Ending the battle of Best Framework in 2022: Xamarin vs. Ionic

The cross-platform solutions will slowly overwhelm the mobile app development industry. Why? It saves both time and money. After all, that’s what businesses and developers want. 

For example, developers can deliver projects faster, whereas enterprises get multi-platform applications at a budget-friendly price. 

A study suggested that 32.7% of developers are likely to abandon Native development in the coming years. It clearly shows that the future of cross-platform development is bright. However, the constant improvements have led to plenty of tools, technologies, and frameworks. As a result, there is ongoing warfare between Xamarin and Ionic. 

Some people strongly support Xamarin, and others hoot for Ionic. Thus, it is not easy to decide whether to hire an Ionic or Xamarin developer in India. Are you in a similar situation? If yes, you have landed on the right page. In this post, we will look at a comparative analysis of Xamarin vs. Ionic. 

• Xamarin vs. Ionic: A brief introduction
  When it comes to Xamarin, it is an open-source framework developed by Microsoft in 2011. But what makes it exclusive? To begin with, developers can use Xamarin to build hybrid apps, which are native by nature.

  Talking about Ionic, it is an open-source SDK for cross-platform development. Besides countless features, it is backed by a community of 5 million developers. Unlike Xamarin, it utilizes Webview for mobile rather than native device elements. 

• Xamarin vs. Ionic: Market usage
  To understand the market usage of Xamarin and Ionic, let us look at some interesting stats. 

• • Xamarin

• • 1. According to Statista, nearly 14% of developers have used Xamarin for hybrid development from 2019-2021.
    2. Currently, there are 15,000 apps based on the Xamarin framework.

Looking at this number, it is no surprise that many businesses go for Xamarin mobile app development services in Albania.

• • Ionic

• • 1. As per a survey, nearly 86% of developers choose Ionic as their first preference for mobile development.
    2. Approximately 5 million apps have been created with Ionic. 

• Xamarin vs. Ionic: Pros and cons 

No technology or framework has all the advantages. It applies to Xamarin and Ionic. They both have a fair share of advantages and limitations. Let us explore more. 

• • Pros
    The reason enterprises go for Xamarin is because it ensures faster development. All thanks to its code reusability and single tech stack. Additionally, it allows developers to build cross-platform applications with a native-like experience. Sometimes, one cannot distinguish between a native and Xamarin app. The usage of a single technological stack helps you save money on both development and maintenance.

    On the other hand, Ionic reduces the time, resources, and effort required building a hybrid app. Like Xamarin, it also creates native-like applications. If you want to scale up your Ionic app, you can do it without affecting its performance. Did we mention it is considered a developer’s delight because it reduces code rewrites? 

• • Cons
    Xamarin is not an ideal option for using heavy graphic elements and animation. It means you cannot build a gaming app with this framework. Besides this, the updates take time to integrate into the ecosystem.

    Ionic has downsides as well. It includes no hot reloading, plugin-dependent system, and older versions are susceptible to online malware. Also, Ionic is not suitable for heavy or memory-intensive applications. 

In closing 

Based on the above discussion, we cannot declare who wins the title of “the best cross-platform framework of 2022.” Both Xamarin and Ionic have specific features and functionalities. Therefore, choosing between an Ionic and Xamarin developer in India depends on your business goals, needs, and budget. 

If you are searching for reliable Ionic or Xamarin mobile app development services, get in touch with DigiDuck. We have years of experience and expertise in building top-notch applications.