There has always been a huge debate over using React Native or Flutter for mobile application development. The fact is, both frameworks have their own perquisites and there are millions of mobile application developers that use either of the frameworks for their own reasons. Some find Flutter the future while some argue that no framework can surpass the legacy of React Native. To know which framework is better, it is critical to compare them in multiple aspects and that is what we will be doing in this article. 

Before jumping on the contrasting aspects, mentioning the details about both frameworks is crucial.

What is Flutter?

Flutter is an open-source UI (User Interface) development kit that was released by Google in 2018 in order to develop cross-platform applications using a single codebase. Cross-platform applications refer to those applications that can run on multiple platforms and operating systems. Flutter is getting popularity among developers due to its fast performance and easiness of development. 

What is React Native?

React Native open-source framework for mobile application development that was created by Facebook in 2015. It is used in making mobile, web and desktop applications and is also a good option for building cross-platform applications. React Native has been there before Flutter and has a larger community for support. 

Flutter Vs. React Native: A Comparison

Programming Language

When the conversation is about programming languages, then React Native is derived from the most popular programming language worldwide which is, JavaScript. However, the popularity does not always indicate the simplicity of any programming language. 

From a developer’s point of view, Flutter is easier to learn in comparison with React Native. 

JavaScript is not at all easy to learn. The overall syntax of classes within classes makes it pretty complicated for the developers to understand its working. On the other hand, Flutter is based on Dart programming language which is comparatively easier to learn and understand. 

According to a survey done by Stack Overflow In 2022, Flutter was mentioned as the Most Loved Technology – Other Frameworks and Libraries”

Documentation

Documentations always play a significant role in guiding developers to start building apps. The same goes for the documentation of React Native and Flutter.  

Both Flutter and React Native guides are excellently written and programmers can learn a lot from them. But when it is about Flutter Vs. React Native then Flutter documentation takes the crown because it is nicely formatted and easy to read, the structure and details are also clear in Flutter documentation in comparison with React Native which is not organized and primarily depends on community-developed libraries.

Static Vs. Dynamic Programming

The comparison of the programming languages doesn’t stop here! One of the key differences in both the programming languages used is their dynamic and static nature. 

React’s JavaScript is dynamic which means that it is possible to change the values of multiple data types. On the contrary, Dart is both static and dynamic which gives it a bit of edge as it’s safer because it does not allow the developers to use incorrect data types. 

Layout

For building user interfaces, React Native uses JSX and JavaScript. whereas, Flutter uses widget styles that are created and tested by Google. 

Unlike swift (used by apple), when you are creating mobile applications with Flutter, you can see the code that the Google developers wrote for the widget styles. 

For the construction of layouts, both languages use the CSS flexbox. Of course, both frameworks have different ways of implementation but they work to create the same layout. 

File Size

The competition of file sizes makes React Native the winner here. Although React Native applications have a JavaScript runtime environment and their build size is bigger, it can easily be reduced by enabling ProGuard and Hermes in React Native.

While Flutter applications have a larger file they need more space on mobile in comparison with React Native. 

Performance

If the discussion is about performance, then the flutter application is faster. In contrast, the performance of React Native applications is slower.

Statistics Says It All 

React Native has been there for a longer time than Flutter. It has a larger community and there is much support available online. Despite being a newer framework, Flutter is also giving tough competition to React Native and is getting famous among developers due to its ability to create creative mobile applications and the ease of learning the Dart language. 

To know the reality of any comparison, it is always better to look for real-time statistics and that is what we are going to discuss next.

First, let us see the comparison between both frameworks in Google Trends. 

As per the results, after 2019, the interest for flutter went above React Native and is still above it as of today. 

One of the latest research by Statista, as of July 21, flutter was placed as the leading development framework in 2021. It surpassed react native by 4% as shown below.

Who is using React Native?

Here is a list of tech giants that use React Native for their mobile application development:

• Instagram
• Coinbase
• Tesla
• Salesforce 
• Skype
• Uber Eats

Who is using Flutter?

A number of renowned brands use Flutter for their mobile apps. Like:

• BMW
• eBay
• Groupon
• Square
• Alibaba
• CapitalOne 

Which One to Use?

Both Flutter and React Native are freely available and both are vastly used by multiple tech giants across the globe. It cannot be said bluntly which framework to use. It all depends on the requirements and experience with the framework. 

In conclusion, if you are aware of JavaScript, then building apps on React Native is a good option. However, if your aim is targeted towards fast performance and stability, then Flutter is a better choice.