NextJS Vs React: Key Differences, Advantages and Limitations

Choosing the right programming language for a website or an application development has always been a hassle. 

When it comes to selecting between two awesome programming languages such as NextJS and React, it’s debatable. Both tools are best suited for creating web applications.

If you're an entrepreneur who wants to build a landing page, an eCommerce website, a static website, or an application and aren’t sure which programming language to use for software development, this article will walk you through there!

In this article, you will learn the differences between NextJS and React, as well as which is better for software development.

What Exactly Is React Native?

React Native is a front-end development language written in Javascript. It is used for UI development and was created by Facebook. 

Also, it’s used to create dynamic single-page apps, visualization tools, mobile applications, dashboards, and many more.

Its interactive user interface is created with ease by utilizing the components that receive data and render displays.

Most major tech platforms, including Facebook, Netflix, BBC, Airbnb, Reddit, and others, had used it for mobile app development.

With the use of additional libraries such as React Native, React becomes more flexible. It accelerates development when compared to other JS frameworks.

The main reason it's popular among developers is that it's simple to learn and code.

What Are the Main Reasons For Using React Native?

1. Easy to use and understand

React Native is quite easy to understand and implement as you can get an abundance of training resources, tutorials, and documentation online; it can be really helpful for you to learn.

Furthermore, as it is built on JavaScript, it makes it simple for developers well-versed in JavaScript to become acquainted with React. Because of its ease of use, developers can create web applications in just a few days.

2. It is simple to create dynamic web applications.

Dynamic web applications require HTML strings, ending up making it more complex. However, as it is built on JavaScript, React allows developers to easily build dynamic web applications with less coding.

3. Reusable elements

React is made up of various components and has got its own set of logic and controls. The components are reusable as they can be repeatedly loaded on various pages without a hassle, and the best part is you don’t even have to change the characteristics.

Just edit the components, and you can easily view the changes across all the pages.

What Exactly Is NextJS?

Vercel created NextJS, which is an open-source framework. 

It is built by NodeJS and Babel and is specifically created to work with React. In addition, it’s a great platform to create applications, server-side rendering websites, linting and standardization, SEO tools, HTTP caching, and automatic code splitting.

You can also use it to create SEO-friendly websites, landing pages, and e-commerce stores. The main purpose behind creating it was to make the web faster.

Furthermore, because NextJS is built on top of React, it assists React in overcoming its technical limitations and creating server-side static, hybrid apps.

Many platforms, including Tiktok, Binance, Hulu, and Twitch. tv, have used it.

NextJS has two types of pre-rendering. The first is service-side rendering, which allows for data fetching and rendering at request time, while the second is a static generation, which makes data available before the request time, making it useful in situations where data is not user-specific or is publicly cached.

NextJS also supports typescript, which is a programming language based on JavaScript, which is one of the main reasons for its popularity. It also works with Redux.

NextJS version 12 includes a rust compiler for better image management, SEO optimized crawlability features, and a variety of other operational tools for production-friendly and faster builds.

What Are the Main Reasons For Using NextJS?

1. Simple to code

NextJS is less difficult to code than React and other frameworks. It's so simple that developers only need to create a page and then link it to the component in the header, resulting in less coding and improved project management and readability.

2. Speed

NextJS supports two types of rendering: SSR and static generation, which speeds up applications built with NextJS because it is a better and smarter way to handle data.

However, until the server is handling requests, server-side rendering (SSR) will be fast, whereas static generation is fast because it is served from the CDN. Furthermore, its native image optimization feature improves its performance significantly.

3. Fast Rendering

It has fast rendering, and hence, any changes you make to the file will be visible immediately when you refresh the page. The component can be rendered on the fly due to its fast rendering, making it much easier to see the edits.

4. Improved image optimization

 It has improved image optimization, which means images can be resized and served in formats such as WebP.

What’s the Difference Between React vs NextJS?

NextJS VS React both are important building blocks and beneficial tools for making the web faster. It employs applications that have higher performance, faster production rates, and lower development costs.

NextJS makes it simple to create web applications by providing two rendering services: server-side rendering (SSR) and static websites, as well as other tools. It's also simple to code, which leads to better readability.

It includes improved image optimization and SEO components.

However, React distinguishes itself from other alternatives such as VueJS and Angular because it is built on the Javascript framework, which makes it more popular.

Also, if you want to create a user interface for a single-page application, React is the best option. You can also save a lot of time by creating single-page applications and reusable user interface components.

Which Is Better?

If you're still unsure about which programming language to use for your next project, it all comes down to the goals and types of projects you're working on.

NextJS and React are both excellent choices for developers. NextJS is great to use for an increase in performance.

Because of server-side rendering (SSR) and static websites, NextJS applications are pretty fast. It also has the best image optimization.  Server-side rendering (SSR) improves application performance.

If you want more features and tools to make your job easier, NextJS is a good option. You can use React if you need resources to work on the front-end of mobile and web applications and want to make the user interface more appealing and easier to use.