Need a Node.js framework for your next app? Whether you’re building a startup MVP or a complex enterprise system, the right Node.js framework can significantly affect development time and app performance. This article compares top Node.js frameworks for ease of use, scalability, and speed, to find your best fit without hassle.
Node.js is an open-source runtime environment that empowers developers to run JavaScript code beyond the browser. It leverages Google’s V8 engine to achieve exceptional speed in executing JavaScript code, making it a popular choice for server-side web development.
It is now the go-to choice for several industry giants. Look at the impressive roster of global tech giants that have leveraged Node.js to their backend.
Today there are numerous Node.js frameworks exist owing to the fact developers may have varying needs and preferences. Based on their features and functionalities, Node.js frameworks can be classified into three categories as follows:
The MVC architecture has gained significant popularity due to the increasing complexity of web applications. In MVC architecture, the code is divided into three logical parts- Model, View & Controller.
The model handles data and business logic; the view is responsible for how to represent content. In contrast, the controller acts to manage communication between Model and View.
This division facilitates efficient management and separation of code, leading to effective development and maintenance of web applications.
Full-stack MVC frameworks offer developers a comprehensive suite of tools and technologies for creating an entire application, encompassing both the back end and front end. These frameworks are designed based on the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture.
REST API frameworks employ a distinct approach to code organization. Rather than dividing applications into separate components, they follow a specific set of rules defined in the REST style while coding. This means that developers must comply with these guidelines to ensure consistency and structure in their code within the framework.
With 55k+ stars on GitHub, it is one of the most popular Node.js frameworks. Node.js is used for building scalable, server-side applications. It is built on top of another popular framework- Express, incorporating more advanced features and tools to develop modern applications.
Being a TypeScript-ready framework, it also facilitates the developers to use TypeScript, which implies that developers take advantage of additional features that TypeScript offers, such as static typing, interface, and classes. TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript.
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Express.js, also known as Express, is one of the most popular Node.js back-end frameworks for building web, real-time applications, and microservices. it stands out with over 60k stars on its GitHub repository.
Developers appreciate its minimalist design, which avoids including unnecessary features. Despite its impressive capabilities and the broad range of functions, it remains lightweight and user-friendly, making it an accessible choice for programmers at any skill level.
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Also Read: What is Express js? A Comprehensive Guide to Beginners
It was created by the team that previously worked on Express but with a greater emphasis on flexibility and simplicity. In terms of the popularity graph, it has generated over 33K+ stars on GitHub.
It is a lightweight and one of the best node js frameworks to create APIs and flexible web applications.
Koa is known for its elegant middleware system, which takes advantage of modern JavaScript features like async/await functions. It shares similarities with Express but offers a more streamlined and modern approach to building web applications.
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It has amassed more than 22K+ stars on GitHub. With a vast community backing it, Sailjs earns a place among prevalent Node.js.
The architecture of Sails.js features the MVC framework, facilitating effective code management. Additionally, it offers modern features such as web sockets, automated testing, and API-driven development, among others.
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Hapi was built using Express by Walmart Labs to handle traffic for events like the Black Friday sale, one of the business days for online business owners. Later they made it a stand-alone framework by making it opinionated.
Unlike Express, Hapi includes a rich library of tools and plugins that make Node.js application development easier. It is commonly used to develop API servers, HTTP-proxy applications, and websites. Hapi’s plugin architecture is what distinguishes it from other frameworks out there.
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Socket.io is one of the most popular JavaScript frameworks, with over 58K+ stars on GitHub. It is frequently utilized in the development of an app that requires real-time data updates.
Real-time chat applications, multiplayer games, and stock market tickers are some famous use cases of Socket.io.
One of its notable strengths is web sockets, a communication protocol that establishes bi-directional communication between server and client. Socket.IO reduce the complexity of working with web sockets to develop real-time communication applications by providing a rich ecosystem.
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With more than 43k stars on GitHub, the popularity of this framework has skyrocketed, positioning it as one of the most favored and extensively utilized frameworks of today.
Meteor.js is an open-source, isomorphic (or universal) full-stack JavaScript framework for developing modern applications.
It provides developers with an ecosystem to develop large-scale web applications in one place by utilizing TypeScript’s powerful features, such as better error handling and better tooling support. The frameworks’ full stack nature empowers developers to efficiently build a robust application without switching between different environments.
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Fastify is a web framework that features a powerful plugin architecture inspired by Express and Hapi. It has over 26.9K+ stars on GitHub.
It is a well-suited Node framework for creating APIs, microservices, and various kinds of web applications. The framework alleviates the development process by including modern features such as support for TypeScript, Schema validation, dependency injection, and a comprehensive library for Node.js development.
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With 14.5K+ Github stars, FeatherJs ranks among the popular Node.js frameworks.
This framework is a comprehensive web development tool that supports both front-end and back-end development. It is built with TypeScript and is compatible with various databases, making it easy for developers to create real-time APIs and applications effortlessly
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Adonis.js boasts a vast community of developers for support and has received over 13.8K stars. This open-source framework adheres to the MVC architectural pattern, allowing for the creation and maintenance of robust web applications.
The features that contribute to its widespread adoption include contemporary and robust functionalities, such as built-in ORM support, a powerful routing system, middleware support, smooth request validation, efficient exception handling, and compatibility with a wide range of front-end technologies.
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This article provides a concise overview of the pros and cons of each framework, with a particular emphasis on their popularity among developers, as reflected in the statistics.
In addition to the frameworks mentioned in this list, numerous others are rapidly gaining popularity in the competitive landscape of web development frameworks.
In this article, we have gone through the best node frameworks in 2024 built on top of Node.js.
Whether you want to develop a complex application with some intricate features and database support or want to develop an application quickly, you can hire node js developers once you decide to move forward.
It’s worth noting that the popularity rankings presented here reflect the current state of affairs at the time of writing and are not shown in any particular order. In addition to this, sources such as trend analysis and statistics from various websites, were also considered to compile this list.
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