Computer science has been continuously booming ever since its inception. Engaging interfaces have fascinated the public, and the software demand has skyrocketed. As development demands increase, so does the supply, as do the means to carry on the purpose.

Several languages exist today to aid the development of applications, and many libraries and frameworks have been developed to make the process more convenient. Among these libraries and frameworks, two prominent ones are React and Angular. Though they can both be used to develop applications, some differences make people question: Which one should I use?

Here we will discuss some features of React and Angular, comparing them based on specific parameters. We’ll also weigh their pros and cons, and determine where they can be proficiently used.

Angular

Angular is an open-source JavaScript framework introduced by Google in 2012. Built to support the client-side development of single-page applications, it provides several libraries and components which make the process of development and testing simple and less time-consuming.

Angular is based on Typescript and supports a client-side MVC (Model-View-Controller) programming structure. It is efficient, concise, clean, allows separate programming of UI and Logical foundations. It is consistent with other development technology, and, being Google-backed, Angular is quite popular and is supported by a large community.

React

React, or ReactJS, as it is sometimes called, is an open-source JavaScript library used to design user interfaces and related components. It is managed and backed by Facebook. React is predominately used to create single-page applications and or mobile applications.

ReactJS is meant to render data to the Document Object Model (DOM) and for routing and graphical management of the UI elements. React JS provides server-side rendering to develop performance-oriented programs. Since being introduced to the public in 2013, ReactJS has, over time, become one of the most popular libraries and development frameworks available.

Key Features Of Angular

• Angular is a cross-platform framework, with which we can develop Progressive Web Applications (PWA), native or hybrid apps, and deploy it in app stores using mobile SDK- Ionic.
• Angular can effectively convert templates into code, which can be rendered into HTML and CSS. The application can then be viewed in NodeJS, .Net, or PHP. Moreover, the loading speed of Angular is said to be the fastest among other frameworks.
• Angular provides more than 11 testing libraries that can be used to check and free the application from bugs and errors.
• Angular saves the development time significantly by automatically connecting the model and view parts of the app.
• Angular offers a built-in dependency injection that automatically creates and delivers dependencies using a simple command.
• Being a Typescript based framework, Angular considerably reduces development time. Typescript automatically populates root file configuration, efficiently detects bugs, has rich enums, interfaces, access modifiers, and so on.

Key Features Of React

• As compared to Angular, React is a Javascript library developers use to build dynamic User Interfaces. While Angular is responsible for designing the model and view layers of applications, React is only responsible for the application’s view layer.
• React offers virtual DOM features, where the updates to a component are done only for the changed items. This makes the application development faster and more convenient.
• Debugging web applications can be done quickly with the debugging extension for Chrome released by Facebook.
• React has many extensions that let the library go beyond just designing a User Interface. With the extensions, React can be used to do server-side rendering, develop cross-compatible mobile applications, and so on.
• Through One-way Data Binding, React provides better control of the web application and makes it easier to spot and resolve bugs in the program.
• The VDOM used by React helps the applications run much faster than any regular framework

Comparison Between Angular & React

Pros Of Angular

• Angular delivers High-performance mobile applications due to its Hierarchical dependency injection. This is one of the major benefits of the AngularJS framework.
• Angular follows Google’s Material Design structure through pre-built navigation components, forms, data tables, layouts, and so on.
• Angular 7 offers better error handling through its upgraded error handling processes compared to the previous versions.
• The Typescript language that Angular uses to build applications offers cleaner code writing.

Cons Of Angular

• Angular is not easy to learn; while it may become easier with time, it is more difficult at the start.
• The documentation of Angular does not provide extensive methodology and procedures.
• Integrations with Angular is not easy.

Pros Of React

• React uses the Virtual DOM feature, making it easy to update the modifications without affecting other parts of the UI.
• React offers reusable components that are isolated. The codes in a React program are also reusable. This reduces the development time significantly and improves app performance.
• React allows the addition of application state to any individual component or class without affecting the child class or other components, thus making the testing process easy.
• The One-Directional data-binding in the case of React allows modification in the child entities without affecting the parent entities, thereby making the code stable if any changes are to be made.

Cons Of React

• Integration of React to some MVC-based frameworks is complex and requires in-depth knowledge of UI integration to an MVC framework.
• React is only concerned with UI development and cannot resolve or modify Model and Controller based issues.
• The library size of React is considerably large.

Now that we know the pros and cons of both Angular and React, it is clear that each has its plus points and can be efficiently utilized in suitable scenarios.

When to Use Angular?

Angular is best utilized to develop moderately complex apps, and the development team is adept at programming with Java and C#. Experience with the previous version of Angular is an advantage as well.

Angular provides several ready-to-use solutions to the programming issues faced by the developers, thereby increasing productivity. If this entices you, Angular is the way to go.

Angular is best utilized to develop high-performant, scalable applications that are rich in features. Angular CLI also offers a Bundle Budget feature that informs developers when the app size extends the determined limit. This comes in handy when developing applications with size constraints.

When to use React?

ReactJS is used to develop the UI for an application; therefore, it is concerned with delivering customized app solutions.

React is appropriate for a development team comfortable with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. React offers several dynamic UI components that can be effectively used if the application requires different interactive elements.

React offers efficient code and component reusability. So, if the project’s scope expands and the components need to be used for another related application, React is quite helpful.

React also comes in handy when the project is involved with UI development, and the available time is scarce.

Conclusion

Dynamic Single Page Applications are trending these days. Brands and businesses are switching their applications to SPAs. Angular and React are both sufficiently equipped and available with integrations to develop interactive applications.

While Angular is strong at certain aspects of developments, there are some drawbacks as well, and the same goes with React. Each is suited to serve specific development scenarios and should be used after carefully ascertaining the requirements, circumstances, and resources at hand.