Back in the day, the ability to write backend in JavaScript offered by the Node.js platform was a novel idea. Today, it’s becoming a standard and more and more companies are choosing Node as their primary software technology. Why exactly is Node so popular these days? Should your company invest time and effort to get into Node? Here are some of the most important reasons why businesses are increasingly Node-oriented.
There are many good reasons why Node.js developers in 2019 are highly sought-after by business across the world.
The web is getting more and more JavaScript-dependent
There was a time when JavaScript was thought of as little more than a way to add some basic interactions and effects to your website or as a way to validate a form on the frontend. Today, JavaScript can be used to write a complex app from scratch, including mobile apps. Therefore, by choosing Node.js, you can limit the number of technologies you depend on and simplify your stack. The current trends suggest that in the future JavaScript will be even more ubiquitous.
Node is still growing fast
According to the 2019 Stack Overflow Survey, JavaScript continues to be the most popular technology in the “Programming, Scripting, and Markup Languages” category with as many as 67,8% of all respondents using it. All popular JavaScript web technologies such as Node.js, React, Angular or Vue continue to define web and app development. React Native is changing the face of mobile development. And there are many new innovative technologies to look forward to such as Svelte. Both Node.js and JavaScript as a whole are doing great.
Node developers are among the most in-demand IT specialists in 2019
And it’s getting better and better
The Node.js community’s ambition goes far beyond standard web and app development. New features make it possible to use it in areas previously thought of as inaccessible for JavaScript developers, such as AS, machine learning or big data processing. These features include the highly anticipated support for threads.
Node.js makes for efficient and scalable apps
Node.js-based are known for their speed and the ability to quickly fetch whatever content the user needs, making for highly responsive, reactive applications. This is why they are the way to go for many projects in which the user constantly interacts with the user interface such as Netflix. Microservices, which we will talk about in a while too, also play a part in this.
Node is perfect for innovative projects & startups
Node, at its very foundation, was created for custom web development, in a market in which there were already many technologies that can be efficiently used to build highly standardized pieces of web software such as various CMSes or eCommerce shops (e.g. PHP or Python). As a result, it’s extremely flexible and it continues to be used and chosen by developers who like unique software projects.
Node goes great with microservices
Microservices have been a major trend in software development for a couple of years. The ability to divide various aspects of your app into separate services provides many benefits in terms of performance, organization, debugging and more. The Node community has been embracing microservices for a long time and provides or is compatible with many tools that make using microservices much easier. If you are interested in a microservices-based architecture, Node.js is most definitely a way to go.
Node developers love challenging projects
With so much work to be done, there are more and more Node.js developers out there. Some of them transition from other backend technologies. There are also many frontend devs turned Node developers, full stacks as well as people who took up Node as their first backend environment. You will find them through software outsourcing at companies such as TSH.io or by growing your own Node.js team. Whatever may be the case for you, Node.js developers are really suitable for challenging and innovative web projects. That’s what Node was made for, after all.
