[dcolgan]

I play around with NodeJS and front end frameworks like React for my own side projects, but all of my paying client work is made with good ol Django. It just does so many things well and is very mature. I recommend for production code using libraries that have a strong community and have been around for a while so that they don't keep changing all the time.

[andybak]

Don't forget that Django and React make a great combination.

You probably still want Django to handle server-side rendering for most of your site (unless you're a masochist). Django Rest Framework for the API, and React (or whatever) to handle the app-like parts.

[silviogutierrez]

This was my original approach. After all, no need to do an SPA for regular pages. Only the app-type parts with a DRF backend and an Angular/React frontend.

But... as I started publishing these apps on mobile app stores (cordova), I found myself also having to write a REST endpoint and client side renderer for the app versions.

Even though I'd much rather do a contact form, for example, in a server side view. But if I also need the REST API and client-rendered version for the app version, I might as well only write it once.

[mrdrozdov]

Why not render client-side?

[andybak]

1. On the whole 'normal' websites with an overabundance of client-side rendering are in a kind of 'uncanny valley'. They nearly behave the way a normal server-side rendered site would but something always breaks whether it be the back button or link behaviour, caching/refreshing or something. So from the user's perspective it's often a bit off.

2. It's still more work from the developer's side. You have to implement stuff you get for free with server-side rendering. And currently (and for the foreseeable future IMHO) Python/Django is still simpler, more maintainable and nicer to work with. So I'd prefer to keep the client-side code where it belongs - the parts of the site that are more like an 'app' than a 'website'.