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Moleculer VS Adonis JS

Compare Moleculer VS Adonis JS and see what are their differences

Moleculer logo Moleculer

Fast & modern microservices framework for Node.js.

Adonis JS logo Adonis JS

AdonisJs is a Node.js web framework with breath of fresh air and drizzle of elegant syntax on top of it
  • Moleculer Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-12-21
  • Adonis JS Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-20

Moleculer features and specs

  • Microservices Architecture
    Moleculer provides an efficient microservices framework which allows developers to build robust and scalable distributed systems effortlessly.
  • Out-of-the-Box Features
    Moleculer offers an extensive array of built-in features such as service discovery, load balancing, fault tolerance, and more, reducing the need for third-party integrations.
  • Ease of Use
    Its straightforward API and comprehensive documentation make it easy to learn and implement, even for developers who are new to microservices.
  • Pluggable Transport Layer
    Supports different transporters such as NATS, MQTT, Kafka, and Redis, giving flexibility in how services communicate with each other.
  • Performance
    Designed for high performance, Moleculer can handle a large number of requests efficiently, making it suitable for production-level applications.

Possible disadvantages of Moleculer

  • Complexity in Large Systems
    As with any microservices framework, managing a large number of services can become complex and may require robust monitoring and orchestration tools.
  • Learning Curve
    While Moleculer is easy to start with, mastering it and understanding all its features and best practices may require time.
  • Community and Ecosystem
    Compared to more established frameworks, Moleculer may have a smaller community and ecosystem which can affect the availability of third-party plugins or modules.
  • Dependency Management
    Ensuring compatibility between different versions of services and third-party libraries can be challenging, especially when services are updated independently.
  • Debugging and Error Handling
    Distributed systems can be more complex to debug, and although Moleculer provides tools for this, it may still require extra effort compared to monolithic applications.

Adonis JS features and specs

  • Modern Eco-System
    AdonisJS uses the latest JavaScript (ES6/ES7) features, providing an up-to-date and efficient development environment. This includes async/await for handling asynchronous code, making it easier to write and understand.
  • ORM Support
    The framework includes a built-in ORM called Lucid, which simplifies database interactions by allowing developers to work with database records through straightforward JavaScript models.
  • MVC Architecture
    AdonisJS follows the Model-View-Controller (MVC) design pattern, which helps organize code in a clean and maintainable manner, making it easier to manage large applications.
  • Built-In Authentication and Authorization
    AdonisJS comes with out-of-the-box solutions for user authentication and authorization, reducing the time required to set up these critical features in applications.
  • Thorough Documentation
    AdonisJS provides comprehensive and well-maintained documentation, which makes it easier for developers to get started and find solutions to their problems quickly.
  • Rich CLI
    The Command Line Interface (CLI) for AdonisJS is rich with features, facilitating a range of tasks from project scaffolding to running migrations, thus speeding up the development process.

Possible disadvantages of Adonis JS

  • Learning Curve
    Although the framework is well-documented, its rich set of features and unique conventions can present a steep learning curve for beginners or those new to JavaScript frameworks.
  • Limited Ecosystem
    Compared to more established frameworks like Express.js or Laravel, AdonisJS has a smaller ecosystem of third-party packages and community resources.
  • Performance Overhead
    Due to its comprehensive feature set, AdonisJS can have more performance overhead compared to microframeworks that offer more control and fewer built-in features.
  • Smaller Community
    While growing, the community around AdonisJS is still smaller than that of other established frameworks. This can sometimes make it more challenging to find community-driven support and solutions.
  • Rapid Changes
    As a relatively new framework, AdonisJS undergoes frequent updates and changes. Keeping up with these changes can demand additional effort from developers.

Analysis of Adonis JS

Overall verdict

  • AdonisJS is a good choice for developers looking for a complete, opinionated framework with a focus on developer productivity and ease of use. It is especially beneficial for those who appreciate a well-documented toolkit with out-of-the-box features necessary for web development. However, like any framework, it may not be the best fit for every project, especially if you have specific requirements beyond what AdonisJS easily provides or if you prefer using a less opinionated environment.

Why this product is good

  • AdonisJS is a Node.js MVC framework tailored for building scalable server-side applications. It is often praised for its opinionated structure that makes it easy to follow best practices, which can accelerate development. Additionally, it offers built-in support for authentication, data modeling, and other features that are commonly needed in web applications, reducing the need for third-party packages. Its emphasis on developer experience, with features like an intuitive CLI, ORM, and an edge templating engine, contributes to its appeal among developers who prefer an all-in-one toolkit. Furthermore, the AdonisJS community is growing, and there are increasing resources and plugins available.

Recommended for

  • Developers building server-side applications with Node.js who need a structured approach.
  • Teams that benefit from having a consistent, opinionated setup with built-in features for common tasks.
  • Developers who appreciate a strong focus on development experience and concise documentation.
  • Projects that require scalability and maintainability without relying heavily on external packages.

Moleculer videos

MoleculeR review

Adonis JS videos

Tutoriel NodeJS : Découverte d'Adonis

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Moleculer and Adonis JS)
Developer Tools
17 17%
83% 83
Web Frameworks
11 11%
89% 89
JavaScript Framework
12 12%
88% 88
Cloud Computing
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Adonis JS should be more popular than Moleculer. It has been mentiond 79 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.

Moleculer mentions (14)

  • Make microservices look like monoliths
    My goto for this kind of task is moleculer: https://moleculer.services/ Fast, battle tested, vue2-like approach, great documentation, good community. The automatic indipendent-scalability as an option is usually the main selling point of these solutions, but honestly I think the real pro is the "composition" approach, which is essential if you want to keep a clean and well-organized codebase. On this regard, I... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • How to Import/Reference a Microservice from another one
    If you’re using k8s, check out https://moleculer.services and this would likely solve what you’re looking for. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Node JS Microservice Frameworks for Developing Scalable Web Apps.
    Molecular – Progressive Microservices Framework for Node.js. Source: about 2 years ago
  • First time building microservice-based application
    While you’re delving into microservices, check out Moleculer https://moleculer.services. Source: over 2 years ago
  • if Nodejs does not meant for CPU intensive tasks so I think it's better to avoid it from the beginning
    I almost can’t believe I haven’t seen it mentioned here before, but adding Moleculer into your node project (if it’s clustered/k8s’d) will literally solve many single threaded problems, not to mention tons of other scalability issues. https://moleculer.services/. Source: almost 3 years ago
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Adonis JS mentions (79)

  • The One-Person Framework in Practice
    I'm currently building out an app using AdonisJS. Its billed as a Rails like experience but in node. https://adonisjs.com/ I did a comparison between Rails, Adonis and Fiber (a Go "framework") before settling on Adonis (mostly due to node ecosystem and type safety). It's been excellent so far, and the creator has an excellent series of tutorial videos that can get you up to speed quickly... - Source: Hacker News / 30 days ago
  • My Software Development Process
    Database Migration files and Models: For my backend, my go to NodeJs framework is AdonisJS. I love it because it comes with libraries for building production ready applications out of the box such as auth, emails, CORS, migrations, seeders, etc. It also uses Typescript. So, I create a basic AdonisJS app, and using my Database design, I prepare database migration files and models that match, This is easy because... - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Validate your data structures with Vine in your Dart projects
    Vine is a data validation library developed by Harminder Virk for the Adonis framework. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Web apps built with Ruby on Rails
    Have you checked https://adonisjs.com/ ? Seems it follows the Rails / Laravel way of doing things. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • Rails is better low code than low code
    Https://adonisjs.com/ Adonis.js is just that. I have never used it beyond a quick test though so I can't say what it is like in production. - Source: Hacker News / 6 months ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Moleculer and Adonis JS, you can also consider the following products

Nest.js - A progressive Node.js framework for building efficient, reliable and scalable server-side applications.

ExpressJS - Sinatra inspired web development framework for node.js -- insanely fast, flexible, and simple

KintoHub - A modern fullstack app platform

Koa.js - Next generation web framework for node.js

Loopback by RogueAmoeba - Get all the power of a high-end studio mixing board, right inside your Mac!

Laravel - A PHP Framework For Web Artisans