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KnockoutJS VS Polymer

Compare KnockoutJS VS Polymer and see what are their differences

KnockoutJS logo KnockoutJS

Knockout makes it easier to create rich, responsive UIs with JavaScript

Polymer logo Polymer

Polymer is a library that uses the latest web technologies to let you create custom HTML elements.
  • KnockoutJS Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-09-30
  • Polymer Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-20

KnockoutJS features and specs

  • Data Binding
    KnockoutJS offers a powerful two-way data binding mechanism, allowing for automatic synchronization between the model and the user interface. This reduces the amount of boilerplate code needed to manage data updates.
  • Declarative Bindings
    The library uses declarative bindings to connect the UI to the data model. This makes it easier to understand the structure of your UI without having to sift through complex JavaScript code.
  • Flexibility
    KnockoutJS is framework-agnostic, meaning it can be integrated with other libraries and frameworks such as jQuery and Angular, providing flexibility in application architecture.
  • Simplicity
    It's relatively easy to learn and use, especially for developers familiar with Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) architecture.
  • Community Support
    Despite being a mature library, KnockoutJS has a solid community with ample documentation and plugins, which can be quite helpful for development and troubleshooting.

Possible disadvantages of KnockoutJS

  • Performance Issues
    For very complex applications or large datasets, KnockoutJS might lead to performance bottlenecks, since it doesn’t offer the same virtual DOM diffing optimizations as newer frameworks/libraries like React.
  • Steep Learning Curve for Complex Applications
    While it's simple for smaller projects, creating and managing more complex applications often involves a steeper learning curve and can lead to complex models.
  • Lack of Built-in Support for Modern Features
    KnockoutJS does not natively support some modern JavaScript features and patterns, such as ES6 modules or TypeScript, requiring additional configurations or libraries.
  • Decreasing Popularity
    As more modern frameworks like React, Angular, and Vue gain popularity, the use of KnockoutJS is declining, which might lead to a smaller community and fewer updates or improvements in the future.
  • Limited Official Tooling
    Compared to newer frameworks, KnockoutJS has less official tooling support for development, build processes, and testing, which can make project setup and maintenance more arduous.

Polymer features and specs

  • Component-based Architecture
    Polymer allows developers to create reusable web components, making code more modular, maintainable, and easier to test.
  • Standards Compliant
    Polymer is built on top of web standards, such as Web Components, Custom Elements, Shadow DOM, and HTML Templates, ensuring longevity and compatibility with modern browsers.
  • Built-in Data Binding
    Polymer provides a powerful data-binding system, which simplifies the synchronization of the UI and data model, reducing boilerplate code.
  • Polymer CLI and Tools
    A suite of command-line tools, such as Polymer CLI, helps streamline the development workflow by offering features like scaffolding, linting, testing, and building projects.
  • Rich Set of Pre-built Elements
    Polymer comes with a library of pre-built elements, known as Polymer Elements, which can speed up development by providing ready-to-use components.

Possible disadvantages of Polymer

  • Learning Curve
    Despite its strengths, Polymer introduces new concepts that may be challenging for developers unfamiliar with web components or who are accustomed to other frameworks like React or Angular.
  • Performance Overhead
    Polymer introduces a slight performance overhead due to its abstraction layer, which can be noticeable in large and complex applications.
  • Smaller Ecosystem
    Compared to more popular frameworks like React, Angular, or Vue, Polymer has a smaller community and ecosystem, which can limit the availability of third-party plugins, tools, and community support.
  • SEO Challenges
    While Polymer uses modern web standards, some implementations using Shadow DOM can face SEO challenges because not all search engines fully support crawling and indexing content dynamically inserted by JavaScript.
  • Browser Compatibility
    Polymer relies heavily on newer web standards, which might not be fully supported by all browsers, particularly older versions, leading to potential compatibility issues.

Analysis of Polymer

Overall verdict

  • Polymer is considered a good choice for developers interested in leveraging Web Components, particularly in projects that demand modular design and encapsulated functionality. It shines in environments where component reusability and maintainability are top priorities. While it might not be as popular as frameworks like React, Angular, or Vue.js, it offers a robust alternative focused on web standards.

Why this product is good

  • Polymer is a library that helps developers create web components more easily, adhering to the Web Components standard. It allows for encapsulation and reusability of web elements, which can result in more maintainable and organized code. The Polymer library provides polyfills to address compatibility issues with older browsers, making modern web development patterns accessible even in environments that do not yet fully support the Web Components standard. Additionally, Polymer's API and tooling help streamline the development process, enabling developers to build fast, responsive web applications.

Recommended for

    Polymer is particularly recommended for developers and teams seeking to implement the Web Components standard in their projects. It is an excellent option for those who prioritize increased encapsulation, reusability, and maintainability of UI components. It is also ideal for projects where adhering to web standards and cultivating interoperability across different components is crucial.

KnockoutJS videos

KnockoutJS Review

Polymer videos

Gun Review: The Polymer 80

More videos:

  • Review - Polymer 80 Glock 19: PF940C Review!
  • Review - Tennessee Arms Polymer AR-15 Lower review - Are They Any Good and Should you Buy One?

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to KnockoutJS and Polymer)
Javascript UI Libraries
25 25%
75% 75
JS Library
34 34%
66% 66
JavaScript Framework
21 21%
79% 79
Front-End Frameworks
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare KnockoutJS and Polymer

KnockoutJS Reviews

We have no reviews of KnockoutJS yet.
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Polymer Reviews

Top JavaScript Frameworks in 2025
PolymerJS is useful for web development by providing developers with the ability to create their own HTML elements. Developers can create new custom elements which can be reused in your HTML pages in a declarative way. PolymerJS is an emerging technology with plenty of benefits, but it also makes it difficult for new developers to learn.
Source: solguruz.com
Top 10 AI Data Analysis Tools in 2024
Polymer is a robust AI tool that excels in transforming data into a streamlined, flexible, and powerful database. One of its standout features is its ability to achieve this transformation without the need for coding, making it accessible to users with varying technical backgrounds. By simply uploading their spreadsheets, users can instantly transform their data into a...
Source: powerdrill.ai
Top 20 Javascript Libraries
Created by Google, Polymer is a JS library that allows developers to reuse HTML elements and create custom elements using HTML, CSS, and JS to create more interactive applications. It is compatible with different platforms. Once you install Polymer using the command line interface or the Bower method, you can reuse already developed elements without worrying about how those...
Source: hackr.io

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, KnockoutJS seems to be a lot more popular than Polymer. While we know about 22 links to KnockoutJS, we've tracked only 1 mention of Polymer. 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.

KnockoutJS mentions (22)

  • JSX over the Wire
    > Everything old is new again An age ago I took interest in KnockoutJS based on Model-View-ViewModel and found it pragmatic and easy to use. It was however at the beginning of the mad javascript framework-hopping marathon, so it was considered 'obsolete' after a few months. I just peeked, Knockout still exists. https://knockoutjs.com/. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • A First Look at HTMX and How it Compares to React
    The approach is not new, essentially a variation of Knockout, Alpine, and similar "JS-in-HTML" approaches. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • The Best UI Libraries for Cross-Platform Apps with Tauri
    SolidJS and Tauri form another potent combination for creating performant, lightweight, and secure experiences. SolidJS is a reactive UI library that is similar to Svelte in the way it compiles away reactivity and updates the DOM directly, but it also incorporates a fine-grained reactivity system reminiscent of libraries like Marko, Knockout, and MobX. - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
  • Why are signals still not so popular?
    People act like Signals are a new discovery. KnockoutJS was using them 13 years ago and other libraries used them before that. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • What is KnockoutJS and how is it relevant in Magento 2?
    Knockout JS is a Javascript library which uses the MVVM pattern to bind data to certain DOM elements. Within Magento, we usually define a View-Model (which is a .js file) and a Template (which is a .html file), and the data in the template file is bound to the view-model, meaning whenever the data in the view-model changes, the template file changes too. Source: almost 2 years ago
View more

Polymer mentions (1)

  • Web Components 101: Lit Framework
    Lit demonstrates significant growth in web components from the early days of Polymer. This growth is in no small part due to the Lit team themselves, either! - Source: dev.to / about 3 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing KnockoutJS and Polymer, you can also consider the following products

AngularJS - AngularJS lets you extend HTML vocabulary for your application. The resulting environment is extraordinarily expressive, readable, and quick to develop.

Vue.js - Reactive Components for Modern Web Interfaces

React - A JavaScript library for building user interfaces

Svelte - Cybernetically enhanced web apps

ember.js - A JavaScript framework for creating ambitious web apps

Backbone.js - Give your JS App some Backbone with Models, Views, Collections, and Events