React Native vs. Xamarin
React Native
React Native is the mobile app development framework, which is developed by Facebook. It is an open-source tool which is released in 2015. Using React Native, we can build iOS and Android applications. React Native utilizes the JavaScript and React. JavaScript is one of the most dynamic programming languages. There is over 66 percent of the developer which work with JavaScript according to the Stack Overflow.
Xamarin
Xamarin is also a mobile app development framework, which is developed by Microsoft. It is open-source software. It is used to build iOS, Android, and Windows applications. To develop the Xamarin apps, we need to code in C#.
Performance
React Native: React Native provides up-to native performance. By using this, we can build super-fast apps. The official claims that it gives the native performance, but it is only achieved with native languages such as Swift, Objective-C, and Java.
The React Native framework allows you to use native code in your app so that some part of it is built using native code and the remaining part using React Native. The native code improves the app’s performance.
Xamarin: Xamarin is also used to build the high-performance application. It uses platform-specific hardware acceleration, which provides excellent app speed. Similar to React Native, Xamarin also gives up-to native performance.
Compilation
React Native: In React Native, JIT (Just in Time) compilation is not possible while developing an iOS application, due to which React Native falls back to interpret JavaScript code.
Xamarin: In the Xamarin, C# makes possible both JIT compilation and AOT (Ahead of Time) compilation. However, as JIT compilation is possible with iOS, the Xamarin AOT compiles the application.
Development Environment
React Native: React Native gives you much flexibility to choose your development environment. We can use any IDE or text editor for your mobile application development. There are lots of good IDE’s and text editors available such as Visual Studio Code, Atom, Sublime Text, Nuclide, Deco IDE, GNU Emacs, Vim Editor, and so on.
Xamarin: The Visual Studio only options to build a Xamarin app in easy manner. There are other environments also available, but working with them is not easy. So the appropriate development environment for Xamarin app is the Visual Studio.
Visual Studio provides many tools, controls, and layout that make your mobile app development work more simple and smooth.
Development Speed
React Native: The high-speed reloading feature in React Native increases the development speed. Using this feature, we can save much time because it instantly reloads your app without having to reload it.
After making some modifications in the code, you don’t need to recompile the code. Simply hot reload the app.
Xamarin: The development tools in the Visual Studio speed up the development process. The control and layout present in this IDE save lots of time while building an app. The Xamarin and NuGet plugins make your work easier and save loads time.