An in-depth tutorial on Node JS web development: Learn how Node contributes to JavaScript’s global takeover.

It has taken more than 20 years for stateless web applications, which operate without the need to maintain session information, built on the stateless request-response paradigm, a model where each request from a client is independent and unrelated to any previous or future requests, to have real-time, two-way communications ultimately.

Overview

Imagine you're tasked with coding a simple web application. With Node.js, this task becomes not just manageable, but also enjoyable, thanks to its user-friendly features and straightforward development process.

Let’s think about using it for an application like a mortgage calculator or a text parser. Since everything was in the browser, you wrote everything using JavaScript without thinking about it. You seem pleased since the web application functions flawlessly and proves to be beneficial. 

You eventually devise a new project and experiment with new features. Moving the application or software to the power server now fails on you. You want to include social media accounts like WhatsApp, for instance, in your online application. And for that, you also need a server. 

Now, think about this from a different angle. You would now need to choose some server-side languages, such as Python or PHP, in order to create a new web application with the same functionality. However, because of Node JS and its characteristics in the Node JS Architecture, a runtime environment that allows JavaScript to be executed on the server side, the situation is different in this case. All you need to do now is rewrite the I/O and utilize the current codebase. 

Perfect!

With Node.js, your web application has the potential to revolutionize the digital landscape, making it an exciting and inspiring tool for developers.

This explains why using Node JS in backend development has become so popular.

Node.js is a versatile and adaptable tool, capable of meeting a wide range of web development needs, providing developers with a sense of reassurance and confidence.

Statistics for Node.JS 

• 6.3 million websites are powered by Node.js, as it is extensively used for web development across the United States.
• The ultimate goal of Node.js is to build crowdfunding, eCommerce, payment processing, and IoT-driven applications.
• Prominent companies like Amazon, Tumblr, Twitter, Spotify, GituHub, Adobe, and LinkedIn have adopted Node.js for web development.
• Netflix and PayPal are among the top ones that witnessed a remarkable improvement in performance and minimized costs after implementing Node.js architecture.
• 50 to 60% reduction in loading time is easily possible with the Node.js framework, which is an excellent sign to embrace Node.js development services in 2024 and fix the load-time issue.
• You can reduce 57% + the overall development cost with the Node.js framework.

Why Node.js Matter and What Does It Mean?

A cross-platform, open-source JavaScript runtime environment, a system software that provides a platform for running JavaScript code, called Node JS runs web applications outside the client’s browser. 

Node.JS is generally used for server-side programming and is used for non-blocking, event-driven servers, including traditional webpages and backend API services, even though its original design was for real-time, push-based architectures. Each JavaScript engine in a browser is unique. This is the Google Chrome V8  JavaScript engine upon which Node.js is based. 

Is it difficult?

Let us explain in layman's words.

Either way, a single “stack” may be used to run the entire website or web application. Consequently, creating and maintaining the web application becomes very simple for Node.JS developers. You may accomplish your company goals with the aid of Node.JS applications. 

Since Node.JS is an open-source JavaScript environment, any developer may use it for free. A large international development community thus continuously updates and enhances it. 

Developers must comprehend that Node.js is a runtime environment rather than a framework, library, or language. 

In a runtime context, Web APIs are accessible for coding purposes. The code is subsequently parsed using a JavaScript engine. Because of this, it is lightweight, flexible, and easy to deploy –all qualities that will help you maximize and expedite Node.js web development. 

“Node.js is not a magic pill that will take over the web development industry. Rather, it’s a platform that meets a certain need.”

How Does Node JS Get Used in Web Development?

An open-source, cross-platform runtime environment called Node.js allows you to run JavaScript outside your browser. Node.js is a stand-alone JavaScript execution environment. 

Like Python, NodeJS allows you to install it on a server and run it using the output. It also enables you to use different frameworks to build a customized application. 

Before Node.js was released, programs written in the JavaScript programming language could only be used to execute in a browser. With Node.js, you can write JavaScript code in the browser and server. 

Ryan Dahl created Node.js back in 2009.

Node. JS supports Google Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine, which converts JavaScript code into machine code. 

Simply put, Node JS is a C++ program that runs JavaScript by treating it as input. Nevertheless, the platform can communicate with the system’s I/O devices using a custom C++ interface. 

Using one online JavaScript language, Node.JS enables you to write code efficiently running on the client-side (Front End) and server-side (Back End). Creating real-time event-based apps requires understanding the complete Node.JS architecture and functionalities. As a result, by developing apps, several big businesses are using NodeJS’s commercial advantages.

Features of Node.Js Web Development 

Because Node.JS utilizes fewer threads, it needs less memory and resources overall. Consequently, Node.JS expedites task completion. For our purposes, this single-threaded design does the same thing as multi-threaded architecture. Processing data-intensive tasks makes much more sense when using multi-threaded languages like Java. However, Node.js and the best Node.JS frameworks become the best options for real-time applications. 

These are just a few of the web development capabilities that Node.JS provides. Let’s examine some additional Node.JS functionalities for developing backend web applications. 

Asynchronous and Event-Driven

Node.js leverages an event-driven, non-blocking input/output mechanism that makes Node web development very fast and scalable for applications needing large amounts of real-time data.

Cross-Platform Compatibility

Because Node JS is based on Google’s V8 JavaScript engine, it can function on various platforms, including Linux, macOS, and Windows. 

When you engage NodeJS developers, client-side and server-side scripting may be written in the same language since they can simply build server-side scripts in JavaScript.

Quick and Lightweight

Node.js is well-known for its blazingly quick execution times and small memory footprint, which make it perfect for creating real-time, high-performance online apps. 

NPM 

NodeJS developers can install, manage, and distribute reusable code packages more easily thanks to NPM, the language’s built-in package management. All they need to do is install NPM on either a Mac or Windows computer for that. 

Huge and Active Community 

NodeJS’s vibrant and sizeable developer and contributor community makes it a standout choice for web development. The community continuously develops and maintains a large number of tools and modules that may be used to increase the platform’s functionality. 

Node JS's modular design makes it easy to divide a large application into smaller, more manageable components that may be readily scaled up or down as required. 

Support for Real-time Applications 

WebSockets, a technology that enables bidirectional real-time communication between the client and server, is one of the technologies Node.JS has built-in support for when developing real-time web applications. 

Maintainable

Since JavaScript is a single language that developers can use to handle both frontend and backend development, Node.js is a simple option for developers.

Benefits of Web Development using NodeJS

What advantages do Node.JS web development services offer? In this part, let’s examine the benefits of selecting a well-known Node JS development business, such as Mtoag. They can help your web application make the most of Node JS.

Quick Processing for Online Activities

No, it’s not a myth. Node.js is quick. When comparing NodeJS with PHP, Python, or Java, it’s important to note that Node.JS manages concurrent requests. 

The V8 engine that powers Node.JS was originally designed for the Google Chrome web browser and is developed in C++. The V8 engine translates JavaScript functions into machine code, offering improved performance and speed. To provide advantages for Node.JS web development, Node.JS has extracted those. 

Despite JavaScript's single threading capability, Node.JS’s non-blocking input/output and asynchronous request processing allowed it to handle concurrent requests. 

Using PayPal as an actual case study, a top corporation saw a 35% reduction in response time after switching from Java to Node JS and experienced notable gains from using Node JS development services. 

Microservices Using Technologies That Scale

Because of its lightweight nature, using the Node JS architecture for microservices is a beautiful option. 

In their description, Martin Fowler and James Lewis accurately characterized the architectural style as “a method of creating a single application as a collection of small services, each operating in a separate process and interacting with minimal mechanisms, frequently an HTTP resource API.”

Walmart is another example of a NodeJS microservices solution. Walmart, the most significant business, switched from a microservice design to a NodeJS one, which has the following advantages:

• Conversion gain of 20% overall and 98% on mobile devices overnight
• Over 500 million page hits were handled with 100% uptime on Black Friday.
• Savings of 20–50% on total operations and up to 40% on hardware

Rich Environment: Node JS Tools and Libraries

NPM, or Node Package Manager, is included with Node. JS. It serves as an online store for JavaScript tools, which are essential for web development and are free and open-source. 

With over 1 million packages in the NPM registry, over 42,000 of which are now devoted to Node.JS alone, and over 10,000 new ones being released weekly, the Node.js ecosystem is very rich. 

According to the data, 97% of contemporary web apps consist of NPM modules, which shows how tempting it is for developers.

Strong Corporate Support

Joyent helped develop Node. JS. In 2015, the Node.JS Foundation was founded, whose goal is to “enable widespread adoption and help accelerate the development of Node.js.“

SAP, IBM, Microsoft, PayPal, and Fidelity were among the association's original members.

Smooth JSON Assistance

Other backend technologies, such as PHP and Ruby on Rails, often communicate using the JSON format. On the other hand, Node.js uses JavaScript to carry out communication rather than translating between binary representations. 

This makes developing RESTful APIs to serve NoSQL databases like MongoDB—a crucial part of MEAN stack development services—exceptionally easy. 

Another advantage is the seamless integration of the JavaScript ecosystem with a significant data transfer standard. 

The Drawbacks of Web Development with Node.js

Another technology that has received much criticism is Node. JS. Let’s examine what developers have to say about its drawbacks for web development. 

API Instability

Because of Node.JS's constantly changing API landscape, developers must ensure that their codebases remain compatible with the latest versions. This requires significant time and resources. 

Absence of Support for Libraries

Since Node.js is an open-source platform, backend developers have access to a wide range of tools and modules on the market. The deficiency, in this case, is the need for more documentation.

Restrictions on Multithreading

Due to its single-threaded design, Node.js may need help to perform computationally intensive tasks as well as it might, which presents difficulties for companies looking to enter areas like machine learning or video processing. 

Subordinate-Party Module Reliance

Node. JS derives much of its functionality from third-party modules, which adds complexity and danger to your application. Your company must thoroughly assess the modules' security and stability and the vendor’s ability to provide continuous maintenance and upgrades. 

What Distinctions Does Node.js Have From Web JavaScript?

When discussing how web JavaScript differs from NodeJS, it should be noted that JavaScript is an object-oriented, lightweight programming language that runs in web browsers. Generally speaking, it’s used to produce dynamic HTML pages with interactive features for websites.

Node.JS, an open-source, cross-platform JavaScript runtime environment, allows you to run JavaScript code outside of a browser. 

However, this section will cover a few more key distinctions between Node JS and JavaScript.

Web JavaScript is a client-side scripting language that runs in web browsers, while Node.JS provides a server-side runtime environment for JavaScript.

Server-side apps like web servers, APIs, and command-line tools are often built using Node. JS. However, web JavaScript is used to develop online apps and interactive web pages. 

A built-in module system in Node.js allows developers to construct code that is reusable and can be shared with other developers. Since web JavaScript lacks a module structure, programmers often utilize other frameworks and libraries to create web applications. 

It runs well on any engine that supports JavaScript, including V8 (Google Chrome), JavaScript Core (Safari), and Spider Monkey (Firefox). As a result, learning JavaScript programming is relatively easy. Furthermore, Node JS is limited to supporting Google Chrome’s proprietary V8 engine. However, written JavaScript code is independent of the environment’s support for the V8 engine and can operate in any setting. It is thus not limited to any one browser. 

Any operating system may be accessed with a specific non-blocking job. JavaScript has a few essential objects, but they are all OS-specific. For example, ActiveX Control is exclusive to Windows. However, any JavaScript code may perform non-blocking, system-specific operations on Node.js. There are no OS-specific constants in it. Node.JS's ability to create a transparent file system connection allows developers to read and write to disk. 

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Businesses That Develop Web Content Using Node.js

The big names that have embraced the NodeJS web framework for their development are a good way to gauge the demand for NodeJS web development services.

The top 10 businesses that use Node.js to construct web apps are listed below.

• LinkedIn
• Netflix
• Uber
• Trello
• PayPal
• NASA
• eBay
• Medium
• Walmart
• GoDaddy

Web Development's Future with Node JS

We saw that big businesses are using Node.js.

The information mentioned above thus demonstrates that Node.JS is among the most adaptable and well-liked server-side JavaScript environments. And it is here to stay by providing incredible capabilities and benefits to company owners. Because of this, Node.JS development services are now very well-liked over the globe. With each new version, the Node team and developer community continuously upgrade Node.

Following the success of Node JS 20, the Node team published Node JS 21, which includes many new features, including experimental Websocket API support, a stable version of the fetch API, a partial Implementation of the Navigator API, an upgraded V8 JavaScript engine (11.8), and much more. 

According to Statista data, 47.12% of developers worldwide were using the NodeJS web framework as of 2022.

Thus, the data indicates that Node.JS will remain the most popular web framework among developers in the following years. Looking at Node JS web application examples such as PayPal, Trello, LinkedIn, and Netflix, it is evident that Node development services are the top option for developers and businesses looking to create high-traffic websites and real-time apps. 

Motives for Selecting Node.js in Web Development

When discussing Node.js web development, developers can create web applications more quickly than they can with Java, Go, Python, and Ruby on Rails. Thus, Node JS web development becomes efficient, simple, and quick. 

Being a well-known Node.JS web development business, we’ve compiled a list of the main arguments for using Node.js in web development. 

• Rapid Development
• Sharing Languages throughout the Stack
• Node Package Manager, or NPM
• Architecture for a Single-Threaded Event Loop
• Amazon Native Support
• Easy Web App Deployment

"Blocking operations in Node are the source of all evil—99% of Node misuses stem directly from this."

Conclusion

All things considered, Node.js is an excellent option for small and big businesses looking to develop data-streaming, real-time apps. Furthermore, Node.js features the world's most extensive open-source package repository, NPM, with over a million items, thanks to the help of a massive community of active developers.

Therefore, by knowing when and why to employ NodeJS development services, you can create a variety of apps now and in the future.

There are no such things as "good" or "bad" technology in our digital age. For the jobs it is used for, each technology has certain advantages. Furthermore, it is your duty as the software product owner to determine the crucial factors in light of the company's goals and the limitations already in place. You will be much more explicit about your decision after you have a good understanding of the options.

Please contact us if you have any further questions about your project or if you need assistance selecting the best tech stack.

Hire web developers with excellent Node.js skills from us. With our in-depth understanding of the industry, our NodeJS specialists work hard to transform your company's goals and core principles into outstanding solutions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is NodeJS used for web development?

Yes, Node.js is widely used for web development, particularly for building server-side applications and real-time web applications due to its efficient performance and scalability.

Can I use NodeJS to build a website?

Yes, you can use Node.js to build a website. It allows developers to create web servers and applications using JavaScript.

Which website uses NodeJS?

Many well-known websites use Node.js, including PayPal, Medium, Trello, Uber, and Zendesk.

How many websites use NodeJS?

While the exact number is difficult to determine, it is reported that nearly one-third of professional developers use Node.js in their applications, indicating a significant adoption rate.

Is NodeJS backend or frontend?

Node.js is primarily a backend technology, allowing for server-side development using JavaScript.

Is PHP better than NodeJS?

The comparison between PHP and Node.js depends on specific use cases. Node.js offers better performance for real-time applications and scalability, while PHP is traditionally used for server-side scripting. Each has its strengths and weaknesses based on project requirements.