Flutter vs Kotlin: Which is Better? Difference

13 June 2022

Flutter is Google’s framework for developing mobile apps for Android and iOS. Kotlin is a programming language that’s become increasingly popular for building Android apps. Which one should you use? Let’s look at the comparison of Flutter vs Kotlin two popular frameworks, so you can make the best decision for your needs.

Overview of Flutter

Flutter is a mobile app framework for building high-performance, Android-native apps on iOS. Flutter provides a rich set of building blocks for building modern user interfaces, including a UI framework, core animation, and a set of programming tools and APIs for building mobile apps. Flutter apps run on Android, iOS, and any other platform with a mobile browser, such as WebView and Electron. Flutter’s mature framework and growing community have made it the popular choice for building complex mobile apps.

Overview of Kotlin

Kotlin is an open-source platform-independent language designed to make the development of apps faster and easier. It was first introduced in 2017 as a code alternative to Java but has since become more than that. Kotlin is a statically typed programming language, and unlike other languages such as Java and C#, it provides no runtime performance guarantees. It is only a language, not a platform.

Discover how Flutter and Kotlin differ and where they are similar

• Programming Language:

Flutter vs Kotlin are both open-source frameworks, but they are used for different purposes. Flutter is a mobile app development framework created by Google that uses the Dart programming language to create high-performance, visually attractive apps for both iOS and Android devices. Kotlin, on the other hand, is a programming language created by JetBrains that is mainly used for android app development.

• Platform Support:

Both platforms have their advantages and disadvantages. The biggest difference is the level of platform support. Flutter is currently supported by both Android and iOS, whereas Kotlin is only supported by Android. Flutter allows you to build apps for any platform without having to write additional code.

• UI Experience:

Flutter is a minimal UI framework that provides a consistent set of graphical primitives for building highly expressive user experiences. It is a new, open source, cross-platform UI framework that makes programming simple and powerful.

The UI experience of Kotlin is also first-class. You can use it to build desktop, web, and native apps. It has rich functional programming features, which enables you to write high-quality code in fewer lines. It also supports Android, iOS, and other platforms.

• Support for Testing:

Flutter has immense testing support built into it. It has support for unit testing, integration testing, e2e testing, end-to-end testing, etc. Flutter is an extremely powerful framework and its testing support make it the easiest framework to write tests for of any back-end framework.

The Kotlin language supports a variety of test frameworks, such as JUnit, xUnit and Spock. It also supports the Google Testing Framework, which provides an easy way to write tests without requiring any additional configuration. This helps developers quickly write tests without having to learn a new framework or framework-specific syntax. It also supports the Flutter framework, which provides an easy way to build UI tests without having to learn a new framework or language.

• Time-to-Market:

The hot reload feature of Flutter allows for quick trials and adjustments, resulting in speedier UI development. A comprehensive collection of widgets, completely customizable design, and layered architecture combined with stateful hot reload that enable developers to offer a native-like user experience faster.

Flutter appears to be somewhat quicker than Kotlin. But on the other hand Kotlin, has considerably more to offer. Its compact syntax and reusability of code benefits in speedier app development and a shorter time to market.

Though the pace of coding varies according to the complexity of the program, both frameworks significantly save development time by leveraging a single codebase to construct apps for numerous platforms.

• Documentation:

When comparing Flutter vs Kotlin both are open-source mobile development frameworks, however, they have different documentation and resources available. Flutter’s documentation is extensive and detailed, providing clear instructions and examples for developers to follow. It also has a large and active community that contributes to the development of the framework and provides support to users. Kotlin, on the other hand, has more limited documentation compared to Flutter. But the Kotlin’s documentation is still considered to be well-organized and easy to follow, but it may not be as detailed as Flutter’s.

Flutter vs Kotlin: Which is Better?

Flutter and Kotlin are two popular mobile development technologies with their own unique advantages. Flutter is known for its fast development cycle and hot reloading feature, while Kotlin is praised for its interoperability with existing Java code. So which one is better? The answer depends on your specific project requirements.

If you’re looking for a fast and efficient way to build visually stunning, cross-platform apps, Flutter might be the better choice. Its single codebase and widget-based architecture make it easier to maintain and deploy apps across multiple platforms. However, if you’re working with an existing Java codebase and need better interoperability, Kotlin might be the way to go.

Ultimately, both technologies have their own strengths and weaknesses, and the decision comes down to your specific needs. Consult with an experienced developer to determine which technology is best suited for your project.

Conclusion:

The difference between Flutter and Kotlin are very similar. Flutter is a framework for building single-page apps for iOS and Android. It combines a UI engine with the layout engine to build cross-platform apps that can run on both iOS and Android. In Flutter app development, developers can write their code once and have it run across both platforms, without rewriting the code for each new platform.

Still confused about choosing between Flutter and Kotlin for your mobile app development, Contact us we will guide you to get the best application built that meets your business demands.