Why Flutter Cross Platform App Development is Better than Ionic?

Last updated on April 24th, 2023

Choosing a hybrid framework with the required set of functionality, within your budget could be drooping many a times. Every framework is different and unique in its own way. “Code once, use everywhere”, is the mantra that is booming in the IT industry right now. These days, businesses prefer Hybrid mobile applications as it cuts down the costs and the development time. In today’s world, the most popular hybrid frameworks are Ionic and Flutter Cross Platform App Development. Choosing between both frameworks is definitely not an easy task. Before selecting any one of them, knowing the detailed compatibilities of both the frameworks of utmost importance. Flutter and Ionic have always proved to have a fierce war, and choosing anyone is critical.

First of all, let us know about both the frameworks in detail and know the uniqueness of their offerings.

What is Flutter Cross Platform App Framework?

In simple words, Flutter is Google’s UI Toolkit. For building the native compiled applications for desktop, mobile phones, and web from a single codebase. Google has introduced Flutter in 2015 and since then, its buzz has consistently been growing in the market. Flutter is a cross-platform app development tool that uses a modern and reactive framework. The apps created by Flutter uses Dart, an object-oriented programming language. Flutter has always been focusing on User Interface.

User Interface Of Flutter Cross Platform

Flutter app framework usually revolves around widgets. The user interface by Flutter is made by combining different kinds of widgets, each defining a structural element like a menu or button. A stylistic element like the color scheme and font layout like padding, etc. Flutter provides its own readymade widgets.

Any object in Flutter is considered as a widget. May it be font, padding or the menu. The widgets can be combined anytime to create the layouts. You can also choose the widgets at any level of customization. The user interface customization that usually takes the longest to finish in other frameworks takes the minimum amount of time with cross-platform app development by Flutter. Next time, hire flutter app developers to give the best UI to your app. 

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DART For Flutter Cross Platform

Dart is an object-oriented language that is very similar to C++ and Java because of its syntax. Dart has been supporting both weak and strong typing styles, making it usable for beginners as well. Flutter has always been using Dart because of its nature. Flutter uses Just In Time compilation, i.e JIT compilation which results in the faster compilation cycle.

In this case, though the development itself slows down a lot, the JIT compilation manages to result in a faster compilation cycle. Usually, in Android development, the work has been separated into layout and code. But the dart makes sure to keep the layout and code in a single place. As every element in Flutter is treated as a widget, the layout is created in Dart. The Dart compiles in native code without any bridge.

Features of Flutter Cross Platform App

Flutter is such a young technology, and it is still growing so rapidly. The Flutter app developer build for you seamless and functional cross-platform applications. You can always hire flutter app developers and fly high.

• Google Support

Since the Flutter tool is backed by the Google, and Google being the premium user of this technology, you can always expect the assured support from Google. In the vicinity of Google’s support, all the bugs will be immediately fixed.

• Hot Reload Functions

The Hot Reload tool is of extreme vitality engraved in Flutter’s architecture, because it doesn’t require other external plugins to work. The Hot Reloading tool allows you to see all the updates in real-time. Consider if you have encountered an error while programming the code, using the Flutter, you can fix the bug right away. You don’t need to restart the whole thing and can continue from where you left off. If you use regular programming, then it might take you several minutes to get over with the bug.

• High Productivity

Flutter, being a cross-platform app development tool, the same code base can be used for iOS and android app development. It saves you resources and time.

• Fast and Simple Development

Flutter is widely known for its simple development. Programming with Flutter is so easy that even a non-programmer can make Flutter apps. No prior programming knowledge is required to make a flutter app. And as far as speed is considered, then as discusses above, the Hot Reloading tool surely makes a huge difference in the speed. You can change the code at any point in time, and the new ode will be reloaded in less than a second.

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What is Ionic Cross Platform App

Ionic is a cross-platform app development tool. It is an open-source, front-end SDK to develop hybrid mobile applications using different web technologies like Javascript, HTML, CSS. Ionic builds high quality cross-platform and web app experiences. You can always move faster with a single codebase. Ionic uses the minimum DOM manipulation. Angular plays a vital part in increasing the performance of an ionic application. It has a unique command code, avoiding writing the boilerplate code, which genuinely saves precious time.

Ionic uses Node JS to develop and run the app. People who are familiar with web development can create the app and add them to the app store. The first version of ionic was coupled with angular and was used for building dynamic web pages and PWAs. The later version of ionic uses the web components combined with additional language like java script and Angular, VUE, and React. Created in 2013, Ionic is the most popular cross-platform mobile development stack. It allows the developers to create web pages that run inside the web view and in the browser. Website is a component that renders in the web page and displays them as native apps.

Cordova For Native Apps

You Must Be Aware Of The Cordova Tool. It Is a Widely Used Tool For Building The Mobile Apps Using Different Web Technologies. Instead of relying on platform-specific APIs, Cordova relies on its own APIs. These APIs are provided by Cordova as plugins to access all the native functions like built-in non-programmer Cameras, sensors, etc. It acts as the bridge between web view and the device’s operating system.

Features of Ionic Cross Platform App

• Developer Friendly Nature Of Ionic

Ionic Is Built On standardized web technologies and this is why web developers can build a mobile apps and also desktop apps. It is very easy to find resources to create Ionic apps because Javascript is one of the most popular programming languages. With Ionic, you can build an app without even having to learn new skills. Also, it is not necessary to hire native developers while creating the apps for Android.

• Flexibility

As ionic is built on standardized web technologies, it proves to be very flexible, which means that you can only customize the feel and look of the application with CSS and HTML modifications.

• One Codebase And Multiple Apps

The best part is that ionic can build multiple apps from a single codebase. If we see from the client’s point of view, while getting a new app, they rarely want one for the single platform. There’s a gigantic audience out there using Apple & android devices, so having a single codebase for the multiple apps definitely makes a lot of sense. Because a developer has to solve the bug only from one place instead of multiple. It surely helps with long term maintenance. It always saves the clients time and money.

• Testing Convenience

As Ionic operates through the web view, the developer can use the browser of the device to test an app. This can speed up the development. Browsers usually offer the debugging and built-in testing tools that make the testing process even more convenient.

• UI Elements

Ionic takes the look and feel of the native application, because of the provided UI component library. These components can later be used as the readymade elements to construct the Graphic User Interface. It can also be customized. The web components help Ionic to speed up the process of developing the UI logic.

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Why Flutter cross platform app framework is better than ionic?

COMMON FEATURES Of Flutter and Ionic:

• Choosing a single one among these two is surely a difficult task as we have seen above, that both of them have their own different and unique features.
• Flutter and Ionic, both focus on building a UI Framework for the native platforms.
• Both of them believe in high performing and interactive applications.
• Ionic and Flutter, both follow the cross-platform philosophy.

Conflicting Features Of Flutter and Ionic

• In Spite of sharing some common philosophies, both Ionic and Flutter are different in their own ways.
• Using Ionic, you can create something on the web. The web technologies are HTML, CSS AND javascript, which enables a mechanism that supports the running of the Ionic applications on the various cross-platforms with the same UI.
• Whereas, Flutter features a limited ecosystem. The most popular and widely accepted Javascript does not work here. Only Dart is helpful over here.

Let us see the performances of Ionic and Flutter based on the following parameters :

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Performance Of Flutter and Ionic

• The efficiency of Flutter and Ionic, both play a vital role in deciding their performance.
• Flutter can definitely be your answer if you are looking for exclusive animation.
• Ionic almost offers the same performance when you are planning to build more consumer-facing applications.
• The performance of Flutter and Ionic at the end depends on how well you code. Eventually, your code’s design will play a major role in deciding the performance of both.
• Also, the performance of both the tools also relies on the bundle size of the app. The bundle size of Ionic is 2,991 bytes, whereas Flutter needs heavy code even to create a basic application.

Native look Of Flutter and Ionic

• The approach to the native UI element utilization by the flutter and ionic matters a lot.
• Ionic and flutter both do not utilise the native UI elements of each platform. Both of them update the same automatically. Access to native APIs and the platform services through a library of ready-made plugins is allowed by both, Ionic and Flutter.

Code portability Of Flutter and Ionic

• The behaviour of the code in different environment operating systems and processes lets us know the code portability of both flutter and ionic.
• When deployed on mobile and web, both flutter and ionic code work equally.
• Flutter helps you create beautiful looking Android and IOS apps from a single set of code.
• Whereas, if you are expecting to deploy your application as a PWA you should definitely go with ionic.

Knowledge And Skill Set Of Flutter and Ionic

• When it comes to knowledge and skill set, ionic and flutter both are different in a lot of ways.
• Ionic uses the widely used JavaScript Framework whereas to work on flutter you need to know a language called that as it is not a JavaScript framework.
• Flutter has excellent mobile performance as compared to ionic.
• Flutter offers better performance than its Arch Rivals. It has the default availability of native components and this is why it does not require any bridge to communicate between the native modules.
• Flutter can perform efficiently even at 60fps because it uses the skia graphics library which allows the UI to be redrawn every time with every change in the application view.

Architecture Of Flutter and Ionic

• Flutter has layered architecture. It has a platform-specific widget. The architecture of flutter makes it easier for experienced and junior flutter developers to create complex applications even with small and simple components.
• Whereas, ionic uses the Angular JS MVC architecture. It is a software design pattern comprising of the Model View Controller to build single-page cross-platform applications which are not very easy for the beginners

CONCLUSION

Thus, considering all the above points, we can conclude that if your Idea does not require complete native functionality or you have a tight budget and delivery timeline, then flutter the cross-platform app development tool shall work best for you. Also, if you want to hire flutter app developers then let me acknowledge that they don’t charge very high and no more than five developers are required for huge projects.

So, if you have got the above requirements then Flutter is your answer.