A Realistic Comparison Of Flutter Vs .NET MAUI – 2024

Microsoft’s MAUI and Google’s Flutter are designed to share a common goal of revolutionizing cross-platform app development, yet both frameworks share a fundamental difference between their underlying technologies and ecosystems.

.NET MAUI vs Flutter – Here’s The Difference

We have split the differences into 2 major factors:

1. Business factors

2. Technical factors.

Let’s look at each factor one by one.

A. Business factors:

1. MAUI vs Flutter: Audience

MAUI is ideal for businesses already invested in the Microsoft ecosystem, and well-versed with the C# and XAML programming languages. It also appeals to a broader audience looking to develop cross-platform applications leveraging .NET technologies and infrastructure.

Flutter, on the flip side, caters to a broader audience, including businesses familiar with Dart, and those seeking a flexible solution and a reactive framework to develop cross-platform apps.

2. .NET MAUI vs Flutter: Performance

Top .NET development companies in the USA leverage Microsoft MAUI for its excellent performance.

Since NET MAUI offers platform-specific rendering, .NET developers can achieve a more native user interface for their applications across diverse platforms.

Although .NET MAUI is still under development, it offers direct native control access enabling efficient performance. However, its performance is expected to improve over time.

MAUI users also benefit from the performance advancements introduced in .NET 6.0, such as ahead-of-time (AOT) compilation and enhanced runtime performance.

Flutter engineers, like MAUI developers, enjoy exceptional performance, thanks to its usage of Dart, a compiled language, and the Skia rendering engine.

3. NET MAUI vs Flutter: Learning curve

.NET MAUI uses C#, a language developed by Microsoft, as its primary language. It is a widely used language for developing Windows applications in the enterprise world.

Although it has an intricate syntax than Flutter’s Dart, it’s a mature programming language with excellent support for object-oriented programming, making it an ideal choice for enterprise-scale development projects.

On the other side, Flutter uses Dart which has a relatively moderate learning curve and comes effortless for developers well-versed in JavaScript and Java.

Furthermore, its syntax is clean and easy to read, making it an ideal choice for developing applications that prefer simplicity and maintainability.

Is your business heavily invested in the Microsoft ecosystem?

Are you planning to develop a cross-platform application that is designed for multiple operating systems?

Consider outsourcing your requirements to a reliable .NET development company.

Why?

Because the technology partner takes care of all the hassle from sourcing the pre-vetted .NET developers to maintaining HR compliance while you solely get to pivot your energies on core business objectives and project success.

4. .NET MAUI vs Flutter: Programming Languages

Microsoft MAUI uses C#, one of the most popular languages on the .NET platform. Its programs can run on multiple devices from IoT devices to the cloud and everywhere in between.

Flutter, on the other hand, uses Dart which is known for its performance, productivity, and ease of use.

5. Flutter vs NET MAUI: Development Tools and Ecosystem

Microsoft MAUI comes with robust development tools that include Xamarin.Forms extensive ecosystem, Visual Studio, and Visual Studio Code Support, and access to the NuGet package.

Google Flutter comes with a wide range of packages and plugins, available through the pub.dev package manager. Flutter also integrates with prevalent code editors and IDEs, facilitating a smooth and efficient development experience.

5. .NET MAUI vs Flutter: Community Support and Popularity

Although .NET MAUI is relatively new, it is rapidly gaining popularity within both the developer and business communities.

It’s a growing ecosystem that offers a variety of plugins and resources for support and extension, enabling a robust development experience.

Microsoft further provides ample resources for developers including documentation, tutorials, and events encouraging a supportive learning and collaboration environment.

Flutter, on the other hand, is one of the most popular cross-platform frameworks.

It boasts strong and vibrant community support while Google complements this with excellent documentation and resources enabling a robust development experience.

Furthermore, Flutter is a growing ecosystem of packages and plugins which enhances Flutter’s appeal and versatility for businesses seeking high-performance applications.

Realize that it’s not ideal to make the choice based on market trends because the framework’s popularity may change within weeks or months, depending upon how fast it is evolving.

After discussing the business factors, it’s time to dive deep into the technical factors differentiating NET MAUI vs Flutter.

B. Technical factors:

1. .NET MAUI vs Flutter: Technology Stability

Since .NET MAUI is an upgraded version of Xamarin.Forms, it inherits the legacy of reliability and stability of Xamarin while also incorporating the latest features and upgrades.

This combination promises that businesses benefit from the proven track record of Xamarin.Forms and the feature upgrades introduced in MAUI.

Moreover, Microsoft’s track record of delivering reliable technologies serves as a commitment to the success of .NET MAUI.

Flutter, on the flip side, is backed by Google, promising continuous innovation and technical stability. However, its ecosystem may not be as mature as Microsoft’s .NET which can affect the quality of certain features and resources.

2. .NET MAUI versus Flutter: Development Process

.NET MAUI comes with Live Visual Tree updates and features like hot-reload, making it an ideal platform for speedy and efficient development.

Moreover, the MAUI framework is equipped with a new markup called XAML Hot Reload, which makes it efficient to create user interfaces using a declarative syntax.

This speeds up the development process for the .NET developer who has hands-on experience working with XAML.

Flutter is the talk of the town for its fast development process, thanks to its hot-reload feature. The hot reload feature enables developers to see the results of their code changes without having to restart the app, which in turn boosts productivity and enables rapid application development.

Moreover, Flutter’s library of ready-to-use widgets simplifies the creation of building appealing user interfaces.

3. .NET MAUI vs Flutter: Cross-Platform Capabilities

Both .NET MAUI and Flutter equip robust cross-platform capabilities and empower developers to write code once and deploy it across various platforms through different approaches.

.NET MAUI uses a unified API to develop applications for Windows, Android, macOS, and iOS. However, you can also leverage the native capabilities of each operating system as it boasts a unique implementation for each platform.

This approach ensures flawless functioning across each platform and maintains its native look and feel.

Flutter takes a ‘write once, run anywhere’ approach to cross-platform development where the same codebase can be used for all platforms. This approach facilitates easy maintenance and updates for the application as all changes are reflected across all platforms.

Now that we are through with the differences between NET MAUI vs Flutter, we’re confident that you have found the answers to your question.

Still uncertain about Flutter vs MAUI?

Worry not!

Having discussed how Flutter and MAUI are fundamentally different, keep reading to discover how to find “The One”.