Flutter vs. React Native- Which One is Better for Your Enterprise App

The mobile app market is thriving with the inclusion of new apps across different genres every day. Statista has predicted that the mobile app revenue will cross $365 billion globally in the year 2023. This is the reason why startups and entrepreneurs want to come up with a dedicated enterprise app. But then, as the number of apps keeps on increasing on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, the competition intensifies, and enterprises find it difficult to make their apps successful.

Another possibility is- you have a brilliant app idea but you have no idea of where to start from and which technology you should choose. The best idea to discuss the scope of your enterprise app and the platform you should opt for developing it is to consult a reputed mobile app development company. However, here we give you an outline of two robust cross-platform app development platforms Flutter and React Native. Both these platforms are capable of developing enterprise-grade apps.

Let’s compare these two technologies to assist you to select the right platform.

Flutter- Brief Introduction

Flutter is developed and maintained by Google. Since its release in the year 2017, this open-source UI toolkit remains popular among developers and entrepreneurs alike. The Flutter platform can develop highly interactive mobile apps for multiple platforms through a single codebase. Flutter consists of two major components- A SDK (Software Development Kit) and a UI library. Flutter app development is fast, secure, and cost-effective.

The platform is run by a programming language Dart. When you hire Flutter developers, they can build elegant and impressive UIs for iOS and Android using Dart language. Some of the top apps in marketing, finance, healthcare, and eCommerce sectors are powered by Flutter. Google Ads and Alibaba are just a few examples of Flutter-based apps.

React Native- Brief Introduction

Facebook has developed this open-source framework back in 2017. It is highly popular among developers for developing apps for Android, iOS, Apple tvOS, and Universal Windows Platform (UWP). It consists of reusable UI components and a wide range of native modules for enhancing the app’s functionality. The native modules are written in Java and Objective-C. React Native app development offers seamless code deployment and easy debugging for enterprise apps.

Apart from Facebook, Tesla and Bloomberg have put trust in this framework for building apps. Delivery.com and SoundCloud Pulse apps are also powered by React Native. The platform is run by JavaScript programming language. Globally, around 67.8% of developers prefer this programming language for building mobile apps. This is the reason for the popularity of React Native.

Let’s compare both these platforms now.

Also Read- Mobile App Development Trends to Watch in Post COVID-19

Five Points of Comparison between Flutter and React Native Platforms

  1. Setup

Both Flutter and React Native have well-written documentation about software installations for Android OS and iOS. However, React Native uses Expo CLI and React Native CLI to establish the development environment, whereas Flutter has a Flutter doctor feature to enable developers to ensure effective app installation and configuration. Flutter is a rising star, and as per the Stack Overflow data, it has got more traction as compared to React Native over the period.

 

  1. Programming Languages

It’s Dart vs JavaScript. Dart is known as a client-optimized language that ensures fast compilation to ARM and 64-bit Machine Code. It has customized user interfaces for iOS and Android. It also offers an effective AOT (Ahead-of-Time) compilation strategy to make the Flutter app development process more efficient. JavaScript, on the other hand, is a highly popular programming language with a mild learning curve. It is the client-server side language and facilitates data validation on the browser itself.

  1. Performance

Though Flutter and React Native ensure seamless performance for the enterprise apps, there are some visible differences between these two platforms. Flutter provides 60 or 120 fms on devices with 120Hz capabilities. It also provides the feature for a separate rendering time for each UI and GPU thread. The Flutter app development is ideal for creating animations and widgets. The Flutter-based app has native-like components for each platform like Material Design for Android and Cupertino widgets for iOS.

React Native has a Hot Reload feature that shows changes in the app code in real-time. Also, this framework does not restrict developers to a specific IDE, and they can develop the app in any text editor.

  1. Testing

Flutter platform offers three different testing categories- Widget testing, Unit testing, and Integration testing. What’s more, Flutter has comprehensive and well-written documentation with useful information about automated testing processes. React Native, as a JavaScript-based platform, offers unit and integration testing like Flutter. But, along with these facilities, the React Native platform has End-to-End testing (e2e) for both Android and iOS platforms. Flutter offers an e2e facility only for Android to date.

  1. Development Time

The cross-platform app development domain gains ground for two reasons- reduced development cost and faster development process. Flutter facilitates developers to create native UI components rapidly. React Native has most plugins and necessary third-party components are available outside, and therefore, it may take a little more time to build a React Native with desired functionality as compared to Flutter.

Concluding Lines

When it comes to cross-platform app development, both Flutter and React Native are great options. But, Flutter has a big advantage that Google maintains it, and therefore, developers find all the necessary components in one place easily. In React Native, most libraries are located outside the platform. But, on the other hand, React Native has a much bigger community than Flutter, and developers can get the necessary assistance quickly. Also, developers with skills in Dart language are less than the JavaScript-skilled developers.

App complexity and business objectives are some of the factors you should consider while choosing between Flutter and React Native. You can also consult a reliable cross-platform mobile app development company to know more about these platforms and find the right one for your app.

Do you want to get excellent Flutter app development services or hire React Native developers for your app project? Simply send us an email at business@suriainternational.com, and our expert consultants will get back to you soon.