React vs Angular vs Vue- Which is the Best Front-End Technology for Web Apps?

The front-end framework used in developing a web app affects almost everything in the website: its speed, cost of development, compatibility with other technologies, performance, and much more. Though the front-end code can be written in any programming language, the code will eventually be converted into JavaScript as browsers only execute JS. 

A JavaScript framework like React, Angular or Vue, enables developers to create modern applications with top-notch UI features. These technologies can be used interchangeably for building front-end applications and offer tools that allow developers to create powerful web applications within a reduced development time. 

This article will give you an overview of the most powerful Javascript front-end frameworks and help you choose the right technology for your project needs.

General Architecture of Angular, React and Vue

Angular

The Angular framework belongs to the MEAN stack, which is the hottest technology stack for building high-performance websites. Angular is composed of modules, services and components. Every component has a Class or a Template that defines the application logic and Metadata (also known as decorators) that guide where the building blocks are present to create and present the project.

 The templates in Angular are written in HTML and may include special directives to output reactive data and render multiple elements. Components use services for delegating business-logic tasks (for example: fetching data or validating input). This framework is based on TypeScript and is mainly used for building single-page web applications (SPAs).

React

This open-source, front-end library is primarily used for developing user interfaces since it introduces a flexible front-end solution without having to enforce a specific project structure. A few code lines are all that's needed to get started with React, and hence it is comparatively a simpler language to learn and implement.

React is based on JavaScript and can be combined with JavaScript XML to create elements containing HTML and JavaScript at the same time. React components are independent and reusable pieces that can be used throughout the web application.

Vue

Vue is an open-source Model-View-View-Model (MVVM) front-end JS library used to develop user interfaces and Single Page Applications (SPAs). When used with other tools to create a dynamic UI, Vue shows versatility, high performance and provides an optimal user experience on a web application. The ViewModel layer in Vue is used to make sure that the application data is processed to allow the framework to render an up-to-date view. Vue's syntax combines recognizable HTML with special directives and features that enable a developer to create View components that are reusable, self-contained and small. 

Additionally, the Single File Components with the extension .Vue comprise of HTML, JavaScript, and CSS so that all the necessary codes stay in one file at a single location to organize the code. To transpile SFCs into working JavaScript code, add on tools are needed (For example, Webpack or Browserify)

Distinguishing Factors between React, Angular and Vue

The three factors that are necessary for distinguishing these JavaScript frameworks include: 

Document Object Model (DOM) manipulation: It helps a developer understand which framework performs better for highly dynamic applications.

Startup time: : The framework that will provide a faster initial load time is especially useful for applications that require more speed.

Memory allocation: : The framework that operates better with the allocated memory while performing bulk operations such as reading or writing thousands of records from the database.

Let's give you a snapshot of the factors that distinguish Angular, React and Vue.

Angular

• Seamless third-party integrations for improving and enhancing the functionality of the product/application, especially in terms of DOM Manipulation. 
• The entire web page will be re-rendered even if only a single item is changed due to the regular DOM being used.
• Faster load time and security strength, thanks to its compiler.
• Reduces the initial load time of a webpage since this framework splits tasks into logical chunks. Additionally, it facilitates compiling of HTML and TypeScript into JavaScript for faster compilation of the code much before the browser starts to load the web app.
• A robust collection of components for better writing, altering and using the code.
• The MVC model helps in performing queries in the background and separating views. It also helps developers to build rich and single-page applications.
• Decoupling components allows for reusability and ease of management and testing of components.

React

• Best used in complex applications that require frequent changes because of efficient DOM manipulation.
• Virtual DOM is used, where the copy of the updated elements in the DOM will be compared to a snapshot of the regular DOM, and then just the modified components are re-rendered.
• Supports bundling and tree-shaking for reducing the end users' resource loads, thereby improving website load and startup time.
• One-way data-binding support for better project control.
• React JS library has a large community of coders and developers to offer quick solutions to any problem encountered during development.
• In terms of the learning curve, React is the quickest to learn and adapt as compared to Vue and Angular. 

Vue

• Helps to create efficient and sophisticated single-page applications.
• Virtual DOM is used, where the copy of the updated elements in the DOM will be compared to a snapshot of the regular DOM, and then just the modified components are re-rendered
• The size of the Vue framework is small that makes it faster to download and install
• The great thing about the virtual DOM in Vue.js is that it allows updating elements in a web page without rendering the whole DOM.
• Faster learning curve.
• High-end features for versatility.

Quick Summary of Angular, React and Vue

Angular 

• Developed by Google in 2010.
• An open-source JavaScript framework based on TypeScript.
• Follows MVC (Model-View-Controller) model.
• Examples of Angular in action: The popular payment application -PayPal and British newspaper "Guardian" are examples of Angular projects.

React

• JavaScript library built by Facebook and launched in 2013.
• Efficient and dynamic property, backward compatibility, seamless integration with other frameworks is what makes this technology a popular choice among developers.
• Allows for code reusability, thereby enhancing performance.
• Examples of Angular in action: Popular social media websites like Facebook and Instagram are examples of React powered projects.

Vue

• Built by Google ex-developer Evan You.
• Open Source lightweight framework that delivers high performance.
• Improves web pages with better TypeScript and API, allowing developers to compress logic into composition functions and reuse the same across multiple components.
• Examples of Angular in action: Vue is used in popular Chinese websites like Alibaba and Baidu.

Final Thoughts

In a survey conducted by Stackoverflow , React stands in the topmost position of most loved and wanted frameworks by developers. React is followed by Vue, and lastly, Angular. While developing a web app, it is best advisable to choose a front-end platform only after considering all the advantages and downsides of the three frameworks. 

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