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Create React App VS axios

Compare Create React App VS axios and see what are their differences

Create React App logo Create React App

Create React apps with no build configuration

axios logo axios

Promise based HTTP client for the browser and node.js - axios/axios
  • Create React App Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-18
  • axios Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-17

Create React App features and specs

  • Ease of Setup
    Create React App provides a simple command to quickly set up a new React project. This reduces the time required for initial configuration.
  • Zero Configuration
    The tool comes with a large set of defaults out of the box. You don't need to configure Webpack, Babel, or other build tools manually.
  • Best Practices
    It encapsulates a lot of best practices for building React applications, ensuring you start off on the right foot.
  • Development Server
    Includes a local development server with hot-module reloading powered by Webpack, which improves the development experience.
  • Community Support
    As a Facebook-backed project with a wide user base, Create React App benefits from extensive documentation and community support.
  • Testing Setup
    Initial Jest configuration is included, providing a straightforward way to start writing and running tests.
  • Production Optimizations
    Built-in optimizations for production builds, such as code splitting and minification.

Possible disadvantages of Create React App

  • Limited Customization
    While the zero-configuration approach is convenient, it can be limiting if you need to modify the underlying configurations (Webpack, Babel, etc.).
  • Monolithic
    Create React App is a single monolithic package, which can make it difficult to understand or change certain aspects without ejecting.
  • Eject Complexity
    Ejecting from Create React App exposes all underlying configurations, which can be overwhelming and increase the complexity of your project.
  • Dependency Management
    Because it abstracts away many details, you may not be aware of what dependencies are being used in your project.
  • Less Control
    Advanced users may find Create React App restrictive as it abstracts many details and does not easily allow for deep customization.
  • Performance Overhead
    For very small applications, the built-in tooling might be overkill and add unnecessary complexity and performance overhead.

axios features and specs

  • Simple API
    Axios provides a straightforward and easy-to-use API for performing HTTP requests, which can be simpler and more intuitive than the native Fetch API.
  • Promise-based
    Axios uses Promises, making it easier to handle asynchronous operations with `.then()` and `.catch()`, which integrates well with modern JavaScript and async/await syntax.
  • Interceptors
    Axios allows you to set up request and response interceptors, enabling you to handle tasks like modifying requests, handling errors globally, or adding authorization tokens in a centralized place.
  • Automatic JSON Transformation
    Axios automatically transforms JSON data, saving developers the hassle of performing manual JSON.parse() or JSON.stringify() operations.
  • Node.js Support
    Axios supports Node.js, making it a versatile choice for both frontend and backend development.
  • Request Cancellation
    Axios supports cancelling requests using the AbortController API, allowing better control over long-running or redundant requests.
  • Wide Browser Support
    Axios works across many older browsers and environments where the Fetch API might not be fully supported.

Possible disadvantages of axios

  • Bundle Size
    Since Axios is an external library, including it in a project will increase the overall bundle size, which can be a concern for performance-sensitive applications.
  • Dependency Management
    Adding Axios introduces one more dependency to manage in your project, which can lead to potential conflicts or issues with package updates.
  • Redundant for Simple Tasks
    For very simple HTTP requests, using Axios might be overkill, especially as the Fetch API can handle many straightforward use cases with minimal code.
  • Learning Curve for Interceptors
    While interceptors are powerful, they add an additional layer of complexity that developers need to learn, which might be overwhelming for beginners.
  • Inconsistent Error Handling
    Error handling in Axios can sometimes be inconsistent and may require extra boilerplate code to handle different types of errors such as network errors, HTTP errors, or unexpected payloads.
  • Global Configuration Complexity
    Managing global Axios configuration for large applications can become complex and might lead to less readable and maintainable code if not handled carefully.
  • No Native TypeScript Support
    While Axios can be used with TypeScript, it does not provide type definitions out of the box and relies on the DefinitelyTyped community for typings, which might lag behind the main library updates.

Analysis of Create React App

Overall verdict

  • Create React App is a good choice for developers looking for a straightforward way to start React applications without delving into setup configurations. It's a robust, flexible tool for beginners and those who appreciate productivity and ease of use over micromanaging build setups.

Why this product is good

  • Create React App is widely appreciated for streamlining the setup of new React projects. It abstracts away the complex configurations of tools like Webpack and Babel, allowing developers to focus on building applications rather than managing build processes. It offers a strong development environment with features like hot reloading, a development server, and support for the latest JavaScript features. Additionally, it provides a sensible set of defaults and is maintained by the React team, ensuring compatibility and access to the latest React updates.

Recommended for

  • Beginners who are new to React and want to start building projects quickly.
  • Developers who want to focus on app development rather than configuration details.
  • Teams that require a standardized project setup to streamline the development process.
  • Projects that do not require a highly customized build process, as Create React App might be restrictive for advanced use cases that need significant flexibility.

Analysis of axios

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Axios is generally considered a good library for making HTTP requests due to its robust feature set, ease of use, and active community support. It simplifies the process of interacting with web services and is well-documented, making it a reliable choice for both beginners and experienced developers.

Why this product is good

  • Axios is a promise-based HTTP client for Node.js and the browser. Its popularity stems from its simplicity, ease of use, and ability to handle HTTP requests and responses effectively. It provides features such as interceptors, automatic JSON transformation, and protection against XSRF. This makes it particularly useful for developers working on projects that require communication with APIs.

Recommended for

  • Developers building single-page applications (SPAs)
  • Projects that require HTTP client functionalities both in Node.js and browsers
  • Applications that need to handle complex request/response transformations
  • Developers looking for a simple API for making asynchronous calls

Create React App videos

Why You Should Stop Using Create React App | React.js Todo List | Code Review #4 Part 2

More videos:

  • Review - Create React App Explained

axios videos

A Spec Monster Diver! The Axios Ironclad!

More videos:

  • Review - Axios Ironclad Review - Upcoming Affordable Diver
  • Review - The dive watch you've been waiting for. Axios Flagship Automatic Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Create React App and axios)
Javascript UI Libraries
47 47%
53% 53
Developer Tools
57 57%
43% 43
JS Library
56 56%
44% 44
Software Development
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Create React App might be a bit more popular than axios. We know about 120 links to it since March 2021 and only 116 links to axios. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Create React App mentions (120)

  • Those Golden Era of React...๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿ’ปโ˜บ๏ธ
    This project was bootstrapped with Create React App. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • You should know this before choosing Next.js
    I could totally see how you'd arrive there. Backstory: create-react was a starter boilerplate for React built and maintained by Facebook. This was when webpack was the standard and just getting a local development environment to "hello world" for React could be challenging.[1] That project was depreciated and the popularity of the Next.js site framework for react projects (plus I certainly assume heavy lobbying... - Source: Hacker News / 6 months ago
  • Updating my website's tech stack in 2025
    My website's previous iteration was built in 2021. It was bootstrapped using (the now deprecated) Create React App and it took approximately 2 months to build. The home page included a bunch of photos that I had taken myself of my desk and keyboard as background for several sections and it included most of the information on the website. In the middle of the page I put the SkillsTerminal (which also features in... - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Micro-libraries need to die already
    This is just a discourse based on "I need to churn out something, I need that fast and I didn't start in the web game when Backbone and E4X were a solid corporate choice". If you are not in a hurry, work in a solid team and have a good attention span, a lot of clickbait idiocy around JS may not happen. I'm presenting you one of countless examples: a lot of coding bootcamps teach React, maybe with TS, maybe with... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • 45 NPM Packages to Solve 16 React Problems
    Create-react-app -> Building a single-page application. Good for beginners. - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
View more

axios mentions (116)

  • My Type of Library: Axios TypeScript Conversion
    This is the first post in an ad-hoc series where I convert libraries to TypeScript, and analyze the results. In the same vein as my re-conversion of the Turbo Framework to TypeScript, I decided to take a popular JavaScript library, this time one that had always been in JavaScript, and see what converting the codebase to TypeScript revealed. I chose Axios, because itโ€™s:. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • How To Use React JS In a Laravel Project
    Axios: This library is great for making HTTP requests from React to your Laravel backend. More details can be found on Axios GitHub. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • How To Work With API In React JS
    Axios GitHub Repository: If you decide to try Axios, the Axios GitHub page is a good place to see how it works and to get installation instructions. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Journeying from React to React Native
    React and React Native share many core libraries. You can use the same state management libraries like Redux, MobX, and data fetching libraries like Axios or the Fetch API. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • How to Read a JSON File in JavaScript
    When you need to read a json file in your project, it is easy to get the idea using fetch or axios. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Create React App and axios, you can also consider the following products

NativeExpress - The ultimate React Native & Expo boilerplate with everything you need to build, launch, and monetize your mobile app as fast as possible. Including step-by-step submission guides and all the resources you need to submit your app to the stores

React - A JavaScript library for building user interfaces

Redux.js - Predictable state container for JavaScript apps

React.run - Quick in-browser prototyping for React Components!

Zustand - Bear necessities for state management in React

Vite - Next Generation Frontend Tooling