Is React Native Better than Xamarin for Mobile App Development?

Today the era is of mobile phones, mobile traffic is busier than desktop/laptop traffic.  Mobile apps are the answer of the new generation apps when accessibility and convenience are considered. If a game developer is looking for cost-effective frameworks for building applications for mobile then React Native and Xamarin should be the familiar names in this regard. Both frameworks are open-sourced and equipped with cross-platform abilities. Now before going ahead with the detailed analysis, let’s look at some points important in regard to cross platforms;

• Mobile App Development Companies use this to create mobile apps suitable for multiple platforms including iOS and android with a single technology stack.
• The single yet shared codebase allows to maintain the same look, feel and experience across different platforms. Also, different platforms get the update and fixes at the same time.
• The app getting published on multiple platforms enhances market reach without added cost.

At present there are many cross-platform mobile apps and tools available like Xamarin, React Native, Flutter, Native Script, Titanium, Ionic, Unity, etc. Now let’s have a look at the specifications of the two most hyped platforms of 2021- Xamarin and React Native.

Xamarin Overview:

Founded back in 2011 by Microsoft, Xamarin is one popular cross-platform mobile app development framework. It is useful for sharing business logic and codes across different platforms offering a native performance. Energy, media, transportation, healthcare Industries can be benefitted from Xamarin. To give Examples of popular apps built with Xamarin are Olo, The World Bank, Storyo, Fresh Direct, APX, Skulls of the Shogun, etc. Most Xamarin App Development Companies combine Xamarin with C#, .Net and Microsoft Visual Studio to build cross-platform mobile apps. There is a great advantage of a huge library of templates that allows using the code across diverse platforms. Xamarin.iOS and Xamarin.Android help in manual customization for different platforms. The C# language consists of features like Generics, LINQ, parallel task library which make the transition easier from one platform to another. The popular brands which use Xamarin are Pinterest, The World Bank, Kelloggs, Aviva, YouTube, Honeywell, etc. The helping tools of Xamarin are NuGet, Prism, Resharper, Prism, MFractor, and Xamarin Inspector.

React Native Overview:

React Native is one more open source cross-platform for mobile app development which came into existence in 2015 by Facebook. It has a vast library of UI components and allows UI components to make apps look like native apps along with providing a high-quality user interface. The native functionalities like the camera, an accelerometer can be easily accessed. React Native also allows editing apps anytime without having to recompile. High-profile apps have been created with React Native so far like Instagram, Walmart, Skype, Tesla, Facebook, Uber Eats, Myntra, Vogue, Bloomberg, Artsy, etc.  React Native App Development Companies use helping tools like Expo, Redux, Flow, React Navigation, Reduxsauce and ESLint.

Comparison between React Native and Xamarin:

Performance-wise: 

Both these platforms offer near-native performance but Xamarin runs the fastest code both on android and iOS by using platform-centric hardware. React Native comes with a near-native presentation but can’t prove its potential in this case because androids don’t support 64-bit mode and often there are issues regarding navigation. Therefore to judge performance-wise, Xamarin is clearly the winner.

Popularity: 

One large talent pool, great community, and market reach often come with popularity. The open-source nature of React Native drives more attention than closed source Xamarin. Popular social media apps like Instagram, Facebook, Tesla, and Skype are based on React Native framework. So popularity-wise, React Native clearly wins the game.

Availability: 

React Native is one open-source framework and JavaScript in this case helps to swiftly develop apps. A lot of programmers seasoned or new feel comfortable with JavaScript usage. However, the C# language used in Xamarin often is restrictive which clearly drives the users towards React Native.

Readymade Components: 

React Native comes with readily available documentation and tools for type checking, forms, networking etc. However, Xamarin consists of even better components than React Native but the access to the components is not without payment.

Community support: 

React Native has a vast community that contributes to the growth of newer members. Despite all the advancements, roadblocks might get created due to the absence of subject matter abilities. But Xamarin does one wonderful job here and experienced programmers assist in multiple ways.

Cost-Effectiveness: 

The majority of the features of Xamarin are not free and quotes a hefty amount for a purchase of Video Studio License, resulting in a costly app development process. If the budget is strict then it is advisable to go for React Native.

Speed of Development: 

The Hot Reload feature of React Native helps in magnifying the speed of the apps that will get created on the platform. On the other hand, Xamarin can effortlessly create controls from nothing and Visual Studio specifically helps in producing the apps quickly. From this speed test, Xamarin comes out as a clear winner as developers can easily use pre-existing controls in this regard.

Learning Curve: 

Being supported by JavaScript, React Native definitely provides a delightful learning curve but because of the immense vastness of the libraries, problems might get created for new programmers. Now, if we look at Xamarin, then the only requirement, in this case, is the in-depth knowledge about C# and .NET, following which programmers can rightly utilize the resources of Xamarin and save much of their time by searching for app-specific features.

Testing: 

Small modules are used for the writing of React Native along with the static analysis tools for checking errors. The jest testing framework is useful for simplified testing. Xamarin on the other hand uses Xamarin Test Recorder and Visual studio to run tests but the problem arises when Windows doesn’t assist in testing iOS devices.

Pricing: 

All the features including the libraries are free to programmers in the case of React Native. But Xamarin on the other hand is quite costly and payment is needed to reap benefits.

After the detailed analysis, it can be concluded that React Native is best for the creation of social media apps and for programmers who are on a budget; Xamarin on the other hand is useful for programmers who require high-end graphics and testing of apps in a faster development environment. It is very difficult to point out the best because both of these frameworks have their own pros and cons. If you are a new programmer then taking help from professionals would be best for you. Monkhub is a digital innovation company with the aim to help companies with design, product, growth integration, and achieving great customer experience.