[nu11ptr]

React = one small piece of a very large required ecosystem (HTML + CSS + Javascript + NPM + React + Vite + ???)

Flutter = a UI framework for mobile/desktop/web (Flutter + Dart)

On top of the purpose built nature, nearly everything is a Widget, even layout/styling making it pretty easy to grok very quickly.

[amelius]

I personally prefer using many smaller components over using a large opinionated framework. But I'm not a big fan of React, so this could be better and worth a try.

[tensor]

It's less a "large opinionated framework" and more "fewer components overall. There is no HTML/CSS for example, it goes direct from Dart (equivalent to JS) to the Widget rendering system."

Dart has its own build tools and package system that work well. You can still pull in dart libraries as you need them. Dart is also a much better language than JS. I can't tell you how many days I've lost to react/JS build tooling issues. A single problem can easily eat an entire day. With flutter/dart I haven't had a single issue like that.

[synergy20]

flutter does a so so job on desktop and it's web version is wasm based.

the job market for dart flutter is a drop while react is the lake.

react with electron, react native, react itself together are still the only ones production ready cross platform GUI with widest adoption

[mdhb]

comments about job markets aside…

The first and the third paragraphs really haven’t been true for some time now.

Flutter is absolutely production ready as a cross platform GUI.

[pzo]

For ios and android maybe but I doubt for web. Also 12k+ open issues, team layoffs and all founders that left don't brink confidence to flutter. I think also roadmap and progress in last year doesn't look stellar.

On the other hand I think flutter lost a lot of benefits comparing to 5 years ago - now we have stable better swift and swiftui and better kotlin with jetpack compose - those support also apple watch, macos, tvos, visions os, Google wear, Google TV and with current jetbrains compose desktops like windows is already stable.

React native and web ecosystem also improved a lot in the last year.

[mdhb]

I keep seeing this coming up and I have no idea where it’s coming from like it’s some self reinforcing feedback loop based on just utter bullshit.

If I am remembering correctly the headcount on the Futter team literally changed by a single person.

Here are some actual real life numbers you can use if you want to gauge the health of the two projects:

1. https://github.com/facebook/react-native/pulse

2. https://github.com/flutter/flutter/pulse

Specifically Flutter’s 108 merged pull requests to React Native’s 1 and Flutter’s 330 closed issues to React Native’s 18.

Also note that this doesn’t even include their rendering engine which had another 90+ closed pull requests https://github.com/flutter/engine/pulse

The truth of the matter is that Flutter is actually is far better shape both from a technical and open source perspective.

[pzo]

I did checked pulse for those on github on regular bases. Change to monthly and notice out of 450commits more than 170 commits are by flutter-engine-autoroll bot just auto updating some packages, then next second user did ~30commits, then you have few another flutter bots with some commits. Then go compare with react native.

[mdhb]

You are cherry picking things here. If this is some ideological thing for you I’m really not interested in having that conversation.

The health of the two projects genuinely isn’t close at all. Comparing what they are actually both shipping in terms of features in the last year is two very very different stories.