Vue JS vs React: Pros And Cons
Vue JS and React are both leading-edge competing technologies popular for front end development. Vue JS is a popular Javascript framework for creating simple and clean user interfaces along with single page applications. It supports a virtual DOM with two-way binding. It also has a progressive design, allowing you to migrate your existing projects one feature at a time.
The React library is also very popular amongst developers. It supports a virtual DOM with two-way data bindings. Following a component based approach, React enables you to rapidly build complex web apps.
Are you a developer at crossroads, trying to decide whether to use Vue or React for your next project? To make this decision easy for you, we have compiled a guide with pros and cons of both Vue and React. Continue reading to find out various aspects of application development when using Vue JS vs React, both supporting the integration of Sencha ExtWebComponents as described in the end.
What is the Core Difference Between Vue and React?
When it comes to the core difference, Vue is a complete standalone Javascript framework with its first release made in 2014. On the other hand, React is a Javascript library, first released in 2013 and has to be used in conjunction with other libraries. They are both open source.
How are Components Built in Vue JS vs React?
One of the most significant distinctions between Vue JS and React is the syntax, and the way the view layer is developed and components are built. In Vue JS, developers use HTML templates to build the components. The view layer uses HTML templates by default but Vue developers also have the freedom to use JSX.
On the other hand, in React there is only one option and that is JSX. JSX is used to express both HTML and CSS using Javascript. JSX stands for Javascript XML and it is a Javascript syntax extension. JSX requires a tool/compiler such as the Babel transpiler, for conversion of code that can be to be further processed by a web browser.
Which is Better, HTML Templates or JSX?
If you use HTML templates, there will be a clear separation of concerns into HTML, CSS and JS. The view will be separate from the logic. JSX on the other hand, contains both HTML and CSS in one, allowing developers to build self contained and standalone UI components that hold everything from styles and rendering instructions to logic.
At the end of the day, it’s all a matter of personal choice. For novice developers HTML templates are easier to learn and work with. They have a simpler design and cleaner code. However, expert developers find JSX a very powerful and flexible tool for building components.
How Does the Performance of Vue JS and React Compare?
Benchmarking experiments have shown that Vue and React have almost the same speed of execution for most tasks, with Vue being slightly better on most metrics. Vue has more built-in smart optimizations, while React does not have any. This gives Vue an edge over React. However, we have to keep in mind that the final speed and performance of an app heavily depends upon the coding style, application size and optimization.
What About Mobile App Development in Vue JS vs React?
For mobile app development, it is important to have a development environment that lets you create native apps for all types of mobile devices. Vue has to be used with NativeScript or Capacitor that allow cross-platform mobile app development. On the other hand, React developers can use React native to build cross-platform mobile apps. It allows developers to reuse almost all the code between Android and iOS and the end result is a mobile app that has the look and feel of a native Android/iOS app. When it comes to mobile app development, it is React that leads the way.
Which is Easier to Learn, Vue JS or React?
Most developers agree that Vue JS is easier to learn as compared to React. Vue has extensive documentation, which is very easy to read and follow. It also enforces a separation of concerns for HTML, CSS and JS, which results in cleaner code that is easier to write and more reader-friendly.
When it comes to React, the JSX code coupled with the fact that React’s documentation is harder to follow, results in a slower learning curve. Unlike Vue, React’s code is structure-free with a mixing of view and logic, making it harder to read. Unexperienced developers can easily fall into a trap of writing messy code, which is hard to read and troubleshoot.
When it comes to more readable and well structured code, Vue is the obvious winner.
How Do Vue JS and React Compare When Developing Large Scale Projects?
Vue JS is ideal for building single page applications and you can build a simple application real fast. While HTML templates make Vue JS code simpler and easier to read, they are not very advantageous for building large scale projects.
Compared to Vue, React is the choice of platform for SaaS products and enterprise-grade solutions. React is a lightweight library that can be used for developing multi-page applications. Compared to Vue, it is more flexible and the code is reusable. With React, there are numerous libraries and off-the-shelf solutions for many tasks. Developers don’t have to write functions from scratch as it’s likely that a solution is already available. Hence, it’s very easy to develop large scale projects in React.
How Do I Leverage Sencha ExtWebComponents in Vue JS and React?
Sencha ExtWebComponents are all you need build data intensive web apps. You get components that interact seamlessly, and are professionally built, tested and maintained. There are 140+ pre-built UI components that are fully supported and designed to work together over the entire lifetime of the application.
This detailed documentation explains how you can easily integrate Sencha ExtWebComponents to a Vue JS app. If React is your game, you can read this guide for a detailed explanation of adding ExtWebComponents to React apps. What’s more you can use them in conjunction with Sencha WebTestIt, a lightweight IDE optimized for building UI web tests with Selenium or Protractor.
