Top 10 Front-end Languages

This article will discuss the top 10 front-end languages, their core features, advantages, and limitations. The list includes React, Javascript, CSS, HTML, Angular, Vue, SASS, Swift, Elm, and jQuery.

In developing a mobile or web application, the client-side or frontend has great importance because a user only experiences it. Although the backend also matters a lot, a user can only witness what is happening on the front end.

Therefore, to improve the impression of your application before a user, a developer can’t compromise on the quality of frontend development. To provide a great client-side user experience, frontend languages play a great role.

Differences between Front End and Back End

Frontend and backend are two very famous terms that are commonly used in the software development industry. First of all, if we talk about frontend, you can call it the skin of the software.

Indeed, the front end is the ‘client-side’ of an application that can be touched, seen and experienced, and where the user interacts.

In simple words, everything that an application user is viewing is a front end, such as navigation menus, application templates and buttons, etc. The user interfaces are on the front-end.

JavaScript, CSS, React, and HTML is the widely recognized front-end languages.

On the other hand, all operations that are related to the ‘server-side’ refer to the backend. These backend operations could be about updating databases, scripting codes & APIs, and building libraries, etc.

In other words, a backend is about all functions that are being conducted behind the scene that an application user can’t witness. Python, JavaScript, Ruby and Java are the most used backend languages.

Advantages of Being a Front End Developer

Are you a novice developer and want to know the scope of being a front-end developer? Or want to explore the benefits of picking front-end development as a career? If yes, then you should read these advantages of being a front-end developer.

Great Career Growth

One of the most exciting advantages of becoming a front-end developer is its great career growth. Nowadays, large businesses, SMEs and small ventures consider it necessary to have a web and mobile application.

That is why, to offer reliable client-side experience, the software industry always needs good front-end developers.

There are around 1.8 billion live websites over the internet, and this figure was only 968.9 million in 2014. It indicates that the number of online websites is increasing, and this trend also enhances the demand for front-end developers.

Therefore, a front-end developer has great scope for growth in forthcoming years.

Freelancing Opportunities

Are you not happy with a 9 am to 5 pm job and looking for the right career? If yes, then you can choose front-end development as a career.

Undeniably, front-end programming is a very flexible career where a developer could be his own boss when he goes with freelancing opportunities.

In this way, a front-end developer works whenever he wants and from anywhere according to his own picked rate. Therefore, a front-end developer has opportunities to offer his services on freelancing platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, etc.

Consistently Evolving Job

Front end development is a constantly developing field, so it wouldn’t make you bored. There are always new and exciting opportunities to work on exclusive languages using various programming tools and frameworks.

This is also a reason due to which front end programmers love their job. No doubt, they can always change their domain by picking a new or different language.

Flexible and Creative

Development is one of the most flexible careers. Even many companies like Google provide a very comfortable environment for their employees to work.

Luckily, a front-end developer can work from home if he feels more flexible there. In the same token, front-end development is the perfect choice for creative individuals.

You can improve the user experience here with your creative problem-solving approaches and skills. Developers are also welcome to invent new ways to improve UI/UX designs.

Front End Languages

According to a survey of WP Engine, HTML is the easiest front-end language to add to a developer’s skillset. However, if you are a beginner, a developer or a business, you should see these top 10 front-end languages with their features.

Keep reading to know more.

1. React

React is a front-end language that works within JS to improve usability features. This is an open-source library that was initially released in 2013. It was developed by Facebook about 8 years ago and is now used for major web applications such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Yahoo! Etc.

React became popular because of the wide variety of tools available to improve user experience. According to SimilarTech, over 1,383,672 websites across the globe are currently using React.JS.

Leading countries that are using React as a front-end language are the United States, China and the United Kingdom. It is a great choice for front-end and full-stack development.

Core Features

Readily Accepts JSX — React has a lot of built-in features that provide a basis for what to accept as text. This readily accepts JSX and supports HTML quoting as well. This can assist in easy learning for a new developer.

Easy Debugging — This means that as a framework or a library, it must have the proper tools in order to work effectively and efficiently. One of the main features of React is easy debugging. Its simplicity does not leave much room for error, and debugging can be done before code is executed.

SEO Support — React is SEO-friendly and can easily show up at a heavy load. This SEO support gives it a major advantage for high-load applications in terms of search engine optimization.

2. JavaScript

JavaScript has been in the market for a much longer period of time. This is one of the most commonly used mechanisms for front-end development alongside HTML and CSS.

It is a simple language that is easy to understand, learn and implement. It is supported by a lot of other back-end languages.

It first appeared in 1995 and has improved a lot. W3Techs claims that 97.4% of web applications are using JavaScript as a front-end language. Indeed, known applications such as Netflix and Uber employ JavaScript as well.

Examples of Javascript libraries are jQuery, React, Angular and Parsley.

Core Features

Client-Side Architecture –This uses a “client-side” model, which means that it reduces the load on the server and is very fast as per the client’s resources.

Feature-Rich Design — It can be used to create very intriguing and attractive interfaces. It has multiple external library support that adds to the features.

Supports a wide array of Languages — It has support for HTML and can easily be cascaded through that to manage content. Alongside that, it can be programmed to retrieve data from multiple sources or ways.

Security Checks — JavaScript requires Encryption and proper security checks within the code as the “Client-side” architecture. It indicates that the code goes to the client, which can easily be breached if the code is not properly encrypted.

3. CSS

CSS is another one of the best front-end languages. Cascading Style Sheets is basically a web design tool used to control the layout of a webpage.

CSS is a separate cascading style that works in the front end. CSS is basically a small file that copulates the back end with a small file.

Moreover, this makes sure that the front-end language completely understands the code and the way that this works. It first came out in 1996, a year after JavaScript and was developed by the W3C.

Core Features

Cascading Style Framework — This can be advantageous to the different web pages that have a lot of different types of content or container load.

Lesser load on the HTML File — This can be used with HTML code to cascade the HTML file and its content to allow for a lesser load on the HTML code.

Functionally Rich — CSS has a lot of functions when it comes to text styling, fonts, and colors. It can control the look and feel of your entire web page with simple font size and color.

Cross Browser Support — CSS ensures cross-browser support and for the browser to be able to understand the placement and efficient running of code.

Endorses Uniformity Through Platforms — This front-end programming language ensures that the content and data are in the correct syntax. So, there is less room for error left in the content and the readability.

4. HTML

HTML or hypertext markup language is typically used to develop websites, web pages, and web applications. After its initial release in 1993, this has been constantly updated to add new features.

The latest release of HTML5 just occurred this year. Novice developers prefer to start their front-end programming career from HTML.

Core Features

Widely Understood — HTML is still preferred as an alternative program for the development of a backend code. This is simply because it is uncomplicated, small, and widely understood.

Easy to Learn and Implement — It is a free and easy-to-understand language. It is not hard to use this language with any given implementation. More importantly, it is directly understood by any browser without the help of masking it with any other front-end language.

Seamless Integration with other Languages — It is effortless to edit alongside any other code. It can be integrated early with any other code or form. Many programmers that have a knowledge of any front-end or backend language have used HTML.

Easy Testing & Debugging — It is user-friendly and easily understandable by a user even if an error is made in the layout or formatting. It is also one of the most lightweight front-end languages available right now.

5. Angular

Angular is a modern front-end development tool that is getting popular with a lot of applications with the “feed” layout. It is becoming increasingly popular after its initial release in 2016, and it is a great choice for web development.

Big Names Like Microsoft and Autodesk are currently making use of this technology. Angular helps you create dynamic single-page (SPAS) and interactive applications with the help of its amazing characteristics.

Core Features

Separation of Concerns & Dependency Injection — This front-end language divides the load on both the client as well as the server to make sure that all components are spontaneously loaded.

Restful API — Designers can use HTML as a template language and extend the HTML syntax to supply the software components simply. Angular does not require the designer to rely on third-party libraries to create applications using Angular.

AJAX Handling — Angular allows for an easy and efficient means to employ and handle AJAX concerns.

Employs MVC Patterns — This tool uses HTML at the backend to facilitate programmers to be able to get used to it easily. It is able to easily simplify MVC patterns by simply having a basic 3-component structure.

Object-Oriented Structure — Angular has most coding functionalities built into it as it uses a simple, straightforward object structure. It even allows for calling objects without getter or setter functions.

Easy Testing and Debugging — Angular features also allow for easy testing as the code can be run at any point in time to test functionalities.

6. Vue

Vue is one of the top dynamic front-end languages for the creation of a specific interface. For active data binding, Vue was initially released in 2014. In addition, this framework could be operated on an electron builder. It also provides support for both desktop and mobile applications.

Vue takes its inspiration from Angular and React, both being very well established in the market. This means that it can support and allow for more easy understanding for new developers looking to implement this technology.

Core Features

Front End Integration — The core library not only pays attention to the user’s ease of the presentation layer in order to make it easy. It also integrates with other libraries or existing projects.

Ideal for Single Page Designs — Vue is the ideal food for complicated single-page applications combined with modern tools and support libraries. Vue has a simple integration with the backend code as it does not require much change in existing applications.

Numerous Plugins Available — It can be built upon JavaScript applications as well. Many third-party plugins are available to facilitate developers in making a sound application.

Lightweight Files — The files are light and flexible in terms of support for newer programmers. This is popular due to it being easily understandable by React.JS developers as well.

7. jQuery

jQuery is a small library that can be embedded into a JavaScript file. This changes the behavior of JavaScript and its functionality. Indeed, this tool can also be used for end-end programming projects.

Core Features

DOM Support — This allows for a lot of manipulation in Document Object Models (DOM). This library not only allows to select between the object models but also to add or remove CSS elements.

Animation Support — It offers great support for animations such as carousel and fade-in. It is easy to learn as it is based directly on JavaScript and the way we code to it.

Special Text Effects — jQuery enables the user to add special effects to a simple JavaScript file. This can make the webpage intriguing and more attractive to the reader. Moreover, it can be of major advantage to anyone looking to make the program attractive.

Well Documented — It has a wide variety of support available and makes it easy for anyone getting into it to learn the implementation. It also has API support, so if you run into an error, you can be sure to find solutions.

Universal Browser Support — jQuery includes support over a wide array of browsers. This can also be run on older systems.

AJAX Support — It can also support Ajax functions, so you can make constantly updated web pages.

8. Swift

Swift is another powerful and pure front-end language. It was developed by Apple Inc. in 2014. Since then, it has become increasingly popular. It has only recently gotten Windows support since the September 2020 release.

Core Features

Easy to Learn — Swift is easy to read and write. In this regard, coders should be grateful for its simplified spelling, grammar, and syntax. Even a novice can write the perfect code.

Ideal for Apple Software — Its current performance is very impressive. It could be a perfect option for iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS devices.

Support Network — You will quickly find the Swift development of the project according to your needs. This will include the further development of the tool. As a general rule, the Swift will allow you to extend its functionality because of great network support.

Immediate Shifting to Swift — With a short and simple codebase, the adaptation process is faster. Coding in Swift is easy for a beginner to read as it is mainly in English and straightforward.

Much Faster Than Its Competitors — It is mainly used with Apple iOS development as Apple supports this compared to Object-C or any other competitor. Swift has excellent performance and is pretty fast, which is demonstrated to be superior to the previous language. Swift code is 2.6 times faster than Objective-C, according to a claim on Apple’s official site.

Error Management — Swift has a good error-handling capability, strong-typing and security properties. In this way, the probability of error and code crashing decreases. This can easily identify the bugs and has the ability to fix them. It is more efficient and easier to integrate.

9. SASS

SASS or Syntactically Awesome Stylesheets is a CSS preprocessor. In a sense, SASS can be thought of as a stylesheet extension language. It first came out in 2006 to simplify CSS and maximize its capabilities.

Core Features

Customizability Features — It allows you to use variables, mathematical operations, mixins, loops, import functionality and other cool features that make the CSS much more powerful.

Uses Windows Functions — It extends the standard Windows functions that represent the main advantages of the programming language.

Offers Variables — SASS offers Variables. This is a massive advantage over something like CSS that becomes harder to carry forward data. Variables make it easier to understand data and values over a longer part of code.

Can be Coded in both CSS and SASS — SASS can be coded in by CSS and SASS code. Yes, both of these are supported. This means that there are many advantages to a programmer who is savvy in CSS coding.

Simple CSS to SASS Shifting — One of the most common ones is the SCSS feature which requires you to rename your CSS file extension to ‘.scss’ simply, and it will immediately have all of the features that SASS comes with.

10. Elm

Elm is a beginner-friendly program that makes for a great package for anyone getting into front end languages. Even though it has a few restrictions in terms of the way you code. This is less of an issue as it makes less room for error.

Core Features

Domain-Specific Model — Elm is domain-specific, so it has a static set of places that it can be run on. It is developed with consideration to usability and performance. It is also rigorous on code and the ways that it works.

Scalable — Elm front-end language is scalable and less error-prone. It has an extremely helpful compiler that makes sure that the code is readable and easy to maintain.

Front End and Back End Support — This was originally made to be a simple front end language, but the server-side is easily programmable in this language as well. This makes it easy for an expert to not depend on any external language for code or a little backend development.

Conclusion

This article presented one of the best front-end programming languages. Withal, whether you are a business or a coder, it is vital to understand the programming needs of your application.

Undoubtedly after understanding the requirements of your software, it would be convenient to pick the right front-end language to make your venture successful.

Now that you know the best front-end languages, please read the article Top 10 Backend Languages to learn more about server-side programming.