Vue JS, commonly referred to as Vue, is an open-source, progressive JavaScript framework created by Evan You in 2014 as an alternative to heavier frameworks like AngularJS and React. Vue combines Angular-influenced approaches and streamlined features for front-end interfacing and application development. Vue’s core library is focused on the view layer only and designed to be adopted into projects incrementally.
What Are the Advantages of Vue?
Vue offers a number of built-in features and components, which makes it an exceptional JavaScript sandbox for developers to begin building within. It also operates on a single syntax and features a logical, straightforward design.
What Is Vue Used For?
Vue is a JavaScript framework that facilitates the UI (user interface) development of websites and single-page applications.
A progressive JavaScript framework, Vue makes creating user interfaces simpler and more enjoyable. It was designed to be incrementally adoptable and avoid many of the baked-in fallacies of existing, monolithic frameworks.
Vue’s core library is easily integrated with other libraries and existing projects. It’s easy to pick up, largely due to the framework’s focus on the library’s view layer only. Vue is also capable of powering intricate, single-page applications through the use of modern tooling and support libraries for added functionality.
Finally, Vue supports two-way data binding through v-model
, primarily in form inputs. It uses two-way data binding methods to ensure multiple parts of an application using the same data will always have the same version of this data (usually the latest version). Unlike Angular, two-way binding is not a default behavior across all data flow.
Is Vue JS Easy to Learn?
Since Vue is a progressive framework, you can implement it into existing projects. This means Vue is easy for any developer with existing knowledge of JavaScript to pick up.
Unlike other frameworks, Vue does not require extensive knowledge of libraries or JSX. Vue also is also easily adaptable for developers of all skill levels due to its extensive documentation. In a 2019 survey of roughly 1,600 developers, 76 percent pointed to exceptional documentation capabilities as Vue’s greatest advantage.
Is Vue Better Than React?
Vue and React are both JavaScript frameworks, but each offers strengths in distinct areas and one may be preferable over the other depending on your needs.
Though JavaScript is essential to the way we perceive and interact with websites and applications on the internet, sometimes a particular framework may be more appropriate to use than another depending on how a developer needs to work with JavaScript code.
Vue Advantages
Vue is primarily designed for user interface-related tasks and may be integrated within any JavaScript project to handle interface design and development while another framework handles more complex tasks. The framework is simple and effective, offering a comfortable design, single syntax and efficient plugins. Vue also includes official state management and the ability to work with animation via the Vuex library, while React requires third-party libraries like Redux or Zustand for similar centralized state management.
React Advantages
On the other hand, React offers a rich ecosystem of libraries for UI design/development and even allows the user to write custom components in HTML through the use of the .JSX extension. React allows supports mobile development through React Native, fast React developer tools that are available as Firefox or Chrome extensions and is SEO-friendly. It is currently the most popular framework and is used in twice the number of websites that Vue is. React is also supported by Meta and bolstered by a strong community of contributors. One note is that React’s minimal core shifts complexity to external libraries, which can lead to more boilerplate code and potentially larger bundle sizes in complex applications — however, this modularity also provides greater flexibility in how projects are structured.
Ultimately, Vue and React both have strengths and drawbacks. React is significantly more versatile and adaptive as it offers the use of component-based or functional programming approaches, while Vue is more streamlined, easier to learn and has more built-in features. React is stripped-down in its basic state but offers significantly more libraries and support. That said, they are each are highly capable frameworks capable of complex JavaScript functionality.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Vue JS used for?
Vue.js is a JavaScript framework used for building user interfaces and single-page applications. It focuses on the view layer and can be integrated into existing projects or used to develop complex applications with additional tooling.
Is Vue JS easy to learn?
Yes, Vue.js is considered easy to learn, especially for developers familiar with JavaScript. It has straightforward syntax, requires no knowledge of JavaScript XML (JSX) and is supported by extensive documentation.
How does Vue compare to React?
Vue and React are both popular JavaScript frameworks. Vue is more lightweight and easier to adopt, while React offers more flexibility through a larger ecosystem but may require more setup and external libraries.