Vue vs React: Which one to choose in 2024

— by Abhimanyu Magapu

JavaScript has become the most popular and widely used scripting language for creating web applications. JavaScript’s frameworks give the necessary definitions and features that everyone uses today. There are many different JavaScript frameworks available out there. Each has its benefits and drawbacks. Some are more suited for certain types of applications than others. Choosing the proper framework for the project you are working on is essential.

Today, the battle is mainly between ReactJs and VueJs — two tough opponents.

They both are the most rapidly developing tools for frontend development. While both these technologies can help create the same products and applications, both have pros and cons. They are both highly efficient and have multiple features, making applications’ development easy.

Framework Usage

As per Stack Overflow’s 2022 survey, 42 per cent of all developers use ReactJs and only about 19 per cent use VueJs.

Let’s look at their similarities and differences and see why and when you should pick one over the other.

What’s New In React

React Features

React is a declarative, efficient, and flexible JavaScript library for building user interfaces. It lets you compose complex UIs from small and isolated pieces of code called “components .” React has been designed for gradual adoption, and you can use as little or as much React as you need. Whether you want to get a quick start with a simple “Hello World” example or build a complex production-ready app, React is ready to help.

React is famous for its speed, simplicity, and flexibility. It is used by major companies such as Facebook, Instagram, Netflix, Airbnb, and more. Here are some of the critical features of React that make it so popular:

1. JSX: JSX is a syntax extension to JavaScript that makes writing React components more accessible. With JSX, you can write your markup and JavaScript in the same file. This makes your code more readable and easier to write.
2. React Components: React components let you split the UI into independent, reusable pieces and think about each piece in isolation. This makes it easier to build complex UIs.
3. React Router: React Router is a complete routing library for React. It lets you define your routes declaratively with JSX and gives you the power to navigate your app programmatically.
4. React Native: React Native lets you build native mobile apps using JavaScript. With React Native, you can write your app once and deploy it to multiple platforms such as iOS, Android, and Windows.
5. React Dev Tools: The React Dev Tools let you inspect the React component hierarchy, including props and state. This is a great way to debug React apps. React is a powerful and popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces.

If you’re looking for a way to make fast and scalable user interfaces, React is a great choice.

Advantages of React

Here are some of ReactJs advantages:

1. Declarative: ReactJs is declarative, which means, you can describe what your component should look like, and React will take care of the rest. This makes your code more readable and easier to draw a rationale.
2. Efficient: ReactJs is efficient because it uses a virtual DOM, a JavaScript representation of the actual DOM. This means that when a component is updated, only the elements that need to be updated are re-rendered, making the process more efficient.
3. Flexible: ReactJs is flexible because it can be used with other libraries and frameworks. This makes it easy to integrate React into your existing projects.
4. Simplifies Development: ReactJs simplifies development by taking care of the User Interface (UI) for you. This means that you can focus on developing the business logic of your application and let React take care of the UI.
5. Code reusability: It allows the developers to reuse the code components of various levels while working on the project.
6. Easy to learn: React JS is considered an easy programming language to learn in compression to other front-end frameworks, specifically for new developers. All you need to know ReactJs is knowledge of HTML and CSS.

What’s New In Vue

Vue Features

VueJs is a Javascript framework that allows developers to create user interfaces and single-page applications. It is a lightweight framework that is easy to learn and use. VueJs also has a small footprint, so it can be used in projects where performance is essential.

A striking feature of VueJs is how it handles data binding. Data binding is nothing but connecting data to elements in the user interface. With VueJs, data binding is two-way. When data in the model changes, the view updates automatically. Similarly, when data in the view changes, the model is updated automatically. This makes it easy to create dynamic user interfaces.

Another unique feature of VueJs is the way it handles components. Components are reusable pieces of code used to create user interfaces. With VueJs, components can be designed and used in several different ways. For example, they can be used as standalone components or as part of a more extensive application.

VueJs is an excellent Javascript framework for creating user interfaces and single-page applications. It is easy to learn and use and has a small footprint. Its unique data binding and component features make it an excellent choice for creating dynamic user interfaces.

Advantages of Vue

There are many reasons to love VueJs, but here are some of the most notable pros:

1. Simplicity: VueJs is very easy to learn and use. It is well-documented and has a gentle learning curve, making it an excellent choice for developers across experience levels.
2. Flexibility: VueJs is very flexible and can be used in different ways. It can be used as a traditional front-end framework, or it can be used more creatively, like using it to create custom directives or creating entire Single Page Applications (SPAs).
3. Small size: VueJs is very lightweight, which makes it fast and easy to use. The small size also means that it has a low impact on your website’s load time.
4. Virtual DOM: VueJs uses a virtual DOM, which only updates the parts of the DOM that have changed, making it much faster than other frameworks that update the entire DOM on every change.
5. Component-based: VueJs is component-based, which means that your code is modular and easy to reuse. This makes it easy to create large-scale applications with a consistent and maintainable codebase.
6. Support: VueJs has a large and active community, which means you can find help and support when needed. There is also a growing ecosystem of libraries and tools that work with VueJs, making it even more powerful and easy to use.

Comparing ReactJs and VueJs

Maturity

Vue and React have been used long enough to become mature tools. Their initial flaws were removed during this time, and the technologies significantly improved. They were created at around the same time — ReactJs by Facebook in 2013 and VueJs was released in 2014.

Continuous enhancements allowed React and Vue to become the best Javascript frameworks for building popular web products such as Instagram, Facebook, Gitlab, or Trivago, as already mentioned earlier.

Popularity

• User Satisfaction Chart‍

React slightly outperforms Vue in terms of user satisfaction.

• Most Wanted Framework

‍ReactJs was also the most wanted JavaScript Framework of 2021 according to StackOverflow, yet again outperforming Vue by around 8 per cent.

• Community

‍The size of the community speaks volumes. More questions asked about a particular framework means more users using it. There are over 400,000 questions on StackOverflow with the tag “ReactJs” and over 250,000 results on GitHub. On the other hand, there are about 96,000 questions on StackOverflow and about 113,000 responses on GitHub to the tag “Vue.Js.”

The ReactJS community is much bigger than that for Vue.js. However, the main problem refers to React’s fragmentary nature, so getting feedback on common questions is more complicated.

• Number of Downloads‍

The below graph shows the number of package downloads in the past year and a direct comparison between React and Vue.

Speed and Cost

A website can be created using either React or Vue. Speed of website creation and cost incurred are the major factors that affect the adoption choice.

React, and Vue have similar development speeds, and the difference is negligible. It ultimately boils down to the ease of use and the developer’s experience level. The libraries offered by each framework can influence your decision based on the desired outcome.

However, using one framework might cost you more than using another.

According to Codementor, the average hourly rate to hire a React developer is around 81 dollars, while it is 61 dollars for a Vue developer.

Flexibility and ease of use

• React

ReactJs is a very flexible Javascript library for building user interfaces. It has a small API and is easy to learn. There are many ways to use ReactJs, and it can be used with other libraries and frameworks.

Another essential aspect of React’s flexibility is its ability to be sprinkled into existing applications. React can replace individual elements in a page until the entire application makes the transition. (This is how Facebook slowly moved from server-rendered PHP to client-side rendered React.)

However, React does not provide you with state management, something Vue does.

• Vue‍

One of the reasons that VueJs is so flexible is that it uses a component-based architecture. This means that the framework comprises small, reusable components that can be combined to create larger applications. This makes it easy to create custom applications without writing much code from scratch.

Another reason that VueJs is so flexible is that it has many built-in features.

It also consists of a state management library called Vuex that makes it easy to manage the state of your application. This makes it easy to create complex applications without much boilerplate code. Vue is more intuitive than React, for both small and large applications.

Overall, the flexibility of VueJs makes it an excellent choice for building modern web applications. It is easy to use and has many built-in features that make it easy to create complex applications.

Performance

React, and Vue.js uses virtual DOM; however, Vue.js is much faster and more performant than React. To summarize, Vue has excellent performance, but ReactJS and Vue are formidable contenders.

Summary

• ReactJs‍

React is to be chosen while building complex web applications or working on a front-end UI that demands high user interaction. React takes care of the lower-level algorithm, which means you’ll only need to focus on the interface’s view model.

You should also shift to react if your existing code base gets out of hand. It is also easier to hire talent for React as its popularity has caused many developers to add it to their skill sets.

Another reason to opt for ReactJS is the vast number of libraries and tools that simplify and accelerate the development process.

• VueJs‍

Vue is a good choice for building small, lightweight applications. It is easy to start with and has a wide range of features that make it a good fit for many different applications.

The Vue community is smaller than the React community but is growing exponentially. Mastering all the nooks and crannies is quicker and easier as the learning curve is lower. It is an Approachable, Versatile, and Performant JavaScript framework that helps build more maintainable and testable code. It is also scalable and offers code reusability.

Both tools can be implemented interchangeably almost everywhere, but it is sometimes easier to use one over the other.

The below table sums up the factors you should consider when choosing between React and Vue.

Signing Off

In the end, React and Vue are both excellent tools for your web application. They provide a wide array of features for solving tasks of all complexities.

At Zipy, we offer a wide range of features that help you build your web application irrespective of your choice. We provide real-time error monitoring and debugging, which removes the need for hours of unnecessary error finding. Check out our entire project portfolio to learn more about the works we provide.

Call to Action

Feel free to comment or write to us in case you have any further questions at support@zipy.ai. We would be happy to help you. In case you want to explore Zipy for your app, you can sign up here or book a demo here.

Originally published at https://www.zipy.ai.