Frameworks are everything. Sounds bold, but it is. You can’t develop a single project today without them. A framework is a software that simplifies front-end development and assembles various modules of one project. When it comes to web development, there are so many options out there to choose from… In fact, it can quickly become overwhelming.
Why do you need a web development framework?
Websites and web applications are based on it. Code previously written in JS frameworks can be used to solve common programming problems.
The main task of the framework is to make life easier for the developer— provide maintainability, speed up the development, and reduce the web app development cost. It implies that the entire project will develop according to the predetermined structure. It sets the restrictions that must be adhered to speed up development, more accurately follow the standards, and reduce coders’ threshold to enter the project.
What are top web development frameworks to use in 2021
Trends in front-end application development have been taking shape for a long time. New frameworks appear once a year or more. It takes several years for this or that technology to enter the developer’s everyday life. Actually, there have been years “rich” in new technologies, but 2020 wasn’t — a pandemic prevented. Besides, unlike in the design industry, where trends emerge every couple of months and immediately gain popularity among design agencies, it is not easy to break into front-end trends. Moreover, when there are three front-end whales with a vibrant IT community — frameworks React, Vue.js, and Angular.
Though, it is impossible to make an accurate forecast of what will happen in 2021. It is safe to conclude technologies that will remain with us and will be widely used. Below are the frameworks that will enjoy much goodwill from developers and business owners.
1. React
It was developed by Jordan Walke, a developer at Facebook. The library was first used in 2011 in the Facebook news feed, a year later on Instagram, and in 2013 they made it open-source. React is the leader in the JavaScript UI framework today. Such giant applications as Skype, UberEats, Airbnb are written on React.
Five reasons to use it:
1. Large community
Over 114,000 posts on GitHub are tagged with “react.” The library is used worldwide, and there is a huge community of programmers behind React, including Facebook. Over the past seven years, the communities have accumulated an extensive knowledge base. When a developer is stuck on something, he can consult with/ask a specialist from all over the globe.
2. Technology from Facebook
Let’s be honest: we trust Facebook. First, because they developed React for themselves — and they don’t create bad things for themselves. Secondly, because other large companies trust these technologies. During its existence, React has managed to prove its reliability.
3. Active use of TypeScript
In the meantime, we want to note that React works well with TypeScript. If you want to check the top five languages for web development, please look here.
4. User-friendly
Most developers note that React is both cross-platform and has easy-to-read code and a low entry threshold. Any platform supports it. To start writing on it, you don’t have to contribute much time learning — you can quickly jump to real projects.
5. Versions
React’s excellence over other frameworks is versioning. The newer version of Angular or Vue.js differs from the previous one, which means that there can be a mismatch of program code versions. In React, the situation is the opposite: even three-to-five-year-old code will run smoothly in the latest version. If the framework finds an element out of date in the code, it will notify you of what needs to be fixed.
In 2021, React will linger on the market and won’t lean back its position, and we will continue to create user-friendly and necessary applications using it.
2. Vue.js
Another JavaScript framework that will make it into the top 3 frameworks for 2021 is Vue.js. At the end of 2019, Vue.js 3.0 was released. The fact that one programmer created a full-fledged framework is one of the main differences of Vue.js between other frameworks because technical giants are behind the rest. It is compared to the glorious release of Angular 2.0, which developers worldwide have been waiting for several years. Among the mix of other successful JavaScript frameworks, one of the best documentation (best in Chinese) and relatively easy to pick it up makes it so popular. The advantage of Vue.js is that moving to a new version did not require rewriting components but offers an extension for the existing version. The code in TypeScript is more rigid and “mature,” so it’s cool when the project is written in this language. By the way, the creators of Vue.js completely redeveloped the engine and improved its architecture — almost by 100%.
The Vue.js team, led by Evan Yu, promised that the framework would be as simple and handy as possible — and their words were confirmed.
And that’s why:
- The framework is ok to start with for beginners: there is easy-to-use documentation, and all you need to master is JavaScript, HTML, CSS.
- It easily adjusts from a library to a full-fledged framework.
- It is officially supported and updated.
- Likewise, it is small — the size of the new runtime library <10kb in GZIP.
- Just like React, there is a strong community of professionals ready to help if you have a problem.
- More than 36,000 applications have already been written in Vue.js.
3. Angular
What does Google trust? That’s right — the robust Angular framework. Angular is Google’s product. It is mainly used to design mobile and desktop applications. Angular is cool: it has many interdependent features, and the risk of making a mistake is minimal. As they say on the framework’s official website, “Focus on building awesome applications, don’t make your code work.”
Angular is a cross-platform framework that differs from other frameworks in its performance, features, and full support from the Google developer community.
Developers say that Angular is more complex than React and Vue.js, but because of its functionality, it is worth learning.
4. Svelte
It is a relatively young front-end JavaScript framework based on its predecessor Reactive.js and seems to be a radically new way of building user interfaces.
When you create a Svelte 3 app, your code is compiled into clean and optimized JavaScript, with no other framework dependencies included in this mix, making it very tiny. When developing with all the syntactic nuances, it looks like a framework, but then it vanishes when the code is compiled. A “vanishing framework” differs from a non-vanishing one only in that you pull the latter onto the client as it is. And every, even the smallest piece of your code will be tied to the entire framework at once. The vanishing framework optimizes the composition of the resulting code so that this code solves only the issues of your application. When popular frameworks like React and Vue.js perform most of their work in the browser, Svelte moves that stuff to the compilation phase.
It is possible to reduce the scale of a web application by reducing its size, which is an excellent feature for all heavy applications that don’t work correctly on slow internet connections. The developers say that the learning curve is not steep and ok for beginners, while experienced specialists will notice how fast and stable the framework is.
Compared to Vue.js, Angular, and React, Svelte may seem to look like a child among adults. But the framework already has almost 45,000 stars on GitHub – and it is predicted a great future for it in 2021.
Instead of conclusion
Choosing a framework can be a tricky process. Front-end trends are quite questionable, so whether to follow them or not is a private matter for every company. We keep up with the latest IT world trends and test new technologies to use only proven and cool ones. You should never go with the flow. Don’t solely rely on the web framework’s popularity, but choose frameworks that suit your needs.