React vs Svelte 5: A Comprehensive Comparison

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React and Svelte 5 represent two distinct approaches to building modern web applications. While React relies on a virtual DOM and runtime reactivity, Svelte 5 takes a compile-time approach with its new runes system. Let’s explore their differences across various aspects of web development.

State Management

Declare State

React

import { useState } from "react";

export default function Name() {
  const [name] = useState("John");

  return <h1>Hello {name}</h1>;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let name = $state("John");
</script>

<h1>Hello {name}</h1>

Update State

React

import { useEffect, useState } from "react";

export default function Name() {
  const [name, setName] = useState("John");

  useEffect(() => {
    setName("Jane");
  }, []);

  return <h1>Hello {name}</h1>;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let name = $state("John");
  name = "Jane";
</script>

<h1>Hello {name}</h1>

Computed State

React

import { useState } from "react";

export default function DoubleCount() {
  const [count] = useState(10);
  const doubleCount = count * 2;

  return <div>{doubleCount}</div>;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let count = $state(10);
  const doubleCount = $derived(count * 2);
</script>

<div>{doubleCount}</div>

Templating

Minimal Template

React

export default function HelloWorld() {
  return <h1>Hello world</h1>;
}

Svelte 5

<h1>Hello world</h1>

Styling

React

import "./style.css";

export default function CssStyle() {
  return (
    <>
      <h1 className="title">I am red</h1>
      <button style={{ fontSize: "10rem" }}>I am a button</button>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<h1 class="title">I am red</h1>
<button style="font-size: 10rem;">I am a button</button>

<style>
  .title {
    color: red;
  }
</style>

Loop

React

export default function Colors() {
  const colors = ["red", "green", "blue"];
  return (
    <ul>
      {colors.map((color) => (
        <li key={color}>{color}</li>
      ))}
    </ul>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  const colors = ["red", "green", "blue"];
</script>

<ul>
  {#each colors as color (color)}
    <li>{color}</li>
  {/each}
</ul>

Event Click

React

import { useState } from "react";

export default function Counter() {
  const [count, setCount] = useState(0);

  function incrementCount() {
    setCount((count) => count + 1);
  }

  return (
    <>
      <p>Counter: {count}</p>
      <button onClick={incrementCount}>+1</button>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let count = $state(0);

  function incrementCount() {
    count++;
  }
</script>

<p>Counter: {count}</p>
<button onclick={incrementCount}>+1</button>

DOM Reference

React

import { useEffect, useRef } from "react";

export default function InputFocused() {
  const inputElement = useRef(null);

  useEffect(() => inputElement.current.focus(), []);

  return <input type="text" ref={inputElement} />;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let inputElement;

  $effect(() => {
    inputElement.focus();
  });
</script>

<input bind:this={inputElement} />

Conditional Rendering

React

import { useState } from "react";

const TRAFFIC_LIGHTS = ["red", "orange", "green"];

export default function TrafficLight() {
  const [lightIndex, setLightIndex] = useState(0);

  const light = TRAFFIC_LIGHTS[lightIndex];

  function nextLight() {
    setLightIndex((lightIndex + 1) % TRAFFIC_LIGHTS.length);
  }

  return (
    <>
      <button onClick={nextLight}>Next light</button>
      <p>Light is: {light}</p>
      <p>
        You must
        {light === "red" && <span>STOP</span>}
        {light === "orange" && <span>SLOW DOWN</span>}
        {light === "green" && <span>GO</span>}
      </p>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  const TRAFFIC_LIGHTS = ["red", "orange", "green"];
  let lightIndex = $state(0);

  const light = $derived(TRAFFIC_LIGHTS[lightIndex]);

  function nextLight() {
    lightIndex = (lightIndex + 1) % TRAFFIC_LIGHTS.length;
  }
</script>

<button onclick={nextLight}>Next light</button>
<p>Light is: {light}</p>
<p>
  You must
  {#if light === "red"}
    <span>STOP</span>
  {:else if light === "orange"}
    <span>SLOW DOWN</span>
  {:else if light === "green"}
    <span>GO</span>
  {/if}
</p>

Lifecycle

On Mount

React

import { useState, useEffect } from "react";

export default function PageTitle() {
  const [pageTitle, setPageTitle] = useState("");

  useEffect(() => {
    setPageTitle(document.title);
  }, []);

  return <p>Page title: {pageTitle}</p>;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let pageTitle = $state("");
  $effect(() => {
    pageTitle = document.title;
  });
</script>

<p>Page title: {pageTitle}</p>

On Unmount

React

import { useState, useEffect } from "react";

export default function Time() {
  const [time, setTime] = useState(new Date().toLocaleTimeString());

  useEffect(() => {
    const timer = setInterval(() => {
      setTime(new Date().toLocaleTimeString());
    }, 1000);

    return () => clearInterval(timer);
  }, []);

  return <p>Current time: {time}</p>;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let time = $state(new Date().toLocaleTimeString());

  $effect(() => {
    const timer = setInterval(() => {
      time = new Date().toLocaleTimeString();
    }, 1000);

    return () => clearInterval(timer);
  });
</script>

<p>Current time: {time}</p>

Component Composition

Props

React

import UserProfile from "./UserProfile.jsx";

export default function App() {
  return (
    <UserProfile
      name="John"
      age={20}
      favouriteColors={["green", "blue", "red"]}
      isAvailable
    />
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  import UserProfile from "./UserProfile.svelte";
</script>

<UserProfile
  name="John"
  age={20}
  favouriteColors={["green", "blue", "red"]}
  isAvailable
/>

Emit to Parent

React

import { useState } from "react";
import AnswerButton from "./AnswerButton.jsx";

export default function App() {
  const [isHappy, setIsHappy] = useState(true);

  function onAnswerNo() {
    setIsHappy(false);
  }

  function onAnswerYes() {
    setIsHappy(true);
  }

  return (
    <>
      <p>Are you happy?</p>
      <AnswerButton onYes={onAnswerYes} onNo={onAnswerNo} />
      <p style={{ fontSize: 50 }}>{isHappy ? "😀" : "😥"}</p>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  import AnswerButton from "./AnswerButton.svelte";

  let isHappy = $state(true);

  function onAnswerNo() {
    isHappy = false;
  }

  function onAnswerYes() {
    isHappy = true;
  }
</script>

<p>Are you happy?</p>
<AnswerButton onYes={onAnswerYes} onNo={onAnswerNo} />
<p style="font-size: 50px;">{isHappy ? "😀" : "😥"}</p>

Slot

React

import FunnyButton from "./FunnyButton.jsx";

export default function App() {
  return <FunnyButton>Click me!</FunnyButton>;
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  import FunnyButton from "./FunnyButton.svelte";
</script>

<FunnyButton>Click me!</FunnyButton>

Slot Fallback

React

import FunnyButton from "./FunnyButton.jsx";

export default function App() {
  return (
    <>
      <FunnyButton />
      <FunnyButton>I got content!</FunnyButton>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  import FunnyButton from "./FunnyButton.svelte";
</script>

<FunnyButton />
<FunnyButton>I got content!</FunnyButton>

Context

React

import { useState } from "react";
import UserProfile from "./UserProfile";
import { UserContext } from "./UserContext";

export default function App() {
  const [user, setUser] = useState({
    id: 1,
    username: "unicorn42",
    email: "unicorn42@example.com",
  });

  function updateUsername(newUsername) {
    setUser((userData) => ({ ...userData, username: newUsername }));
  }

  return (
    <>
      <h1>Welcome back, {user.username}</h1>
      <UserContext.Provider value={{ ...user, updateUsername }}>
        <UserProfile />
      </UserContext.Provider>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  import { setContext } from "svelte";
  import UserProfile from "./UserProfile.svelte";
  import createUserState from "./createUserState.svelte.js";

  const user = createUserState({
    id: 1,
    username: "unicorn42",
    email: "unicorn42@example.com",
  });

  setContext("user", user);
</script>

<h1>Welcome back, {user.username}</h1>
<UserProfile />

Form Handling

Input Text

React

import { useState } from "react";

export default function InputHello() {
  const [text, setText] = useState("Hello world");

  function handleChange(event) {
    setText(event.target.value);
  }

  return (
    <>
      <p>{text}</p>
      <input value={text} onChange={handleChange} />
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let text = $state("Hello World");
</script>

<p>{text}</p>
<input bind:value={text} />

Checkbox

React

import { useState } from "react";

export default function IsAvailable() {
  const [isAvailable, setIsAvailable] = useState(false);

  function handleChange() {
    setIsAvailable(!isAvailable);
  }

  return (
    <>
      <input
        id="is-available"
        type="checkbox"
        checked={isAvailable}
        onChange={handleChange}
      />
      <label htmlFor="is-available">Is available</label>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let isAvailable = $state(false);
</script>

<input id="is-available" type="checkbox" bind:checked={isAvailable} />
<label for="is-available">Is available</label>

Radio

React

import { useState } from "react";

export default function PickPill() {
  const [picked, setPicked] = useState("red");

  function handleChange(event) {
    setPicked(event.target.value);
  }

  return (
    <>
      <div>Picked: {picked}</div>

      <input
        id="blue-pill"
        checked={picked === "blue"}
        type="radio"
        value="blue"
        onChange={handleChange}
      />
      <label htmlFor="blue-pill">Blue pill</label>

      <input
        id="red-pill"
        checked={picked === "red"}
        type="radio"
        value="red"
        onChange={handleChange}
      />
      <label htmlFor="red-pill">Red pill</label>
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let picked = $state("red");
</script>

<div>Picked: {picked}</div>

<input id="blue-pill" bind:group={picked} type="radio" value="blue" />
<label for="blue-pill">Blue pill</label>

<input id="red-pill" bind:group={picked} type="radio" value="red" />
<label for="red-pill">Red pill</label>

Select

React

import { useState } from "react";

const colors = [
  { id: 1, text: "red" },
  { id: 2, text: "blue" },
  { id: 3, text: "green" },
  { id: 4, text: "gray", isDisabled: true },
];

export default function ColorSelect() {
  const [selectedColorId, setSelectedColorId] = useState(2);

  function handleChange(event) {
    setSelectedColorId(event.target.value);
  }

  return (
    <select value={selectedColorId} onChange={handleChange}>
      {colors.map((color) => (
        <option key={color.id} value={color.id} disabled={color.isDisabled}>
          {color.text}
        </option>
      ))}
    </select>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  let selectedColorId = $state(2);

  const colors = [
    { id: 1, text: "red" },
    { id: 2, text: "blue" },
    { id: 3, text: "green" },
    { id: 4, text: "gray", isDisabled: true },
  ];
</script>

<select bind:value={selectedColorId}>
  {#each colors as color}
    <option value={color.id} disabled={color.isDisabled}>
      {color.text}
    </option>
  {/each}
</select>

Web App Features

Render App

React

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <body>
    <div id="app"></div>
    <script type="module" src="./main.jsx"></script>
  </body>
</html>

Svelte 5

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <body>
    <div id="app"></div>
    <script type="module" src="./app.js"></script>
  </body>
</html>

Fetch Data

React

import useFetchUsers from "./useFetchUsers";

export default function App() {
  const { isLoading, error, data: users } = useFetchUsers();

  return (
    <>
      {isLoading ? (
        <p>Fetching users...</p>
      ) : error ? (
        <p>An error occurred while fetching users</p>
      ) : (
        users && (
          <ul>
            {users.map((user) => (
              <li key={user.login.uuid}>
                <img src={user.picture.thumbnail} alt="user" />
                <p>
                  {user.name.first} {user.name.last}
                </p>
              </li>
            ))}
          </ul>
        )
      )}
    </>
  );
}

Svelte 5

<script>
  import useFetchUsers from "./useFetchUsers.svelte.js";

  const response = useFetchUsers();
</script>

{#if response.isLoading}
  <p>Fetching users...</p>
{:else if response.error}
  <p>An error occurred while fetching users</p>
{:else if response.users}
  <ul>
    {#each response.users as user}
      <li>
        <img src={user.picture.thumbnail} alt="user" />
        <p>
          {user.name.first}
          {user.name.last}
        </p>
      </li>
    {/each}
  </ul>
{/if}

Key Differences

State Management
- React uses hooks (useState, useEffect) for state management
- Svelte 5 uses runes ($state, $derived) for fine-grained reactivity
Templating
- React uses JSX with JavaScript expressions
- Svelte uses a more HTML-like syntax with special directives
Component Composition
- React passes children through props.children
- Svelte uses slots for content projection
Form Handling
- React requires manual event handlers and state updates
- Svelte provides two-way binding with bind: directives
Lifecycle
- React uses useEffect hook for lifecycle management
- Svelte 5 uses $effect rune for side effects

When to Choose React

Large ecosystem and community
Extensive tooling and libraries
Strong TypeScript support
Enterprise-level support
Familiar JavaScript patterns
Need for custom renderers

When to Choose Svelte 5

Smaller bundle sizes
Less boilerplate code
Built-in animations and transitions
Simpler state management with runes
Better performance (no virtual DOM)
More intuitive templating syntax

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React vs Svelte 5: A Comprehensive Comparison

Table of Contents

State Management

Declare State

Update State

Computed State

Templating

Minimal Template

Styling

Loop

Event Click

DOM Reference

Conditional Rendering

Lifecycle

On Mount

On Unmount

Component Composition

Props

Emit to Parent

Slot

Slot Fallback

Context

Form Handling

Input Text

Checkbox

Radio

Select

Web App Features

Render App

Fetch Data

Key Differences

When to Choose React

When to Choose Svelte 5

Decouvrez plus d’Offres de la plateform ItGalaxy.io :

1. Nous contactez

2. Infra as a Service

3. Projets Développeurs

4. Développeurs

5. Formations Complètes

6. Marketplace

7. Blogs