Frontend development vs. backend development
Frontend vs. backend
What is the difference?
Confused by the difference between front end and back end development? In this post, we will help you clear the fog.
Frontend vs. backend
The development of a website or an app takes place on two levels: one level is the one that the user sees (front end), and the other level is the one that is not visible to the user (back end). Accordingly, the programming languages and web developers are also classified according to these layers.
Usually, web developers tend to specialize either in the front end or back end. There are also some developers who work on both the front end and back end and are commonly known as Full Stack developers.
The difference between these two layers lies in the technology in which the developer must deepen their knowledge. This is because although the two areas are a part of the same process, they use different tools and technologies, in addition to a totally different way of thinking. Let’s delve deeper into the major difference between the front end vs back end web and app development.
Understand the front end and back end meaning
Meaning Frontend vs Backend
Front end: Designing what the user sees
As soon as you click on a website or open an app, you are presented with a finely-honed interactive system. You have the choice to choose different options, select navigation elements, access various contextual functions, or take any action to pursue the goals with which you landed on that website or app. All of these interactive elements are the work of art of a front end developer.
Backend: Laying the foundation
All the different options that you find on a website or an app only work because they sit on the top of comprehensive assortments of functions, plugins, or databases. It's the work of a back end developer to design and update these foundations so as to make the website or app up and running without any bug.
Frontend vs. backend: the differences
Part 1: Front end and back end meaning
Front end developers are responsible for the polished appearance of a website or app that sits on top of a complex foundation of codes. They keenly understand what makes a user interface easy to figure out and straightforward. They know how to maximize the performance of the website or app so that users won't wait around for slow systems.
With the significant rise in online entrepreneurs and startups during the pandemic, there's currently a lot of demand for front end developers.
Back end developers usually begin projects by following briefs to code and implement the necessary features. Their primary goals are to work on the efficiency and performance of the website or app, with the presentation being insignificant. Later, once they have made everything work, the front end developers step in to create and finely hone the user interactions.
Back end developers play an essential role at the enterprise level, where businesses create original systems with unique functions and are willing to pay heavily for such developers with the required skills to design them.
Frontend vs. backend: the differences
Part 2: Front end and back end developer skills required
One who has ever peeked under the hood of their car to get a firsthand look at what goes on behind the curtain already has the curiosity that drives a back end developer. And now, with a bit of effort and training, they may just be able to use their natural curiosity to build a rewarding career for themselves.
Still, it ultimately depends on acquiring the essential back end development skills. Here are the 9 essential skills one needs to become a successful back end developer.
- Python
- Java
- PHP
- SQL
- Git
- JavaScript
- Writing and editing code
- Knowledge of safety regulations
- Mobile App Development Knowledge
On the other hand, if one has ever looked at their favorite website and wondered why it looks how it looks and how the buttons work on the website or even their favorite app, they have the problem-solving skills needed to become a Front-end developer . Now, they need to learn further how that design actually gets implemented on the Web or app by knowing the required skills. The key fundamental skills that front end developers use on a day-to-day basis are given below.
- HTML/CSS
- JavaScript and frameworks
- jQuery
- SQL
- RESTful Services/ APIs
- Responsive/Mobile Design
- Content Management Systems
- Testing/Debugging
- Git/version control
Frontend vs. backend: the differences
Part 3: Front end and back end jobs roles
Front end developers are experts in user interface issues. They work on tasks such as handling user input and creating a smooth navigation experience for users. Some of the common front end developer job titles are:
- Web Designer
- User Experience (UX) Designer
- User Interface (UI) Designer
- Frontend developer
- Backend developer
- App Tester and QA Engineer
On the other hand, the back end developer's goals are to build reliable data processing pipelines. They need to understand how to handle security issues so that only authorized users can perform certain actions. They also need to be good at making their programs fast, reliable and scalable. Some common back end developer job titles:
- Backend developer
- Backend engineer
- SQL Developer
- PostgreSQL/MySQL Developer
Frontend vs. backend: the differences
Part 4: Front end and back end developer average salary
Unsurprisingly, a front end developer and back end developer's salary heavily depends on their experience.
- The salary of an entry-level front-end developer is around 60,000€ per year.
- The salary of a front-end developer with 1-4 years of experience is around 70,000€ per year.
- The average total compensation of a front-end developer with 5-9 years of experience is €80,000.
- The salary of a front-end developer with 10-19 years of experience is on average 85,000€ per year.
- The salary of a late-career front-end developer with more than 20 years of experience averages €90,000.
For back-end developers, you can expect something like the following:
- The average total compensation of an entry-level backend developer with less than 1 year of experience is €65,000.
- The salary of a backend developer at the beginning of his career with 1-4 years of experience is 75,000€.
- The salary of a mid-career backend developer with 5-9 years of experience is 90,000€.
- And the salary of an experienced backend developer with 10-19 years of work experience is 125,000€.
Frontend vs. backend: the differences
Part 5: Front end and back end tools involved
1. Languages
To become a web developer, one needs to know various programming languages, depending on what type of developer they want to be. Examples of popular programming languages used include:
Backend:
- Java
- PHP
- Ruby on Rails
- Python
- ASP.NET
- Golang
- SQL
- Node.js
Frontend:
- HyperText Markup Language (HTML)
- Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
- JavaScript
Though back end developers understand web and markup languages such as HTML and CSS, they mostly work in scripting languages such as PHP, Ruby, Python, and Node.js, as well as in compiled languages such as C++, C#, Java, and Go.
2. Frameworks
A software framework provides developers with a platform and sets of tools to ease the development of robust websites and apps. They provide a foundation for front end and back end developers to create new products faster and in a more standardized way.
Popular front-end frameworks are:
- Angular
- React.js
- VueJS
- jQuery
Popular back-end frameworks are:
- Express
- Django
- Ruby on Rails
- Flask
- Laravel
3. Libraries
Libraries are sets of prewritten code that Developer into their own code. So when developers want more freedom, they turn to libraries. Some libraries used by front-end developers are jQuery, LESS, and Lodash.
Libraries allow for greater flexibility in backend development. For example, popular Python libraries used by backend developers include FastAPI, Pillow, and TensorFlow.
4. Front end and back end example
The most common example of back end programming is when you are reading an article on the blog page. The fonts, colors, designs, etc., constitute the front end of this page. At the same time, the article's content is rendered from a server and fetched from a database. This is the back end part of the application.
What is full stack development?
Full stack: Doing some of everything
The process of weaving or App development is not as simple as back-end developers laying the groundwork and then passing it on to the front-end developers to make the website or app accessible. In fact, there is often a significant back and forth link between the two: Something in the backend needs to be optimized to make the function work better in the frontend.
Full-stack developers come into play here, working on all stages of the development process to avoid the time-consuming process of back and forth communication between the front end and back end developers. Having a full stack developer in the team who can do all the edits themselves will be extremely efficient. Their knowledge isn't always as deep as the individual front end and back end developers, but it is much broader.
What's the current market demand for a full-stack developer?
Right now, there is a huge demand for full-stack developers, which is reflected in the fact that this is one of the top tech jobs of 2021. Both the Web as well as app development are becoming increasingly valuable to large enterprises and startups. Having a full-stack developer on the team is extremely useful, even if they have to work alongside dedicated front-end and back-end developers.
Full-stack developers can either handle a small project from start to finish, completing all tasks efficiently and cost-effectively. Alternatively, they can take over the management of a large project and act as an intermediary for a large Developers team function. This versatility makes it a truly valuable role.
Conclusion on frontend and backend development
A Web and app development is a complex process that has multiple facets. While developers play different roles, the two most common roles are the front end and back end developers.
While front end developers are responsible for the user-facing side of a web or app solution, back end developers work with the hidden part consisting of a server and database. Together, these two create Development teams visually appealing and interactive websites or web applications.
Choosing front end vs back end can be tough for most developers, but it comes down to what bag of knowledge one has spent the most time cultivating. The real emphasis is also on being a good problem solver, a good researcher, and a learner. If you can research and learn well, you can easily transition to using the tools of either a back end or front end developer.
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