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NativeScript VS Kotlin

Compare NativeScript VS Kotlin and see what are their differences

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NativeScript logo NativeScript

Build truly native apps with JavaScript

Kotlin logo Kotlin

Statically typed Programming Language targeting JVM and JavaScript
  • NativeScript Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-21
  • Kotlin Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-09

We recommend LibHunt Kotlin for discovery and comparisons of trending Kotlin projects.

NativeScript features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Development
    NativeScript allows developers to write code once and deploy it across multiple platforms, including iOS and Android, which saves time and resources.
  • Native Performance
    Since NativeScript directly uses native components, it delivers high performance comparable to native applications, unlike some other cross-platform solutions.
  • Rich Ecosystem
    NativeScript offers a rich ecosystem of plugins and modules, making it easy to extend functionalities and integrate with various services.
  • Single Codebase
    Maintaining a single codebase for both iOS and Android reduces development and debugging efforts.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, NativeScript has strong community support and continuous improvements driven by developers around the world.
  • Access to Native APIs
    NativeScript allows direct access to native APIs, giving developers more flexibility and control over platform-specific features.

Possible disadvantages of NativeScript

  • Steep Learning Curve
    The framework requires an understanding of native development concepts, which can be complex for new developers or those not familiar with mobile development.
  • Lack of Third-Party Components
    Compared to more mature frameworks, NativeScript has a limited number of third-party libraries and UI components available.
  • Performance Overhead
    Despite high performance, there is still some overhead compared to fully native applications due to the abstraction layer.
  • Limited Community Support
    Although the community is growing, it is still smaller compared to mainstream frameworks like React Native or Flutter, which might result in slower issue resolution and fewer resources.
  • Maintenance and Updates
    Keeping the framework and its plugins up to date with the latest iOS and Android releases can be challenging and resource-intensive.

Kotlin features and specs

  • Interoperability
    Kotlin is fully interoperable with Java, which means developers can use both languages within the same project and have seamless communications between them.
  • Conciseness
    Kotlin reduces boilerplate code, making the codebase easier to read and maintain. It offers concise syntax and reduces the amount of code.
  • Null Safety
    Kotlin's type system is designed to eliminate null pointer exceptions by making all types non-nullable by default, thus enhancing reliability and reducing runtime crashes.
  • Coroutines
    Kotlin provides built-in support for coroutines, which makes writing asynchronous code more straightforward and readable compared to traditional approaches.
  • Modern Language Features
    Kotlin includes advanced features such as lambda expressions, extension functions, higher-order functions, and more, improving productivity and providing more expressive code constructs.
  • Full Tooling Support
    Kotlin is supported by major IDEs like IntelliJ IDEA, Android Studio, Eclipse, and others, with full tooling support including debugging, refactoring, and linting.
  • Community and Ecosystem
    Kotlin has a growing and vibrant community with extensive resources, libraries, and frameworks that support a wide range of programming needs.

Possible disadvantages of Kotlin

  • Learning Curve
    Despite its modern features, Kotlin has a learning curve, especially for developers who are more familiar with Java or other programming languages.
  • Compilation Speed
    Kotlin's compilation speed is often slower compared to Java, which can impact the development workflow, especially in larger projects.
  • Runtime Performance
    While Kotlin performs comparably to Java in many cases, there can be minor performance hits in certain scenarios due to additional language features.
  • Fewer Resources Compared to Java
    Although growing, Kotlin's ecosystem of libraries and frameworks is still smaller compared to Java's well-established and extensive ecosystem.
  • Tooling Maturity
    While support in major IDEs is robust, some third-party tools and plugins may not fully support Kotlin, leading to potential integration issues.
  • Android Specific Challenges
    In the context of Android development, some legacy libraries and tools might not be fully compatible with Kotlin, necessitating additional workarounds.
  • Job Market
    While demand for Kotlin developers is growing, Java still dominates the job market, which may limit opportunities for Kotlin-focused roles in certain regions.

NativeScript videos

+ Add

NativeScript VS React Native 2019 | performance | community | plugins

More videos:

  • Review - Which one is best for you? Flutter, React Native, Ionic or NativeScript?
  • Review - 7 Things to Know When Learning NativeScript

Kotlin videos

+ Add

10 reasons to try Kotlin for Android development

More videos:

  • Review - What can Kotlin do for me? (GDD Europe '17)
  • Review - Java or Kotlin for Android Development – Which One Is Better?

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to NativeScript and Kotlin)

NativeScript

Kotlin

Development Tools
81 81%
Development Tools
19% 19
Programming Language
0 0%
Programming Language
100% 100
JavaScript Framework
100 100%
JavaScript Framework
0% 0
OOP
0 0%
OOP
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

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

NativeScript Reviews

Top 10 Flutter Alternatives for Cross-Platform App Development
With the framework, developers get the option to craft a completely native experience even without interfering with the user interface. Those who are familiar with JavaScript can leverage NativeScript to its fullest.
Source: www.moontechnolabs.com
Top 5 Flutter Alternatives for Cross-Platform Development
NativeScript is a powerful framework that empowers developers to build Web, iOS, Android, and Vision Pro apps on a single codebase. If you’re comfortable with web development, especially Angular or VueJS, you’ll find NativeScript accessible.
Source: www.miquido.com
10 Best Open Source Firebase Alternatives
The native apps you develop use the richness of the mobile platform and offer the performance you need for mobile devices. NativeScript uses native APIs and controls to render, allowing you to create more sophisticated apps compared to using a hybrid approach.
Source: rigorousthemes.com
10 Best Tools to Develop Cross-Platform Desktop Apps 
NativeScript doesn’t require Angular or Vue.js but works better when used together for cross-platform app development. This runtime framework implements JavaScript, its superset TypeScript and Angular Native, and can render a variety of apps, be they gaming, streaming, geolocation, or chat apps. The user interface is in XML and CSS. A single, reusable codebase can be applied...
Source: www.westagilelabs.com
Top JavaScript Frameworks For Mobile App Development
NativeScript is an open-source, cross-platform, free mobile framework that assists in the creation of a truly native Android and iOS mobile apps. These apps can be built with JavaScript, Angular, Vue.js or TypeScript. Programming using NativeScript reduces the development time and lines of code, to a large extent. Many organizations globally have been implementing it because...
Source: medium.com

Kotlin Reviews

Explore 9 Top Eclipse Alternatives for 2024
Cross-platform development with variants targeting JVM (Kotlin/JVM), JavaScript (Kotlin/JS), and native code (Kotlin/Native).
Source: aircada.com
Top 10 Rust Alternatives
The last computer programming language to stand out as an exceptional alternative to Rust is named Kotlin. It is typed statically and was manufactured for Java machines.
Source: blog.back4app.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Kotlin should be more popular than NativeScript. It has been mentiond 81 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.

NativeScript mentions (20)

  • What are JavaScript Engines?
    NativeScript is a good example of a runtime built specifically for cross-platform native mobile application development built using JavaScript. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • Gio UI – Cross-Platform GUI for Go
    A long time ago, nativescript[1] seemed to be a strong alternative to reactnative. Is that still the case? [1] https://nativescript.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 12 months ago
  • Ask HN: Flutter or React Native?
    I'm curious about this topic as well. I would also add NativeScript[1] in the comparison. [1] https://nativescript.org/. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Svelte Native: The Svelte Mobile Development Experience
    This is not so much the Svelte equivalent of React Native as it is just NativeScript (https://nativescript.org). - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Mobile App Development for both iOS and Andriod
    There is also https://nativescript.org/ which would allow you to use Vue (or several other frameworks) to build a mobile app. Used it myself a while back for an iPad app using Vue 2 and it was pretty straightforward. It seems like there have been quite a few improvements since then so might be worth a look. Source: about 2 years ago
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Kotlin mentions (81)

  • Doodle Weather Clone
    Doodle helps you create beautiful, modern apps entirely in Kotlin. Its render model is intuitive yet powerful, making it easy to achieve complex UIs with pixel level precision and layouts. This simplicity and power applies to everything from user input to drag and drop. Doodle lets you build and animate anything. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • Kotlin vs. Java: A Grand Finale and Farewell (But Not Goodbye!)
    Kotlin Official Website: Your one-stop shop for all things Kotlin, with comprehensive documentation, tutorials, and resources: https://kotlinlang.org/. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Day 0 of #100daysofMiva || Setting up for success
    Next, I selected the technologies and frameworks I want to focus on during this challenge. For frontend development, I'll be exploring Reactjs, Vue.js, Bootstrap, Next.js, and MUI. For backend development, I'll be diving into Express, Django, Node.js, PHP, and Firebase. Additionally, I'll be learning Kotlin, React Native, and Flutter for mobile development, and APIs, PostgreSQL, Cloud, and MongoDB for full stack... - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • Better Animations... in Latest Doodle
    Doodle helps you create beautiful, modern apps entirely in Kotlin. Its render model is intuitive yet powerful, making it easy to achieve complex UIs with pixel level precision and layouts. This simplicity and power applies to everything from user input to drag and drop. Doodle lets you build and animate anything. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • The Top Programming Languages to Learn in 2024
    Kotlin, fully interoperable with Java, is increasingly used for Android app development. It offers a more concise syntax and improved safety features compared to Java, making it a modern language for mobile development. Discover more about Kotlin here. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing NativeScript and Kotlin, you can also consider the following products

React Native - A framework for building native apps with React

JavaScript - Lightweight, interpreted, object-oriented language with first-class functions

Apache Cordova - Platform for building native mobile applications using HTML, CSS and JavaScript

Python - Python is a clear and powerful object-oriented programming language, comparable to Perl, Ruby, Scheme, or Java.

Ionic - Ionic is a cross-platform mobile development stack for building performant apps on all platforms with open web technologies.

Dart - A new web programming language with libraries, a virtual machine, and tools

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