When there is a range of frameworks available for cross-platform development to make the mobile app development process easier, only a few offer the right balance of app quality and productivity. Xamarin & Ionic frameworks are one of them.
While Xamarin is one of the preferred frameworks for development firms and enterprises, Ionic is the preferred framework to build efficient hybrid apps for web development.
Whether you should opt for Ionic or Xamarin may bother you while choosing the best framework for your app development project. This blog would help you learn more about each of these frameworks to help you decide which one to choose for app development.
Xamarin
It is among the well-known frameworks preferred by the developers for cross-platform development to build native-like efficient apps.
The framework is utilized by different sectors like healthcare energy and transport.
Ionic
It is an open-source user-interface toolkit that helps to build hybrid cross-platform mobile apps. Here, it makes use of Webview rather than native device components for mobile.
Which framework you should choose out of Xamarin and Ionic?
Selecting the right framework for mobile app development out of the best ones can be a daunting task for any company. Today a lot of firms choose a cross-platform framework than building mobile apps through different means for multiple platforms. Based on audience, budget, end product, and deadlines, the companies may choose native.
You will find plenty of frameworks in the market but Ionic and Xamarin are the perfect ones. The two frameworks are strong and efficient to create innovative and interactive mobile apps.
So, let us read through the assessment of these frameworks based on different parameters like user experience, and market-expansion time.
Complex Projects
When it comes to a long-term project, Xamarin proves to be one of the perfect frameworks. Upon choosing Xamarin app development, you can maintain your app flawlessly in the long run when you have plenty of features in the app.
On the other hand, complex apps are not easy to maintain with Ionic as there are multiple lines of coding.
Microsoft Advantage
Xamarin is ideal for .Net developers as it is a C# framework. When it comes to Microsoft's advantage, Xamarin gets an added advantage.
Ionic is a JavaScript-based framework that isn’t compiled on .Net or C#.
User Experience
Talking about user experience, Xamarin offers an excellent, fast and genuine experience. With Xamarin users can enjoy a next-level experience than others.
User experience can be rated as average in the case of Ionic. If you want to remain in the competition, then you need to upgrade Ionic.
Market-expansion time
In terms of market expansion or build-up time, Xamarin is much better than Ionic app development due to its’ reduced memory problems and there is no complicated language fusion. Ionic undergoes multiple memory handing issues that lead to weak performance and increased build-up time.
Architectural Pattern
Xamarin is compatible with the MVVM pattern as is it influenced by Microsoft.
Development cost
If you want to use Xamarin you will have to pay “$1000/Dev/Year” whereas Ionic doesn’t come with any such cost.
Benefits and Drawbacks of Xamarin and Ionic
Benefits of Xamarin
Native User Experience
As business logic coded in Xamarin uses native APIs, it is helpful to offer an enhanced user experience.
Faster Development
With Xamarin, you can get faster growth with its ability to reuse the code. It means you can reuse the code written for one operating system for multiple operating system too.
API Access
Xamarin offers direct access to necessary mobile operating system features like GPS, camera, etc thereby offering increased flexibility for app development.
Drawbacks of Xamarin
Not ideal for Apps with heavy graphics
As apps having heavy graphics need higher CPU capacity, Xamarin app development services may witness low performance using Xamarin.
Cost
Xamarin can add unwanted costs as it is a paid framework.
Native APIs are not available on multiple platforms
Some of the latest native APIs on Android and iOS are not supported by Xamarin.
Pretty slow than Native Code
As the app logic is compiled in .NET code, it is pretty slow than native ARM code.
Benefits of Ionic
UI Widgets
You will get multiple interface components with Ionic like loading bar, dialog boxes, dividers, menu, etc. You can use them to add more to the overall app functionality.
Open Source
As it is a free-to-use (open-source) framework, you don’t have to pay anything to use it and you can customize it with HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
iOS & Android SDKs
Well, Ionic supports Android and iOS SDKs. It means you don’t have to code for two different platforms individually. It saves resources, time, and the cost of app development.
Drawbacks of Ionic
Native Plugins are absent
You cannot access the native functions like Push notifications, camera, GPS, etc by any means with Ionic.
Debugging issues
When you debug your application in Ionic, you need to either use Safari or Chrome web browser to debug the app.
Limited Performance
When it comes to performance, it is always a challenge with Ionic mobile app development because it utilizes web technologies and these technologies cannot give you native-like performance.
After knowing about the pros and cons of Xamarin & Ionic, let us understand when to choose Xamarin & Ionic
Opt for Xamarin in case
- Not worried about app size
- Have in-depth knowledge of .net and C# framework
- Wish to use plenty of native APIs such as SDKs, and Bluetooth in an app
Opt for Ionic in case
- You are well-versed with web-based technology.
- Want to try out a new concept for your start-up
- App requirements are simple and don’t involve heavy customizations
Conclusion
After knowing about the details of both frameworks, we have understood that both are good to go in their respective ways. Before deciding on which framework to select, make sure you determine your app requirements.
So, the framework decision entirely depends on the requirements of the firm. Every framework comes with its pros and cons. If your main objective behind creating an app is to offer high quality with an excellent user experience then go with Xamarin. If you are planning to develop an app within less time and cost, then the Ionic framework is the ideal framework.
If you are planning to build an app using either of the frameworks, collaborating with experienced Xamarin app development services is crucial. Q Dev, a leading mobile app development company can assist you to build an app on the Ionic/Xamarin framework. Our experienced Ionic and Xamarin app developers with extensive experience in the technologies will help you choose the right framework to build your app. We assess your app requirements to choose between Xamarin and Ionic mobile app development solutions to determine the best fit for your business needs.