As of August 2021, Android and iOS accounted for 99.15% of the mobile operating system market. These platforms have dominated the mobile app market for years. The result has been the rise of various mobile development technologies, including cross-platform frameworks.

React Native is one of the most popular.

Why is that?

React Native allows developers to share up to 70% of their code base across platforms. Faster development, reduced costs, and ease of debugging are some of the benefits of the framework. Facebook support also ensures React Native keeps running optimally. But, like all frameworks, it has its limitations.

React Native engineers often face compatibility issues and lack of custom modules. In addition, applications built using this framework have less of a performance impact due to their near-native capabilities. With that in mind, is React Native a good choice? The answer to this question depends on your product requirements. To help you decide, we’ve compiled a list of React Native alternatives that provide powerful, convenient functionality for your application. Finally, you’ll be able to know which technology to use.

Let’s get started!

React Native Alternatives to consider

Native platform:

Native application programming languages are some of the most popular alternatives. They are platform-specific technologies for developing mobile applications for operating systems. Examples of such operating systems include Android, iOS, or Windows. Native applications built in these languages tend to provide better performance and user experience. Developers use Swift and Objective-C for Apple applications and Java and Kotlin for native Android applications.

Advantages:

  • Excellent performance

These programming languages interact directly with the underlying resources of the platform. With this, developers can take full advantage of the graphical elements, computing capabilities, or other components of the system to build fast-executing applications.

  • extensible

There is always the risk of running into boring problems when extending the functionality of an application. Native code reduces the likelihood of this problem. They are supported by the iOS and Android IDE and SDK toolkit. With this advantage, you can implement basic, advanced, and even the latest functionality for each platform without worrying about compatibility.

  • Easier to use

According to the 2021 Stack Overflow Developer Survey, Swift ranks 8th out of 38 other programming languages. On a similar list, React Native is the ninth choice out of 13 frameworks. Java ranks fifth among the most commonly used languages. React Native ranks 6th among the 13 most commonly used frameworks. This shows that both native code are easier to use and learn. Using them to build applications can reduce the complexity that intermediate and experienced developers may encounter.

disadvantages

  • High development cost

Native is largely based on the “one product, two applications” concept. Therefore, it can be expensive, as you need two professional development teams with extensive knowledge of both iOS and Android native code.

  • Time consuming

Android and iOS apps require different code bases, making it impossible to reuse code across platforms. Instead, each product needs to be built, tested, updated, and managed separately. This slow development and deployment process is a major disadvantage for time-sensitive projects.

  • Scarce talent pool

While Java is widely adopted even outside of native application development, the other languages in the category are the opposite. Stack Overflow found that Swift and Kotlin were used by 5.1% and 8.32% of developers, respectively. Perhaps this is due to the youth of these programming languages. Objective-c topped the list with 2.8%. But React Native was way ahead with 14.51 percent. As a result, finding Swift developers or other coders with extensive knowledge of Kotlin and Objective-C can be daunting.

Want to read a detailed comparison between React Native and Swift? Read this article.

What applications/products can be built using Native Tech Stack?

Native technology is ideal for game applications, operating system-specific media players, or other applications that require full access to device functionality.

Flutter

Flutter is a young open source technology created and officially launched by Google in 2018. Similar to React Native, Flutter supports the use of a code base to build cross-platform native-like applications. It was developed in Dart, an object-oriented language also provided by Google. Over the years, Flutter has steadily grown in popularity, surpassing its main competitor, React Native.

advantages

  • Faster development

Like React Native, Flutter allows faster development and deployment times. You can build two applications (iOS and Android) from one code. Its widgets and interactive assets (for example, hot overloading) ease tedious tasks such as testing and debugging. Dart is also the programming language for Flutter. It is fast, concise, and compiles to native code without additional abstractions. This sums up rapid development and competitive advantage through shorter time-to-market.

  • Great cross-platform experience

The Material and Cupertino widgets for Flutter are compatible with Apple and Google’s design guidelines. Developers can leverage these off-the-shelf UI elements to build applications with impressive interfaces on both platforms. More importantly, Flutter’s rendering engine, Skia, allows complete management of each pixel. This, in turn, ensures that the UI built with Flutter is consistent when launching across multiple platforms or operating system versions.

  • Easy to debug

With hot reloading, you can view changes without restarting the entire application. Instead, Flutter developers can make and view changes in real time without having to recompile the code later. The fact that you only need to build one application for both platforms ensures that any bugs detected and fixed will be reflected in both versions.

  • Low cost

Just like with React Native, developing applications with Flutter costs less than using Native applications. This is because you can build an application for iOS and Android in less time with a small development team.

disadvantages

  • Heavyweight app

The application files built with Flutter are large. These applications can load slowly and take up space and battery performance. In order to scale, developers may often use fewer packages and libraries, compromising some functionality. The result is inferior quality products.

  • Immature technology

As a young framework, Flutter does not yet have a broad resource base. This means you may not find the third-party libraries and packages you need for development. Another disadvantage of Flutter’s immaturity is its growth potential. Less favorable changes in the future may introduce some complexity to the framework, making it more difficult to manage. Given Google’s history of terminating projects, it’s also possible that Flutter won’t last.

  • Support for iOS features is poor

Flutter allows rapid and seamless development of Android applications. That’s not the case with iOS. There may be problems accessing native components of the platform. This makes it nearly impossible to implement special iOS features, such as simple features like bootstrap access or default page conversion.

Want to read a detailed comparison between React Native and Flutter? Read this article.

What applications/products can Flutter build?

You can use Flutter to develop products that require quick or real-time access. It includes applications for customer service, financial service providers, e-commerce companies, or any merchant that accepts in-person payments.

Xamarin

Another common React Native alternative is Xamarin. It is a cross-platform technology provided by Microsoft. It started with MonoTouch and Mono for Android in 2011, until Microsoft acquired it in 2016. Xamarin uses the C# language and.net framework to develop iOS, Android and Windows mobile applications.

advantages

  • The rapid development

With one of Xamarin’s products, a technology stack approach, developers can reuse up to 90 percent of their code across platforms. You do not need to switch between development environments because you can build Xamarin applications in Visual Studio. More importantly, the framework allows access to common resources on all supported platforms. Overall, the development time is shorter and the cost is lower.

  • flexible

Xamarin’s component store gives developers access to standardized UI controls across platforms, integrated open source libraries, and third-party services. With these extensive resources, you can select multiple elements or implement the desired functionality in your application.

  • Excellent performance

The Xamarin.Essentials library provides access to this component. Programmers can build iOS and Android applications using Xamarin.iOS and Xamarin.Android, respectively. These result in products approaching native applications in performance. React Native doesn’t come close in this respect. You can also convert your application’s UI to native elements at run time to ensure near-native design and performance.

  • extensible

Debugging and maintenance are easier because developers can discover and change from a source code across platforms. In addition, Xamarin is integrated with the SDKS and apis of its supporting platforms. This makes it easy to update or implement new features in iOS and Android apps once changes are available.

  • Extensive technical support

Microsoft provides learning resources and comprehensive solutions that enable developers to test, monitor, and secure their applications. It includes Azure Cloud, Xamarin Insights, and Xamarin TestCloud.

disadvantages

  • Not suitable for graphically heavy applications

In Xamarin, developers can primarily share business logic rather than UI code. It just means that you need to build a separate UI for each platform. With this in mind, building game applications or other products that require complex animations or heavily interactive UIs can be slower and more tedious.

  • Limited community

In a recent Stack Overflow developer survey, only 5.8% of respondents used Xamarin. As a result, it may be difficult to hire Xamarin developers with extensive experience and knowledge. However, as frameworks continue to evolve, this disadvantage may not last for long. If you have urgent needs, please contact us to put you in touch with a pre-vetted Xamarin specialist.

  • Expensive licenses

Xamarin speeds up development time and reduces costs. However, considering the price of its IDE (Microsoft Visual Studio), this advantage may be less impressive. For commercial projects, Enterprise and Professional licenses are ideal. Enterprise’s annual pricing is $5,999 per user for the first year and $2,569 for renewals. First-time professional subscribers will pay $1,999 and $799 later.

  • Inherent limitation

Although Xamarin is tailor-made for native application development, it is not a pure native application. Therefore, it has several limitations. These include limited access to open source libraries, delays in updating or integrating new platform-specific apis, and larger application sizes.

What applications/products can be built using Xamarin?

Xamarin works well for applications with heavy logic or simple UIs. It includes applications for surveys, project management, travel, groceries, or tracking.

NativeScript

Like React Native, the framework uses JavaScript to build cross-platform mobile applications for iOS and Android. It also supports TypeScript, Angular, and related frameworks. Applications built using NativeScript produce fully native applications.

advantages

  • Native function

NativeScript injects iOS and Android apis into JS virtual machines for easier integration with native resources. This gives developers quick access to plug-ins, the Android SDK, the iOS dependency manager, Cocoapods, and other related technologies to build natively capable applications. It also leads to an intuitive user interface and a better user experience.

  • Develop talent more widely

NativeScript uses a subset of JS and CSS, both of which are mature. Developers with some knowledge of these technologies can build native applications more quickly. In addition, NativeScript supports various JS frameworks such as Angular, vue.js, or TypeScript.

  • Less development time

When building with NativeScript, developers can view code changes in real time on the emulator screen. Therefore, you do not need to recompile the application later. This, combined with the single code base approach in NativeScript, means that every change can be applied to other platforms. As a result, the framework speeds up development.

disadvantages

  • Local expertise

Depending on the scope of your project, you may need to implement advanced native features. This requires software consultants with expertise in platform-specific UI tags and elements.

  • Plug-in quality is uncertain

While there are several free plug-ins for NativeScript, not all of them are proven. This puts developers at risk of using questionable open source plug-ins that can lead to serious bottlenecks or worse end products.

  • Larger application size than native

No matter how close NativeScript applications are to true Native, they are relatively large. The default size for blank Android projects on NativeScript is 12MB. But that’s still less than React Native’s default APK size, which can be up to 23MB

What applications/products can be built using NativeScript?

NativeScript is best suited for real-time applications or products that need to leverage the capabilities of hardware components. It includes applications for streaming media, real-time feeds, and simple games.

Ionic

Ionic is a React Native alternative that lets you build cross-platform applications. The open source SDK was originally built based on Apache Cordova and AngularJS. But it has since added support for other JS frameworks like React, vue.js, and Angular.

advantages

  • Native function

Using Apache Cordova and Capacitor plug-ins, Ionic has access to mobile OS cameras, Bluetooth, microphones, fingerprint scanners, GPS and more. In addition, Ionic’s UI components and its built-in adaptive styling ensure that apps remain native by making slight design changes.

  • Cross-platform experience

Ionic builds applications for any platform using web standards and common apis. With this, developers can build an application and then customize it to all supported platforms using a code base.

  • Shorter development time

Using Ionic’s pre-build features eliminates the need to build UI components for each development. Instead, developers can reuse or customize each element and build functional applications in less time.

disadvantages

  • Not suitable for game applications

As with most cross-platform frameworks, Ionic may not be suitable for applications with advanced graphics. That’s because Ionic uses CSS, which is limited when developing 3D gaming applications. In this case, localization may be the best option.

  • Compatibility issues

Integrated native plug-ins can conflict with each other, causing problems that can significantly slow down the development process.

  • Security issues

Developing cross-platform means that you need to consider the security of both Web and native mobile applications. Although existing solutions can solve this problem, it can be tedious and expensive for applications that require high-end security.

Want to read a detailed comparison between React Native and Ionic? Read this article

What applications/products can I build with Ionic?

Ionic is available for applications that require instant messaging or native-like features. This includes apps for news, lifestyle, streaming and financial services.

Apache Cordova

Apache Cordova was founded by Nitobi, acquired by Adobe in 2011 and renamed PhoneGap. It was later released as an open source version of PhoneGap. Apache Cordova enables developers to build mobile applications using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. You can use this React Native alternative to develop cross-platform applications through a command line interface (CLI). For near-native applications, you can use Cordova’s platform-centric workflow.

advantages

  • A rich set of plug-ins

Developers have a number of plug-ins to choose from when building with Apache Cordova. These plug-ins provide access to native device apis, making it easier to implement a wide range of functionality in your applications for better performance and user experience.

  • Accessibility Skill set

Cordova uses standard technologies such as JS, CSS, and HTML. Mobile developers with a programming background in these technologies can quickly adapt to building Apache Cordova applications. The ease of finding developers, gentle learning curve, and rapid time-to-market potential are immediate benefits.

  • Cross-platform support

Code can be reused across platforms in the spirit of “write once, run anywhere”. This ensures that the application can be adapted to any platform’S UI. In addition, learning a platform-specific programming language as a code base can work.

disadvantages

  • Platform-specific restrictions

Because Apache Cordova applications are not pure native, they rely on plug-ins to take advantage of device capabilities. These third-party custom plug-ins may not be readily available, updated, or cross-platform compatible.

  • Local developers may be required

As mentioned earlier, applications built using Cordova may encounter compatibility issues with certain plug-ins. You may need professional native developers who can write custom plug-ins from scratch. This translates into increased development time and cost.

  • Potential performance issues

It can be difficult to build high-performance applications using the default features of Cordova. This is because there are limitations in their technology that can slow down applications. Such weaknesses are the lack of multithreading in its WebView and mobile browser components and JavaScript.

What applications/products can I build using Apache Cordova?

You can use Cordova to develop applications that combine native components with webViews to access device apis. It includes apps for fitness, sports, tracking and marketing.

Framework 7

Framework 7 is another React Native alternative that you should consider. It is an open source HTML framework for building hybrid Web and mobile applications with near-native functionality. Framework 7 is compatible with Android and iOS platforms.

advantages

  • responsive

Framework 7 has a wide range of UI components, from basic elements to advanced elements. Developers can access controls such as lazy loading, infinite scrolling, checkbox lists, and more. Use these resources to build dynamic applications with clean, native interfaces.

  • Multi-framework support

Framework 7 works with JS frameworks such as Angular, React, and vue.js. These structures contribute their power and simplicity to the development process

  • Be developer friendly

Developers are not limited to custom tags. With Framework 7, they can easily use pure HTML code supplemented by JS and CSS. This means that programmers with at least intermediate knowledge of these languages and even jQuery can extend.

disadvantages

  • Limited platform support

Currently, Framework 7 only supports iOS and Android. Developers who want to develop applications for other platforms may evaluate other frameworks.

  • IOS is special

Framework 7 was originally developed for the Apple environment. This opens up the possibility of rendering problems when developing for Android.

  • Minimal documentation

Users can easily find resources on how to implement any set of elements in this framework. However, most advanced requirements may not have a ready answer because documentation is not as extensive as other frameworks.

What applications/products can Framework 7 build?

Framework 7 can be used to build progressive Web applications or iOS and Android applications that depend on device hardware.

jQuery Mobile

JQuery Mobile is an open source JavaScript library for developing cross-platform Mobile applications and websites. It leverages the features of jQuery, which is known for the ease and speed of animation, AJAX, and document Object model (DOM) manipulation.

advantages

  • A low learning curve

This technique builds on jQuery Core, and most programmers have probably used it in the past. This makes it easier to learn and use.

  • Cross-platform, cross-browser compatibility

Using the jQuery Mobile framework, you can build highly responsive applications and websites that are compatible with popular desktop browsers and platforms. It is supported on iOS, Android, Windows, WebOS and Blackberry.

  • Excellent animated page transitions

Based on the principle of progressive enhancement, the jQuery Mobile navigation system allows pages to be loaded into the DOM via Ajax. This ensures that the page is improved and then displayed with high-quality transitions.

  • Easy and convenient

Developers can handle HTML events, AJAX requests, and DOM operations with just a few lines of code. This requires longer lines in JavaScript.

  • lightweight

Due to its limited image dependency, jQuery Mobile has a minimum size of 40 KB. This helps with its speed.

disadvantages

  • Minimum theme

The CSS themes available in jQuery Mobile make it easy to customize your application. However, they are limited. Developers may build applications that are different from other products built using this technology.

  • Using other frameworks is time consuming

JQuery Mobile is combined with other Mobile application frameworks such as PhoneGap for better performance. But it slows down the development process.

  • Mobile devices run slowly

Even on the latest iOS and Android platforms, the technology is noticeably slower. If you want to develop a fast mobile application, you may want to consider other alternatives.

What applications/products can I build with jQuery Mobile?

JQuery Mobile is ideal for applications with older browsers, content management systems, or other products that require some animation and less user interaction.

PhoneGap

Progressive Web Applications (PWA)

Progressive Web applications are application software that can be loaded and executed in a Web browser just like a regular Web site. It combines Web capabilities with native application capabilities, such as push notifications and access to hardware capabilities, to provide an excellent user experience. Unlike traditional applications, PWA cannot be installed on the device from the app store. Instead, it can be added to the user’s home screen. Progressive Web applications are built using standard Web technologies such as HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.

Advantages:

  • responsive

The PWA can easily be adapted to a variety of device screen sizes, whether tablet, desktop, Android and iOS mobile devices, or other direct sizes.

  • The safety of

With HTTPS, the information broadcast over the PWA is encrypted. In most cases, users will not be able to access certain features, such as geolocation, without a secure connection. This provides high-end security and additional protection against path attacks or other network threats.

  • A compelling user experience

The PWA is built using the principle of progressive improvement. These applications provide a better user experience on standards-compliant browsers and at least an acceptable interface on non-standards-compliant browsers. In addition, these applications provide native application functionality and feel through modern networking standards. These features further enrich the mobile experience.

  • Reduce your dependence on the Internet

One of the biggest advantages of building progressive Web applications is their ability to run at slow connection speeds. If a user has visited a site, they can access that content even without a network. This can be achieved through Service Workers, caching apis, and client-side storage technologies that store site assets offline. That is, the PWA takes advantage of this to enjoy faster loading times.

  • Easy to access and maintain

As a web-based application, PWA enjoys a higher profile because it can be found and ranked by search engines, giving them more visibility. In addition, users can easily test and upgrade without additional installation because the applications can be accessed online.

disadvantages

  • Access to hardware components is limited

While it has access to quite a bit of functionality, the PWA does not have full access to a large number of hardware components of the device. Advanced camera controls, voice support, Bluetooth support, and some features are still underdeveloped on some devices.

  • Weak iOS support

A common shortcoming of PWA on iOS devices is the lack of push notification support. This makes it impossible to re-engage iOS users with new content or updates, resulting in fewer conversions.

  • There is no reliable third party control

Since PWA can’t be downloaded from the app store, there are no regulatory standards. As a result, the UI quality of most of its native-like applications may be inconsistent.

Which applications/products can be built as progressive Web applications?

PWA is best suited for software that is prone to failure due to a slow network, applications that require higher traffic, or applications that are rarely used. It includes products for e-commerce companies, ride-hailing services, marketing agents and more.

Bootstrap

Bootstrap is a toolkit that combines Javascript, CSS, and HTML. It is widely used to develop responsive, mobile-first Web pages and progressive Web applications (PWA) that are fully embedded in the browser.

What is PWA?

Progressive Web applications are application software that can be loaded and executed in a Web browser just like a regular Web site. It combines Web capabilities with native application capabilities, such as push notifications and access to hardware capabilities, to provide an excellent user experience. Unlike traditional applications, PWA cannot be installed on the device from the app store. Instead, it can be added to the user’s home screen.

advantages

  • High response

Bootstrap’s fluid grid system is one of its main advantages. It has well-defined classes and a variety of simple layouts. Once implemented, it will provide a consistent look and feel across all platforms. These components can also be customized to match the design of each project.

  • Extensive documentation

Described as “the world’s most popular HTML, CSS and JS library”, Bootstrap is rich in documentation. With this in mind, mobile developers are likely to find solutions to basic and high-level problems with this framework.

  • Built-in support for the jQuery plug-in

With these built-in plug-ins, Bootstrap can access more UI components from the JS API. Interfaces such as tooltips and dialogs can also improve the performance of pre-existing interfaces.

  • Safe,

Bootstrap’s PWA broadcasts information over HTTPS. In most cases, users will not be able to access certain features, such as geolocation, without a secure connection. This provides advanced security and more protection against most cyber threats.

disadvantages

  • Limited function of equipment

Using Bootstrap in default mode allows you to load several unused elements and code into your project. This translates into larger application sizes and slower load times.

  • Other custom Settings

Using this framework to build Web applications that require extensive smartphone capabilities is not a good choice. The reason is that Web applications written with JS and Bootstrap do not have full access to the device’s sensors and functions.

  • May not be developer friendly

A Web application developed using the default Bootstrap component looks similar. To customize the application, you need to override the stylesheet manually. This extra step often defeats the purpose of using the framework.

  • May not be developer friendly

Some tasks, such as accessing predefined classes or customizations, may take longer to learn.

What applications/products can I build with Bootstrap?

Bootstrap is mainly used to design responsive web pages and web applications.

The last

In the competitive world of mobile application development, missing out on building applications across multiple platforms is a big risk. Choosing the right alternatives can help you maintain a presence on important platforms while reducing development costs.