Last Updated on August 10, 2023 by sourav sahu
As we all know, there are numerous development frameworks available in the market that allows you to organize the development progress.
Developers are provided with a ready-made code base structure on which they can implement reusable elements to enhance the performance of an application.
Therefore it becomes hard for businesses to choose the right framework, some will offer development freedom whereas some support automation.
The demand for web applications is expanding at a rapid pace and businesses employing them to deliver an excellent user experience.
With this increasing demand, software developers are constantly testing various frameworks that offer cutting-edge features to develop web applications.
But according to a recent user survey, 4 out of 5 full-stack and backend software developers find Node.js frameworks as their go-to choice. Here’s how!
The unique toolsets that come with Node.js allow software engineers to develop various use cases without investing time or wasting extra cash on web application development.
In addition, it has an active community of veteran experts who’re constantly developing and suggesting new frameworks. Apart from that, Node has the ability to maintain a huge codebase having tons of dependencies and adding new features to the application.
Above all, several Node.js development companies are brewing up Node.js best practices to follow, just to ensure that their valued clientele gets the best possible outcome irrespective of their requirements.
If are you planning to build an app using the Node.js framework but are confused about choosing the right one, then this one is for you.
In this post, we are going to discuss what are Node.js frameworks and what are the types of Node.js frameworks that you can use in 2023. So without any further ado, let’s get started!
What is Node.js and is it a framework?
Node.js is an open-source server environment to build network applications. It allows software developers to use JavaScript on the server for the frontend and backend development of an application.
You will be surprised to know that it has a variety of framework collections built on Node that extend its functionalities and properties further.
You can build scalable and secure network applications and use JavaScript for writing code so that you’re not required to worry about running the app as Node.js will run itself. It can run on various platforms such as Linux, Windows, Unix, Mac OS, etc.
Basically, it is an asynchronous event-driven JavaScript runtime environment that supports multiple template engines and manages concurrent connections simultaneously.
Here is the example of “hello world” which shows how Node.js handles concurrent connections. Upon each connection, the callback is fired but if no work is done, Node.js will sleep.
| const http = require(‘http’); const hostname = ‘127.0.0.1’;const port = 3000; const server = http.createServer((req, res) => { res.statusCode = 200; res.setHeader(‘Content-Type’, ‘text/plain’); res.end(‘Hello World’);}); server.listen(port, hostname, () => { console.log(`Server running at http://${hostname}:${port}/`);}); |
This is in contrast to today’s concurrency model where all OS threads are employed. Thread-based networking is somewhat complex and inefficient to utilize.
Also, Node.js users can stay worry-free about dead-locking the process, since there are no locks available.
What are Node Js frameworks?
Every web application technology provides plenty of development frameworks that support specific use cases in the development lifecycle. But Node.js frameworks have mainly three types namely — REST API frameworks, MVC, and Full-Stack MVC.
REST API frameworks
Node.js frameworks have a strong preference for building web applications quickly using a well-known REST API for a better user experience.
So you can stay worry-free about the architectural styles of network applications. Mostly all web development frameworks have a ready programming interface through which you can save a lot of time in building web and mobile apps that need an active internet connection.
MVC frameworks
MVC frameworks provide developers with a valuable design pattern that divides application logic into three main phases: models, views, and controllers. Due to this, it becomes easy to maintain and scale the Node.js application.
Full-stack MVC frameworks
If you’re planning to build a real-time application, Full-Stack MVC frameworks are the best solutions for your project as it has a great deal with template engines, scaffolding, and libraries, and provide a wide range of other development capabilities.
Let’s discuss the best Node.js frameworks that software developers mostly prefer in 2023 and beyond.
1. Express
Express is an open-source web development framework that helps you to manage everything from routes to handling views and requests.
It is one of the best and most widely used Node.js frameworks that have a minimalistic approach and a simple platform for coding architecture.
Developers mainly prefer using Express.js for designing and developing scalable and modern web applications easily and in the least time possible. Giant companies like Twitter, Uber, IBM, etc use Express.js to deploy their products.
2. Koa
Koa.js is another great js framework that provides a robust set of features for mobile and web app development.
It is a dominant framework that works wonders while creating various web services and it is super fun when you work with Koa.js. Using the async features in Koa, you can ditch callbacks and increase error handling.
3. Meteor.js
Are you planning to develop an app and looking for a web development framework that is based on JavaScript and uses only one language? If so, then Meteor.js is an ideal choice for your project.
It is an open-source platform that propagates automatic data changes without any developer’s help. It offers a comprehensive set of libraries and advanced features to keep up with client-server communication.
4. Socket.io
Another great Node.js framework that enables real-time and event-based communication between the connected browsers is the Socket io library. It is suitable for every platform that equally focuses on the speed and reliability of the application.
5. Nest.js
Nest.js is a progressive Node.js framework that allows developers to develop scalable and dynamic enterprise-level applications that provide flexibility to users and a better user experience.
For backend development, Nest.js is one of the best productivity boosters that potentially doubles developers’ power to build mobile apps and enhance performance while saving valuable time.
6. Sails.js
Sails is a classic and straightforward framework that resembles the MVC architecture pattern and builds high-end customized applications.
It is basically a frontend-agnostic-backend platform that uses Express for HTTP requests and uses the abilities of Socket.io for WebSocket.
7. Total.js
Lastly, we have Total.js. All the Node.js frameworks that we discussed here do not offer a CMS-like experience, but Total.js provides a CMS-like experience and has everything that you expect in a Node.js environment.
It’s a full-fledged open-source web application framework that gives developers maximum flexibility and eases building a feature-rich app.
Final Thoughts
After reading this post, we can say that Node.js is trending at the moment. There are huge possibilities that software developers can leverage Node.js libraries to develop highly secure and robust web applications.
Due to the tremendous abilities at advancing web and mobile app development, Node.js frameworks make the entire development process effortless and simple for developers.
With the quickly evolving technology sector, identifying your project requirements and the availability of resources is one of the major aspects of choosing the right framework that provides desirable outcomes.
We hope you find this helpful. It would be great for us if you share this post on Facebook or Twitter to reach more audiences. Feel free to approach us in the comment section given below and ask your queries. We will get back to you soon.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Which JS framework is best in 2023?
It’s difficult to define which JavaScript framework is the “best”. It is so because the preferences, needs, and features vary from year to year. However, the popular frameworks of today are React, Angular, and Vue.js. Each of these frameworks has its own pros and problems. So you have to choose the best JS framework depending on the particular requirements of the project you are working on.
Is node js still relevant?
Yes, Node.js is still very popular in the current scenario. It is widely used for building server-side applications and also used with front-end libraries like React and Angular to create full-stack applications.
