Reactjs Vs React Native: An End-To-End Comparative Guide

How to compare React Native Vs. React Js? Are Reactjs And React Native the Same? And a lot more. How many times did you find this question popping up in your mind? I bet you did it hundreds and thousands of times whenever you got into thinking about which one to choose. Let me resolve it!

React JS and React Native are two different technologies in the tech industry. You may find these two technologies similar, but they are different. React is a JS library for web development, whereas, React Native is a mobile application development framework.

Besides these, there are several facets based on which React.js and React Native differ. In this article, we’ll be performing an intense, more detailed exploration of Reactjs Vs. React Native that involves introductions, differences, drawbacks and use cases, and so on. Let’s explore!

ReactJS vs React Native: Market Perspective

ReactJS and React Native are both open-source JavaScript libraries developed by Facebook for building user interfaces. While they share a similar name and many of the same concepts, they are used for different purposes and have different strengths.

ReactJS (also known as React or React.js) is a JavaScript library for building web user interfaces. It is primarily used for building complex and dynamic web applications using a component-based architecture.

React Native, on the other hand, is a JavaScript library for building mobile user interfaces. It allows developers to build mobile apps for iOS and Android using the same codebase, making it an efficient option for cross-platform mobile development.

Here are some statistics comparing ReactJS and React Native:

ReactJS is more popular than React Native when it comes to web development. According to the 2021 Stack Overflow survey, React is the most popular JavaScript library for front-end web development, with more than 70% of developers indicating that they have used it.

React Native, on the other hand, is more popular for mobile app development. According to the 2020 Stack Overflow survey, React Native was the most popular technology for mobile app development, with around 30% of developers indicating that they had used it.

Please note that the above statistics are based on the data from 2021 and 2020, which might have changed by now.

What’s Reactjs?

Before we step into understanding the differences between React JS and React Native, we need to know the basics of each of these two. Let’s get to grips with Reactjs first! React, aka React.Js, Or Reactjs, is a well-known JavaScript library to develop single-page web applications with simple components.

class HelloMessage extends React.Component {
  render() {
    return 
Hello {this.props.name}
;
  }
}
root.render();

It has been over a decade since this JavaScript library got launched, and it’s now popular among developers. Many businesses use Reactjs to carry out development activities, and businesses of all sizes prefer using this library for creating applications.

Top Application Built Using ReactJS

Reactjs is one of the best libraries assisting developers in crafting interactive and dynamic user interfaces. It’s used to build a viewable layer of apps with reusable components to form a robust structure. Followings are some of the well-known applications built using React!

Advantages Of Reactjs

Take a sneak peek at the advantages of Reactjs:

Stumbling Blocks, And Limitations Of Reactjs

Here are some of the disadvantages of this JavaScript library!

What’s React Native?

Let us begin by revealing the truth -React Native does not build a native app, albeit it can deliver an app that gives native-like experiences. We have explained and compared React Native vs Swift which you give your incisive analysis. As the name suggests, React Native combines the best parts of Native development with React. Simply put, React Native is written in JavaScript while the app is rendered in Native code, as the example suggests.

import React from 'react';
import {Text, View} from 'react-native';
import {Header} from './Header';
import {heading} from './Typography';

const WelcomeScreen = () => (
  
    

    Step One
    
      Edit App.js to change this screen and turn it
      into your app.
    
    See Your Changes
    
      Press Cmd + R inside the simulator to reload
      your app’s code.
    
    Debug
    
      Press Cmd + M or Shake your device to open the
      React Native Debug Menu.
    
    Learn
    
      Read the docs to discover what to do next:
    
   
);

Now, we have React Native to explore. Similar to Reactjs, React Nativeis is an open-source framework created by Facebook. It’s not just now a framework for mobile app development, but you can use React Native for Webas well. The framework got launched in 2015 and became one of the best frameworks for building native mobile applications that run on multiple platforms.

React Native provides reusable components competent enough to run on various platforms. Using this framework, organizations across the globe can build applications for platforms such as Android, iOS, Windows, and so on with reduced hassle.

Top Applications Built Using React Native

React Native is developed with the intent to be used to develop UI components for mobile apps. The framework powers more than 25,000 applications across the world. Some of the popular applications developed using React Native are:

Need more clarification about React Native? Keep worries aside! We’ve already done a detailed analysis and suggested the op 10 reasons to use React Nativet for app development, where you can find the answers to most of your questions.

Advantages Of React Native

Take a look at some of the advantages of using React Native!

Stumbling Blocks And Limitations Of React Native

React Native Vs Reactjs: Key Differences

Platform Dependency

In terms of platform dependency, there’s a difference between Reactjs and React Native. The former is platform-independent, while the latter is influenced by platform dependency. You can execute web development using Reactjs on multiple platforms, but doing so isn’t that easy with React Native.

A developer must have excellent programming language proficiency and know how to execute React Native on various platforms.

Installation Procedure

When it comes to the installation process, Reactjs is a JavaScript library. Hence, you just need to integrate React into your HTML page in the , and you’re ready to create React components that can easily get integrated into your website. If you’re working on a large project, you can use a bundler to get the job done conveniently.

React Native, on the other hand, requires a development environment like Xcode or Android Studio to create applications. You can consider installing tools such as the React Native CLI, Node, and so on in order to execute a new project on any device or mobile emulator. A developer familiar with Reactjs and JavaScript is more likely to find React Native and easy to work platform.

Feasibility

It’s another criterion for exploring React Vs React Native. Do you know the reason why React is known as Reactjs? This is because it combines JavaScript’s power with HTML making it more feasible to integrate CSS and extinguish issues, such as scope and variable isolation, that might come with CSS development.

In the case of React Native, You will be able to make changes to the applications with no need to alter or mess up the code. You can simply add features and components to the application code. Besides, you’ll be able to reuse components in cross-platform applications and enable plugin integration.

Syntax

In Reactjs, the code is written in JavaScript; hence, it utilizes tags, for instance, <h1> and <div>, for rendering HTML components. In react, JSX, a JavaScript expansion, can also be used. It doesn’t discriminate between logic and markup, meaning you’ll write markup code in JavaSctiipt, and no JSX code will appear after the compilation– as general JavaScript functions replace it.

React Native has a specific syntax that renders native components with tags, for example, <text>, <view>, and <images>, rather than resorting to HTML–like components. However, React Native doesn’t render HTML, which isn’t the right fit for web development. The best use of React Native can be to yield mobile apps, AR, TVs, etc.— as these don’t require any library that renders SVG or HTML.

Technology Base

The intertwined technology base of both Reactjs and React Native might mystify learners and developers. React is a JavaScript library; to understand it, you need to have knowledge of JS. The development learning curve will be way smoother if you learn its technical documentation.

React Native is a framework used to create mobile app interfaces. It utilizes Reactjs for creating apps and inherits its functionalities, for instance, declarative components. Here’s a thing to take note of, and this is that React Native isn’t entirely JavaScript based but a combination of C++, Objective-C, and JavaScript. Therefore, you need to have knowledge of all these languages in order to make use of React Native.

Security

In Reactjs, the code is written in JavaScript; hence, it utilizes tags, for instance, <h1> and <div>, for rendering HTML components. In react, JSX, a JavaScript expansion, can also be used. It doesn’t discriminate between logic and markup, meaning you’ll write markup code in JavaScript, and no JSX code will appear after the compilation– as general JavaScript functions replace it.

React Native has a specific syntax that renders native components with tags, for example, <images>, <view>, and <images>, rather than resorting to HTML–like components. However, React Native doesn’t render HTML, which isn’t the right fit for web development. The best use of React Native can be to yield mobile apps, AR, TVs, etc.— as these don’t require any library that renders SVG or HTML.

UI Rendering

Now, we have UI rendering on the basis of which we’ll compare React Native & Reactjs. Reactjs utilizes a virtual DOM to render browser code; on the other hand, React Native makes use of native APIs to render mobile components. An application developed using Reactjs renders HTML in its UI, whereas a React Native application uses JSX.

Navigation

With React, you can navigate via the react-router library that allows navigation with a click and is useful when you wish to access historical instances. In the case of React Native, you can’t find the option to use react-router.

React provides its own library navigator enabling users to transition between two displays. The framework also has its library known as React Native Navigation, offering platform navigation features on iOS and Android.

Cost-Effectiveness

When it comes to comparing Reactjs Vs. React Native on the basis of the cost; there’s a difference that you need to consider. React is renowned as an expensive choice—as it generally needs you to download other libraries, resulting in a sky-high increase in the project development expense.

On the contrary, React Native supports platform-agnostic applications on its own framework resulting in reduced time and expense associated with development. It reduces the overall cost of your project, and maintenance also becomes convenient and cheaper.

Reactjs Vs React Native: When To Choose What?

Are you still feeling all at sea when it comes to differentiating between Reactjs Vs React Native? Your project’s success depends upon the tech stack you choose to work with; hence, choosing the right one is essential. However, selecting the right tech stack requires you to have a knack for detecting the perfect one.

If you’re lacking confidence while choosing between React Native & Reactjs, here are some of the use cases that’ll assist you in getting there.

Reactjs: Use Cases

Knowing the use cases will give you a clear understanding of where to utilize Reactjs. However, if you want a detailed analysis, you better glance through our previous blog, the best front development frameworks for your project, to get a crystal-clear idea.

Web Application Development

When it comes to web app development, React is a robust tool you can use to create dynamic applications. The component-based architecture and virtual DOM allow you to create reusable components, manage the application, and optimize the same. Reputed firms, including Facebook, Netflix, and so on, prefer using React to create their apps.

Developing Single Page Apps (SPAs)

Single Page Applications are web apps that load single HTML pages and dynamically upgrade the content as the user interacts with the app. It’s capable of handling updates and its component-based architecture; hence, an excellent choice for creating SPAs.

Progressive Web App Development (PWAs)

Progressive Web Applications are apps that can be installed on a user’s device and work offline. React’s advantages, like performance, flexibility, and competencies to work offline, make it an excellent choice for developing progressive web applications.

Creating Complex UI

Virtual DOM and component-based architecture make Reactjs feasible to create complex UI structures, making it a great choice for developing applications even when you have complex requirements.

React Native: Use Cases

A close look at the use cases of React Native lets you know its usability. However, it’ll give you an overall idea of when to choose React Native; if you want a more clear picture, you must compare several mobile app development frameworks and choose one that fits your project’s needs the most.

Mobile application development

React Native is a robust tool that you can use to create mobile applications. Its virtual DOM and component-based architecture enable you to easily create reusable components and manage and optimize them. Big brands, including Instagram, Airbnb, and so on, utilize React Native to develop their mobile apps.

Cross-Platform App Development

With React Native, anyone can develop mobile apps that can function on iOS and Android platforms. The capability to develop cross-platform applications makes React Native the best choice for developers.

Creating Real-Time Apps

Being embellished with the component-based architecture and capability to handle updates makes React Native perfect for creating real-time applications. Besides, Its competencies to access native mobile features like web sockets and push notifications are the icing on the cake that offers a next-level of user experience.

Developing High-Performance Apps

React Native leverages the capabilities of native mobile components, which improve the app’s performance and offer a seamless, more enhanced user experience. The component-based architecture and virtual DOM ease the creation of responsive and dynamic applications that deliver an excellent user experience.

Wrapping UP!

Reactjs Vs. React Native: Which Is Better? To answer this question is a complex deed, even after conducting such an intense analysis. The reason is the use of these technologies depends on the project requirement. You need to assess your requirements and then choose accordingly. Hire React Native developers if you have a cross platform mobile application to build. Or, you can choose ReactJs developers for web development.

Both of the technologies are proficient and popular among developers across the globe, so no matter which one you choose to work with, you’ll get quality outcomes. Want to understand this in detail? You can connect with us and let us help your app ideas into a successful action. We at Codzgarage build hight quality web and mobile application that meets clients’ specific needs.