Next.js vs React.js: A Comparison of Two Popular Frontend Frameworks

Originally published on www.ghazikhan.in

If you are a web developer, you might have heard of Next.js and React.js, two of the most popular frontend frameworks in the market. But what are the differences between them, and which one should you choose for your next project? In this blog post, we will compare Next.js and React.js based on their features, performance, developer experience, and use cases.

I have worked with ReactJS and NextJS for about 5 years now and have used
these 2 frameworks for many projects in different domain and industry. In
this blog post I'm making my best effort to compare these 2 frameworks and
share my findings and opinions. I hope this will help you to make a better
decision.

What is Next.js?

Next.js is a backend framework that is based on React.js, a library for building user interfaces. Next.js adds some additional features to React.js, such as:

• Routing: Next.js provides a file-system based router that automatically creates routes based on the file structure of your pages directory. You can also use dynamic routes, nested routes, catch-all routes, and custom server routes with Next.js.
• Pre-rendering: Next.js pre-renders every page by default, which means that it generates HTML for each page in advance, instead of doing it on the fly in the browser. This improves the performance and SEO of your website. You can choose between two forms of pre-rendering: static generation and server-side rendering.
• Static Generation: Next.js can generate static HTML files for your pages at build time, which can be served by any hosting provider or CDN. This is ideal for pages that do not change frequently or depend on user input. You can also use incremental static regeneration to update the static pages in the background without rebuilding the entire site.
• Server-side Rendering: Next.js can also render pages on the server on each request, which is useful for pages that need to display dynamic data or personalized content. You can use server-side rendering with data fetching methods such as getServerSideProps or getInitialProps to fetch data before rendering the page.
• Image Optimization: Next.js provides an Image component that automatically optimizes images for different screen sizes and formats. You can also use placeholders, lazy loading, and custom loaders with the Image component.
• API Routes: Next.js allows you to create API endpoints as functions in the pages/api directory. You can use these API routes to handle requests from your frontend or external sources. You can also use middleware, authentication, and database access with API routes.
• Internationalization: Next.js supports internationalized routing and localization out of the box. You can easily create multilingual websites with Next.js by using locale subpaths or domains. You can also use built-in or custom hooks to access the current locale and translations in your pages and components.

What is React.js?

React.js is a library for building user interfaces using components. React.js lets you create reusable UI elements that can manage their own state and interact with other components. React.js uses a virtual DOM to render the UI efficiently and update it when the data changes. Some of the main features of React.js are:

• JSX: JSX is a syntax extension that allows you to write HTML-like code in JavaScript. JSX makes it easier to create and manipulate UI elements in React.js. You can also use plain JavaScript or other alternatives to JSX if you prefer.
• Hooks: Hooks are functions that let you use state and other React features in functional components. Hooks make it easier to share stateful logic between components, manage side effects, and access context. You can also create your own custom hooks or use third-party hooks for various purposes.
• Context: Context is a feature that lets you pass data through the component tree without using props. Context is useful for sharing global data such as themes, user information, or preferences across your application. You can use the useContext hook or the Context.Provider and Context.Consumer components to access context in your components.
• Redux: Redux is a popular state management library that works well with React.js. Redux helps you manage the global state of your application using a single store, actions, and reducers. Redux makes it easier to debug, test, and scale your application by enforcing a predictable data flow and a single source of truth.
• React Router: React Router is a library that adds routing functionality to React.js applications. React Router lets you create dynamic routes based on parameters, query strings, or hashes. You can also use nested routes, redirects, transitions, authentication, and other features with React Router.

Next.js vs React.js: Performance

Next.js is much faster than React.js because it offers features such as pre-rendering, image optimization, static destinations, and much more to make the site load instantly across all devices . Due to some missing features, React.js websites are not very performant or extremely fast-loading compared to Next.js sites.

Pre-rendering improves the performance and SEO of your website by generating HTML for each page in advance, instead of doing it on the fly in the browser. This reduces the loading time and bandwidth consumption of your website, and also makes it more accessible to search engines and crawlers. Next.js pre-renders every page by default, while React.js does not support pre-rendering out of the box. You can use libraries such as React Helmet, React Snap, or Gatsby to add pre-rendering to React.js, but they are not as easy or seamless as Next.js.

Image optimization is another feature that boosts the performance of your website by automatically resizing, compressing, and delivering images in the optimal format for each device. Next.js provides an Image component that handles image optimization for you, while React.js does not have a built-in solution for image optimization. You can use libraries such as react-image, react-lazyload, or react-progressive-image to optimize images in React.js, but they are not as powerful or flexible as Next.js.

Static destinations are another way to improve the performance of your website by generating static HTML files for your pages at build time, which can be served by any hosting provider or CDN. Static destinations are ideal for pages that do not change frequently or depend on user input, such as landing pages, blogs, or documentation. Next.js supports static destinations by default, while React.js does not have a native way to create static destinations. You can use libraries such as Gatsby, Create React App, or react-static to create static destinations in React.js, but they are not as simple or integrated as Next.js.

Next.js vs React.js: Developer Experience

Next.js and React.js both provide a great developer experience, but they have some differences in terms of ease of use, learning curve, and tooling.

Ease of use: Next.js is easier to use than React.js because it provides a
lot of features and functionality out of the box, such as routing, pre-rendering, image optimization, API routes, internationalization, and more . You don't have to install or configure any external libraries or dependencies to get started with Next.js. You can simply create a Next.js app using the create-next-app command and start coding right away. React.js, on the other hand, is more minimal and requires you to install and configure some additional libraries and dependencies to get the same features and functionality as Next.js. You can use tools such as Create React App, Gatsby, or Next.js itself to bootstrap a React.js app with some basic setup and configuration, but you still have to add more libraries and dependencies as your project grows.

Learning curve: Next.js has a slightly higher learning curve than React.js
because it adds some additional concepts and syntax on top of React.js, such as file-system based routing, data fetching methods, Image component, API routes, internationalization, and more . You have to learn how to use these features and how they work with React.js. React.js has a lower learning curve because it only focuses on building user interfaces using components. You only have to learn how to use JSX, hooks, context, and other core features of React.js. However, you also have to learn how to use other libraries and dependencies that you need for your project.

Tooling: Next.js and React.js both have excellent tooling support that
makes development easier and faster. Next.js provides tools such as hot reloading, fast refresh, code splitting, webpack support, TypeScript support, ESLint support, and more . React.js also provides tools such as hot reloading, fast refresh, code splitting, webpack support, TypeScript support, ESLint support, and more through tools such as Create React App or Gatsby. However, Next.js has some advantages over React.js in terms of tooling support. For example:

• Next.js supports both static generation and server-side rendering out of the box , while React.js only supports client-side rendering by default. You have to use libraries such as Gatsby or Next.js itself to add static generation or server-side rendering to React.js.
• Next.js supports incremental static regeneration , which allows you to update the static pages in the background without rebuilding the entire site. This improves the performance and freshness of your website. React.js does not support incremental static regeneration natively. You have to use libraries such as Gatsby Cloud or Netlify Build Plugins to add incremental static regeneration to React.js.
• Next.js supports image optimization out of the box , while React.js does not have a built-in solution for image optimization. You have to use libraries such as react-image or react-lazyload to optimize images in React.js.
• Next.js supports internationalization out of the box , while React.js does not have a native way to create multilingual websites. You have to use libraries such as react-i18next or react-intl to add internationalization to React.js.

Next.js vs React.js: Use Cases

Next.js Use Cases:

Server-Rendered Applications: Next.js is well-suited for building
server-rendered applications. If your application requires rendering on the server and serving fully rendered pages to the client, Next.js makes it easy with its built-in server-side rendering (SSR) capabilities.

SEO-Friendly Websites: Next.js's pre-rendering and server-side rendering
features are excellent for SEO. Search engines can easily crawl and index your pages, which is vital for content-heavy websites and online stores.

E-commerce Platforms: E-commerce websites often require SEO optimization,
dynamic content, and interactive user interfaces. Next.js can handle these requirements efficiently, thanks to its pre-rendering and server-side rendering capabilities.

Static Websites: For sites that don't frequently update content and need
high performance, Next.js offers static site generation (SSG). This is ideal for landing pages, blogs, documentation sites, and portfolios.

API Endpoints: Next.js's API routes make it a fantastic choice for creating
serverless functions and RESTful API endpoints that integrate seamlessly with your frontend.

Multilingual Websites: If you're building a multilingual website, Next.js's
built-in internationalization features simplify the process. You can easily add translations and support for different locales to your site.

React.js Use Cases:

Single-Page Applications (SPAs): React.js excels at building SPAs where
most of the rendering and routing occur on the client side. It's a great choice when your application is highly interactive and relies on client-side navigation.

Component Libraries: React.js is widely used for creating component
libraries. You can build reusable UI components that can be shared across different projects or even open-sourced for the community.

Progressive Web Apps (PWAs): React.js can be used to build PWAs that
provide a native app-like experience in a web browser. It's perfect for creating offline-capable, responsive web applications.

Custom Development: If you need complete control over the architecture and
features of your project, React.js allows you to pick and choose libraries and configurations to suit your requirements.

Integration with Backend Technologies: React.js can be integrated with
various backend technologies like Node.js, Ruby on Rails, or Django. It's a flexible choice for front-end development regardless of your server-side stack.

Community-Driven Projects: React.js has a large and active community,
making it an excellent choice for projects where you may need a wide range of third-party libraries and extensions.