Flutter vs Kotlin
Now, let’s see the straight comparison between the two to see the broader picture:
1. Syntax
As discussed above, they both are object-oriented programming languages. The comments and syntaxes are almost similar. For developers (who use Dart) while working on flutter use semicolons, and semicolons aren’t required in Kotlin.
For best reference, check out the example below:
Kotlin
Kotlin
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity import android.os.Bundle class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() { override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) { super .onCreate(savedInstanceState) setContentView(R.layout.activity_main) } } |
XML
<? xml version = "1.0" encoding = "utf-8" ?> < androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout xmlns:android = "http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android" xmlns:app = "http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto" xmlns:tools = "http://schemas.android.com/tools" android:layout_width = "match_parent" android:layout_height = "match_parent" tools:context = ".MainActivity" > < TextView android:layout_width = "wrap_content" android:layout_height = "wrap_content" android:text = "Hello GFG!" app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomOf = "parent" app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf = "parent" app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf = "parent" app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf = "parent" /> </ androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout > |
Flutter
Dart
import 'package:flutter/material.dart' ; void main() { runApp( const MyApp()); } class MyApp extends StatelessWidget { const MyApp({Key? key}) : super(key: key); @override Widget build(BuildContext context) { return MaterialApp( title: 'Hello GFG!' , theme: ThemeData( primarySwatch: Colors.green, ), home: const MyHomePage(title: 'Hello GFG App' ), ); } } class MyHomePage extends StatefulWidget { const MyHomePage({Key? key, required this .title}) : super(key: key); final String title; @override State<MyHomePage> createState() => _MyHomePageState(); } class _MyHomePageState extends State<MyHomePage> { @override Widget build(BuildContext context) { return Scaffold( appBar: AppBar( title: Text(widget.title), ), body: Center( child: Column( mainAxisAlignment: MainAxisAlignment.center, children: const <Widget>[ Text( 'Hello GFG!' , ), ], ), ), ); } } |
2. Community Support
Flutter and Kotlin both offer strong community support and hold millions of developers across the world. But when compared in terms of existence, Flutter overtakes Kotlin and it has more active members and they’re growing with advancement.
As per stats where Kotlin stands with 42.3k stars, Flutter has over 143k star ratings and that shows the level of popularity among both of them.
3. Performance
Flutter offers a hot-reloading feature that enables ease during app development for making changes at the backend and viewing the changes of the front-end at the same time.
On the other hand, Kotlin compiles code in a format that matches the request and delivers improved performance, just like its native counterparts, which include features like Bluetooth and the camera.
4. Minimal Code
When we compare the two, Flutter employs Dart with JIT and AOT capabilities, allowing it to compile on-the-fly, enhancing its efficiency, functions, and overall performance. JIT refreshes the user interface seamlessly. In this aspect, Kotlin outperforms Flutter in terms of execution.
5. Documentation
As discussed above, Flutter is an open-source platform and that’s why it offers comprehensive documentation. Besides this, it provides users with an excellent performance in terms of testing functions that are capable of UT the widgets during the integration.
Whereas, the user creates widget tests to examine the user interface and operates them at the speed of UT. While compared to Flutter, Kotlin is new and that’s why the documentation of Kotlin is far behind Flutter.
If that’s the case: Kotlin is still in development phase, the libraries can be changed at any point of time.
6. UI Experience
Talking about the cross-platform application, creating a clear user interface is very important for this process. The major task of having a cross-platform is to offer a native experience and that’s what Flutter does. It offers a unified experience across the platforms. While using Flutter, developers can take care of every aspect that can cater to native performance on Android and iOS without putting any extra effort to write additional codes.
On the other hand, Kotlin offers a free environment for creating a user interface which means it does not impose any restrictions on how a developer is establishing the interface. Kotlin also allows developers to use native features when required or codes for any specific platform.
7. Faster Development
The enriched experience allows developers to focus on producing every piece of code and reusing them several times. This also saves time and lets developers deliver the project within the deadline. Cross-platform development implies the application of reusability in spite of writing codes again and again.
Besides this, since we’re talking about speed, Flutter performs pretty well but it lags while comparing it to Kotlin (that’s typically faster), because of its capability to compile to the format of the target platform. So, when it comes to speed, Kotlin is the one for you.
Flutter vs Kotlin – For Android Development
Believe it or not but the future is going to be in the hands of compact devices such as mobile phones, tablets, etc. In today’s tech-driven era, every single requirement is being fulfilled with the help of smartphones, and the medium used is Mobile applications. Android development is like being a digital wizard – you get to create cool and useful apps that live on people’s smartphones and tablets. You use a special language called “code” to tell these devices what to do, like making buttons work, showing pictures, and letting people play games.
Just think of building a playground where your imagination is the limit. So, if you’ve ever dreamed of making your own apps and seeing them come to life on screens all around the world, that’s what Android development is all about. Now, here’s the catch, for developing a sustainable application, it is necessary to choose the best technology for building mobile applications. So far, the app developers are majorily using 2 tech satcks i.e. Kotlin and Flutter.
A recent survey suggested that over 1 million developers are actively using Kotlin for mobile development whereas flutter bags 5,00,000 android developers globally.
We’re here to discuss two of the leading android development tools i.e. Flutter vs Kotlin. Before we begin, let’s get a quick summary of both of them.
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