To put things simply, Flutter framework begins with a blank window that allows app developers to draw whatever needs to be rendered on the screen. Using this platform grants you access to tons of widgets that can easily be combined together like building blocks and customized to suit your needs.
Simply follow this easy Flutter tutorial to install Flutter and start using right away:
- Visit Flutter official website to get the latest version of this program
- Now, proceed to extract the zip file to your most preferred location
What can Flutter be used for?
Like React Native, Flutter has a myriad of uses including cross-platform mobile app development. Today, this incredible platform is used to develop apps for different industries including healthcare and entertainment. Alibaba, Tencent, and Google are just a few companies that use this platform.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Flutter
- Fast and seamless development
- Uses a single codebase for multiple platforms
- Flawless app performance
- Reduced testing time
- Lacking the support of CI platforms
- A growing community
- Apps are larger in size than those developed using React Native
React Native vs Flutter Showdown
React Native vs Flutter for Developers: Which One is Future-Ready?
If you are an app developer, there is no doubt that you’ll have to confront this dilemma. The moment you publish a killer app on the iOS market, you’ll start getting messages like “when is it coming out on Android”
And because you are under immense pressure to meet users’ demand, you may choose to go the old fashion way of building a native app from scratch for an entirely different operating system. But here is the snag, if you follow through this path, every update or bug fixes will have you on edge.
This is because working through two codes built using two separate languages isn’t a stroll in the park. More so, you’ll be doing double work. That’s not all, you may even have to address the issue of different screen sizes and aspect ratios. This is where Flutter and React Native become very important.
React Native vs Flutter: Extensibility and Integration
React Native
Although this platform is super popular, it comes with a limited set of features. Rendering using React Native UI allows developers to display content on the screen of the device. The exciting thing about React Native is that you are granted access to tons of features related to that physical device. To put things in retrospect, you can enjoy seamless access to a device’s camera or geolocation features. However, you’ll need to reach out for third party dependence if you need access to navigation and testing. This is where many developers find React native lacking.
Flutter 🥇
Once you have installed flutter, you’ve access to every widget needed to build an entire app. And just like React Native, this platform allows for UI rendering as well as grants device API access. Another impressive thing about Flutter is that you’ll enjoy full access to navigation, testing, widget library, and state management. With Flutter software development tools, developers have access to everything they need to develop their chosen software. A lot of developers prefer this platform because it grants them access to all the tools they need to develop an app from start to finish
React Native vs Flutter Community Support
React Native 🥇
Since it was launched 5 years ago, this platform has enjoyed massive support and use. As a matter of fact, this platform has seen workshops, conferences, and meetups organized year after year. The React Native EU 2019 conference was held in Wroclaw, Poland with over 300 people in attendance. Popular React Native app developers have gone on to gladly showcase their projects in the React Native community on GitHub.
Flutter
Since its inception in 2017, Flutter mobile framework has continued to gain widespread acceptance and use. More so, developers are increasingly leveraging this platform to develop their apps. From January 23–24, Flutter enthusiasts will make their way to Warsaw, Poland for this year’s Flutter Europe conference. And while it is still super hard to find answers to some basic problems and considering the fact that there are limited Flutter development courses and resources, the community is hopeful it will meet up to the challenges in this platform.
React Native vs Flutter Language Choice
React Native 🥇
Using React Native, developers have a choice to either use dynamically typed JavaScript, statically typed TypeScript or JavaScript with Flow. What this means is that you have a vast array of languages you’re already familiar with while developing apps on the React Native platform.
Flutter
Using Flutter for app development will mean having access to Dart, which is the only language this platform offers developers. This language leverages C-like syntax, plus it is statically typed. Although Dart is very similar to JavaScript and TypeScript, it is still not widely used. Thankfully, its short learning curve and productivity will see it become quite popular in 2020. Some developers have called Dart the “JavaScript killer.”
React Native vs Flutter Difficulty Curve
React Native
Using this platform is super easy. This is because building apps using React Native is simple and straightforward. Nevertheless, things become super challenging as the project grows, this is so because you’ll find it difficult to implement advanced features like testing and navigation. To be able to create more complex components, you’ll need to get a hang of multiple third-party libraries. And because most of these libraries are developed as a side project, you’ll find it difficult to implement the needed updates. There is no doubt that using third-party libraries will also lead to a shortfall in productivity. It is also important to mention that outdated documentation and unresolved issues can slow down development.
Flutter 🥇
Featuring loads of documentation, classes, built-in functionality, and an exciting array of widgets, it can be difficult getting a hang of this platform. Don’t forget that you’ll also have to learn Dart, which is the only language currently available on the platform. Without a doubt, Flutter learning curve is very challenging, but if you can get over that, everything becomes seamless as you progress. And because you have access to tons of tools, you’re bound to enjoy working on this platform. It’s true that you may not be able to do much when starting out with Flutter, but once you get a hang of this platform, you’ll experience long-lasting results and productivity.
React Native vs Flutter State Management
React Native 🥇
Using React Native, users have access to component level states they can use to tie data to each component rendering. That’s not all, this platform also allows you to work with Redux and Mobx. As one of the most admired state containers, Redux allows users to develop apps that can operate in different environments (client, server, native) while behaving consistently. With MobX, users of this platform have a standalone library they can leverage for their app development process.
Flutter
State management using Flutter allows users to work with Stateful Widgets. Sadly, stateful widgets aren’t perfect for use with large applications. To find an effective solution for large applications, you’ll need to use Scoped Models, Redux, or even BLOC Pattern. The glitch here is that you’ll have to go the extra mile to figure out which one of these solutions works best for you. More so, there isn’t any consensus in the Flutter community regarding which state management tool works best.
React Native vs Flutter for Entrepreneurs: Which One to Choose?
Determining which of these platforms is best for your business isn’t an easy decision. Again, mobile app development can be pretty costly and time-consuming if developed using the wrong tool and by the wrong persons. To make an easy decision regarding which of these cross-platform development tools you should work with, let’s look closely at these platforms from the perspective of business owners.
React Native vs Flutter Platform Support
React Native 🥇
React Native development tool is used to build apps for iOS, Android and Web Apps. Also, you can get early access to React Native for windows. Today, there are a number of macOS forks and extensions available for desktop platforms. And while there are still some limitations present in web development, this platform offers reliable support for mobile and web development.
Flutter
On the flip side, Flutter is uniquely designed to provide support for Android (ARM devices) and iOS devices beginning with iPhone S4. This platform is known to grant early access to web and macOS projects. At the moment, the company is developing updates to Support Windows and Linux. In a couple of years, Flutter is expected to catch up with React Native in terms of platform coverage.
React Native vs Flutter Development Speed
React Native
React Native boasts of a quick refresh feature. This feature allows developers to inject new code snippets directly into a running application. Using this feature, app developers can easily see how the app changes without necessarily having to rebuild. The latest version of this framework unifies hot and live to reload, these features make development faster and can prevent mistakes and typos. Unfortunately, React Native uses native and bridge components which has greatly proven to reduce development.
Flutter 🥇
With Flutter, coding is super-fast as developers have access to all the tools needed to implement instant changes, fix bugs, add exciting features as well as experiment with multiple solutions. Also, it features Skia Graphics library which allows for UI to be redrawn quickly at 60 frames per second. And because Flutter is widget-based, app development using this platform is seamless and smooth. To this end, using Flutter for cross-platform development will prove to be a smarter choice.
React Native vs Flutter Development Cost
React Native and Flutter 🥇
Both Flutter and React Native are open-source. What this means is that the cost of app development largely depends on the team, project size as well as any additional resources they may require during app development. Reach out to us to get a detailed estimate for your preferred platform.
In a Nutshell
Without a doubt, Flutter and React Native both have their advantages and disadvantages. Also, they were uniquely designed to solve inconveniences that may arise when developing apps. Although they have some similarities, they are different in many ways. Each of these platforms is poised to solve specific problems at certain costs. It will also interest you to know that none of this framework is perfect as any of them can be used to provide the ultimate solution your business needs to scale through.
