Head-to-Head: Express vs Restify Analysis

express

v4.19.2(4 months ago)

This package is actively maintained.Types definitions are provided via a separate npm package: @types/expressNumber of direct dependencies: 31Monthly npm downloads

Express is a fast, unopinionated, and minimalist web framework for Node.js. It provides a robust set of features for building web applications and APIs, including routing, middleware support, template engines, and error handling. Express is known for its simplicity and flexibility, allowing developers to create scalable and efficient server-side applications with ease.

Alternatives:
koa+
fastify+
hapi+
restify+
sails+
polka+
micro+
feathers+
nestjs+
adonisjs+

Tags: node.jsweb frameworkroutingmiddlewareAPI

restify

v11.1.0(over 1 year ago)

This package was last published over a year ago. It may not be actively maintained.Types definitions are provided via a separate npm package: @types/restifyNumber of direct dependencies: 22Monthly npm downloads

Restify is a Node.js web service framework optimized for building RESTful APIs. It is designed to be fast, efficient, and lightweight, making it ideal for creating scalable server-side applications. Restify provides built-in support for features like routing, request parsing, response formatting, and error handling, simplifying the process of building robust APIs.

Alternatives:
express+
koa+
hapi+
fastify+
polka+
micro+
sails+
feathers+
nestjs+
egg+

Tags: node.jsweb serviceRESTful APIroutingerror handling

Fight!

Popularity

Express is one of the most popular and widely-used frameworks for building web applications in Node.js. It has a large community and extensive ecosystem support. Restify, on the other hand, is less popular but still widely used, particularly for building RESTful APIs.

API Design

Express is known for its flexibility and minimalistic design, allowing developers to build both simple and complex applications with ease. Restify, on the other hand, is specifically designed for building RESTful APIs and focuses on providing a straightforward and optimized API development experience.

Middleware Support

Both Express and Restify provide middleware support, allowing developers to add additional functionality to their applications. However, Express has a larger selection of middleware modules available, thanks to its popularity and extensive community support.

Performance

Restify is designed with performance in mind and provides features like request/response serialization and response throttling that can be particularly useful for building high-performance APIs. Express, while also performant, does not have the same level of optimizations specifically tailored for API development.

Scalability

Both frameworks can scale to handle large applications, but Express is often preferred for building complex and scalable applications due to its extensive ecosystem and community support. Restify, on the other hand, is well-suited for building scalable RESTful APIs and is optimized for handling high levels of concurrent requests.

Developer Experience

Express focuses on providing a flexible and intuitive development experience, allowing developers to quickly get up and running. It has a larger community, extensive documentation, and wide adoption, leading to a wealth of resources and tutorials available. Restify, while less popular, still provides a good developer experience with clear API documentation and a growing community.