Developing mobile apps has always been a pillar of strength in the tech industry, but having various platforms for creating apps is confusing. Apart from having two platforms iOS and Android, some multiple solutions and types provide an idea of building cross-platform mobile apps.
Currently, the most strong contenders in this field are Facebook’s React Native and Google’s Flutter. Now we will take a close look at the details of Flutter, and React Native Development Services. It is necessary to know everything about them before starting to work on it.
Two cross-platform technologies Flutter from Google and React Native from Facebook are creating a buzz. In the world full of apps it is necessary to have an app for every company to stay ahead in the competition.
So the companies are looking for the option to make apps for platforms like Android and iOS with fewer resources and faster speed. Flutter with Dart and React Native with Javascript both are extremely successful. That is why Flutter app development companies are looking to hire flutter developers and React Native developers.
Popular apps made with React Native are Instagram, Facebook, Fb Ads manager, Bloomberg, Pinterest, Wix.com, Tesla, Skype, and many more. Popular apps made with Flutter are Alibaba, Google Ads app, App for JD Finance, and many more.
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Since technologies are transforming every day and so the market does, these cross-platform mobile apps are becoming beneficial for developers. To find how to take a look at below-
Flutter is referred to as a reactive cross-platform mobile app development structure created by Google and using the Dart language of Google. Initially, Flutter was launched at Dart developer summit in 2015. Then, after three years, Google unveiled the first stable launch version Flutter 1.0 on Dec 5th 2018 at the live event of Flutter.
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Flutter App Development Services are used for building apps for iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Google Fuchsia, Linux, and the web via a single code base. Strong support from Google helped Flutter fastly get other cross-platform options such as React Native. At the core, Flutter is a reactive framework and includes a lot of ready-to-use widgets.
Applications of Flutter are assembled using arm C or C++ library so that it is alongside machine language and gives improved native production. Some of the popular apps developed by Flutter are Now Live, AI Teacher, QiDian, K12, and DingDang. It also helped the famous Ken Ken puzzle to life on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and the web.
According to Statista, React Native is the third most wanted tool among developers. Flutter has the 6th place as of early 2019. Flutter has 72,675 GitHub Stars, while React Native has 80,034 (August 2019). React Native has 56,808 Stack Overflow questions. Flutter was tagged in 21,357 questions (August 2019). (source)
React Native is known as a cross-platform native mobile app development framework developed by Facebook dependent on their React JavaScript library. This framework majorly uses an extension of JavaScript, JavaScript with JSX, ES6 (ECMAScript 6), main update to JavaScript that comprises various new features and React.JS, a JavaScript library for evolving user interfaces.
React native developers help you to create mobile apps using components of React Native that are assembled into native apps and referred to as almost similar to apps using native tools. This amazing framework enables developers to build strong mobile apps via existing JavaScript knowledge.
It provides faster mobile development and more effective code sharing across Android, iOS, and the web; without hampering the app quality and experience of end-users. Some of the popular apps made with React Native include Facebook, Instagram, Tesla, Bunch, Bitesnap, ChaperHome, Bloomberg, Crisp, Coinbase Pro, etc.
To differentiate two frameworks, productivity is the factor along with the developer’s experience and convenience of using each framework. Here we have divided productivity in several parts to check which one is best and why.
Installation and Configuration
The installation process is more convenient in Flutter. For error inspection, Flutter offers a tool that is known as “Flutter Doctor”. React Native provides libraries that are important in development. Also, it has some tools which help to create new apps. Popular tools to create a new app is Expo React Native App.
Hot Reload Support
Whenever there are code changes, this function relaunches the app automatically. Hot reload feature saves a lot of time and makes the development process easier. Both Flutter and React Native support hot reload features. With a lack of support for dart in many text editors and IDEs.
Code Structure
In the code structure of React Native and Flutter, there is a huge difference. Flutter doesn’t use any other visual tools or templating languages. Flutter’s data and templates are not divided all over the code. React Native leaves the developer’s structure decision, which makes it considered as a compromise.
Hardware Specific API
React native provides programming interfaces like Wi-Fi and Geolocation. Other options are also available in React Native like Bluetooth, camera, NFC, biometrics etc. Flutter hardware-specific API’s are in their early stages of development. Flutter’s success depends on the Hardware-specific API quality.
Flutter is a manageable UI toolkit that is used for creating natively-compiled apps from a single codebase over the web, mobile, and desktop. Flutter uses its proprietary platform, interactive widgets, structural, and visual. These widgets are inbuilt UI components and capable to take the place of the native UI components.
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Using Flutter it is easy to improve flexibility and provide customized UI components. It is possible to gain a high level of compatibility Using Flutter’s widgets, with OS’s components along with native screens
There are Flutter UI elements:
On the other hand, React Native allows developers to traverse native UI components and models. Because the React Native UI libraries are quite broad the developers can get more individualized user experience.
Flutter was developed in 2017 and React Native was developed in 2015 that’s why many popular applications like Facebook, Instagram were developed in React Native. Also compared to Flutter React Native has more users currently. But Flutter is also getting so much popularity rapidly.
Look at these pros and cons of Flutter framework-
Advantages of Flutter include-
One Codebase
Writing only one code base with Flutter can support Android and iOS platforms, and similar codebase can be used for other sorts of platforms backed by Flutter comprising the web. Flutter has its designs and widgets, so you have the option to develop the exact similar app on both the platforms.
Hot Reload
It is one of the massive powers of using this cross-platform framework. Flutter has the capability to get a near-instant resemblance of changes. Hot reload permits developers to make adjustments to the codebase and not restart the app to apply changes.
Debugging or Cut-down the Time
If you are having the same app for both platforms by a React Native App Development Company and also the same codebase, it refers to that you only require to debug one time despite being unique for every platform.
Amazing App Design
This framework has its own personalized widgets and doesn’t have native system elements. It has a user-friendly UI, and its impressive look provides it with a good advantage over React Native.
Fast Fluid UI
Flutter apps accelerate a fast and fluid UI, and it is because of the Skia Graphics Library. The UI is redrawn every time with the library while changing view. By taking help from GPU, Flutter UI provides a fast and smooth experience.
Suitable for MVPs
A thing to consider while looking for options of cross-platform development is how easily and fastly, it can make an app? There is a massive demand for creating a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for an app. Nothing is better than Flutter for it.
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Similar App UI
The non-dependency on native elements and using cross platforms are exactly similar and work for newer and older devices. Apps will look similar whether on newer versions or older Android/iOS devices.
Flutter Support and Community
The community support has been a disadvantage; while comparison due to Flutter being a new substitute than React native. Even, the React Native App Development Companies couldn’t help it, and Flutter surpassed React native in community support and popularity.
Here are the cons-
Libraries
Google has been supporting the Flutter strongly and also the community. Libraries have run from a long time but still, some range of operations would be accessible or superior executed in native evolution due to different libraries.
App Sizes
Flutter framework has been employed on this, and they have their own libraries to decrease the file sizes. But flutter apps are supposed to be a huge size compared to native ones.
Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of React Native-
Take a look at the advantages-
Performance
This framework assembles the app into native apps almost similar to apps developed using native tools to make them quicker than hybrid apps.
Hot Reloading
A feature of React native that can’t be provided by the Flutter App Development Company is that it permits changes in the code for effects in Android and iOS Apps to visualize the alterations immediately.
Free and Open-source
React Native framework is entirely free to use opposed to other options, such as using no-code solutions or an app builder for the cross-development needs.
Reliability
Various leading mobile apps of the world use React Native; that was launched by Facebook comprising Instagram, Facebook, Skype, and SoundCloud. So, we can say that it is trustworthy and stable.
Testing
Debugging is easy in it, and it publishes native applications that can be tested using the tool, Expo. It is an open-source and free toolchain created around React Native without the requirement of opening them in Android Studio or Xcode.
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Below are the disadvantages-
New Technologies
Learning ECMAScript and JSX is not an easy task, and it might take more time, rather than other known technologies such as CSS and HTML.
Native Code
For some examples, you might have to use platform-specific code or native code in the mobile apps, particularly if you require to access the hardware devices like GPS or camera that can deem the framework useless for smaller teams.
To give you an overall idea about the average cost of native apps, we can say that the cost depends upon different factors like platform, features, technologies, development team, etc. But to develop a native app with basic features will cost you around $70K to $80K.
If you want to have a Flutter app from a Flutter mobile app development company, it can cost you under $50,000K with simple features and a middle complexity software. Whereas, React Native App will cost you around 30% to 40% less than a basic native app.
In the near future, Flutter can be an excellent alternative to React Native to develop mobile applications. Flutter provides all necessary libraries to developers. That is why there is no need for flutter developers to look for third parties. Flutter and React Native developers frequently utilize declarative programming language.
That is why it would be easy and comfortable for React Native developers to switch on Flutter Framework. Also, there will be high demand to hire flutter developers than React Native in Flutter app development companies.
