Selecting the best technology for app development is a crucial task as it drives apps towards success. Node.js and Java are two popular technologies in the app development world. Node.js was written by Ryan Dahi in 2009. Let’s first clear that, Node.js is not a programming language, also it is not a framework. It is an open-source, cross-platform Javascript run time environment which executes Javascript code outside of the browser. It is also used to build back-end services(APIs). Whereas, Java is one of the most adopted programming languages in the world. Then which one to choose for app development in 2021? To answer this question, here we’ll compare Node.js vs Java on the basis of various parameters. But before digging to the comparison, let us see overview of Node.js and Java.

What Is Node.js?

Node.js is a server-side, Javascript-based runtime environment. It attributes its success as a high-performance, scalable framework to the single-threaded process used for web loads and also async programming. Also, you can use Node.js based frameworks like Express, Socket.io and Meteor.js within it to improve the backend capability of a project. It is designed with real-time and push-based architectures to build single page apps, websites and backend API services.

One can use Node.js to build microservices, iot based apps, streaming web apps, real-time software & streaming apps, complex single-page apps, backends and servers, scripting and automation etc.

Know the role of Node.js in iot app development at- Role of Node.js in Internet of things (IOT)

Twitter, Netflix, Trello are some of the most popular apps developed with Node.js.

What Is Java?

Java is a popular programming language which promotes the use of object-oriented concepts after C++. It works with “write once and run anywhere(WORA)” principle means the code can run on all the platforms that support Java without need of recompilation. Java is a secure, stable an flexible programming language so a perfect solution for banking, eCommerce, FinTech and transportation services.

One can use Java for android app development, web app development, game development, software tools, test automation. Scientific apps, enterprise applications, embedded systems, app servers/web servers, big data technologies, Banking and FinTech applications and so on.

Ebay, google docs, Spotify, netflix are some of the popular apps built with Java.

Node.js Vs Java-

1. Architecture-
Node.js-
Node.js uses a single-threaded Event loop architecture which allows it to handle multiple concurrent requests with high performance. It also allows you to make use of MVC/MVP architecture pattern, that eases isolating and onboarding issues in the app codebase. Also, it creates multiple views for the same data and supports asynchronous communication between various components.

Java-
Developers prefer MVC(Model-View-Controller) pattern to build apps with Java where Model represents objects in Java, and design pattern resembles the internal architecture of language. It advances simple code maintenance and trouble-free testing of apps. Developers can classify individual roles and work on various functionalities in large apps. Hence the changes that are made in one module don’t affect the whole application. It improves productivity of development teams and results in faster time to market applications.

2. Scalability-
Node.js-
It builds highly scalable applications. Non-blocking I/O and event-driven models manages multiple concurrent requests. Also, event-loop mechanism enables the server to process a maximum number of requests. It’d be ideal if the numerous services are distributed to separate work servers, it expands Nodejs’ effectiveness and scalability. So different development teams can segregate tasks and rapidly develop apps scalably.

Java-
Java is scalable and this makes it best to perform for enterprise apps. Also it is important to implement best practices like vertical scalability to add more computational resources like CPUs and RAM. EJB(Enterprise Java beans) that is known as development architecture is used to build highly scalable and robust enterprise-level apps in Java. The EJB architecture is accompanied by application server that facilitates the processing of numerous requests. Along these, it offers good scalability. Also, enterprise based applications use an event-driven architecture that encourages module separation for various functions and centrally controls input data. It is best to build complex functionalities and implement high-scalability in the projects. Projects that involve adding new functionalities adopt this design pattern.

3. Thread Control-
Know more at- [https://solaceinfotech.com/blog/node-js-vs-java-which-is-best-for-mobile-app-development/]