Best Frameworks to Build Your Next Web Applications

Web application frameworks have become an integral part of modern web development. They provide software engineers with a great variety of features to build efficient apps powered by the latest web development technologies.

A vast number of frameworks available on the market make it challenging to decide which one to use for the particular project. In this article, we will cover the top web app frameworks to make your choice less confusing.

Most Popular Web Development Frameworks in 2021

A well-chosen framework is a cost-cutting and time-efficient solution for the companies to build robust applications in compliance with customer demands. To help you choose the one most suitable for your business, let’s look into the advantages and disadvantages of the best back-end and front-end frameworks.

Best Back-End Frameworks

Node.js

Node.js is not just a framework but an open-source runtime JavaScript environment. It has become one of the most popular choices for back-end web app development as it helps software engineers create highly efficient and lightweight applications.

Pros

1. Robust and fast performance. Node.js is powered by the Google Chrome engine V8 that helps to accelerate the compilation of JavaScript into machine code. Thus, Node.js can handle many operations simultaneously, letting developers build fast-performing and scalable web applications.
2. Event-driven architecture. The event-based model allows Node.js to process data in real-time, making it particularly useful for applications that need constant data updates such as games, chats, etc.
3. Large community. Since Node.js executes JavaScript (one of the most popular programming languages), it benefits from many developers contributing to its improvement.
4. Scalable solutions for microservices. Being lightweight and fast-performing, Node.js is an effective tool for building and deploying microservices solutions.

Cons

1. Decreased performance with heavy computation tasks. Node.js’s major problem is slow performance while processing massive CPU-bound tasks. It allocates all the CPU power to accomplish them, slowing down other processes.
2. Lack of experienced developers. Despite common misconceptions, not all JavaScript developers know how to work on Node.js. Moreover, this JavaScript environment has a steep learning curve, discouraging many software engineers from using it for web app development.
3. Poor library support. Since Node.js is an open-source environment, its libraries often lack professional control. As a result, many packages miss necessary documentation and fail to respond to existing coding standards.

Laravel

Laravel is a free, open-source PHP framework used for developing web applications with Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture. This framework focuses on facilitating development processes by providing software engineers with powerful and convenient tools to create robust and scalable applications.

Pros

1. Artisan.  A command-line interface is used in Laravel to help developers handle repetitive and time-consuming tasks letting them build skeletal codes, generate MVC files, create their own commands, etc.
2. Rich libraries. Laravel offers developers a vast number of different libraries with a great variety of tools to create efficient, responsive, and feature-rich applications.
3. Small learning curve. This framework doesn’t require much effort and time for learning. Moreover, Laravel offers thorough documentation with well-explained classes, coding styles, etc.
4. MVC model. MVC architecture lets developers create well-structured web apps with clear logic.

Cons

1. Lack of inbuild support. Since Laravel is a lightweight solution, it lags behind other more weighty frameworks such as Ruby on Rails in terms of inbuilt support.

Best Front-End Frameworks

AngularJS

AngularJS is an open-source JavaScript-based framework introduced by Google. It has become one of the most popular frameworks to develop the client-side of custom web apps. 

Pros

1. Two-way data binding. Two-way data binding lets developers reduce time spent on writing code for synchronization between View and Model used in the MVC design pattern.
2. Directives. This feature allows developers to create custom HTML syntax focusing on the needs of the particular app. Moreover, it helps to keep the scripts and HTML pages well-organized.
3. Testable. AngularJS offers developers unit and end-to-end testing options, making the process of debugging and testing more efficient and accurate. 
4. Large community. AngularJS has an active community of over 600 contributors that fosters framework development and improvement.

Cons

1. Performance issues. AngularJS helps to create dynamic web applications that, due to their complex structure, can have decreased performance speed. 
2. Steep learning curve. This framework provides developers with a wide variety of features and tools that may seem challenging at first. Moreover, AngularJS has limited documentation compared to other web application frameworks. Yet, things can become easier due to the strong community support.

ReactJS

ReactJS is an open-source JavaScript library developed and maintained by Facebook. 

Many companies choose ReactJS for their web application development projects since it is an effective solution for creating UI components with frequent data changes.

Pros

1. Virtual DOM. It’s a key advantage of ReactJS that solves the issue with decreased app performance speed when updating the DOM. Virtual DOM makes app performance faster and more consistent by re-rendering only actual components that were manipulated.
2. Reusable components. ReactJS lets software engineers reuse design components making the development process time-efficient and more accurate.
3. SEO-friendly. Google faces many issues with understanding JavaScript. To eliminate problems connected with JavaScript page indexing ReactJS uses server-side rendering. This way, Virtual DOM returns to the browser as a usual HTML page, helping Google to rank it adequately.
4. Strong support. ReactJS is a popular library with a strong community of more than 1000 contributors. Moreover, it provides developers with a big choice of free tutorials that help to solve any arising issues.

Cons

1. Development pace. ReactJS is an ever-evolving library. Some developers, however, see it as a hurdle since it’s complicated to keep up with and adopt continuous changes. Moreover, as ReactJS is constantly updating, there is little time to provide sufficient documentation.
2. JSX. It’s a JavaScript extension that lets XML or HTML-like texts co-exist with JavaScript in ReactJS environment. However, many developers consider it an extra challenge that makes the learning curve steeper.

Summing Up

A well-chosen framework determines much the future success of the web application. Since various front-end and back-end frameworks have their merits and drawbacks, before choosing one to build your next app, it’s necessary to analyze their core features weighing them against the main requirements of your project.

Opting for custom web application development services will help you create robust and consistent apps that will lead your company to the top of the market competition.