“Any application that can be written in JavaScript, will eventually be written in JavaScript." - Jeff Atwood
Web development can be a daunting task, especially for those new to the field. One of the first decisions you'll need to make is choosing a stack, or a combination of technologies, to build your web application. There are many different stacks to choose from, each with its own set of pros and cons.
In this post, we will compare some of the most popular stacks: MERN, MEAN, MEVN, MENG, LAMP, and Ruby on Rails. We'll take a look at the frontend framework, middleware, backend, database, and any other notable technologies used in each stack. By the end of this post, you should have a better understanding of the different options available and be able to make an informed decision about which stack is right for your project.
Comparing web stacks
| Stack | Frontend | Middleware | Backend | Database | Other | Benefit |
| MERN | React | Express | Node.js | MongoDB | Full-Stack | |
| MEAN | Angular | Express | Node.js | MongoDB | Full-Stack | |
| MEVN | Vue.js | Express | Node.js | MongoDB | Full-Stack | |
| MENG | Express | Node.js | MongoDB | GPT | Full-Stack + AI | |
| LAMP | Apache | MySQL | PHP | Versatility | ||
| Ruby on Rails | Rails | Ruby | Productivity |
As you can see, the main difference between each web stack is the components they advocate using. This also influences their scope.
For example, MERN, MEAN, MEVN, and MENG all use similar technologies and offer the benefit of being full-stack frameworks, meaning they provide a complete solution for building web applications from front to back. LAMP is a more general stack that can be used to build a wide range of applications and is known for its versatility. Ruby on Rails is a framework for building web applications using the Ruby programming language and is known for its focus on productivity, with features like convention over configuration and automated testing.
Individual web stack components
React is a JavaScript library for building user interfaces. It is known for its ability to efficiently update and render complex UIs, making it a popular choice for building dynamic and interactive web applications. React is used by companies like Facebook, Netflix, Airbnb, Uber.
Vue.js is a popular JavaScript framework for building web applications. It is known for its simplicity, flexibility, and efficient rendering. Vue.js allows developers to create reusable components and has a rich ecosystem of plugins and libraries. It is lightweight and versatile, making it a good choice for building modern web applications. Vue.js is used by companies like Alibaba, Grammarly, Behance, Gitlab.
Angular
is a JavaScript framework for building front-end web applications. It provides several features and tools for building user interfaces, including templates, data binding, and dependency injection. Angular is used by companies like Google, Microsoft, Forbes and Weather.com.
Ruby on Rails is a popular web framework for Ruby that is designed to make it easy to build web applications quickly and efficiently. It provides a set of tools and conventions that make it simple to implement common web development tasks, such as routing, request handling, and database interaction. Ruby on Rails is used by companies like Airbnb, Shopify, Github, Twitch and Hulu.
Express is a web application framework that simplifies the development of server-side logic and APIs. It provides a robust set of features for routing, middleware, and other common web development tasks.
Node.js is a JavaScript runtime that allows developers to run JavaScript on the server. This allows them to build server-side applications using the same language that they use for client-side development, providing a consistent and familiar development environment.
Apache is a free and open-source web server software that is widely used to host websites and web applications. It was originally developed by the Apache Software Foundation and is currently the most popular web server in the world, according to Netcraft's Web Server Survey. Apache is known for its security, reliability, and performance, making it a great choice for hosting websites and web applications. It is also highly configurable, allowing administrators to customize the server's behavior to meet the needs of their specific application or environment. In addition to serving static and dynamic content, Apache can also be used to host applications written in a variety of languages, including PHP, Python, and Ruby. Overall, Apache is a powerful and reliable web server that is well-suited for a wide range of applications.
MongoDB is a NoSQL database that allows developers to store data in a flexible, JSON-like format. This makes it easy to work with complex data structures and provides a high level of scalability and performance.GPT (Generative Pretrained Transformer) is a natural language processing model trained to generate human-like responses to text input. It can be used in web applications to create chatbots or other types of applications that involve interacting with users through natural language. Famous companies integrating GPT in their services include OpenAI, Microsoft, Huawei, Google, and Alibaba.
Conclusion
In conclusion, choosing the right web stack for your project is an important decision that can have a significant impact on the success of your application. In this post, we compared some of the most popular web stacks: MERN, MEAN, MEVN, MENG, LAMP, and Ruby on Rails.
Each stack has its unique set of technologies, including frontend frameworks, middleware, backend, and databases. By considering the specific needs of your project, you can choose the stack best suited for your needs.
It is important to keep in mind that web development is a constantly evolving field, and new technologies and frameworks are being introduced all the time. It is worth staying updated with the latest developments and considering new options as they become available. Regardless of which stack you choose, the most important thing is to choose a set of technologies that you are comfortable with and that will allow you to build the best application possible.
