Whats the Difference Between Front-End, Back-End, Full-Stack Development?

If you have had some exposure to web development, you might have heard the terms, front-end, back-end, and full-stack development. But what exactly are these terms? And are they related? Let’s find out!

What is web development?

Let’s put it in simple terms.

You open a new tab in a browser, type in a URL, and press enter. The site appears instantly. It is an amazing website with an ultra-clean layout, impressive visuals, and well-constructed pages.

Are the people responsible for building this awesome website? Web developers. The process involved in the creation? Web development.

There are now several web development services in Canada that you can rely on for your website development needs. Websites are now a crucial component for any business to stay competitive in the market. And as web development services and trends keep changing frequently, it is important for brands to stay updated.

What are the types of web development?

As we had mentioned before, a web developer is a programmer that has specialized in the development of web applications and websites that are run over HTTP from a web server to a web browser. The entire process is known as web development and there are mainly three types of web development – front end, back end, and full-stack development.  

Most web developers work under these three different categories. While their roles may differ, all of them play vital roles in web programming. In fact, for the most part, what languages a developer ends up learning depends majorly on whether they want to tackle front-end or back-end or full-stack development.

What is front-end development?

The front-end of a website is the section that users interact with. Everything that you can see when you are browsing around the internet, from colors and fonts to sliders and dropdown menus, is a combination of CSS, HTML, and JavaScript being controlled by your computer’s browser.

Tools and skills required for front end development

As we had mentioned there are several web development services in Canada. So, how do you filter out the good ones? Here are some skills and tools you can check in their front-end developers.

The main three languages in which front-end developers must be adept are HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Additionally, front-end developers need to be familiar with frameworks like Foundation, Bootstrap, Angular JS, Backbone, EmberJS, ReactJS that ensure great-looking content no matter the device; and libraries like LESS, jQuery, which package the code into a more useful, time-saving form.

Using these tools and technologies, front-end developers work closely with user experience analysts, designers, or full-stack development programmers to bring mockups or wireframes, from development to delivery. Front-end developers can also accurately identify particular issues in user experience and offer recommendations and codified solutions to modify the designs.

What is back-end development?

The backend of a website consists of an application, a server, and a database. A back-end developer builds and handles the technology that powers those components which when combined together enable the user end of the website to even exist in the first place.

Tools and skills required for back-end development

To make the application, server, and database communicate with each other, backend developers use server-side languages like Ruby, PHP, Python, Java, and .Net to develop an application, and tools like MySQL, SQL Server, and Oracle to find, change or save data and serve it back to the user in front-end code.

If you are hunting for web development services in Canada, look out for back-end developers with experience in PHP frameworks like Symfony, Zend, CakePHP; version control software like CVS, SVN, or Git; and also experience with Linux as a deployment and development system.

Backend developers utilize these tools to build or contribute to web application development with clean, portable, well-documented code. However, before writing that code, they will have to collaborate with multiple stakeholders to understand the client’s needs, then translate that into technical requirements. They also need to come up with the most efficient and effective solution for building the technology.

What is full-stack development?

Full-stack developers are jacks of all trades. They can work cross-functionally on the full stack of technology, that is, both the back end and the front end. In short, full-stack developers offer the full package.

Skills and tools required for full stack developers

Just like back-end developers, full-stack developers work on the server-side of web programming. However, for full-stack development, they need to fluently speak the front-end languages that determine how content should look on a website’s user-facing section.

Irrespective of the specific tools, dependent on the project at hand, full-stack development programmers should be knowledgeable in every level of how the web works: configuring and setting up Linux servers, writing server-side APIs, working into the client-side JavaScript powering an app, and forming a design eye to the CSS.

Using these tools, full-stack developers should be able to instantly identify the client – and server-side responsibilities of a solution. Developers in full-stack development should also be able to determine the pros and cons of different solutions.

Difference between Front-end, back-end, full-stack development

As you can see from the above-mentioned details, back-end development essentially concentrates on using logic to solve various functionality and user experience problems, while front-end development majorly focuses on making the website look good and offer a positive user experience. Full-stack development in this regard cannot directly be compared with back-end and front-end development, since it typically refers to a combination between the two.

Full-stack development is quicker and is ideal for developing an MVP (Minimum Viable Product). The developer who works on full-stack development is usually proficient in building prototypes. Full-stack developers are also widely known as the jack of all trades since most of them have proved that they can truly excel both at the front and the back end. While both front-end and back-end needs extensive knowledge of different skills and tools, to fuse them together is an art. And no one can manage the fusing part better than a programmer involved in full-stack development. They would know the how-and-what with both ends and they are the only ones who can develop both in perfect sync with one another.

The Bottom Line

Web development has different facets. Irrespective of the type of development agency you are thinking of relying on, soft skills like attention to detail, ability to solve problems efficiently, ability to learn, and strong communication skills are necessary for a reliable partner.

Depending on your individual project requirements, you need to make the choice between front-end back end or full-stack development. The increasing demand for the development of business websites has also led to a higher demand for skilled web developers and web development agencies. Web developers are now considered as valuable assets in any type of business. Therefore, understanding the distinction of their skill categories is one major step in analyzing any software business needs.

In summary, the front-end developers work with the programming and browser standpoint, backend developers work with cloud services or servers and algorithms and the full-stack development teams work for both areas. Ultimately, when you want to develop a powerful and highly functional web application or website, you need to rely on a web development agency or a custom software development company to make your dreams a reality. Their expertise can help you develop scalable solutions that can further expand your business.

Looking for web development services in Canada with software developers that will help you build and improve your software application? Contact us today! Our experts can help you brainstorm.