If you’re thinking, “Which mobile stack is worth my next 12 months?” you’re not alone. I rebuilt the Firebase expense tracker. It includes 3 screens, charts, and an offline cache. I also tested it in every major framework that matters today. Below is the real-world, no-fluff debrief — so you can pick the one that fits you, not the hype. Players often search for smooth entry points, like the Azurslot login, as developers compare stacks before choosing a platform.
1. The 2025 Line-up (What’s New)
- Flutter 4.0 — Dart 3.4, Impeller GPU renderer on by default, full Material 3 widgets, AI-assisted DevTools
- React Native 0.80 introduces a new architecture with Fabric and TurboModules. It also features Yoga 3.1, which has some gaps. The RN DevTools have also been revamped.
- Kotlin + Jetpack Compose 1.8: 60% of top Play Store apps now use Compose. This update means less jank and better adaptive layout libraries.
- SwiftUI 6 — Xcode 17, faster live previews, adaptive TabView, sheet-sizing API, mesh gradients
- Compose Multiplatform 1.8.0 (CMP) — Stable on iOS, shared resources API, desktop/web parity
(Versions verified June 2025.)
2. How Each Stack Feels to Build With
Flutter 4
Five-minute install, one CLI = both stores. Hot-reload is instantaneous, and Impeller finally kills the shader warm-up stutter. I created wire charts and dark mode with a single publication add. Memory footprint is a bit larger than native, but startup now rivals it. Flow score 10/10.
React Native 0.80
npx create-expo had me coding in 10 minutes. Fabric makes gestures buttery smooth, yet Metro still hiccupped twice on asset bundling. Adding native maps yanked me into Xcode and CocoaPods. New DevTools are nicer but not yet. Flow 7/10.
Kotlin + Jetpack Compose 1.8
Android Studio Iguana previews rock. Kotlin’s DSL keeps UI terse; Material 3 comes “for free.” Performance jank is gone, and window-size classes made my foldable layout trivial. Still, it’s Android-only unless I add KMP. Flow 8/10 (Android).
SwiftUI 6
Building UI feels like writing Markdown. The new sheet sizing and TabView adapt to iPad/macOS seamlessly. Xcode’s chief complaint: random code-completion freezes when I’m really vibing. Pure iOS polish is unmatched. Flow 8/10 (Apple).
Compose Multiplatform 1.8.0
Wild to see the same Compose code boot on an iPhone. Set up scriptable, but Gradle + Xcode signing is a dance. Good for shared UI prototypes. Performance is decent on an iPhone 13. Yet, I’d like more testing before using it for a Fortune 500 app. Flow 6/10.
3. Performance & Ecosystem Quick-Hits
- Flutter offers:
- AOT Dart for better performance
- Impeller support on iOS and Android
- 120 fps on high-refresh phones
- A large plugin catalog
- WebAssembly target in preview
- React Native uses the Hermes engine to reduce cold-start times. JSI also cuts bridge latency. There are many npm libraries available, but version drift is a real issue.
- Compose lets you use native binaries for native speed. Each release reduces jank (medium.com). It also works well with Android Views and Google libraries.
- SwiftUI — Uses Core Animation directly; iOS 18 List now scrolls 10k rows at 60 fps. Widgets and visionOS demand SwiftUI anyway.
- CMP adds about 9 MB to the SwiftUI binary. It scrolls well, but the ecosystem is still young. JetBrains uses it in a large desktop app.
- 4. Two-Axis Ranking (50% my dev-joy, 50% market demand)
- Flutter 4 — top flow and explosive hiring outside the “FAANG bubble.”
- Kotlin Compose — joyful Android UI; piles of native jobs; drops if you must hit iOS.
- React Native — less joy for me, but still edges out Flutter in legacy enterprise listings.
- SwiftUI — fantastic Apple-only work; global demand is smaller than Android + cross-platform jobs.
- CMP — exciting wild card; few openings today, but early adopters gain résumé glow.
5. Roadmap Snapshots (Next 12 Months)
- Flutter: Impeller on all platforms, full WebAssembly release, AI code-fix commands.
- React Native: “Static Hermes” AOT bytecode, automatic New Arch migration CLI.
- Compose: Desktop windowing and foldable layouts polished, compiler speed-ups.
- SwiftUI: Unified design tokens across iOS/macOS/visionOS; concurrency hooks.
- CMP: K2 Gradle sync, one-click iOS publishing, web alpha hitting beta.
6. Which One Should You Start With?
Closing Thoughts — My Practical Stack Playbook
- Startup MVP or indie side project? → Use Flutter One codebase for Android & iOS, great UI out of the box, and quick to build with. It also supports desktop and web if needed.
- React-heavy team or web background? → Choose React Native: Easy ramp-up with JavaScript/TypeScript. The new architecture makes performance smoother, and Expo simplifies setup.
- Android-first app with high scale/performance needs? → Choose Kotlin with Jetpack Compose for a modern UI. Enjoy native speed and direct support from Google. Best choice if you’re focused on Android excellence.
- iOS-only app or targeting Apple platforms? → Go with SwiftUI: It’s clean, classy, and needed for new Apple features like visionOS and widgets. Great for deep Apple ecosystem apps.
- Want to share Kotlin code across Android, iOS, and Desktop? → Try Compose Multiplatform. It’s still developing, but it’s a strong tool for Kotlin developers. It helps unify UI and logic across different platforms.
No single framework wins in every scenario. Pick the one that keeps you shipping. Tech stacks migrate; wasted motivation doesn’t.
