Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Expo VS WebComponents.dev

Compare Expo VS WebComponents.dev and see what are their differences

Expo logo Expo

The fastest way to build an iOS and Android app 📱

WebComponents.dev logo WebComponents.dev

The modern IDE for web platform developers
  • Expo Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-11
  • WebComponents.dev Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-12-11

Expo features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Expo simplifies the development process by providing a managed workflow that handles configuration and builds, allowing developers to focus on coding.
  • Cross-Platform Development
    Expo enables developers to write code once and deploy it on both iOS and Android platforms, ensuring a consistent user experience across devices.
  • Pre-Built Components
    Expo offers a library of pre-built components and APIs that streamline the development process and reduce the time needed to implement common functionalities.
  • Over-the-Air Updates
    Developers can push updates to users in real-time without needing to go through the app store review process, facilitating quick bug fixes and feature releases.
  • Strong Community Support
    Expo has a vibrant and active developer community, offering a wealth of resources, tutorials, and third-party packages to assist developers.
  • Integrated Development Environment
    Expo provides tools like Expo CLI and Expo Go that make it easier to build, test, and debug applications, particularly for newcomers to mobile app development.

Possible disadvantages of Expo

  • Custom Native Code Limitations
    Expo's managed workflow restricts the use of custom native code, limiting developers when they need to integrate with third-party native libraries not supported by Expo.
  • Larger App Size
    Expo includes additional libraries and dependencies by default, which can result in a larger application size compared to custom builds.
  • Performance Overhead
    The abstraction added by Expo can introduce performance overhead, making it less suitable for highly performance-sensitive applications.
  • Dependency on Expo's Updates
    Developers are dependent on Expo's update cycle for bug fixes and new features, which may not always align with their project timelines.
  • Limited Configuration Options
    Expo's managed workflow abstracts many configurations for build processes, which can be a hindrance for developers needing granular control over app settings.
  • Ejection Complexity
    Ejecting from the managed workflow to a bare workflow for more customization can be complex and time-consuming, potentially negating some benefits of using Expo.

WebComponents.dev features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    WebComponents.dev provides a streamlined platform to create, share, and experiment with web components without needing extensive configuration or setup. This lowers the barrier to entry for both new and experienced developers.
  • Component Library
    The platform includes a rich library of pre-built components and templates, enabling developers to quickly find and integrate components into their projects.
  • Collaborative Environment
    WebComponents.dev supports collaboration by allowing developers to share their components with others easily. This fosters community engagement and learning opportunities.
  • Integration with Popular Frameworks
    It supports integration with popular frameworks like React, Vue, and Angular, making it versatile and useful for developers working across different ecosystems.

Possible disadvantages of WebComponents.dev

  • Limited Customization
    While WebComponents.dev offers many features for component development and sharing, the platform’s environment might limit some advanced customization possibilities compared to traditional development setups.
  • Dependence on the Platform
    Projects heavily reliant on WebComponents.dev might face challenges if the platform experiences downtime or significant changes, as they are dependent on a third-party service for their development workflow.
  • Performance Overhead
    Developing and running components within a browser-based IDE might introduce performance overheads not present in local development environments.
  • Learning Curve for New Users
    While designed to be user-friendly, there might be a learning curve for developers unfamiliar with web components or the specific paradigms of WebComponents.dev.

Analysis of Expo

Overall verdict

  • Expo is a solid choice for developers looking to quickly build and deploy mobile applications using React Native. Its ease of use and comprehensive toolset make it particularly attractive for rapid prototyping and development of small to medium apps. However, some advanced native functionalities might require ejecting from Expo, which can introduce additional complexities.

Why this product is good

  • Ease of use
    Expo is known for its user-friendly interface that allows developers to quickly prototype and build apps with React Native without needing to set up native development environments.
  • Cross platform
    Expo simplifies the process of building cross-platform applications, giving developers tools to deploy apps for both iOS and Android effortlessly.
  • No native code
    With Expo, developers can build applications entirely in JavaScript, which is beneficial for those who may not be familiar with native coding languages.
  • Developer tools
    It provides a suite of tools such as an interactive development environment, error reporting, and debugging services that enhance the development experience.

Recommended for

    {"beginners" => "New developers who are just getting started with app development will find Expo's simplicity and comprehensive documentation helpful.", "rapid_prototyping" => "Teams seeking to quickly prototype and iterate on ideas can benefit from Expo's convenient tools and cross-platform capabilities.", "react_native_developers" => "Developers familiar with React Native who want a streamlined solution to deploy apps without deep diving into native code."}

Expo videos

Scenes from the 2019 National FFA Convention & Expo | Review Video

More videos:

  • Review - Auto Expo 2020 Film | Real-life review
  • Review - Expo Dry Erase Set Unboxing & Review

WebComponents.dev videos

No WebComponents.dev videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Expo and WebComponents.dev)
Developer Tools
77 77%
23% 23
Application Builder
100 100%
0% 0
Development Tools
81 81%
19% 19
JavaScript Framework
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Expo should be more popular than WebComponents.dev. It has been mentiond 35 times since March 2021. 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.

Expo mentions (35)

  • Video player with React Native. Part 1: Expo
    We are going to review it in a series of two articles. This is the first one, where we will touch on Expo. Expo is quite popular and is even recommended in Getting Started guide for React Native. But it differs a lot. Here we will go through the process of building an app with Expo and then make technology comparison based on the results. - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
  • State Management Nx React Native/Expo Apps with TanStack Query and Redux
    This workspace is created using @nx/expo (Nx and Expo). - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • New OAuth Vulnerability (CVE-2023-28131) impacts hundreds of websites and Apps
    Just be clear this isn't an OAuth vulnerability. It's an vulnerability in expo.io. It doesn't even really have anything to do with OAuth. They've just terrible return url handling so it probably impacts a lot more than just stealing OAuth tokens. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Convert Reactjs + Firebase Project to a Mobile apk app. Please help
    I haven't messed with React Native in a hot minute, but it should be rather easy to port your React app to React Native. I recall using expo.io in uni for react native development. Hope that helps. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Form Validation in React (Native) using Formik
    Expo: Expo is a free and open source toolchain built around React Native to help you build native iOS and Android projects using JavaScript and React. Expo is a great way to get started with React Native. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
View more

WebComponents.dev mentions (9)

  • Painless Web Components: Naming is (not too) Hard
    How the tag name gets into your code can vary based on the method you are using to write your components. If you load up a few of the templates over on WebComponents.dev you'll see that many examples just use a string value typed into the define function directly. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • free-for.dev
    WebComponents.dev — In-browser IDE to code web components in isolation with 58 templates available, supporting stories and tests. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • Why Atomico js webcomponents?
    We will show the benefits of Atomico through a comparison, we have used as a basis for this comparison the existing counter webcomponents in webcomponents.dev of Atomico, Lit, Preact and React as a base. - Source: dev.to / almost 3 years ago
  • Javascript animation in LWC, tried Motion one
    Unfortunately, I couldn't get this to work in the online LWC editor https://webcomponents.dev So assuming this also won't work in the shadow DOM enviroment of SF? Source: about 3 years ago
  • Cute Solar System with CSS
    WebComponentsDev have a lot of libraries and info (like codesandbox, but webcomponents land): Https://webcomponents.dev/. Source: about 3 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Expo and WebComponents.dev, you can also consider the following products

Thunkable - Powerful but easy to use, drag-and-drop mobile app builder.

Arbiter IDE - The offline-friendly, in-browser IDE for pure JS prototypes

Android Studio - Android development environment based on IntelliJ IDEA

Deco IDE - Best IDE for building React Native apps

React Native - A framework for building native apps with React

CodeOnline - A remote and secure workspace powered by VSCode