Progressive websites are gaining popularity. These use CSS, JavaScript, and HTML to offer usability and performance at par with the active apps.

Progressive apps look promising. Here in this guide, we cover some tools and technologies that are used to develop the PWAs with less complexity and at a faster pace.

What makes Progressive Web Apps different from a traditional website?

There are a few things that differentiate a progressive web app from a traditional website. 

Here is what PWAs have to offer.

• They work with most of the devices and browsers using a progressive codebase.
• The app fits into all screens and all the form factors that make use of a responsive design.
• These leverage the service workers to enable offline connectivity.
• PWAs offer an experience that is similar to apps that leverage the re-engagement tools like push notifications.
• The PWAs leverage the web app manifest to describe the resources used.

Let us now browse through the curated list of the tools that let you build the PWAs faster.

Best PWAs development technologies

Ionic

Ionic is a PWA tool that is based on the Angular framework and Apache Cordova. It works like an advanced tech stack and lets Progressive web app developers India make use of the competing frameworks.

It offers a rich toolkit that covers the functionality of PWA that includes the unit tests, UI elements, and the pre-built routing. The solution is intelligent for those looking for cross-platform mobile app development and a responsive web app.

Polymer

Polymer comes from the house of Google. It is a JavaScript framework, light in weight, and contains several PWA tools. There are many templates and it also offers the best documentation.

Polymer is an amazing PWA development tool that creates reusable components. It syncs the data with several devices and this simplifies the process of development. With the PRPL pattern and the APIs, it offers improved optimization.

Vue.JS

Vue.JS is created by MIT. This open-source is an advanced JS library when it comes to rendering and coding. Many default packages in Veu.JS let the Progressive web app development company carry out routing, rendering on the server-side, and state management. The CLI3 is a completely different package that allows PWA building.

Developers like Vue.JS because:

• It offers coding simplicity.
• It has a simple structure and features.
• The virtual DOM allows fast rendering.

Vue.JS is particularly preferred by Progressive web app development company India to build small projects and MVPs. The framework however is not restricted since it does have the capacity to create dynamic and complex apps.

AngularJS

AngularJs is an old framework and it is widely used in PWA development. It has a well-defined methodology and is equipped with various techniques. This makes it a cakewalk for the Progressive web & Mobile App Development companies to add various functionalities which in turn makes the process simple. AngularJs is used extensively because it is in sync with Google so is regularly updated.

React PWA Library

ReactJs framework finds use in creating single as well as multi-page apps. With the JS libraries that come as an add-on, it makes it easy for developers to generate the client-side and server-side rendered pages. It also offers API integration and routing. 

React JS is highly popular because it offers better documentation, has an ecosystem backing, comes with an extensive library and a vast development community which makes the tool excellent to develop PWAS.

PWA Builder

PWA Builder has the support of Microsoft. It is an ideal tool if you wish to transform your website into a PWA with minimal development work. The PWA Builder takes over this task with complete efficiency and accuracy.

The intuitive and easy feature of the PWA Builder makes the tool in demand among web development companies. PWA Builder can easily identify if the website is PWA supportive. All that the developer has to do is to copy and paste the website URL into the PWA Builders’ URL section and get the result in seconds.

Magento PWA Studio

If you wish to build your PWA storefront on a Magento responsive website then Magento PWA Studio is what you need. The tool is customized with advanced libraries and tools as per the principle of M2 extensibility. The platform uses advanced libraries to achieve its goal.

Lighthouse

Lighthouse comes from Google and was created to ensure the PWA quality. It checks if there are any issues in the PWA before it goes live. Lighthouse plays a key role in enhancing the quality of the app. It has strict criteria based on which it measures the website and lists several factors to ensure that the website is PWA ready. Lighthouse carries out digital offering and spots the area that needs to be worked on for the process of PWA development.

ScandiPWA

ScandiPWA is an open-source and ready-to-use Magento theme solution. It does not need any extra services, middleware, or a database. Because it does not have a middle layer the performance of the PWA app does not get affected. The tool can support several languages, currencies, stores, domains, and much more. With GraphQL, Scandi allows fast rending of pages.

Webpack Module Bundler

A particular feature that makes PWA in demand is its ability to work even when the internet connection is poor. PWA also works in an offline mode. Webpack is a module builder and open-source JavaScript. It thus is capable of implementing offline functionality on the websites.

The tool is used to build a dependency graph in between the font’s images, CSS elements, and other files. There is no need for any dependency management and it also reduces the server call volume. This allows the static elements to load fast.

The only challenge in using this tool is that the instrument does not come with user-friendly documentation. It also takes some time to learn this tool hence is best only for an experienced developer.

SuperPWA

This is a PWA development tool that is a popular solution if you wish to build PWA on a WordPress website. Creating a PWA manually is not feasible. Also, one needs to have good knowledge of the PWA frameworks. The above two problems are taken care of when you use SuperPWA. The tool streamlines the entire process which makes it easy even for a novice to build the PWA with ease.

The SuperPWA plugin is user-friendly. The tool is capable of creating high-quality pages that run offline. The plugin also does not let you utilize all the functions of PWA. It does add offline functionality to the website. Once the developer installs this module the Add to Home screen notification pops up on the device screen.

WP-AppKit

This is again a plugin to create PWA on your WordPress website. It lets developers pre-cache some particular aspects of the site. It allows sending push notifications similar to the feature offered by the native apps. WP-Appkit is free of charge and is available on WordPress.

To Wrap it all Up

Your PWA needs the right techniques and tools to let it be at par with the competitive list of apps.

Using the tools listed above, developers can create Progressive Web Apps that give a native app-like feel but run at lightning speed.