It had to happen. You’ve finally reached the point when it’s time to choose the right technology for building your product. Even though building digital products is not really about technology (I mean: really), the choice still needs to be made. And to make a good decision, it is worth checking out your options.
In this article, we will cover building back-end services with Node.js – in a simple, business-oriented way and without getting deep into technical details. You will learn if it fits your requirements and if it will help your business grow. Ready to know more about Node.js development?
Table of Contents
Is node.js a front-end or back-end tool?
Let’s start with a few words about the front-end and back-end in general. So, front-end development is about the visual side:
- structure (sections) of the page,
- content (text, images, colors, etc.),
- buttons you can click,
- forms to fill out,
- animations, pop-ups.
Basically, anything a user sees, has been developed with front-end tools.
Back-end technologies, in turn, deal with the logic behind the scenes. For example, if you try to log in to Facebook, your email address and password must be verified and matched with the right account. You can’t see it happening, but it’s being processed on the server-side.
So if you’re wondering if Node.js is front-end or back-end related, the answer is simple: it is a back-end technology, mostly used in web development.
But it doesn’t end here! Node.js is a JavaScript runtime environment (not a framework). And since front-end developers often use JavaScript, it turns out everyone understands the same language. So, although Node.js is used to build back-end services, it is much easier to cooperate with the front-end side. This makes the work more consistent.
Why use Node.js?
The popularity of Node.js stems from the fact that it works well for both small and large applications. This makes Node.js one of the most scalable app development tools and significantly expands its usability.
Want to see some real-world examples? No problem!
One example of an app that uses Node is Netflix. You most likely realize this app has a vast library of movies and millions of users. Yet, it runs fast – and on many different devices.
At the same time, thanks to Node.js, you can also create a simple calculator that can be opened in a browser or on your phone. Developing the calculator app doesn’t require numerous configurations – they are redundant with such a small program. That’s precisely the point! Node.js allows for detailed configuration and advanced features, but in the case of building a simple app, you can just omit them and save time.
Here, you can find some more examples of popular companies using node.js.
Benefits of Node.js for back-end development
Node.js is best suited for the software development of real-time apps (RTAs): games, chatbots, and streaming. It’s also a strong choice for back-end systems that power web and mobile applications, but it doesn’t run inside the browser or directly on mobile devices.Here are some benefits of node.js:
Quick MVP development
Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is created to prove that there is a product-market fit. It comes after validating your idea with a proof of concept and/or a prototype. It’s still a product with a limited number of functionalities, but at this stage, they should be sufficient to attract paying customers
Node.js is ideal in this situation. How so?
- It is an open-source application framework – its users can develop it, so many ready-made solutions are available online. Node also has a built-in tool that makes installing these solutions easy – Node package manager (npm). Therefore, the development of essential functions is accelerated, saving you time (and money, naturally!). The sooner you are able to give your app to users, the sooner you start getting feedback and will be ready to make money with this product.
- While Node was being designed, this web application framework’s developers focused on making it less complicated. The goal was to make it easier to work with Node.js than with other programming languages. As a result, the development time of the application should be shorter.
Easy to make changes
The main benefit of Node.js is the ability to implement changes to the application effortlessly. New features do not require changes to the rest of the application. Thanks to this:
- Adding new modules and managing dependencies between the modules in the app is easy and intuitive – thanks to that, adding new features is fast.
- Your application can grow gradually. You don’t need to have all features and ideas planned from the start. Of course, it’s crucial to plan as much as possible – refining your idea is essential. But… is it even possible to have everything planned in the early stages of a project?
User convenience
No one likes it when an application stutters. The Node.js community knows this all too well, so they are continuously working on making this technology run faster. Additionally, incredible speed is in the nature of Node.js, as it’s been developed to speed things up in the online world. With Node, you can rest assured your product will match the standards of apps created by even the largest companies with a considerable budget.
What else? Node.js is built on top of the V8 JavaScript engine used by most browsers. As a result, your users will be able to use the application on their favorite browser, whichever one that is. It’s a detail, but it can matter a lot to some users.
When is Node.js not the best choice?
Although you can implement almost any idea using Node.js, it doesn’t mean that it will always be the best choice. Sometimes it’s good to choose a technology that fits your requirements better. Sounds vague? To make it more transparent, let’s describe a few potential situations.
A large amount of computation or a desktop application
Let’s start with the most straightforward thing: pure Node.js won’t be able to create a native desktop Let’s start with the most straightforward thing: pure Node.js can’t create a native desktop application because it doesn’t include a graphical interface layer — not because it runs in a browser. There are tools that make building desktop apps with Node possible (like Electron), but pure Node.js can’t achieve this alone.
Let’s move on to the less apparent factors.
If your application:
- Has to do many calculations,
- perform a massive number of CPU-intensive operations,
- or have complex rules
- then it’s possible to develop it with Node; however, for heavy CPU workloads other platforms may be a better fit.
Node.js isn’t inherently more error-prone than other technologies; reliability depends on architecture and code quality. That said, for mission-critical, CPU-heavy systems (e.g., parts of complex banking cores), Java is often preferred thanks to strong performance on multi-threaded, compute-intensive tasks.
In all these cases, you might want to use Java. Here is a comparison: Node.js vs. Java.
The fastest and most inexpensive application creation
Are you worried that your budget is insufficient to build an application? We might have a solution for that as well!
Ruby on Rails (RoR) is known for fast prototyping, but Node.js (especially with frameworks like Nest.js or using Next.js API routes) can match or even exceed it in development speed today — the better choice depends on your team and use case. You can read more about it in our article: Ruby on Rails vs. Node.js.
Artificial Intelligence, audio or video apps
Python is often the first choice for AI or audio/video processing because it offers the richest ecosystem for Machine Learning and data processing. Node.js can still play a strong role on the back end (APIs, orchestration, real-time features) alongside Python models. You can read more about it in our article, where we compare Node.js vs. Python.
Where do you start with Node.js?
Now that you know what you can use Node.js for, here’s how to get started:
- First, define the main idea of your app – what you want to achieve with it, what should your customers get, and whether you already have any specific features in mind.
- Sort out the most important thing – find a tech partner who will understand your idea and business goals, help you advance them, and finally prepare a solid development plan for your app.
Finally, it’s worth checking out what you can do with Node.js and what types of apps you can build. Remember, however, that even though the technology is a core element of your app, it doesn’t define its success. Technology is leverage – if you put it into something that works, it will work exponentially better. But if you put it to something that doesn’t work – it won’t be able to magically fix it.
FAQs about using Node in application web development
Who uses Node.js for back-end?
According to Stack Overflow’s 2024 Developer Survey, Node.js is the most used web framework/technology, with 40.8% of all respondents reporting extensive development with it. Notable adopters include NASA, PayPal, Netflix, Uber, LinkedIn, and eBay, which use Node.js in parts of their systems.
In which industries is it worth using node.js for back-end?
Node.js is great for scheduling & fitness apps, real-time chats, and collaboration apps like Google Docs. Internet of Things (IoT) also takes advantage of Node, as it is possible to process multiple requests from even millions of devices. So, to answer the question – it is worth considering application development with Node in:
- fitness/sports apps,
- corporates that need efficient data processing,
- factories that need to obtain and use data from sensors or wearables,
- industries focused on project/time management or sharing work between few employees,
- massive e-commerce,
- restaurants, booking businesses, etc.
Is Node.js faster than Java?
It depends on the workload. Node.js can be faster for I/O-heavy web applications (like chats or streaming) thanks to its event-driven, non-blocking I/O.
Java often outperforms Node.js in CPU-intensive, multi-threaded scenarios. Garbage collection isn’t a blanket drawback – modern JVMs are highly optimized.
In short: pick based on the dominant workload.
Can you build desktop applications with Node.js?
Node.js doesn’t support native desktop apps on its own. However, the possibility seemed tempting not only to you – new frameworks have been built to answer these needs. The most popular one of them is called Electron. Basically, it creates a fake browser environment on the desktop. It’s like you’d have a browser without seeing it – some people call this ‘a headless browser’.
To make this more understandable, here are some examples of popular desktop apps built with Node.js:
- WhatsApp,
- Slack,
- WordPress.
They all also work in a browser, and that’s the point! Some people simply enjoy working on a desktop instead of having dozens of tabs opened in a browser. This way, it’s easy to satisfy both sides.
Read also: Is Node safe? 13 Node.js safety-enhancing practices
What is the developer availability in Node.js technology?
Node’s popularity makes for a huge job market. Thereby, it is much easier to find a team offering Node.js development services members that would:
- have in-depth knowledge of the framework,
- show commitment to their work,
- know the best Node.js practices, and write a nice, not too complex code.
Is Node.js framework right for you?
With development technologies, it is problematic to tell right away if they suit your needs. If you were hoping to find the answer to whether you should use Node.js to build your app, we must disappoint you. But not to worry! Consulting a development company might be a solution to this problem.
Node.js for back-end development – summary
We know it would be a dream to pick a technology and start building an app immediately! However, like everything in life, it can’t be this easy.
We have to admit – the benefits of Node.js are significant. But even though you can use Node.js in various cases, it is vital to realize it also has its flaws. You have to verify all these pros and cons of using Node.js and their impact on your business.
