Java vs NodeJS: Key Comparisons to Consider for App Development in 2022

Java vs NodeJS: Key Comparisons to Consider for App Development in 2022

In this digital age, where we witness new programming languages being introduced daily. Some of these are front-end-specific, while others are back-end-specific. But how to determine which suits your project cost, development cost, and other factors. As we all know, the backend is the application’s instructor. Choosing the correct backend language will thus benefit you. However, the battle between two excellent backend technologies, NodeJS vs. Java, continues. Let’s take a closer look to see who is a clear winner.

By going through this comparison, you can better decide whether you should hire Java developers or NodeJS developers for your app development.

Java vs NodeJS – A Brief Overview

Java

Who doesn’t know Java, the mighty weapon for developers? Java developed back in the 1990s stays in demand even now. Because of its countless qualities like object-oriented, high-level, open-source, robust, secure, and many more. It is used to develop complex applications such as graphical user interfaces, embedded systems, web servers, and much more. Enterprise applications in Java proved to be fruitful for many eCommerce giants.

It is also the most prominent, typified, and object-oriented programming language. It was developed by Sun Microsystems engineers, Patrick Naughton and James Gosling in 1991. During this time, it was known as Oak. Today, it’s the most powerful and popular programming language.

As a leading Java development company, we specialize in building a diverse range of small-scale to large-scale enterprise applications in Java.

Advantages of Java Development

• Java is a high-level programming language and is capable of addressing general problems at any complicated level. Although there are several technologies coming up every now and then, many entrepreneurs prefer developing enterprise applications in Java because of the numerous benefits it offers. They include:
• As Java is an object-oriented programming language, it allows developers to reuse objects in other programs
• Java is a high-level programming language that comes with simple syntax and easy learning curves that make code writing, reading, and maintenance much easier.
• Java also supports numerous libraries, hence this language is supported by many hosting service providers. You can even work with Java from any computer system.
• Java does not come with any pointer and has a Security Manager that enables you to specify access rules.
• You can develop enterprise applications in Java on Windows, compile them into byte code and run them on any other platform that supports a Java Virtual Machine (JVM)
• Java also facilitates Automatic Storage Management through a special mechanism called a garbage collector that identifies and removes objects that are no longer used.
• Java supports multithreading. As threads do not depend on each other, a single thread does not affect the work of other threads.

If you’re looking to build your business application in Java, then you can take advantage of our Java development services at affordable rates.

NodeJS

NodeJS is an open-source, cross-platform, JavaScript code runtime environment that runs on the Chrome V8, a JavaScript engine, and executes JavaScript code outside a web browser. This is the key difference between Java and NodeJS – NodeJS is an execution environment for the JavaScript language.

NodeJS was created by an American developer Ryan Dahl in 2009. While most developers focused on the concept of ‘one thread for each connection, NodeJS developed by Dahl focused on events. The main aim of this new platform was to build a scalable network of servers.

Advantages of NodeJS Development

NodeJS has an individual command-line tool that is capable of developing fast and scalable applications. It gained recognition from developers across the globe due to the following reasons:

• Capability to use the same language on both client and server-side
• Speedy work
• Its lightweight nature helps in creating lightweight applications
• Allows you to use JavaScript syntax
• A Node package manager allows you to install and search for packages
• Continuous technology development, for example, TypeScript is the recent development

Java vs NodeJS – Where Are They Used?

When comparing Java vs NodeJS in terms of their applications, both come with their own unique features that make them capable of building powerful applications.

Java

Here are some of the areas where opting for Java development services is suitable:

• Web applications
• Software tools
• Android applications
• Server applications for financial services
• Big Data applications
• Trading applications
• Scientific applications
• J2ME applications
• Embedded systems
• High-frequency trading spaces
• Enterprise applications

NodeJS

NodeJS has a diverse range of applications. Here are some of the applications of NodeJS:

• Web Applications and SPA Servers
• Servers and APIs for mobile applications
• CMS, content publishing applications
• Collectors and translators
• Industrial automation
• In situations that involve batch processing and deferred processing
• Scripts, CLI (command-line interfaces)
• Document generation delayed report generation
• Message Servers and Event Broadcasting (Chats, Interactive, Games,)
• Patches on already prepared systems, built using other languages
• Window applications (nw.js, Node-WebKit)
• Crawlers, parsers, and data collection
• Microcontroller programming
• Mass eCommerce and trade

Java vs NodeJS – Major Differences to Consider

Though both have influential and unique features, these are some of the crucial factors to undertake in this comparison. To bring light upon potential features both of them offer to their developers.

Performance

One thing that developers always hear about NodeJS is its swiftness. Due to the use of compilers, Java is slower than native languages. Furthermore, its trash collection mechanism essentially necessitates a large amount of memory. In contrast, NodeJS applications never buffer, allowing data to be output in chunks and reducing runtime. Even while Just-In-Time compilers may increase Java’s performance a little, there’s a clear winner in NodeJS vs. Java speed.

Stability 

When it comes to dependability, NodeJS and Java are opposite. NodeJS is there to interact with the APIs. Because APIs change, they frequently cause stability difficulties for programs developed in this context. Because of its strict, time-proven structure, Java is known for having stable interfaces. Enterprise applications in Java provide stability and an excellent user experience.

Documentation

Documentation pages are for learning new languages, examining their present qualities, and looking for advanced solutions. The API reference documentation, ES6 features, and guides on the NodeJS documentation page provide a complete overview of the most often used and specialty capabilities. The documentation for Java also serves as a large storehouse for all language-related knowledge.

Community

Large communities and committed developers generate libraries and customized content for Java and NodeJS. By comparison, the Java developer community is older and believed to be more adaptable as Java’s traits have changed over time. That is not to say that one community is superior to the other based on knowledge. Both novices and specialists find it easy to get assistance in resolving challenges. And this feature is a plus when you hire Java developers for your project.

Qualified developers

NodeJS is the most popular framework among developers. The environment ranks 7th in the most popular frameworks, libraries, and tools by NodeJS developers. It is also the first among the most coveted. Compared to other programming languages used in the business, Java ranks 5th among the most widely used and 10th among the most popular. It’s a bonus point if you hire Java development services for your enterprise applications from us.

Security

NodeJS lacks default error handling, which is viewed as a security flaw. Furthermore, the JavaScript environment is vulnerable to nmp phishing and server DOS attacks. Java, on the other hand, is safe. Its vulnerabilities are caused by integrations rather than the language’s design. Because TypeDcript is a prevalent typed implementation for statically typed languages like Java. It can easily avoid most type-related errors, whereas bytecode verification in Java checks all code before running.

Learning Curve

Because of its simple syntax and interpreted code, the NodeJS environment allows for quick and easy code writing. Overall, it is simple to understand, especially for JavaScript developers. Java, on the other hand, has a slightly steeper learning curve because of its extensive ecosystem. It is difficult, but not impossible, to figure it out.

Code speed

Java and NodeJS have numerous community-developed libraries and reusable components that help developers with the coding procedure. In this comparison, NodeJS has a slight advantage. When all factors have to consider, NodeJS app development takes less time on average. It is to focus that this variation depends on project type, team size, and language proficiency.

Development cost

The cost of hiring Java developers or outsourcing development will vary. Typically, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact cost because project complexity, management, drawbacks, and other factors influence the estimates. Obtaining a quote from a company is an excellent strategy for gathering an exhaustive overview of the potential costs. The development cost of NodeJS vs. Java varies depending on various factors, with no clear winner.

Potential characteristics

In comparison to NodeJS, Java is a statically typed and secure language. Multithreading and platform independence are significant advantages. Multithreading allows multiple processes to run simultaneously and optimizes CPU usage.

Java is compiled in bytecode, which helps portability and platform independence by allowing the code to execute on the operating system without changing the syntax. Java’s other notable features include its robust memory management and concurrent accumulators.

Both Java and NodeJS support a range of libraries that significantly simplify a developer’s life.

Key Comparison Parameters	Java	NodeJS
What it is?	A programming language as well as a platform	A severe platform for working with JavaScript
Creation	Class-based, Object-oriented programming languages derived C++	Development framework written in C, C++, and JavasScript
Performance and resource consumption	Java has high performance but consumes a lot of resources	NodeJS performance is lower. However, it is lightweight and can be used to manage lightweight tasks.
Frameworks	Spring, JSF, Tapestry, Struts, Hibernate, etc.	Express.js, Sails.js, Socket.io, Partial.js, etc.
Installation	Need JDK (Java Development Kit) to run Java	Require installation of archive file on the system
Flow control	You can develop an application and run multiple threads during the distribution of the load.	Two types of threads are used: the main thread is run by the event loop and other additional threads.
Runtime environment	Java Virtual Machine	Google Chrome V8 engine
Ideal for	Complex enterprise applications	Web applications, cross-platform applications
Scope	Dominate server-side interaction	Can be used both n client and server-side

Final Note

Considering the comparison of Java vs NodeJS, we can note that each language comes with its own advantages and disadvantages. While Java is an older, mature, and universal programing language, it is more complicated than NodeJS. NodeJS has fast speed and is lightweight in nature.

If you are looking to build enterprise applications in Java, then you may contact us for our end-to-end Java development services and solutions.

We offer flexible engagement models to help you hire Java developers as per your requirements and budget.

FAQs

Q.1. Is Java good for Artificial Intelligence projects?

Ans. Java can be considered as one of the perfect programming languages for developing AI-based projects. Java for AI programming is mostly used to develop machine learning solutions, search algorithms, genetic programming, neural networks, and multi-robot systems.

Q.2. Why should I build enterprise applications in Java?

Ans. Java can run on any modern hardware and significantly reduces the technicality dependency to almost null. This makes Java development services less expensive for enterprises as it is easy to set up and maintain Java enterprise software and connect all the devices as well as operating systems that may use within the enterprise, whether Windows, Mac, mobile devices, and other platforms. You can hire Java developers to build future-proof enterprise applications in Java.

Q.3. Do you provide post-development support?

Ans. Yes. When you hire Java developers from us, you are assured of dedicated support and maintenance support services for the Java applications we have developed for your business.

Have More Questions? Please Feel Free to Ask Our Java Specialists.

Q4. What does Java specialize in?

Because Java’s frontend capabilities are limited and require additional frameworks to look more modern, it is best suited for backend development.

Q5. Is Java superior to NodeJS?

Java is highly recommended for large-scale projects involving concurrency, whereas Node JS does not handle threads.

Q6. Is NodeJS easier to learn than Java?

It’s less complicated than Java. It has a node package manager that allows you to store multiple libraries in a single line.

Q7. What distinguishes NodeJS from Java?

Java is a complex, web-based, highly concurrent language, whereas NodeJS is a fast and scalable server-side runtime environment.

Q8. Is NodeJS a replacement for Java?

Yes, Node.js can run server-side and serve content through endpoints.