Svelte Vs React: which is better

June 1, 2024 Roberto Magalhães

Learn the differences between Svelte and React and which framework is best for your application.

When it comes to choosing a JavaScript library or framework to build web applications, developers have a wide range of options and tools to choose from. Two of the most popular choices are Svelte and React. Both libraries have advantages and disadvantages, and choosing the right one for your project can be difficult.

Svelte is a relatively new player on the block, having been launched in 2016 by Rich Harris and is currently maintained by the Svelte Society. It has recently gained popularity for its approach to building web applications, which focuses on providing a lightweight, high-performance solution.

React, on the other hand, has been around since 2013 and has become one of the most used JavaScript libraries for building web applications. It is known for its flexibility, large developer community, and ability to build complex user interfaces.

In this article, we will compare Svelte and React in terms of features, performance, and adoption by the developer community. We'll also delve into the key similarities and differences between Svelte and React to help developers decide which is best suited for their needs, team skill set, and overall preferences. Ultimately, both frameworks have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it's up to you to determine which one is best suited for your project.

Criterion	Slender	To react
Year of Creation	2016	2013
The creator	Rich Harris	Jordan Walke
Documentation	Slim documents	React Docs
Language type	Compiled Language	Interpreted Language
Typing	Dynamically typed	Dynamically typed, statically typed with TypeScript
TIOBE Classification	Not classified in 2021	JavaScript is 8th as of 2021
Popularity	Growing interest, see Google Trends data through 2021	Very popular, see StackOverflow 2021 survey
Forms	Front-end web development, mobile applications, etc.	Frontend web development, mobile applications via React Native, etc.
Performance	Faster initial loading and updates due to compile-time optimizations	Slower initial loading due to larger library size, efficient updates due to virtual DOM
Stability	Relatively new, less tested in large-scale production applications	Highly stable, widely used in large-scale production applications
Learning curve	Easier due to simpler syntax and fewer concepts	Larger due to JSX, state management, lifecycle methods, etc.
Community support	Growing; GitHub, Discord, etc. Fewer online learning resources.	Extensive; GitHub, StackOverflow, etc. Large number of online learning resources.
Development time	Many times faster due to less boilerplate code	Can be slower due to more boilerplate code, faster with experience and reusable components
Main advantages	Simplified syntax Less boilerplate code Best performance	Reusable components Great community and ecosystem Supported by Facebook
Main disadvantages	Smaller community Fewer resources for learning Less demand in the job market	Steeper learning curve More boilerplate code Larger library size
Famous companies that use this technology	Few in 2021; usually smaller companies and startups	Facebook, Instagram, Airbnb, Netflix ( source )
Cross-platform support	Limited; mostly for web, no official mobile framework like React Native	Great; web with React, mobile with React Native

What is slender?

Svelte is a JavaScript framework for building web applications. It was developed to provide a more efficient alternative to frameworks like React and Angular, minimizing the runtime overhead required to update the user interface. Svelte achieves this by compiling components into standalone functions that manipulate the Document Object Model (DOM) directly, rather than using a virtual DOM like React. Ultimately, it is designed to provide a lightweight, high-performance solution for building web applications.

One of the key features of Svelte is that it is a compiler-based framework rather than a runtime-based framework like React. This means that Svelte converts your code to optimized JavaScript at build time, rather than relying on a virtual DOM to update the DOM at runtime. This approach results in faster rendering and lower memory usage, which makes Svelte a good choice for applications that need to be fast and responsive.

Another advantage of Svelte is its simplicity. It takes up little space and has a minimal learning curve, making it easy for developers to get comfortable with the framework. It also has a declarative syntax similar to React, making it easy to learn for developers familiar with React.

What is react?

React is a front-end JavaScript library created by Facebook and designed to help developers build user interfaces for web apps, mobile apps, and even desktop apps. Over time, this framework has become one of the most used libraries by developers. The main feature of React is that it renders a virtual representation of the user interface and efficiently updates the real DOM based on changes in the virtual DOM. As a result, this allows you to render UI changes quickly and efficiently, making it a good choice for applications that need to be fast and responsive. Additionally, this allows developers to declaratively define the UI and avoid direct manipulation of the DOM, which can be error-prone and difficult to debug.

React is also known for its flexibility and modularity. It allows developers to create reusable components that can be easily shared and reused across different parts of an application. This makes it easier to build and maintain large-scale applications. Last but not least, React has a large and active developer community, which means there is a wide range of resources and tools available to help developers build and maintain their applications. Despite its advanced features and the boom in popularity of React development services, it is beneficial for users to have prior knowledge of routing, client-side coding, and design patterns.

Svelte vs. React: how are they similar?

React and Svelte are JavaScript libraries that allow developers to build user interfaces for web and mobile applications. Both use a virtual DOM to update the real DOM in the most efficient way possible, minimizing the number of actual DOM manipulations. Both libraries also have a reactive model, meaning they can automatically update the UI when the underlying data changes.

Svelte vs. React: the main differences

Developers should be aware of several important differences between React and Svelte when choosing which library to use in their projects. We'll cover the main differences below.

Performance #1

One of the main differences between React and Svelte is performance. Svelte is a compiler-based library, which means it converts your code to vanilla JavaScript at build time. This allows Svelte to eliminate unnecessary code, resulting in smaller packages and faster runtime performance. On the other hand, React is an interpreter-based library, which means it relies on the browser to interpret and execute the code at runtime. This may result in slower performance compared to Svelte.

#2 Learning Curve

Another important difference between React and Svelte is the learning curve. React has a relatively steep learning curve, especially for beginners. It requires a solid knowledge of JavaScript and a good understanding of the virtual DOM concept. On the other hand, Svelte has a much shallower learning curve and is easier to learn, especially for those who are new to front-end development.

#3 Community

React has a large and active community, with millions of developers using it around the world. It has a wide range of third-party libraries, tools, and resources, as well as many online resources and tutorials for learning React. Svelte has a smaller but growing community and is not as widely used as React. However, it is quickly gaining popularity and has a dedicated community of developers who actively contribute to the project.

#4 Documentation

Both React and Svelte have excellent documentation, with clear and concise explanations of each feature and how to use them. React has a large and comprehensive documentation site with in-depth guides and tutorials for learning the library. Svelte also has a well-written documentation site, with clear explanations and examples of how to use the library's various features.

#5 Dom Differentiating

React and Svelte use a virtual DOM to update the real DOM in the most efficient way possible. However, they differ in how they implement this feature. React uses a comparison algorithm to determine the minimum number of DOM updates required to reflect changes to the virtual DOM. On the other hand, Svelte uses a compiler-based approach to eliminate unnecessary DOM updates and directly updates the DOM with the minimum number of operations.

#6 Reactivity

React and Svelte have a reactive model, meaning they can automatically update the UI when the underlying data changes. However, they differ in how they implement this feature. React uses a unidirectional data flow, where data flows in a single direction from the parent component to the child component. Svelte uses a reactive model similar to Vue.js, where the state of the component is automatically reflected in the model and updates the UI when the state changes.

#7: Development Speed

Svelte is generally considered faster to develop compared to React, thanks to its simpler syntax and smaller size. This means developers can build applications faster using Svelte compared to React.

#8 Tools and Libraries

React and Svelte have a wide range of tools and libraries available to help developers build their applications. React has a large ecosystem of third-party libraries, including popular options like Redux for managing application state and React Router for routing. Svelte also has a growing number of tools and libraries available, including Svelte Material UI for building Material Design-based user interfaces and Svelte Store for managing application state.

#9 Syntax

React and Svelte have different syntaxes for building components and rendering templates. React uses JSX, a syntax extension for JavaScript that allows developers to write HTML-like code in JavaScript. Svelte uses a template-based syntax similar to HTML, but with additional features such as component references and expressions.

#10 Packages

Both React and Svelte have a wide range of packages available, including core libraries and third-party packages. React has a large number of packages available on npm, the largest package manager for JavaScript. Svelte also has a growing number of packages available on npm, with a focus on lightweight and modular packages.

#11 Scalability

React and Svelte are scalable libraries, which means they can be used to build large, complex applications. React has a large and active community, with many developers using it to build large-scale applications. Svelte is a newer library, but it was designed to be lightweight and scalable, with a focus on keeping the package size small.

#12 Reuse

Both React and Svelte allow developers to create reusable components that can be easily shared and applied to different parts of the application. React uses a functional component model, where components are functions that return JSX templates. Svelte uses a template-based component model, where components are defined using HTML-like templates and can include logic and state management.

#13 Priority

React and Svelte have different priorities when it comes to building user interfaces. React is focused on providing a flexible and extensible platform for building web and mobile applications. It has a large, active community and a wide range of tools and libraries available. Svelte is focused on providing a lightweight, high-performance alternative to other JavaScript libraries, with a focus on keeping package size small and runtime performance fast.

#14 User Interfaces

Both React and Svelte can be used to build user interfaces for web and mobile applications. React has a large and active community, with many developers using it to build a wide variety of user interfaces. Svelte is a newer library, but it is quickly gaining popularity and being used to build a variety of user interfaces, including web and mobile applications.

When should you use Svelte?

You should consider using Svelte when building a web application that needs to be fast and lightweight or if you are looking for a framework with a small learning curve. Svelte is often used for its simplicity due to its similar code to vanilla JavaScript. It is especially suited for building small and medium-sized applications that enable more effective control over state management, routing, and countless other custom frameworks. This JavaScript framework is particularly suitable for applications that need to be fast and responsive, such as games, real-time applications, and mobile applications.

Applications using Svelte:

When should you use React?

You should consider using React if you need to build a complex application with a large code base and an interactive user interface. It is especially suitable for building large-scale applications that require efficient UI updates and a lot of interaction. React is also a good choice if you want to build a library of reusable components that can be shared across multiple projects. It has a large developer community and a wealth of features and tools, making it easy to build and maintain large-scale applications. React is responsible for visualization in the model-view-controller architecture, facilitating the management of low-level algorithms and requiring only the coding of the interface view model.

Applications using React:

Final considerations

Your project's specific needs and goals should be considered when deciding between Svelte and React. That being said, there are several factors to consider when deciding whether to use Svelte or React for a project.

A key factor to consider is library performance. Svelte is a compiler-based library, which means it converts your code to vanilla JavaScript at build time, resulting in smaller packages and faster runtime performance. This makes it a good choice for projects that require fast performance, such as mobile apps or web apps with large amounts of data.

Another factor to consider is the library's learning curve. Svelte has a shallower learning curve compared to React, making it a good choice for developers who are new to front-end development or who want to get up and running quickly. React, on the other hand, has a steeper learning curve and may be better suited for developers with more experience or who are willing to invest more time learning the library.

The size and activity of the community surrounding the library are also important factors to consider. React has a large and active community, with millions of developers using it around the world. It has a wide range of third-party libraries, tools, and resources available, and there are many online resources and tutorials for learning React. Svelte has a smaller but growing community and is not as widely used as React. However, it is rapidly gaining popularity and has a dedicated community of developers who actively contribute to the project.

Conclusion: which is better, Svelte or React?

The choice between Svelte and React will depend on the specific needs and goals of your project. Both libraries have their own unique set of features and benefits, and the right choice for your project will depend on a variety of factors such as performance, learning curve, community, documentation, DOM differentiation, reactivity, development speed, tooling and libraries, syntax, packages, scalability, reuse, priority, and user interfaces.

Svelte is a compiler-based library designed to be lightweight and high-performance, with a focus on small packages and fast runtime performance. It has a shallower learning curve compared to React and is easier to learn, especially for those new to front-end development. Svelte is a newer library with a smaller but growing community and is quickly gaining popularity.

React is an interpreter-based library focused on providing a flexible and extensible platform for building web and mobile applications. It has a large and active community, with millions of developers using it around the world. React has a relatively steep learning curve, especially for beginners, and requires a solid understanding of JavaScript and the concept of a virtual DOM.

In conclusion, the choice between Svelte and React will depend on the specific needs and objectives of your project. Both libraries have unique features and benefits, and it's important to carefully evaluate your options before making a decision. If you are building a large, complex application, React may be a better choice due to its flexibility and extensibility. If you are building a lightweight, high-performance application, Svelte may be a better choice due to its focus on small packages and fast runtime performance.

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