Angular vs React vs Vue: Best Choice in 2022

When a programmer starts working on a new project, he is primarily interested in a set of tools with which he can make a project quickly and without problems. JavaScript is considered the most popular language for front-end development, since it has a wide range of functionality and a wide range of development environments. Usually, when defining a framework, many programmers run into the wall, trying to figure out which one will be better and more convenient. Each of them has its own interesting technical characteristics and features and offers its own functionality.

Although JavaScript is complete in and of itself, its ecosystem means much more than the language itself. Tools such as frameworks greatly simplify a developer's life by providing a framework for smoother development. If a language is considered an alphabet, a framework can be viewed as a phrasebook, allowing the developer to construct sentences and communicate.

If you've been following JS framework market trends, you probably know that the leading contenders in this competition are React and Angular. The latest Stack Overflow survey once again confirms React's superiority this year, with Angular being used more by professionals. But there is another contender on this list.

Traditionally, the controversy surrounding the most popular frameworks among developers. It's about Angular.js, Vue.js and React.js. Let's consider what their basic principles are, what advantages and disadvantages they have, and which is better: angular vs react vs vue.

Programmers survey

Some resources collect analytical information, in particular about which development environments are most popular, which programming languages are in the top at the moment, and so on. One of such resources - Stackoverflow - posted such statistics .

Vue.js is only in 7th place among the frameworks, although it is actively developing. Angular.js 2022  is more popular and is just one position behind React.js. It should be noted that the service conducted a survey not only among professional developers, but also among ordinary users. It is also important that according to the survey of experts, the React.js framework came in third place, while, according to all survey participants, it was in second.

In terms of a general survey that was supposed to illustrate which frameworks developers like best, Vue.js and React.js are at the top of the rankings, while Angular.js is in the last five along with Ruby on Rails and others.

The same users who have not previously encountered application development but would like to learn the basics of development and get acquainted with frameworks, put React.js first. Perhaps they got a positive impression from the initial acquaintance or they read the reviews of the adherents of this framework, but Vue.js was pushed to the second position, and Angular.js to third.

The NPMtrends resource works with statistical data not only based on a survey of users and developers, but also by counting the number of downloaded packages. This service works with details for all tools, collecting technical data, downloads, and Github. The following diagram illustrates the number of framework downloads:

As you can see in the picture, Angular.js is going through hard times and has long since given way to more advanced frameworks such as React.js and Vue.js. In 2018, Angular.js was almost at the peak of its popularity, but now, although it demonstrates more than 1 million downloads, it does not make it to the top frameworks, according to the developers.

This graph is fully consistent with the data obtained as a result of polling the Stackoverflow service. As for the State of JavaScript, here every year you can read a report on everything that relates to the presented programming language - about its tools, frameworks and other details. All of this data reflects how JavaScript is evolving.

Based on the extent to which the framework meets the requirements of the developers, we can conclude that Vue.js and React.js delight users with their functionality much more than Angular.js. This shows that most users are more likely to use React and Vue again than Angular.

In addition to satisfaction with the results, attention is also paid to the relationship to the development environment. Most of the surveyed do not use or are not interested in Angular.js, some have experience with this front-end framework, but do not want to repeat it. While React.js is very popular with developers - both experienced and beginner. There are also statistics on the use of different frameworks depending on the number of employees in the company: as you can see, the smaller the company, the more likely the choice falls on React.js or Vue.js. Large companies prefer to use Angular.js, but in general, the values do not vary much.

Comparative characteristics of frameworks

Consider the first most popular framework - React.js. Its importance for developers is obvious, since it has been in the leading positions for three years already.

React.js

Programmers have no particular complaints about the React.js framework. For the most part, this is due to the fact that this environment is going through a stage of active development and improvement, which makes it stable and accurate in work. An explicit feature of the framework is that it is essentially a library. Nevertheless, due to its wide functionality, the tool allows you to use it without using other services. React.js does not need to be integrated with other services, the frontend performed by this tool demonstrates high efficiency.

A small historical remark: React.js was created by the Facebook project team back in 2013, but not only is it not outdated and has not lost its popularity, but on the contrary, it has become even more in demand due to its characteristics. The React.js library was created to separate the interface into parts and make the development of the final product easier and faster. All pros and cons are indicated in the table:

The React.js framework offers a wide range of tools, and according to a recent survey, 53% of respondents used it frequently, 32% of respondents planned to get acquainted, 5% of respondents had experience using it before but do not want to continue, 11% of respondents have never heard of it. React has no usage restrictions because it is an open source library. 3-position BSD license is used.

The MVC pattern allows you to separate project or application data into models, views, and controller patterns. Each template modification can be managed autonomously by moving to harder code.

ReactJs introduces custom JavaScript code, a preprocessor step that adds XML-like syntax to JavaScript. This helps to build readable code, save it to one checked file. The ability to strip HTML in a render function without string concatenation is excellent. By using a specific JSX Transformer HTML is converted to functions.

React.js creates an efficient virtual DOM known as the Document Object Model or vDOM. This allows you to create a lightweight DOM tree and store it on the server side. The advantages of such work:

• while the user interacts with the Internet resource, a new vDOM is created;
• previous and latest versions are compared;
• if there are differences in the mentioned versions, vDOM will be rebuilt.

The above-mentioned feature enables the creation of isomorphic / universal web applications. This speeds up loading of the start page as users don't have to wait for JavaScript to load before browsing websites.

The framework is inherent in one-way data binding - this helps to track and quickly debug standalone React components, especially in large applications.

The component approach means the application can be split into tiny blocks / components. They even remain maintainable and scalable after separation. Using this approach helps you build complex web applications.

Operating mobile apps with React Native becomes easier after using React.js to create web products. It can be easily moved towards the assembly side as React Native has the same design patterns making it easier to move.

ReactJS advantages:

1. Optimization and acceleration of the update process.
2. Implementing readability of blocks using JSX. It shows how components are connected or combined.
3. React data binding - sets the conditions for creating dynamic applications.
4. Operational rendering. Using includes methods to minimize DOM operations helps streamline and speed up the update process.
5. Testable. Native React tools are offered for testing, code debugging.
6. Optimization for SEO. React introduces a first boot experience by rendering server-side and attaching user-side event handlers.
7. Thanks to React + ES6 / 7, the application becomes high-tech and suitable for high-load systems.

ReactJS disadvantages:

1. The need for training. Since it is not a fully functional framework, it requires deep knowledge to integrate a free UI library into an MVC framework.
2. The lack of an isomorphic approach to the exploit of the application leads to problems with indexing by search engines.
3. Many developers don't like JSX React documentation, manuals are difficult for beginners to understand.

Also ReactJS has a large library, which is not so easy to understand.

Vue.js

This framework has become popular in recent years. From an ordinary framework, he moved into a leading position and became very much loved by professional developers. It’s considered one of the most suitable frameworks for asynchronous server-side rendering.

Professional Vue.js for Developers is a relatively recent framework designed to improve performance and speed up loading. But these are not the only strengths that Vue.js often highlights.

Notably, it allows you to create stunning web and mobile interfaces, as well as single page applications, even without special skills. And since Vue is not only one of the most famous open source JS frameworks, but also one of the largest libraries, it is used to create various site components. The versatility and reliability of the frame has been repeatedly proven by large companies. For example, streaming website Netflix uses Vue.js and Facebook also uses it for news feed marketing.

One of the advantages of the Vue.js framework over more mainstream frameworks is its lightness. Due to its lightness, Vue is convenient to use for developing projects of varying complexity: both small personal projects and multifunctional applications. The development process is also accelerated due to the lightness of the framework.

Because the Vue.js framework is lightweight, downloading and installing the libraries is fast, which has a positive impact on SEO and UX. Moreover, developers do not need to spend extra time optimizing the application.

Vue.js is easy to learn even for a novice programmer, especially if they are good at JavaScript. The point is that the Vue framework contains templates and programming styles similar to those used in other JavaScript frameworks. An added convenience is that the Vue.js documentation is comprehensive and provides developers with a complete description of all the details of how to work - from installing libraries to scalability of the application.

When used correctly, Vue can be reused. But only if the programmers are experienced and tech-savvy enough to get a lot of components and views that can be easily integrated into a ready-made infrastructure or application. The platform helps developers write their own code so that they can split the application into many different functions that can interact with each other as needed.

The main reason for using Vue.js programming is to get a quality product with minimal effort. Indeed, its single-file components can contain all the necessary codes (JavaScript, CSS, HTML) in one file. Due to its ease of use and flexibility, you can create any structure for your application.

Evan, You created Vue.js while working for Google as a creative technologist. So in some ways, it is similar to the Google Angular JavaScript framework (e.g., in its use of virtual DOM plus Vuex for Redux-style state management).

However, it is designed to solve the problems that exist with Angular and React. Of course, Vue.js has its pros and cons, so let's take a closer look. It is open-source and supported by donations from sponsors and partners, including Vehikl, Modus Create, Rangle, Laravel, StoreKit, DevExpress, etc.

This open approach has made the framework much beloved in the development community, and despite being an indie project, its functionality, support, and implementation rival Facebook's React and Google's Angular.

Vue.js currently has almost 200,000 stars (186,000, versus 171,000 for React and 74,700 for Angular) on GitHub, which shows the developer's interest in the framework. Since the first version was introduced in 2014 (more than seven years ago), it has evolved into an essential web development interface environment, powering millions of websites worldwide.

There are many advantages of website development via Vue.js. There are some of them:

Easy to study.

Developers love Vue.js because of its flexibility and ease of use, yet it loses nothing in its functionality, which competes with heavier frameworks like React and Angular. Anyone with some frontend development experience can master it in a couple of days.

The only requirement for understanding this is understanding the "big three" web development technologies: JavaScript, HTML, and CSS. For other frameworks, such as Angular and React, you will need to learn other languages to use them effectively; in the case of Angular, you need to know how to use TypeScript. Vue.js requires no such training.

Regressive.

The structure is correctly defined as progressive, which means that it can be applied gradually, the framework slowly introducing additional markup into the HTML code.

Vue.js can be added to your HTML code as a simple script tag, and it will gradually expand, adapting to your needs until it can control the entire layer. That's why in some circles, it's called "the new jQuery." This is one of the main perks of using Vue.js, especially when a developer requires switching from another framework.

Community and support.

Google supports Angular, Facebook supports React, but Vue.js is fully supported by the open-source community, relying on local developers’ contributions and sponsors’ donations to move forward. Nevertheless, the latter has managed to challenge Angular and React as the preferred framework for web development.

Vue.js benefits developers by providing excellent and fast support. Most requests to the official platform are resolved in hours; the same goes for problems with GitHub. The platform also adheres to consistent release cycles to update information and support guides.

The best of both worlds.

Another advantage of Vue.js is that because of its Angular and React inspiration, it learns and uses all the best features of both Angular and React, discarding the not-so-good ones.

Model-View-View-Model  (MVVM) architecture.

Any discussion of the benefits of Vue would be incomplete without reference to its architecture. The MVVM architecture that Vue.js uses is excellent for improving the user interface. MVVM simplifies programming based on user interface events. It improves system performance.

Keep in mind that this framework mainly focuses on the ViewModel layer of this MVVM architecture. Separating the UI from the application logic eliminates the need to redesign the application when the UI becomes obsolete. Instead, you can simply plug the desired template into the application and keep it running.

There is no perfect technology. Even the best technology has certain flaws, and Vue.js has drawbacks as well. However, knowing what to expect in terms of performance and functionality can help you determine whether a framework will help build your application more appropriately. So, let's start their review:

1. Scalability lack. Currently, it is mainly used to create lightweight web applications, such as single-page applications and user interfaces. It lacks the scalability that allows large, complex applications. This may be because the framework is still an indie project, not supported by any technology giant. However, this limitation is fundamental and should be considered when choosing a technology stack for your application.
2. Plugin lack. It is not yet as developed as Angular and Reacts; hence it has fewer plugins than the latter two. Usually, developers have to turn to different languages to overcome the problems that arise because of this.
3. A small community. There are a lot of innovations and events going on in the community, but the community is tiny and made up of a lot of non-English speaking people.

Despite these disadvantages, the framework is still prevalent among developers.

Angular.js

Angular.js used to be considered the best choice for custom software development.

Angular is the most valuable framework in the technology arena because of its simplicity. At the same time, it releases updates in line with industry trends.

The first benefit is two-way data binding. It allows developers to create templates faster. Any changes made to a view or view layer are automatically and instantly reflected in the model. Simply put, Angular is built on top of the MVC (Model View Controller) architecture, which allows developers to easily make changes. Any changes made to the "Model" instantly change the "View".

Another advantage is DOM manipulation, a programming interface for HTML and XML that helps developers define the logical structure of documents and manipulate the document. Developers gain ease of manipulation of the DOM (Document Object Model) through a two-way data binding approach. And this is not possible with other JavaScript frameworks. DOM manipulation helps developers save time as they just need to translate and update DOM elements.

The increased server performance reduces the load on the server's CPUs, and the reduced traffic helps the server perform well by caching and supporting other processes. Simply put, Angular only serves static files and responds directly to API calls, which reduces the load, be it traffic or server CPU. Server performance is automatically improved when it reduces CPU usage or only serves static files. It also minimizes DOM manipulations that help improve performance.

Prototyping helps developers quickly initialize such features, get feedback, and make changes. A prototype not only helps to quickly create an application. This is also useful for small projects because it virtually stores pointers to each function.

Since the ultimate goal of an application is to provide the best experience for the end user, Angular JS allows developers to build applications with high-speed response for fast loading, smooth navigation, and more. What's more, a responsive web becomes efficient in terms of user experience, service, and more.

Developers do not need to work so hard to make web pages responsive as it automatically detects responsiveness based on the system being used.

As a conclusion, it can be noted that the study of statistical data on the considered frameworks allows you to make a choice in favor of React.js. It is it that can be recommended to learn by 2022. But in any case, each environment has its own characteristics, advantages and disadvantages, which shifts the responsibility for the choice onto the shoulders of a particular developer.