There are so many frameworks and libraries around… So how to choose the right ones for your project? We’ve gathered for you the TOP best frameworks for Front-end developer. We’re sure that this article will be your guiding star and won’t let you drown in the sea of frameworks.
A framework is a platform that provides developers with a framework for writing applications. It contains predefined and implemented classes or functions. You can also add your own code for specific tasks to what is already contained in the framework.
The main advantages of frameworks:
1. Profitability. Most frameworks are free and open source for use. As this greatly speeds up the creation of the application, it also reduces the price of the web application itself.
2. Productivity. Frameworks significantly improve productivity, all because they optimize the process as much as possible. It’s easier to use a framework with optimisation and well-structured templates than to write hundreds of lines of code.
3. Security. Trending JavaScript frameworks boast not only a large community support on GitHub, but also ironclad security.
Let’s compare the top 10 frameworks and libraries for Front-end Dev:
1. Angular
AngularJS is Google’s web application development framework. Good for dynamic web applications, using HTML for static web pages. An indispensable framework not only for software developers but also for designers. AngularJS, Angular 2 and Angular 4 are firmly established among in-demand frameworks.
Advantages:
- Open source code
- Saving code snippets for later use
- Developers face fewer bugs because bindings are built around Angular elements
- Supports various MVC elements
- Works well in an Agile environment
- Lots of tools for tests
Disadvantages:
- Complicated for beginners
- Vue is simpler in terms of architecture
- Angular’s API is huge, and you have to deal with many concepts
2. React.js
A great JavaScript framework released in 2013 by Instagram and Facebook. Using it, you can easily and simply build complex and large-scale dynamic applications. It is most often used to build user interfaces. This framework has more than 193,000 stars on GitHub.
Advantages:
- React’s motto: “Learn it once, write it everywhere”.
- Free and Open Source
- Can use code already written
- Supports virtual DOM functionality
Disadvantages:
- Virtual DOM algorithm is imprecise and slow
- Requires complex asynchronous programming when communicating with the server
3. Vue.js
It is also used to create user interfaces. Developed from the ground up for greater applicability. Consists of an accessible basic library, which focuses only on the presentation level, and an ecosystem of supporting libraries, which helps deal with the complexity of large single-page applications. This project has more than 198,000 stars on GitHub.
Advantages:
- Does not require any compilers by default,
- Transformation from library to framework in use
- Management of advanced single-page applications
- Excellent balance between readability, maintainability of code and writing the code itself
Disadvantages:
- Runtime errors in templates
- React’s component approach is more flexible
4. Ember.js
One of the most popular MVC JavaScript frameworks. It appeared in 2011 as an open source framework. It can be used to create scalable, single-page web applications quite easily and provides two-way data binding. It does a top-notch job on the server-side DOM rendering side. Supported by Discourse, Groupon, LinkedIn, Vine.
Advantages:
- Easy setup
- Deploys large user interfaces
- Two-way data binding
Disadvantages:
- Rigid project structure
- No standard set of UI elements
5. jQuery
It is not a full-fledged framework, but a library, although it is the oldest and most popular. jQuery and JavaScript have long been firmly linked. And with the MIT license, this library gives application developers the ability to write shorter code, thereby reducing the workload. It supports DOM manipulation and in tandem with CSS can be useful for any task.
Advantages:
- Widely used because of fast processing
- Performs identically in all browsers
- Great for beginners for simple applications
Disadvantages:
- Many functions to facilitate the DOM are already implemented natively
6. Node.js
It allows you to create lightweight and fast applications. It’s modern, simple, fast and non-blocking. GoDaddy and Paypal are just some of the notable companies that use Node.js. Ideal for I/O and streaming applications
Advantages:
- Simple and fast
- Such software can run on multiple hosts
- Enabling fast servers
Disadvantages:
- Not for “non-core” operations
- There is nothing to do in Node.js without tests
7. Meteor.js
We have a grandiose full-Stack platform in front of us. It has all the features any developer needs for front-end rendering, backend development and database management.
Advantages:
- Full-Stack platform
- Building full-function applications
- Reactive programming
- Fast data processing
- Low threshold of entry
Disadvantages:
- Complicated interface for newcomers
- Insufficient implementation of individual functions, including standard functions
8. Skeleton
Just the perfect pairing for JavaScript. This is a real JavaScript framework.
Great for building web applications and responsive websites. Comes with CSS grid, breakpoints, has API and browser style normalization features.
Advantages:
- Based on JavaScript and CSS
- Adaptive image for a variety of monitors
- Can be embedded into any design
- Compatible with all browsers
Disadvantages:
- Insufficient implementation of certain functions, including some standard ones
9. Appcelerator Titanium
A platform for creating mobile and desktop cross-platform JavaScript applications (HTML+CSS included). It’s both a cloud platform for building/distributing software and anything else you want to create feature-rich apps. A nice assortment of cool tools and features.
Advantages:
- Easy to use and easy to learn
- A high-performance framework
- For desktop and mobile cross-platform software
Disadvantages:
- Titanium SDK updates later than operating system SDKs
- Lack of InterfaceBuilder
- Insufficient implementation of individual functions, including standard ones
10. Aurelia.js
This platform can safely be called the next generation framework for mobile and web applications.
The best thing about Aurelia is that it is modular and contains many independent small libraries. So you can create your own framework and integrate it into the platform.
Advantages:
- Extensive set of libraries
- Creating your own framework within the platform
Disadvantages:
- A set of libraries needs to be supplemented and refined