In the Java world, there are many awesome frameworks to choose from to create applications that suit our use case. In this article, we are going to compare popular frameworks Spring boot, Micronaut, and Quarkus. so let’s get started…
We are starting with the most popular framework Spring.
Spring boot
The Spring framework is dominating the java world for quite some time and it’s a very well-established framework it supports a reactive stack with the release of version 5. The reactive features are called spring web-flux. Spring has the most significant community out of the three frameworks and integrations with almost every third-party system.
Spring-Boot provides a simple way to create stand-alone, production-grade Spring-based applications. It is designed to simplify the bootstrapping and development of new Spring applications. Spring Boot also makes it easy to create production-ready applications by providing features such as embedded servers, configuration management, health checks, and security.
Why choose Spring-boot
- Well established framework
- Reactive Stack with Spring WebFlux (since v5)
- Biggest community
- Most integrations
- Multi-Language support (Java, Groovy, Kotlin)
Shortcoming of Spring-boot
Spring is the heavy use of reflection which results in lower startup times especially when the application grows this also comes with higher memory usage and is therefore not well suited for serverless cloud functions.
Quarkus
Quarkus is a new open-source project from Red Hat that aims to make Java a leading platform in the cloud. The project was announced at the Red Hat Summit in May 2019. It is a Kubernetes native, a container-first framework for building cloud-native applications. Quarkus provides all the benefits of Java EE with none of the drawbacks. It is fast, efficient, and scalable.
Quarkus also has excellent integration with OpenShift, the Red Hat Container Platform. OpenShift provides a complete set of tools for developing and deploying Quarkus applications in the cloud.
Micronaut
Micronaut is a JVM-based, full-stack microservices platform that helps you build modular, easily testable microservice applications. Micronaut’s features include fast startup time, low memory footprint, and support for distributed tracing and Graal VM native images. Micronaut is developed by the creators of the popular Java framework Spring Boot and offers many of the same features as Spring Boot. However, Micronaut is designed specifically for microservices, so it offers a few key advantages over Spring Boot.
First, Micronaut’s startup time is much faster because it only loads the classes and beans that are actually needed for your application. Micronaut uses far less memory because Micronaut doesn’t keep track of unnecessary metadata like Spring does. As a result, Micronaut apps can run in very constrained environments such as Docker containers with limited memory resources.
Finally, Micronaut supports distributed tracing out of the box with Zipkin or Jaeger. This means that you can easily see how requests are flowing through your system, which can be very helpful when debugging microservice applications.
Significant Differences Between Micronaut, Spring Boot And Quarkus
| Micronaut | Quarkus | Spring Boot |
| Micronaut is a relatively new framework that is designed specifically for building microservices. It is lightweight and fast and has some unique features that make it well-suited for this type of architecture. | Quarkus is another new framework designed specifically for building cloud-native applications. It is also lightweight and fast but does not have as many features as Spring Boot. | Spring Boot is the most popular framework for building microservices. It is based on the Spring Framework and offers many features and plugins. |
Lightweight and fast | Lightweight and fast | Wide range of features and plugins |
| Unique features such as Grails auto-configuration | Designed specifically for cloud | Good integration with the Spring Framework |
Conclusion
All in all, each of these frameworks has its own unique set of features and benefits. In the end, the best framework for you will depend on your specific needs and preferences. If you’re looking for a fast and lightweight framework, Micronaut is a great option. If you need a robust framework with large community support, Spring Boot is a good choice. And if you’re looking for something that’s easy to learn and comes with built-in tooling, Quarkus might be the right option for you.
HAPPY LEARNING!
References
https://regupathit.medium.com/quarkus-vs-micronaut-a-deep-comparison-84cae4fea966
https://simply-how.com/quarkus-vs-micronaut
