Go Vs Node.js – What is Best for Web App Development?

Are you into a business where you need to develop a high-end web application that supports back-end- or server-side applications? You are in a dilemma and want to get out of this tricky situation by selecting the best possible programming language for your business. Go and Node.js are the two best technologies which any business can go for.Go is a compiled programming language and Node.js is a Java runtime environment, you might have wondered which to select.

In 2009, the world of computer science inherited Go and Node.js. Both Go and Node.js, enables the development of server-side and networking applications.

Go and Node.js are rising in popularity among developers for various reasons. To get a clear understanding about Go and Node.js, let’s start in, which technology is best for your web app development project.

What is Go and What is Go Used for?

Go, also known as Golang, is an open-source, compiled programming language by Google. It’s designed to be simple, fast, readable, and efficient.

Tip: One of Golang’s most significant benefits is that it delivers the clarity and ease of use that other languages do not have.

Go is Commonly Used for:

• Go is widely used for cloud-based or server-side applications.
• Utilities and Stand-Alone Tools.
• Allocated network services.

Go programming language promises code efficiency, which translates to faster business apps and software. Companies that know the need of writing efficient code have chosen Golang as their preferred programming language. A few famous companies that have started using Golang are Google, Uber, Dropbox, Twitch, and more.

What is Node.js?

Node.js is an open-source JavaScript tool built on Google Chrome’s JavaScript Engine (V8 Engine). In the year 2009, Ryan Dahl invented Node.js.  Node.js is a Javascript application environment that facilitates server-side Javascript code execution. Thanks to its unique event-driven I/O strategy, it benefits from constructing scalable, real-time network applications. It simplifies JavaScript code using Google’s V8 JavaScript engine.

Is Node.js Good for Backend Development?

1. Node.js is asynchronous, unlike PHP and other backend languages. When PHP interacts with a user, all other user requests are blocked. However, because Node.js handles numerous requests at once, it is non-blocking.
2. Node.js is essentially Javascript with several useful APIs. As a result, frontend developers can develop the backend on their own.

Node.js popularity is rapidly increasing. Hire Node.js developers now for your web application development.  Well-known companies such as Netflix, Walmart, eBay, and many more are using Node.js. According to StackOverflow, in comparison to other programming languages, Javascript professional developers rank best with 68.62 %

Understand the Pros and Cons of using Go or Golang

Understand the Pros and Cons of Using Node.js

Node.js Vs Golang: Specification-based comparison

1. 1. Performance

   Performance significantly has an impact on the app’s load & responsive times. As a result, it has a direct impact on customer satisfaction with your app.

   Performance of Go: Most developers say that Go performs similarly to C and C++, which is excellent. Because Go lacks a virtual machine and adheres to machine code, applications can be performed quickly and without a warm-up period.

   Because of the small memory footprint and rapid speed of Go apps, as well as the convenience of statically linked binaries, Go is an excellent choice for building microservices.

   Performance of Node.js: Node.js is regarded as one of the top backend solutions for many reasons:

   • Node.js contributed to its asynchronous and non-blocking nature from JavaScript. This means your live application is not affected by minor changes done in the backend.
   • Node.js uses a V8 engine which is considered the fastest javascript engine to date.
   • The code written in Node.js can be reused. This is essential for real-time event-based applications like instant messaging, video chats, and online gaming.

   So, in terms of performance, Go is unquestionably the best. However, in practice, both Go and Node.js perform excellently.

2. 2. Maturity

   Maturity of Go: While talking about Go’s maturity, it is found to be sufficiently mature and robust. Go is now a very mature programming language and many prominent projects use it.

   Though Go is a young language, its patrons are rather mature. The golang.org community is a nice place to start when building compilers. At the other end, Node.js is also mature.

   Maturity of Node.js: The gradual support of a bigger audience is usually enjoyed by Node.js, thus indicating its maturity level. The biggest issue, in this case, is usually the changing API. As a result, while building Node modules, developers may experience some unique issues.

   So, in terms of maturity, both Go and Node.js are mature but the only problem with Node.js is its changing API.

3. 3. Community

   Both Go and Node.js are open-source, which indicate that entire communities are working to improve them, solve bugs, and come up with new ideas. And both Go and Node.js have GitHub repositories. A huge community also means a large number of developers, which makes it easier to find the perfect expertise.

   The Go community is substantially smaller, yet it continues to grow year after year. Annually, GopherCon brings Go developers from around the world to discuss new possibilities and developments. Together it all empowers the community and the language itself. Go has a strong community on GitHub. 

   Now talking about Node.js, it is a well-established Java runtime environment with a huge and active open-source community. This community formed a team of security professionals in its first year and developed a long-term support plan for better stability.

   The Node.js community includes active members such as GoDaddy, PayPal, IBM, and Intel. Every year, the community organizes Node+Js interactive, an event where developers initiate new Node.js features and updates. As per NodeSource, in 2020, there were 98.9 million Node.js Binary Downloads.

4. 4. Tools

   Web app development is made easier and less expensive using ready-to-build solutions.

   Go does not have a vast choice for tools, but it does have a good standard library. Although Go has limited tools, each one is designed to make Go programming easier. Go Test allows developers to run a series of tests on the code, while Go Vet detects potentially dangerous components.

   On the other hand, Node.js provides a plethora of ready-to-use solutions that streamline the development process while reducing costs and time. For example, in the Node.js environment, NPM contains 800,000 built-in blocks in the Node.js environment that developers can quickly and easily install and run as needed.

5. 5. Scalability & Concurrency

   Node.js JavaScript code runs on a single thread. While this appears to be a good strategy, it poses additional issues for developers when dealing with huge apps that require massive scaling and the execution of multiple processes in parallel. For example, they can’t run CPU-intensive functions because it blocks the main thread.

   When it comes to concurrency, however, Go beats Node.js and allows developers to work with numerous threads at the same time without consuming a lot of RAM.

   When comparing concurrency between Go and Node.js, this means Go programming language provides better results.

   Go or Node.js, which to select for your project. Read the following points to make your decision making easier:

   • If you can’t manage to spend so much time finding an application developer, then you should go with Node.js. Node.js compared to Go has easy availability of developers.
   • Talking about the language, if you need only one language go for Node.js. Node.js development is for both frontend and backend with JavaScript. Now, if we talk about Go then Go does not have a GUI library and one has to use third-party libraries.
   • Better performance and scalability: here Go wins the race. Go has better scalability and performance compared to Node.js.
   • If you need to build real-time event-based applications like instant messaging, video chats, and online gaming. In comparison to both Go and Node.js, Node.js is superior in this regard.
   • If we talk about the learning curve, Node.js is easier to learn. Go needs that the developer should follow a specific process, rules, pointers, and interfaces. Go developers take a longer time to learn compared to Node.js.

Conclusion

It’s hard to decide whether Go or Node.js is better. It totally depends on you which programming language and environment your app project requires. Whatever project it is, Go and Node.js are good at distinct things.

Are you confused about what will be suitable for your project? The right way to find the best server-side environment for your application development is by reaching out to us. Our development team will guide you at every step and will assist you to achieve your goals without any hassle.