What would you use for building an Android app today?

Given that we have multiple tech to create an Android app today, what would you prefer using and why?

• Native with Kotlin/Java
• Flutter
• React Native

Comments

[Sinuhe Jaime Valencia]

"Use the right tool for the right job"

I do Kotlin and Java with love for living but I agree that sometimes the code can be too much for a simple UI.

So the answer is a consequence of another question: how important is the product/app and how long you want it to last?

Depending on the seriousness and expected longevity of the app you can take a decision for the tool to use.

Not saying tools like flutter or react native wont last, but they are not the main/official tools and will give you more or less problems depending on the case.

[Rahul Chowdhury 🕶]

Yes, I suppose RN/Flutter works great for MVPs or prototypes because they can be cooked up rapidly for both platforms.

For anything of scale, native seems like the best choice in the long run.

[Glenn Carremans]

We (our company) does everything native.
Android -> Kotlin/Java
iOS -> Swift

We believe that only then we can provide the best possible apps to clients that closely interact with the system and follow the UI/UX guidelines for each platform. Android and iOS might have different behaviour for certain things (for example navigating back).

[Marius Gheorghe]

Right? Why use React Native or Futter if the main programing languages for iOS/Android are Swift/Kotlin or Java?

It’s like wanting to drive a Porsche, but going for a Ford, because why not? It’s still a car.

[Rahul Chowdhury 🕶]

Absolutely correct. I seen React Native code littered with platform-specific if-else.

[fobidlim]

I prefer Kotlin than others if someone is planning to learn to create Android application.
In my opinion, Corss-Platform like Flutter/React Native is not easy to some people, who don't know about mobile development environment, that needs "steep learning curve".
Flutter/React Native are good for MVPs if you know how to handle it.

[Alex Luong]

I'd use React Native since I'm most proficient in the React/JS ecosystem. Also since I'm not likely to build a game or something that needs to be optimized for performance, RN should be enough.

Also, don't forget to add NativeScript and Ionic since they are options too.

[Rahul Chowdhury 🕶]

Fair point, Alex. For simple apps with not much system interaction, React Native seems like a good candidate.

[Pabi Forbes]

Native with Kotlin, I am still fairly new to the Android world and only started learning koltin last year, so I still need to solidify my skill set.