Xamarin vs. React Native – Comparison of Two Cross-Platform Development Tools

Learn which tool has the advantage for different aspects of cross-platform development, like the framework, documentation, and community.

The cross-platform mobile app development market is teeming with activities as companies opt for apps that can seamlessly run on both iOS and Android devices. Technological advancements arrive every now and again to make the development process simpler and more efficient. Xamarin and React Native are two shining stars of the cross-platform app development domain. Both are cost-efficient and capable of simplifying the development cycle.

Though both the frameworks serve the same objective, here we mention a few noteworthy differences between Xamarin and React Native. But, before that let us have a brief introduction of both the frameworks:

Xamarin The software company was founded in May 2011 by the creators of cross-platform implementations Mono, Mono for Android, and MonoTouch. This California-based company has launched the first product, Xamarin software, with an objective of resolving the disconnection of technology stack for native app development. Microsoft backs this software since 2016 after its acquisition.

Xamarin is an open source framework and uses C# for writing native UI codebase. The codebase is used for multiple platforms including Android and iOS. The framework is so popular that in the first quarter of the year 2017, over 1.4 million developers across 120 countries worldwide were using Xamarin.

Xamarin.Android and Xamarin.iOS are updated more regularly and tested more extensively as compared to any other cross-platform app development tools. Xamarin SDKs have more stable features than its counterparts. Xamarin powers many renowned apps like Storyo, a video creator app, The World Bank- a survey app, and Olo- an online food ordering app, etc.

React Native This Javascript-based cross-platform app development technology was introduced by Facebook in 2015. It has over 1.5K contributors who have 231 releases on Github. As the framework uses Javascript, it has gained ground quickly among the developers.

With React Native, the cross-platform app developers can start app development from scratch as the framework does not require a steep learning curve. React Native has the same working principles as that of ReactJS, but React Native has some native views. The platform does not rely on HTML5 but on native SDKs.

Now we move to five notable points to compare these frameworks:

Just in Time (JIT) Compilation Xamarin- The framework is based on #C, which makes JIT and AOT (Ahead of Time) compilation possible. However, for iOS, JIT compilation is not possible and Xamarin AOT compiles the application. JIT is default compilation for Android, but it can be configured to AOT.

React Native- JIT compilation is not possible for iOS apps, and the framework uses the JavaScriptCore on an internal level. The iOS-provided JavaScriptCore can also be used on Android, but we can use JIT compilation for Android apps.

Advantages – Xamarin Environment Xamarin- The development environment is friendlier as it is easy to write a code on Windows and compile it for Mac when it comes to an iPhone app. The entire process is more powerful than React Native.

React Native- Though it allows developers to select the suitable IDE, the iPhone app process is less powerful as compared to Xamarin.

Advantages – Xamarin Framework Xamarin- The framework works in the Model View ViewModel (MVVM) style. ASP.NET web developers would love this software.

React Native- It uses one-way data flow comes with React. The JS web developers would love this framework.

Advantages – The Same for Both Documentation Xamarin- You can find components split between NuGet and component store, but documentation part needs improvement.

React Native- Documentation is excellent, and you can find all the components in place. In a way, ready-made components are available in more organized way in React Native.

**Though quality and quantity of components are the same, React Native is slightly better in this area than Xamarin:

Community Assistance** Xamarin- The framework has a clear advantage of a long-term presence in the domain. You can find assistance readily thanks to community support forums, Stack Overflow, and blogs.

React Native- The tool is relatively new and has a smaller developer support. We can expect robust community support after some time.

Advantages – Xamarin When it comes to testing capabilities of related tools, both these frameworks are equally good. You can readily debug Xamarin-based iOS apps in Xcode Simulator, whereas, React Native-supported apps can be debugged using Visual Studio Code.

Concluding Lines Depending on your project’s requirements, a renowned and reliable cross-platform app development company can suggest a right platform.

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