Creating the best web applications has become kind of mandatory for all kinds of businesses so that they can be successful globally. For the web application to become successful, it is important to choose a right and proper backend framework. The main work of a web application takes place behind the scene.

Two most popular backend frameworks which come into the picture for web applications include that of Node.js and Laravel. Both these frameworks come with their own set of features along with pros and cons. Depending on your app development requirements, you can choose the platform which serves your purpose in the best manner.

Why and when to use Node.js?

If you thought Node.js is just a framework, you are highly mistaken – it is a full-fledged complete server. For cross-platform application development, Node.js plays a crucial role as it is an open-source, JavaScript based runtime system. Node.js is inclusive of event-driven and asynchronous APIs. The operation of the system takes place on single thread. Blocking is eliminated during execution.

As a developer, you must have a query that why Node.js should be used in web application development. Mentioned below are some of the prominent reasons:

High performance with quicker implementation of code by using Google’s V8 JavaScript engine.
Easily scalable in both horizontal and vertical directions.
Comes with extended support of different tools.
Advantage of caching thus applications load and respond quickly.
Highly extensible and customizable as per requirements.

There are certain places where developers can use Node.js. Mentioned below are the places where using Node.js proves to be useful:

For development of various kinds of collaborative tools
For creating real-time applications, particularly real-time messaging and chatting for first grade performance and high speed
For creating and deploying microservices with scalable solutions
For data streaming applications as the modules can create writable and readable data streams

Why and when to use Laravel?

Laravel is a full-stack PHP framework along with being an open-source platform. There are many attractive and useful features in Laravel, which help a great deal in developing various kinds of web applications. Laravel has proved to be effective in developing both small and big web applications. Development time is reduced and development process bettered with Laravel.

The only issue with using Laravel is that developers have to be well adept in PHP and should have vast knowledge on the subject.

If you are in double minds as why you should use Laravel for your web app development, here are the reasons which will clear all your queries:

Data migration from SQL is possible. In Laravel, a special algorithm is written in Python for the work so that proper interaction takes place with the database.
Helps in executing routing in two ways – by addition of code directly to the route and by using controllers.
Authorization systems and authentication is simplified greatly.
Exceptional error handling capacity along with support for log-handlers.
Laravel is mainly used in development of content management systems. Not only this, there are other places of application of Laravel including:
For powering online survey sites
Article management, stock management, lite-CRM
Interactive websites including that of e-learning applications with huge volume of visitors per day

Node.js vs. Laravel comparison on:

Community

All backend frameworks come with quite a large community and fan following.

When it comes to support and community, Node.js ranks top in the list with 30,466 commits and 69,800 stars on GitHub.

On the other hand, Laravel ranks second in the list with 6,247 commits and 59,000 stars on GitHub.

Framework base

The framework base is one of the most important things in any back-end development framework.

Node.js is an open-source framework, which works on Google Chrome’s V8 JavaScript Engine. It works on event-driven architecture and non-blocking I/O. The main aim of Node.js is helping developers in creating web applications in an effective, proper and efficient way.

On the other hand, Laravel is based completely on PHP. The pattern followed by this framework is that of Model-View-Controller (MVC). This open-source web application framework is a favorite with majority of developers as it offers excellent performance and comes with first-class features. Web applications can be developed in quick time with Laravel.

Code

The amount of code, which has to be written for any functioning varies for different frameworks.

Laravel requires slightly long coding, while Node.js has short coding comparatively. The copy of the text code also matters in determining the length of the code for any framework.

Scalability and Performance

After all it is the performance and scalability of the backend development framework, which makes it successful.

Node.js offers excellent quality when one talks of performance and scalability. This is because of the non-blocking programming features and asynchronous attributes of the framework. With this feature, developers are able to manage multiple events simultaneously while coding the functionality without any hassle.

Scalability issues are faced by many developers in Laravel as they commence rendering or try creating different versions of the application. The performance of Laravel is not as good as Node.js.

Learning Curve

Both Node.js and Laravel have to be learnt for proper implementation.

Any developer who knows JavaScript will not find learning Node.js difficult. But coding this framework is tad difficult for its asynchronous programming.

Laravel is more difficult to learn. Various tools and documentations are available, which help learners in learning this PHP framework.

Rapid Development

Since Node.js is a lightweight server, it works well on all machines. Various requests can also be managed with ease in Node.js.

The development speed of Laravel is low when compared to that of Node.js. However, that limitation can be overcome if you hire laravel developers expert in the domain.

Clean Architecture

Since Node.js functions as per event-driven programming, the whole architecture depends on events, user choices and messages from other programs.

MVC pattern is followed in Laravel. The syntax used in this framework is realistic and easily comprehendible.

Security

When it comes to sophisticated code structure, enhanced security is offered by Node.js. But there are many loopholes in the framework too. To resolve these, you have to hire nodejs developers well-versed in the task.

Excellent security is offered by Laravel as it uses the hashed password method for storing all passwords safely. Structured processes are also followed for better security.

Now that you know the pros and cons and comparisons between Node.js and Laravel, choose the framework which suits your web application development needs in the best manner.

Best Back-End Development Framework 2021 – Node.js vs. Laravel