The MERN Stack (MongoDB, ExpressJS, ReactJS, NodeJS) has become one of the most popular tools in software development today due to its ease of use and ability to be modified to your own needs. While JavaScript can be complicated to master, using this stack can help streamline the process and make your life as a software developer easier.
If you’re familiar with the term MEAN Stack, then you’re well on your way to learning about the MERN Stack. The two are similar, but they aren’t exactly the same thing, which means that they both have their own benefits and drawbacks.
If you aren’t aware of what the MERN Stack is, don’t worry—I’ll get to that shortly! Let’s first take a look at the top 10 benefits of using the MERN Stack in your coding projects today.
What Is MERN Stack?
MERN, which stands for MongoDB, Express.js, React.js and Node.js is a full-stack JavaScript framework for developing server-side applications, especially web applications that run on cloud platforms like Heroku or AWS Lambda. MERN Stack is lightweight and uses a uni-directional data flow between all layers: model, view and controller (MVC).
The architecture pattern enables seamless data propagation between layers with minimal codebase. Its flexibility allows you to start off with just one layer — be it either model or view — as well as scale up to multiple layers as your application grows bigger and becomes more complex in terms of features and user base.
Here are some of MERN Stack’s top benefits
1. No context switching
According to DHH, context switching is the main reason for bugs and late nights, especially when you’re working on a large app. Because MongoDB can store data in such a flexible way, there are fewer database calls and less pressure to refactor code (although that’s still an important part of writing good apps).
Additionally, JavaScript frameworks like ReactJS have gone mainstream and allow front-end developers to be more efficient in creating new web applications. This means your back-end can be decoupled from your front-end—making it easier to keep track of changes in both environments.
2. One architecture to learn
Many developers have a favorite technology stack and may even find it difficult to learn a new stack. Fortunately, you can use many of your existing skills and learn about two new technologies for each language you already know.
So instead of learning three new programming languages, like Java, NodeJS, and Python, or whatever combination you currently use to develop apps on your current platform (or maybe one is not used at all in your company), you only need to learn JavaScript (using NodeJS) and React Native.
This single-stack architecture allows tech teams to leverage their existing knowledge while still improving their efficiency. Teams with more diverse skill sets are better equipped to solve problems with greater independence since they’re able to tackle problems independently.
3. Model-view-Controller Architecture
The MVC architecture is a commonly used design pattern in modern web development. The Model-view-controller, or MVC, software architecture pattern separates an application into three interconnected components: models, views and controllers. This separation allows each component to have its own responsibilities and areas of focus.
The result is a clean separation of code, making it easier to maintain a large project that could contain thousands of lines of code in total. There are several different versions/implementations (e.g., server-side vs client-side).
Regardless of implementation there are benefits to using an MVC structure when building any software program including more modular code, easy testing capabilities and clarity on who is responsible for what part of development.
4. Full stack development with one language (JavaScript)
The first benefit is with regards to full stack development. Because everything is written in JavaScript, developers are able to leverage their existing knowledge and write code more quickly.
This makes it ideal for beginners who have not yet become specialized in any one programming language, allowing them to move into a role of full stack developer more easily. Being fully proficient in one language (JavaScript) also means that developers do not need to learn multiple languages at once or hire people with varying degrees of experience.
When hiring new full stack developers, companies can easily pinpoint candidates based on their level of experience—or if they don’t have any experience at all.
5. No need for separate backend and frontend developer
The biggest benefit of using a monolithic stack is that it can help you avoid hiring separate backend and frontend developers.
With a microservices architecture, it’s likely that you’ll need to hire people with very specific skill sets—and if you don’t already have them on your team, then you need to go out and find them. That will likely take up valuable time and resources.
A backend developer may not be able to provide input on how best to solve problems with your frontend UI/UX, for example, while a frontend developer might not be able to assist in devising solutions for scalability issues in your database layer or ensuring that your application operates efficiently when under load.
6. Easier communication between different teams
When building a web application, communication between different teams is key to its success. Since many tools are available that allow you to communicate with your team, it’s important to choose a stack that will make communicating easier.
Many developers prefer using JavaScript and React when creating applications because React makes DOM manipulation easy and JavaScript is used for front-end development.
If you decide to use these two technologies for your application, choosing a framework to help create components will be very important in making communication easier between different teams.
The top tool for managing components on a large scale is Redux due to its simplicity and its popularity within companies like Facebook and Airbnb.
Read more : Which Platform is the Best for Web Application Development?
7. Easy Code Maintenance
Code maintenance is a big deal. If you’re working on a business app, odds are you’ll have to update it multiple times per day at some point in its life cycle. If your code isn’t simple, easy to read and maintain, your time may be eaten up more by support than development.
This happens especially with big teams on complicated projects. The MERN stack has libraries that are well-tested and well-documented for that very reason—your team won’t have to fight their way through code if it gets tricky down the line because there’s no complex interactions between packages or implementations required; everything just works like it should.
8. Growing community & support from many contributors
Creating a great software stack is a challenging endeavor, but it’s one that pays off in ways many don’t realize. Not only do developers enjoy using it, but they are always eager to help improve upon it as well.
This has resulted in an active community of contributors who frequently discuss and share new ideas for improvements to all parts of MERN. As more people use React, Angular and Node for their applications, more support will become available from many contributors with diverse backgrounds.
9. Built on Node.js, the most popular platform for real-time applications
Node.js is a server-side platform that uses JavaScript, meaning the same programming language used for browser-based applications can also be used to create desktop applications, hybrid mobile apps and even backend services. It has gained popularity in recent years thanks to its speed, scalability and real-time capability.
Node developers are in high demand as more companies start using the platform for a wide range of applications.
As Node continues to grow, you can build an entire frontend or backend solution using only JavaScript, making it easier than ever to build complex applications quickly. Our online training courses teach you how to use Node with Angular and React.
10. Easy to scale horizontally, vertically or linearly
Not only is it easy to scale horizontally, vertically or linearly, but it’s also easy to plug in additional technology. If you need to add a queueing system, use Redis. Need high availability? Go with Postgres or DynamoDB.
It all depends on your current needs and future expansion plans, so having a completely customizable backend can be pretty useful in those situations where you just don’t know what might come next. Whatever happens, though, there are many reasons why choosing to go with MERN is a smart decision for your company’s long-term success.
Conclusion
The MERN stack is a fast and free-of-cost framework for developing websites and web applications. It is faster, easier to maintain, scalable, secure, built in JavaScript and has a wide community support.
This combination of tools also makes it very popular among developers around the world. MERN is a stack that can take your projects to new heights. If you’re looking for a tech stack that will give your project enough oomph to stand out, MERN can help.
MERN makes development fun, because developers love it. Use it to power your project and watch as it helps drive innovation in your company and industry.
If you are looking to hire MERN stack developers who can build your project using MERN stack then make sure to check us out! We are a team of proficient Full Stack Developers that offer services in numerous programming languages.
