In recent years, cross-platform mobile development has gained immense popularity as businesses aim to build apps for both Android and iOS platforms simultaneously. The two dominant frameworks in this space are Flutter and Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP). The “Flutter vs. KMP” debate has sparked discussions among developers, with many wondering whether Flutter is losing its appeal in light of KMP’s rising popularity. In this blog post, we’ll dive deep into both frameworks, compare their strengths and weaknesses, and address the big question: Is Flutter really dying?
Flutter vs. KMP: Understanding Flutter
Flutter, created by Google, is an open-source UI software development kit (SDK) launched in 2017. Its main attraction lies in its ability to develop natively compiled applications for mobile (iOS and Android), web, desktop, and embedded systems from a single codebase. With Dart as its programming language, Flutter has rapidly gained traction due to its powerful UI toolkit, which enables developers to create visually attractive and highly customizable apps.
Key Features of Flutter:
- Hot Reload: Instantly reflect changes without restarting the app.
- Single Codebase: Write code once, deploy on multiple platforms.
- Rich Widgets: Extensive library of pre-built widgets for customized UIs.
- Native Performance: Direct compilation to native ARM code, leading to fast performance.
- Wide Adoption: Backed by Google, with a large developer community and widespread usage.
Flutter has been praised for its ability to build apps with seamless animations, custom designs, and high performance. However, concerns have emerged around whether Flutter’s momentum is slowing down.
Flutter vs. KMP: Understanding Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP)
Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) is a framework that allows developers to share code between platforms (iOS, Android, web, and beyond) while using Kotlin as the programming language. Kotlin, developed by JetBrains and adopted by Google as the official Android development language, has gained widespread popularity for its concise syntax, modern features, and interoperability with Java.
Key Features of KMP:
- Shared Logic: Write business logic and shared code once for multiple platforms.
- Native UIs: KMP enables the use of native components for each platform’s UI.
- Flexibility: You can choose which parts of your codebase to share between platforms.
- Gradual Adoption: No need to migrate an entire app at once—KMP allows for incremental adoption.
- Seamless Integration with Android: As Kotlin is the native language for Android, integrating KMP into Android apps is a natural process.
KMP is particularly attractive for developers who want to maintain full control over the native UI experience while sharing business logic and core functionalities across platforms.
Flutter vs. KMP: A Head-to-Head Comparison
1. Programming Language
- Flutter: Uses Dart, a language created by Google. While Dart is gaining popularity, it is still niche compared to more widely used languages.
- KMP: Uses Kotlin, which has seen massive adoption, especially for Android development. Kotlin’s Java interoperability and concise syntax make it a favorite among developers.
Winner: KMP, due to Kotlin’s familiarity and growing popularity among developers.
2. Code Sharing
- Flutter: Offers a single codebase for all platforms, including mobile, web, and desktop, which can be a massive time-saver in cross-platform development.
- KMP: Provides a more selective approach. While business logic can be shared, the UI for each platform remains native, offering a mix of shared and platform-specific code.
Winner: Flutter, for offering true cross-platform support with a single codebase.
3. UI Development
- Flutter: Flutter shines with its extensive library of customizable widgets. Developers can craft unique and engaging UIs without compromising performance. The only downside is that Flutter does not use native UI components, which means it may look slightly different from standard platform designs.
- KMP: One of KMP’s strengths is that it allows developers to use native UI components for each platform, ensuring that the app feels at home on both Android and iOS. This results in a more consistent experience for users of each platform.
Winner: KMP, for native UI development and a consistent platform experience.
4. Performance
- Flutter: Compiles to native ARM code, which results in near-native performance. However, since it uses a custom rendering engine, it may not match the absolute performance of fully native apps, especially in extremely resource-heavy applications.
- KMP: Since KMP allows developers to write platform-specific code for performance-sensitive parts of the app, it can achieve true native performance. This can be especially useful for apps that require high computational power.
Winner: KMP, due to its flexibility in achieving native performance where needed.
5. Learning Curve
- Flutter: Dart, though easy to learn, is still new for many developers. While Flutter’s widget-based architecture is simple, the framework’s learning curve can be steep for developers who are new to it.
- KMP: Since Kotlin is already widely used for Android development, developers familiar with Kotlin can easily adapt to KMP. The fact that UI development remains native also simplifies the learning curve for developers with native iOS or Android experience.
Winner: KMP, for its familiarity with Kotlin developers and easier integration with existing native projects.
6. Community Support
- Flutter: Being backed by Google, Flutter has a vast and active community. There are numerous tutorials, packages, and plugins available to extend its functionality. The frequent updates and robust ecosystem make it a solid choice for developers.
- KMP: Though Kotlin is popular, KMP is still in its experimental phase. While JetBrains is actively working on KMP, its community is smaller compared to Flutter’s. However, Kotlin’s growing popularity means KMP is steadily gaining traction.
Winner: Flutter, for its larger community and ecosystem.
7. Tooling
- Flutter: Offers excellent tooling with support from IDEs like Visual Studio Code and Android Studio. The hot reload feature significantly speeds up the development process.
- KMP: Since Kotlin is natively supported in Android Studio, tooling is excellent for Android development. However, KMP’s tooling for iOS and other platforms is still evolving.
Winner: Flutter, for its comprehensive tooling across all platforms.
Flutter vs. KMP: Is Flutter Really Dying?
The question of whether Flutter is “dying” often arises due to the buzz surrounding new frameworks like KMP and React Native. However, there is little evidence to suggest that Flutter is on the decline. In fact, Flutter continues to grow in adoption, especially for mobile, web, and desktop applications. Major companies, including Alibaba, Google Ads, eBay, and BMW, rely on Flutter for their apps.
Here are a few reasons why Flutter is still very much alive:
- Active Development: Google regularly releases updates and new features for Flutter, ensuring it stays up-to-date with modern development needs.
- Expanding Ecosystem: With support for mobile, web, and desktop applications, Flutter is branching out beyond just mobile development.
- Developer Community: The Flutter community is one of the most active in the cross-platform space, continuously contributing to packages, plugins, and educational content.
While KMP offers native performance and a familiar language, it is still in its experimental phase, whereas Flutter has already proven its capabilities on multiple platforms.
Future of Flutter and KMP
Both Flutter and KMP have bright futures, but their paths may diverge. Flutter will likely remain the go-to choice for developers who prioritize fast development and a single codebase across multiple platforms. KMP, on the other hand, will appeal to teams that prefer native UI with shared business logic, especially in Android-centric projects.
As KMP matures, it could challenge Flutter in more scenarios. However, Flutter’s versatility, active community, and growing ecosystem ensure that it remains a strong contender in the cross-platform development space for years to come.
Conclusion
The Flutter vs. KMP battle comes down to the project’s needs. For rapid cross-platform development with a single codebase, Flutter is the clear winner. For projects that demand native UI components and performance, KMP has the edge. Ultimately, neither framework is “dying.” Both Flutter and KMP are thriving, with unique strengths and features.
The decision boils down to your project’s goals: Flutter for fast, flexible cross-platform apps and KMP for a more native, platform-specific approach.