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Abubaker Siddique
Abubaker Siddique

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2025's Tech Stack for Front End

This article explains the collection of tools and languages used in front-end development. It covers core languages, libraries, build systems, testing tools, optimization techniques, state management, and deployment. The content presents specific details and numbers where available.

1. Base Languages and Standards

Front-end work starts with three base languages: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. HTML is used for structure, CSS for styling, and JavaScript for behavior. Most projects today use HTML5 and CSS3 standards. HTML5 defines a set of elements and attributes that are processed by browsers, and CSS3 provides new layout options such as flexbox and grid. JavaScript is implemented in the ECMAScript 6 (ES6) standard and later versions, and these standards add support for classes, arrow functions, promises, and modules. Many large websites use HTML files that are around 50–150 kilobytes in size once they are fully processed by the browser.

2. Core Frameworks and Libraries

Modern front-end development makes use of frameworks and libraries. The following are examples with specific details:

React:

React version 18.2.0 is common in many projects. The minified and gzipped core library is roughly 35 kilobytes. React uses a component-based structure that breaks the user interface into parts that can be individually updated. Its virtual DOM diffing algorithm processes changes in about 1–3 milliseconds for moderately sized components. In real-world applications, state updates in React may run in under 20 milliseconds per operation in most cases.

Angular:

Angular, with version 14.x in use in some projects, compiles TypeScript into JavaScript and produces bundles that can be around 200 kilobytes after tree shaking and compression. Its change detection process may inspect hundreds of elements per cycle and typically completes a cycle in 16 milliseconds in small to medium applications. Angular also enforces strict typing and module boundaries, leading to code bases that can range from 50,000 to over 500,000 lines of code in enterprise systems.

Vue:

Vue 3.x is built using a virtual DOM approach similar to React. Its core library is near 25 kilobytes after minification and compression. Vue allows single file components where template, script, and style can be defined together. The reactivity system in Vue operates with updates processed within 5–10 milliseconds per change when a component is updated.

Other libraries and micro-frameworks are in use on projects where minimal overhead is desired. Some projects use Svelte, which compiles components to plain JavaScript. Svelte-generated code might be 20–30 kilobytes for basic functionality and avoids the runtime overhead typical in other frameworks.

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3. Build Tools and Bundlers

Modern front-end projects rely on build tools that process code and assets. The following are some commonly used tools:

Webpack:

Webpack is configured to bundle multiple JavaScript files and dependencies. Large code bases may result in bundle sizes of 200–500 kilobytes uncompressed. When tree shaking and compression are applied, the final bundle might be in the range of 50–150 kilobytes. Build times with Webpack can vary: a mid-sized project may require 30–60 seconds on a machine with a quad-core CPU and 16 GB of memory.

Vite:

Vite is used as an alternative with faster startup times. In many cases, Vite completes module processing and hot module replacement (HMR) in 1–3 seconds on development servers for medium-sized applications. The final bundle sizes remain similar to those produced by Webpack after production build steps.

Parcel:

Parcel automatically detects dependencies and performs parallel processing. It is used on projects where configuration overhead is minimized. Build times with Parcel for a project with 100+ modules typically fall in the range of 20–40 seconds.

These tools perform code transpilation, asset compression, and module concatenation. They use plugins such as Babel to convert modern JavaScript syntax into a form that is compatible with older browsers. Babel often runs in under 100 milliseconds per file on a modern processor when processing code with around 1,000 lines.

4. CSS Processors and Preprocessors

Styling can be managed with plain CSS or with preprocessors that offer additional features:

Sass (SCSS):

Sass files with .scss extension are compiled into CSS. In small projects, a single .scss file of about 2,000 lines may compile in less than 500 milliseconds. Larger projects, with up to 50,000 lines spread over multiple files, might take 2–3 seconds to compile.

Less:

Less compiles similarly to Sass and is used in many legacy systems. Its compilation times are comparable to Sass.

PostCSS:

PostCSS is used to process CSS for autoprefixing and other transformations. On average, processing a file of 100 kilobytes takes less than 200 milliseconds on a typical development machine.

5. Testing and Debugging Tools

Quality assurance in front-end development requires tools for unit testing, integration testing, and end-to-end testing:

Jest:

Jest is commonly used for unit testing JavaScript. On a machine with 8 cores, running a test suite with 500 test cases can complete in 10–20 seconds. Coverage reports generated by Jest often aim for a threshold of 80–90% line coverage.

Cypress:

Cypress is employed for end-to-end testing of user interfaces. A typical test run of 50 tests might take 30–60 seconds, depending on the number of interactions simulated.

ESLint and Prettier:

These tools check code quality and format style. ESLint can process files with around 1,000 lines in less than 50 milliseconds per file. Prettier formats files in about 20–30 milliseconds per file on average.

6. State Management and Data Handling

In front-end applications, data handling often requires state management libraries:

Redux:

Redux manages state using a single store that can be as small as 10 kilobytes in memory or grow to 100 kilobytes in larger applications. Middleware in Redux can add 5–10% overhead to processing time per action, and state updates typically complete in less than 5 milliseconds.

MobX:

MobX uses observable data and reaction-based updates. In a project with 1,000 observable properties, updates may be processed in 3–6 milliseconds per change event.

Other Tools:

Some projects use tools like Zustand, which offer a simpler state management system with a footprint of 5–8 kilobytes in minified code.

7. Code Optimization and Performance

Developers use techniques to reduce bundle sizes and improve runtime performance:

Tree Shaking:

Tree shaking removes unused code. For example, a library that starts at 150 kilobytes may reduce to 40 kilobytes if only 25–30% of its functionality is used.

Lazy Loading and Code Splitting:

Breaking an application into smaller parts that load on demand can reduce initial load times. An application that initially loads 200 kilobytes might delay loading additional modules until user interaction, keeping initial load times under 1 second on a broadband connection.

Compression:

Gzip or Brotli compression reduces bundle sizes by a factor of 3–4. A file that is 120 kilobytes uncompressed might be 30–40 kilobytes when served with Brotli.

Caching:

Static assets are often cached on the client side. Using service workers, files with sizes in the range of 50–150 kilobytes are cached locally to reduce repeated downloads. Cache expiry values of 7–30 days are common in many systems.

8. Developer Tools and Local Development

Development environments use a range of tools to improve coding efficiency and debugging:

Browser Developer Tools:

Tools built into Chrome, Firefox, or Edge allow inspection of network requests, JavaScript performance, and CSS layout details. In some cases, developers observe JavaScript execution times of under 2 milliseconds per function call using these tools.

Source Maps:

Source maps allow the browser to map minified code back to original source files. A project with 100 source files may produce a source map file of 1–2 megabytes in total size, which is usually served only in development mode.

Hot Module Replacement (HMR):

HMR systems refresh only changed modules. In a project with 200 modules, an update may take 100–300 milliseconds to compile and apply, keeping the workflow efficient.

9. Continuous Integration and Deployment

Automation in testing and deployment forms part of the tech stack:

CI Tools:

Tools such as Jenkins, Travis CI, or GitHub Actions run tests and builds on code commits. A build pipeline for a mid-sized project might run in 3–5 minutes and produce detailed reports on test coverage, bundling sizes, and error rates. Pipelines often run 50–100 tests in a single job.

Deployment Platforms:

Deployment services like Netlify, Vercel, or AWS Amplify can push updates in 30–60 seconds after a build completes. These systems support rollbacks and can handle traffic peaks with backend scaling. A typical deployment might serve files with sizes between 10 kilobytes and 2 megabytes depending on the module.

10. Package Management and Version Control

Managing dependencies and source code is essential:

Package Managers:

npm and Yarn are used to install and update libraries. In a project with 200–400 dependencies, the installation process can take 30–90 seconds on a standard broadband connection. The lock file generated (package-lock.json or yarn.lock) may be 100–500 kilobytes in size, ensuring reproducible builds.

Version Control:

Git is the tool of choice. A repository for a large front-end project might consist of 20,000+ commits, 10–50 branches, and a total size of 100–500 megabytes. Code reviews and merge requests are standard parts of the workflow.

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11. Performance Metrics and Measurements

Developers measure performance using precise numeric values and benchmarks:

Bundle Sizes:

React bundles typically have a gzipped size of around 35 kilobytes, Angular bundles are closer to 200 kilobytes, and Vue bundles are about 25 kilobytes in similar conditions. These values change with the addition of custom components and libraries.

Build Times:

A project built with Vite may complete in 3–5 seconds for incremental changes, whereas Webpack might require 30–60 seconds for a full rebuild in large applications. Developers record these times to monitor improvements.

Runtime Performance:

Front-end performance is measured using metrics such as Time to First Byte (TTFB), First Contentful Paint (FCP), and Largest Contentful Paint (LCP). Optimized pages can record FCP values as low as 500 milliseconds and LCP under 1.5 seconds on broadband connections. Interactions in well-tuned applications often process in 2–5 milliseconds per update.

Memory Usage:

During development, browsers typically allocate 100–300 megabytes for complex applications, while production builds run in environments with 150–400 megabytes of memory usage in the worst-case scenarios.

12. Practical Examples and Data

Projects often use detailed numeric tracking for each element of the tech stack. For instance, a project using React might log:

  • 35 KB for the React core library (minified and compressed)
  • 120 KB for additional libraries (such as Redux, React Router)
  • 150 KB for combined CSS assets after processing
  • A build pipeline that takes 45 seconds for a complete production build A project using Angular might record:
  • 200 KB for the main bundle after AOT (Ahead-of-Time) compilation
  • 50 ms for each change detection cycle on average
  • 60 seconds build times on a typical CI pipeline These measurements are used to benchmark progress and detect regressions. Developers use browser performance APIs and network monitors to collect data at runtime, with thresholds set for each metric. Tools that measure memory consumption and CPU usage are integrated into development dashboards, and alerts are set if any measured value exceeds the predetermined limit (for example, a bundle size increase of more than 10% from the previous build).

Here are tools to measure and optimize these aspects:

13. Summary

This article has covered the front-end tech stack in detail. The discussion begins with core languages (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) and standards (HTML5, CSS3, ES6), moves through specific frameworks like React, Angular, and Vue, and then explains the role of build tools such as Webpack, Vite, and Parcel. Testing tools (Jest, Cypress, ESLint) are described along with state management libraries (Redux, MobX) and performance optimizations (tree shaking, lazy loading, compression). Each component includes concrete numeric details: file sizes measured in kilobytes, build times in seconds, and processing times in milliseconds. Package management with npm/Yarn and version control with Git are explained with specific repository sizes and installation times. The article ends with performance metrics that developers track to maintain efficient code. This detailed overview is intended to provide a practical view of the front-end tech stack with data and examples that can be applied in real projects.


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Top comments (5)

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lexlohr profile image
Alex Lohr

This list is missing solid.js and vitest.

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hosseinyazdi profile image
Hossein Yazdi

Nice guide and suggestions. I'd like to also suggest Creatie and Webcrumbs as well, they're insane dev tools.

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thatdevguy profile image
ThatDevGuy Hansen

It's all fine and dandy if you need something done quickly. But if maintainability is key, I avoid tools that I don't absolutely need. I prefer "Vanilla JS" (With TS support) and whatever bundler I fancy, such as SWC or ESBuild.
For serverside, I use Go.

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andolloodanga profile image
#ABoyHasNoName

A well laid out list.

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bandito profile image
Maxi Bandito

Why Playwright is missing from testing tools?