My honest opinion about SwiftUI vs Flutter vs React Native to build iOS apps

Summary

In this video, the speaker discusses why they chose SwiftUI over other mobile development technologies like React Native, Flutter, and web-based solutions despite their 15 years of web development experience. The speaker critiques web technologies for mobile apps, highlighting issues with smooth UI and performance, and explains how Flutter and React Native introduce unnecessary layers and complexities. Ultimately, they argue that SwiftUI offers the best integration with iOS, native system features, and overall performance. For indie developers, focusing on a single platform like iOS is presented as a more efficient and effective approach to building high-quality apps.

Takeaways

• 😀 SwiftUI was chosen over other technologies (React Native, Flutter, web-based tools) to build an app, despite 15 years of experience as a web developer.
• 😀 The speaker considers web technologies the worst option for building mobile apps due to their optimization for content rather than interactive UIs.
• 😀 Smooth, interactive UIs are not the strength of web technologies, which can lead to slow, jumping UIs that don't provide a good mobile app experience.
• 😀 Frameworks like Ionic, which wrap web technologies into native apps, can create unnecessary complexity and make apps feel like cheap knock-offs of native apps.
• 😀 Flutter's approach of rendering everything itself, while bold, leads to concerns about the UI not feeling native and integration with system features being difficult.
• 😀 Flutter's reliance on its own rendering engine and programming language (Dart) makes it harder to integrate with iOS's system UI and updates.
• 😀 The speaker prefers React Native over other cross-platform solutions, but it still faces issues with indirection, relying on third-party packages, and potential bugs from the runtime.
• 😀 React Native may get you 80% of the way to a native app, but the final 20% requires understanding of native code and troubleshooting issues that arise.
• 😀 Swift and SwiftUI are superior to web-based technologies, Flutter, and React Native for building iOS apps because they provide better integration with iOS features.
• 😀 SwiftUI is the only tool for building certain features (e.g., home screen widgets, App Intents, and features for watchOS and visionOS) that are exclusive to Apple's ecosystem.

Q & A

Why did the speaker choose SwiftUI over other technologies like React Native and Flutter?

The speaker chose SwiftUI due to its seamless integration with Apple's ecosystem, its performance, and the ability to access native features without relying on third-party bridges or plugins. Additionally, SwiftUI and Swift are tailored for iOS development, providing better long-term maintenance and a more cohesive experience.

What are the primary issues with using web technologies (JS/TS) to build mobile apps?

Web technologies are optimized for content, not interactive UIs, which results in slower, less fluid experiences on mobile. The need to constantly fight the default platform behavior, like vertical layout and resource loading priorities, makes it harder to create smooth, mobile-friendly applications.

How does Ionic attempt to bridge the gap between web technologies and native apps?

Ionic wraps web apps into native shells and provides API bridges to the operating system. However, this approach can lead to slower, buggier apps because it adds unnecessary layers of complexity and often fails to perfectly mimic native UI components.

What is the main drawback of using Flutter for iOS app development?

Flutter's main drawback is that it uses its own rendering engine and programming language (Dart), which makes it hard to integrate with system-native UI components and features. This leads to challenges in making apps feel truly native and can result in maintenance issues as iOS UI and features evolve.

What is the difference between React Native and Flutter in terms of app rendering?

React Native bridges the gap between JavaScript/TypeScript code and native UI components using multiple layers, while Flutter creates its own rendering engine and handles everything, from layout to input handling, independently. This makes React Native apps more reliant on native components, whereas Flutter controls all aspects of rendering.

Why is it difficult to keep up with the iOS UI changes when using Flutter?

Flutter uses its own components and UI design (like Cupertino and Material widgets), which means it doesn’t directly use Apple’s native UI elements. With constant updates to iOS and its UI guidelines, it becomes challenging for Flutter developers to keep the UI consistent with the latest iOS designs.

How does React Native's architecture create maintenance challenges?

React Native's architecture relies on several layers, including the JavaScript code, a bridge to native APIs, and the React Native renderer. This added complexity introduces potential for bugs and maintenance issues. Additionally, third-party packages often become outdated or buggy, creating further challenges.

What is the main reason why the speaker believes SwiftUI is the best option for iOS apps?

SwiftUI is the most native and future-proof option for iOS development. It integrates directly with the system APIs, offers a high-quality user experience, and ensures that developers can easily access the latest Apple features like widgets, App Intents, and control center integrations.

What is the significance of SwiftUI for iOS developers, particularly indie developers?

For indie developers, SwiftUI is the best option because it allows for deep integration with iOS features, ensuring a native experience. It eliminates the need for cross-platform tools that may create bugs or inefficiencies, and it provides developers with the tools to build apps that fully integrate into the iOS ecosystem.

What are the three subjective reasons the speaker prefers Swift and SwiftUI over other technologies?

The speaker prefers Swift over JavaScript/TypeScript/Dart for its performance and language features, prefers SwiftUI over web-based UI frameworks for its native capabilities, and believes Xcode is a better IDE compared to other options like VSCode or JetBrains products.