Vue.JS Vs. React.JS- The Differences Between The Two JavaScript Frameworks

Frontend development that connects the website design and backend development plays a critical role in communicating the brand, delivering the best user experience with intuitive UI, and engaging the users in the long run. In the dynamic landscape, frontend development is continuously evolving to step in with the changing users’ preferences and market trends.

Vue.JS and React.JS are the two JavaScript (JS) frameworks that web development companies leverage at scale for building dynamic User Interface (UI) that helps in creating interactive web apps. UI components of both frameworks have helped businesses to keep up with emerging trends for front-end development. However, the distinctive features of Vue.JS and React.JS bring two choices before the businesses that require them to select one.

It demands a deep understanding and one-to-one comparison of the frameworks- Vue.JS and React. JS. In this blog, we will cover both aspects so that businesses can easily figure out the right fit for their project needs. Let’s dive in!

What is Vue.JS?

Vue.JS, the progressive JavaScript framework, is built by Evan- an ex-Google engineer leveraging the features of Angular. The frontend JavaScript framework is well-famous for building single-page applications and interactive UIs. Option API usage has shortened the associated learning curve which has made it easier for beginners to get a grasp on the framework.

The latest version of Vue.JS is smaller, faster, and simplified with updation in composition API, Vite, Pinia, virtual DOM rewrite, and a smaller vue core. Therefore, When you think about utilizing Vue.JS for your product development hiring skilled Vue.JS developers with prior experience and the latest version knowledge would be a good idea.

What is React.JS?

React.js is a free and open-source front-end JavaScript library. It is liable for the app’s view layer as it’s backed by MVC architecture. The React components render reusable pieces of HTML that are nested within different components for complex web app development. React creates a separate view for the app’s state whenever data changes occur in the application. Gradually, the framework is enhanced with a toolset that has made React.js developers’ work easier. Concurrency, latency, transitions, and more are the latest updates made to React. JS.

Choosing React.JS for web development will help businesses to create platforms that deliver a better customer experience and achieve their project goals.

Vue.JS vs React.JS – The side-by-side comparison to know which is better

The duo- React and Vue.JS are well-famous in the web development space, but when it comes to selecting one framework, the business stakeholders get confused. This section clears up all the doubts that they have with head-to-head comparison. Let’s dive in!

Data Binding

Data binding means when changes are made to the parent node, child nodes get changed automatically. React and Vue.JS support one-way and two-way data flow that ensures clean architecture.

In Vue.JS, the downward data binding brings changes to the child property when the parent property gets updated. However, it prevents the child to mutate the parent’s state which makes it difficult to understand data flow.

React components are unidirectional but one-way data flow can work in a two-way direction. When the parent component gets updated, the child component’s props need to refresh with the current value. The attempt of prop mutation in the child component is not good. With callback function support, the child component can send props to the parents.

Data Rendering via Virtual DOM

As the user browses the web page, the web browsers parse it to a tree-like structure referred to as DOM (Document Object Model). When users take an action on the web page, browsers recreate and re-read the DOM repetitively, which impacts the performance.

React.JS prevent the traditional DOM rendering by creating multiple copies of DOM that are known as Virtual DOM When users take an action, real DOM is not accessed; instead, virtual DOM is rendered. Later, it’s compared with the previous DOM version before making changes in the real DOM.

Vue.JS also uses virtual DOM for data rendering, but it accomplishes the same with a slightly different process in that only dynamic elements are tracked. In Vue.JS, the mini-DOM of a component is displayed with the help of templating. Plus, Vue.JS goes through dynamic parts in place of tracking every object in the template. Thereby operations of virtual DOM get optimized when used for client-side rendering.

Component Build Principles

UI components render data on browsers to show logic to the users.

React uses JSX language that’s enriched with HTML tags, so it’s turned to pure JS through the Babel compiler. As JSX doesn’t have any specific code structure and UI and logic are combined in one file- it leads to messy code.

Vue.JS also keeps component- logic and UI in one file and component code in an HTML template. The template gives an edge to Vue.JS as it provides a clear view of component code, which, in turn, enables developers to view properties, track methods, and analyze render functions.

Tooling

The number of tools, libraries, and packages speeds up app development. Before start building an app, the criteria help you choose which is the best in Vue.JS vs. React. JS.

React has a ‘create React app’ tool that makes the UI building, dependency installation, and script addition during the development an easy task. It has eliminated the need to configure the app manually when a new project is started. Top react.js developers leverage the CLI interface that’s provided by the tool for downloading dependencies and adding scripts to test and run the applications quickly.

On the contrary, Vue.JS provides a CLI tool that offers a basic structure comprising of installed configuration and some files that accelerates the development process. Presently, Vue.js developers recommend using a create-vue tool that’s better than the previous one in enabling rapid app development. However, using Vite is essential.

State Management

The data components describe UI every time. when data changes, the complete UI component is redrawn by the frameworks. Both frameworks manage the states but the approach is different.

In React.JS, state management is handled by proficient React.js developers using ContextAPI as there’s no way for state management, but it works for small apps. As the project size scale, React.JS third-party libraries such as MobX, Redux, and Recoil are good to use.

Vue.JS developers leverage basic tooling such as Pinia or Vuex for state management. In complex web app development cases, additional functionalities vue router for URL management, and its server-side rendering is leveraged for the best results.

Performance

Businesses look for high-performance applications as they ensure the best experience delivery and maximize user engagement levels. Let’s see in Vue.JS versus React.JS, the battle between 2 top JavaScript frameworks, which one hit the performance benchmark.

When they are compared based on various factors such as rows creation duration after the page loading, rows replacement duration for rows updation, loading time, parsing and startup time, and rows removal duration for the table filled with rows, React.JS gains an edge over Vue. JS. Though both frameworks are pretty close to each other in terms of performance, React.JS takes the lead.

Which one should you choose between React.JS and Vue.JS?

React.JS and Vue.JS both are the best choices for building user interfaces and declaring the winner is not possible because no JS framework is a one-stop solution to all needs of digital applications. React.JS and Vue.JS frameworks are leveraged by top developers for building high-performance, dynamic, and intuitive UI.

Both frameworks are the best options for business projects depending on which features they require the most to raise a toast to success. When a flexible tool and high performance are your need, React.JS fits the bill.

On the other hand, Vue.JS has a low learning curve that facilitates easy hiring of Vue.JS developers. React.JS also boasts of sizeable community and components usability that ensures accelerated development without any glitches. Go through the one-to-one comparison of Vue.js and React.JS which helps you find which framework is a go-to option for the project. Still, if you are unable to make the right decision, connect with top web development experts to identify the best framework for your web project.

Gillian Harper   |  Mar 2, 2023

A professionally engaged blogger, an entertainer, dancer, tech critic, movie buff and a quick learner with an impressive personality! I work as a Senior Process Specialist at Topdevelopers.co as I can readily solve business problems by analyzing the overall process. I’m also good at building a better rapport with people!