Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Ktor VS Spark Framework

Compare Ktor VS Spark Framework and see what are their differences

Ktor logo Ktor

Ktor is a tough gig developmental platform that comes with the support to build asynchronous servers and clients right in the kotlin.

Spark Framework logo Spark Framework

Spark Framework is a simple and lightweight Java web framework built for rapid development.
  • Ktor Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-05-05
  • Spark Framework Landing page
    Landing page //
    2019-11-24

Ktor features and specs

  • Asynchronous and Non-blocking
    Ktor is built on top of Kotlin coroutines, which allows it to handle high concurrency with ease through non-blocking I/O operations, providing better performance under load compared to traditional blocking frameworks.
  • Kotlin-first
    Being designed specifically for Kotlin, Ktor fully leverages Kotlin's language features like DSLs and coroutines, providing a concise and readable syntax that is well integrated with Kotlin's ecosystem.
  • Flexible and Modular Architecture
    Ktor offers a highly modular architecture, allowing developers to include only the components they need, which can help reduce the application's footprint and tailor the application to specific use cases.
  • Multi-platform Capabilities
    Ktor can be used to develop applications that target different platforms, such as JVM, Android, and native, making it a suitable choice for multi-platform projects.
  • Strong Community and Active Development
    With JetBrains backing and a growing community, Ktor benefits from active development, continuous improvements, and a wealth of community-contributed plugins and resources.

Possible disadvantages of Ktor

  • Relatively Young Framework
    Being a newer framework compared to some established ones like Spring, Ktor might have fewer resources, tutorials, and community-driven content available, which could present a learning curve for new users.
  • Less Mature Ecosystem
    Due to its relative youth, Ktor's ecosystem might not be as mature or extensive as more established frameworks, potentially requiring extra effort when integrating with third-party tools and services.
  • Limited Built-in Features
    While Ktor's modularity is a strength, it also means that some features available out-of-the-box in bulkier frameworks may require additional configuration or setup, potentially increasing development time for some projects.
  • Documentation Gaps
    Though improving, Ktor's documentation may not be as comprehensive as that of older frameworks, which can cause challenges when developers seek guidance on implementing specific features or troubleshooting issues.
  • Requires Kotlin Expertise
    Given that Ktor is designed specifically for Kotlin, developers without prior Kotlin experience may face a steeper learning curve when working with this framework compared to more language-agnostic tools.

Spark Framework features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Spark Framework provides a simple and intuitive API, making it easy to set up and run a web application with minimal configuration.
  • Lightweight
    Spark is very lightweight, which makes it well-suited for small applications and microservices where resource consumption is a concern.
  • Java 8 Lambda Support
    It supports Java 8 lambdas, allowing developers to write clean, readable, and more concise code.
  • Rapid Development
    The framework facilitates rapid development and prototyping, enabling developers to quickly build and iterate on ideas.
  • Minimal Configuration
    With less boilerplate code required, Spark allows developers to focus on business logic rather than intricate configurations.

Possible disadvantages of Spark Framework

  • Limited Ecosystem
    Compared to more established frameworks, Spark has a smaller ecosystem of plugins and extensions, which might limit functionality for larger projects.
  • Performance Overhead
    While suitable for small applications, the simplicity of Spark might introduce performance overhead when scaling up to larger, complex applications.
  • Concurrency Limitations
    Its concurrency model may not be robust enough for high-concurrency applications, potentially leading to scalability issues.
  • Less Community Support
    Spark's smaller user base means that community support and resources such as tutorials and forums are more limited compared to larger frameworks.
  • Basic Feature Set
    The framework offers a basic feature set, which may require additional coding or third-party libraries to achieve advanced functionalities.

Ktor videos

Ktor: Past, Present, and Future! by Hadi Hariri

More videos:

  • Review - Unlimited Emergency Power: KTOR 50 Watt Generator and Inergy Kodiak Battery

Spark Framework videos

No Spark Framework videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Ktor and Spark Framework)
Development
100 100%
0% 0
Web Frameworks
38 38%
62% 62
Developer Tools
29 29%
71% 71
Tool
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Ktor and Spark Framework. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Ktor and Spark Framework

Ktor Reviews

We have no reviews of Ktor yet.
Be the first one to post

Spark Framework Reviews

17 Popular Java Frameworks for 2023: Pros, cons, and more
You can get the Spark Framework up and running in just a few minutes. By default, it runs on the Jetty web server that is embedded into the framework. However, you can use it with other Java web servers as well. According to Spark’s own survey, more than 50% of their users used the framework to create REST APIs, which is its most popular use case. Spark also powers...
Source: raygun.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Ktor might be a bit more popular than Spark Framework. We know about 33 links to it since March 2021 and only 29 links to Spark Framework. 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.

Ktor mentions (33)

  • The Fread Project is Now Open Source, Based on Kotlin Multiplatform and Compose Multiplatform
    Ktor: Networking and communication. - Source: dev.to / 2 days ago
  • An advanced Data Table with HTMX
    Kotlin / Ktor: Ktor is a Kotlin framework that allows developing HTTP APIs. It’s somewhat equivalent to Express or Fastify in Kotlin. One of the advantages of the Hypermedia approach is that it allows development in a language other than Javascript, and I took this opportunity for these demos. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • Ktor -Create asynchronous applications the Kotlin way!!
    If you want to learn more about Ktor, visit this site. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Building a subscription tracker Desktop and iOS app with compose multiplatform - Configuring Notion
    To make requests to Notion's API, we will work with Ktor to instantiate an HTTP client on our app. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • Kotlin Routing - routing everything
    In paralel Jetbrains has created a lot of KMP frameworks that are awesome. One of them is Ktor that helps "create asynchronous client and server applications.". - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
View more

Spark Framework mentions (29)

  • Indexing All of Wikipedia on a Laptop
    The code for serving queries is found in the WebSearch class. We’re using Spark (the web framework, not the big data engine) to serve a simple search form:. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • [ Servlet + JSP + JDBC ]
    Get a solid grasp of building web applications with Java either using Spring (using Spring Boot) or Spark (if you're also new to Java learning Java and Spring can be a mouthful). Instead of JSP use something Thymeleaf or build the frontend with HTML and JavaScript (and serve the bundles). Source: over 1 year ago
  • What's the language of the startup?
    So most of the "tech" stack goes out. In our first startup we created our own web-container by using https://sparkjava.com - and then built a JSR-223 scripting support. Source: over 1 year ago
  • What side-projects did you work on during your university years?
    Stack: Java, Spark (not the Apache Spark but this), Kafka, several other libraries like FasterXML's Jackson. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Full Time
    The blog is just hugo so it's 100% static files over nginx. The search engine is serverside-rendered mustache templates via handlebars[1], via served via spark[2]. It's basically all vanilla Java. I do raw SQL queries instead of ORM, which makes it quite a bit snappier than most Java applications. The sheer size of the database also mandates that basically every query is a primary key lookup. The code is written... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Ktor and Spark Framework, you can also consider the following products

Micronaut Framework - Build modular easily testable microservice & serverless apps

Javalin - Simple REST APIs for Java and Kotlin

Laravel - A PHP Framework For Web Artisans

vert.x - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kotlin - Statically typed Programming Language targeting JVM and JavaScript

ASP.NET - ASP.NET is a free web framework for building great Web sites and Web applications using HTML, CSS and JavaScript.