Top 7 Node.js Alternatives [2024 Updated]

We all know that Node.js is considered the best framework for full-stack development. It has carved its niche in the full stack development. Also, there are many other alternatives for Nodej.js that you can try out.

In this article, we have selected the top 7 Node.js Alternatives used by developers in 2024. These Node.js alternatives are different from each other in terms of their features, cost, and scale. You can use them as per the project requirement. So, without wasting any time, let’s get started:

What is NodeJS?

NodeJS is an open-source, cross-platform JavaScript runtime environment and library for running web applications outside the client’s browser. It’s used to develop I/O intensive web applications like video streaming sites, single page applications, online chatting applications and other web applications.

Basically, it’s used for creating server-side web applications, node.js is perfect for data-intensive applications as it uses an asynchronous, event-driven model. NodeJS is built on Chrome’s V8 JavaScript engine for executing the JavaScript code. It’s free and can be used on different operating systems such as Windows, Linux, and Mac.

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How Node.js Manage a File Request?

When an HTTP request is hit by the client, Node.js handles this request through steps of operations to retrieve and deliver the desired file to the user, The steps are as follows:

1. The client submits an HTTP request by referring to the target file.
2. Node.js records the request and directs its dedicated file path.
3. If the file exists, node.js reads the file and sends back a response to the client’s page.
4. If the file is absent, Node.js provides the client with an HTTP error message, stating that the “file not found.“
5. After processing the request, Node.js then gets ready for the next request quickly.

Key Features of NodeJS

• Non-Blocking I/O
• Asynchronous processing
• Single-Threaded Execution
• Event-driven architecture
• NPM (Node Package Manager)
• Extensive Library
• Unified JavaScript
• Modularity
• Microservices Integration
• Scalability

Top 7 Alternatives of Node.js

Here, we are going to discuss the 7 best alternatives and competitors of Node.js with their features and limitations.

1. Deno

Deno is a secure environment for running JavaScript and TypeScript code that provides the faster and efficient environment for executing the code.

1. It’s the upgraded newer version of node.js.
2. It is built in rust, tokio, typescript, and V8 engine.
3. It uses tokio which is third-party library to run tasks efficiently.
4. It does not requires the node package manager as NPM.

Features:

• Single Executable.
• It only allows access if you give permission.
• Modern infrastructure.
• It comes with tools like a dependency inspector and a code formatter.

Limitations:

1. It has limited third-party library availability compared to Node.js.
2. Not as widely adopted in industry as Node.js.
3. It’s tools and extensions are still in development.
4. Not all Node.js modules can be easily ported to Deno.

2. Ruby on Rails

Ruby on Rails (RoR) and Node.js are both popular web development frameworks, but they have some key differences as RoR is a server-side web application framework written in Ruby.

1. It uses the “convention over configuration” principle, where developer writes less custom code, and uses more defaults.
2. It has built-in support for databases and ORM.
3. It handles websites and apps that are heavy on content and data.
4. It’s designed for such websites and apps that frequently updates their data.

Features:

• Convention over Configuration (CoC)
• RESTful and MVC Architecture
• It provides entire productivity tools.
• It’s mostly preferable for content sites.

Limitations:

• It doesn’t support a deeply separated microservice structure.
• It falls short in depending on databases.
• It uses a lot of resources.
• It struggles with resource-heavy tasks.
• Its synchronized approach isn’t suited for real-time apps.

3. Flask and Django

Flask and Django are two popular web frameworks in Python which help developers to create web applications. Flask is a lightweight framework which is more manageable for developers during the development phase and gives more flexibility.

1. Flask accepts various website types and supports its multiple content formats.
2. Whereas, django can handle a lot of traffic at once.
3. It automatically handles user sign-ups, payments, and it protects against the online attacks.

Flask is a good choice for small projects or when developer wants to start with a minimalistic approach. Where, django is a more large framework that comes with many built-in features.

Features:

• It’s flexibile that can start small, expand as needed.
• It’s perfect for minimalistic projects.
• It has Integrated Object-Relational Mapping.
• It includes pre-configured tools for easier website administration.

Limitations:

1. It can not extend its scalability as some other frameworks.
2. It has many features which need external libraries.
3. Flask has less structured for huge projects as compared to Django.
4. The modularization can be challenging especially for beginners.

4. Go (Golang)

Go kit is a toolkit which is used for building microservices in ‘go’, it’s a programming language that is known for its efficiency and performance, and it’s like Node.js, which is known for handling of multiple tasks at once without waiting and responding to other events.

1. It can multitask without delays.
2. It offers user-friendly resources and such guidelines for improving app development.
3. The toolkit removes the complexity of the application and makes it easy to interact between such programs.
4. It supports various methods like HTTP, or gRPC.

At its core, go kit uses a concept named “endpoints” to manage services which makes it much easier to control the traffic, speed, or error handling.

Features:

• Go kit enhances the team and app scalability.
• It ensures the seamless microservice interaction.
• GoLang integrates the logging, metrics, and tracing.
• It has rich community support and plugins.
• It simplifies the creation of services with clear guidelines.

Limitations:

1. It’s different from standard Go libraries, requires adjustment.
2. It can require more boilerplate code than some alternatives.
3. Smaller community than platforms like Node.js, leading to fewer third-party resources.
4. Some abstractions can introduce slight overhead.
5. Fewer tools and extensions than more mature ecosystems.

5. Laravel

It’s a web development framework which lets developer to create PHP based websites and web applications.

1. Laravel is written in PHP based on the MVC pattern, known for the elegant syntax, and features like built-in authentication, ORM, and the Artisan command-line tool.
2. Laravel is best for PHP-based projects that needs the robust, fully-featured, and MVC-driven framework.

Features:

• Automatic Pagination
• It’s full stack structured MVC framework.
• It provides productivity boost to the development.
• RESTful Resource Controllers
• It provides consistency in the codes.

Limitations:

1. It’s not asynchronous in nature.
2. It can’t perform performance intensive tasks.
3. It can’t developed highly decoupled microservice-based architecture.
4. It have database dependency.
5. Its resource consumption is very high.

6. ASP.NET

ASP.NET is a Microsoft developed web framework which gives flexible, dynamic, and more adaptable web applications which supports various platforms and operating systems.

1. Its modern architecture and continuous cloud integration, makes it ideal for scalable and easily updatable web applications.
2. It’s mainly used to design online services and cloud platforms which enhances its adaptability for web development.
3. With its wide array of features and support it empowers developers to efficiently create applications that can continuously grow and evolve in the digital world.

Features:

• It provides High robust performance compared to Go and Node.Js
• Cross-platform support
• Cloud Integration
• It supports and provides strong services back-up from Microsoft as well
• It is for modern development practices such as, microservices, and containerization

Limitations:

1. Some .NET Framework libraries aren’t supported or need alternatives.
2. The people those who used to the older version of ASP.NET, getting used to Core might be tricky.
3. Third-party integration might be less seamless compared to other platforms.
4. It might have less information in some parts compared to older, well-known systems.
5. Though it’s improving, it doesn’t have as many tools as other systems.

7. Spring Boot

It’s the backend development frameworks which is used to create microservices and makes the application more secure and faster. To set up a Spring Boot project, you can use the Spring Initializr web service, which allows you to generate a basic project structure with the required dependencies.

To set up a Spring Boot project, you can use the Spring Initializr web service, which allows you to generate a basic project structure with the required dependencies. Alternatively, you can use the Spring Tool Suit (STS) software for your spring application which allows you to create customized projects over the IDE.

1. It generates customizable built-in features like embedded web servers, security, and data access.
2. It has integrated development environment.
3. It simplifies the development of RESTful APIs and implements it with the databases by adding dependencies like Spring Data JPA and MySQL which enhances its acceptance for various applications.

Features:

• It sets up your app based on libraries in the classpath. For example, it’ll auto-configure database connectivity if you include a database library.
• No need for an external server; it’s included!
• It require zero XML configuration required.
• It provides default settings and libraries for a quick start.
• It comes with tools like Maven and Gradle for creating executable JARs or WARs.

Limitations:

1. It may have longer startup times, especially for larger applications.
2. Its auto-configuration can sometimes make it tricky for developers to fine-tune settings.
3. For developers new to Spring, understanding Boot’s conventions can be challenging.
4. It might be an overkill for simple, small-scale applications due to its vast features.
5. While it’s easy to start, customizing beyond defaults can require deep knowledge.

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Conclusion

The above mentioned top alternatives of Node.js are the top ones and gives you excellent features to be used in applications. You can choose the best ones for your project based on parameters like features, limitations, areas os its applications, etc. By using these alternatives of Node.js, organizations can build a fully-featured web application.

FAQs

Is NodeJS still relevant 2024?

Node.js is and will be in-demand and popular in 2024 among developers. Because of its reliability and scalable web applications rises, you can consider choosing Node.js for building web applications.

Is Nextjs better than NodeJS?

Node.js and Next.js, both are known for its features where Node.js is fast and scalable whereas Next.js provides a robust framework for building high-performing React-based web applications.

You can choose Next.js and Node.js based on the project’s needs and requirements.

Which language is best for NodeJS?

JavaScript is used while working with Node.js.