blog.stackademic.com
Flutter Pros and Cons Before Beginning App Development in 2024/2025
Excerpt
## 1. Large App Sizes One major downside to Flutter is that its apps tend to be larger in size compared to natively developed apps. This is due to the additional engine that Flutter uses to render UI components. **Storage Concerns**: If you’re developing apps for markets where storage is limited (e.g., developing for older devices), the large app size could be a disadvantage. **Impact on Performance**: Larger app sizes can slow down app download times and take up more device storage, which can affect user experience. ## 2. Limited Native Features Access While Flutter provides many plugins for integrating native functionality, certain platform-specific features may require native code. This can make development a bit more complex for apps that need deep native integration. **Workarounds Required**: Developers may have to write additional platform-specific code to access certain hardware features or native APIs. **Learning Curve**: You might need knowledge of platform-specific languages like Java, Swift, or Objective-C to bridge the gap between Flutter and native platforms. ## 3. Smaller Developer Pool Despite its growing popularity, Flutter has a smaller developer community compared to more established frameworks like React Native or native development. This can make hiring experienced Flutter developers slightly more challenging. **Finding Talent**: If you’re building a team, you may need to invest in training for Flutter or deal with a limited talent pool in the market. ## 4. No 100% Native Experience While Flutter delivers close-to-native performance, it is not a native framework. If your project requires a completely native feel or uses intricate platform-specific features, you might still find that native development is more suitable. **Advanced Customization**: For some advanced use cases, native development will still be the better option to achieve maximum performance or access specialized APIs.
Related Pain Points
Complex native integration requirements favoring native development
7Projects requiring deep Bluetooth, camera, AR/VR, real-time geolocation, or complex native graphics work are poor fits for Flutter. FFI and interop capabilities remain inferior to native development in usability and flexibility, making Flutter unsuitable for these use cases.
Difficulty Hiring Experienced Flutter Developers
7Dart is not widely adopted compared to JavaScript, Kotlin, or Swift, making it challenging to recruit experienced Flutter developers and often requiring organizations to retrain existing teams. The smaller developer community also means fewer learning resources and solutions for debugging complex issues.
Large application size limiting adoption in emerging markets
6Flutter apps have significantly larger minimum APK/IPA file sizes compared to native apps, even with optimization efforts. This is a critical blocker for emerging markets and devices with limited storage where download speed and app size are important factors.
Limited and difficult platform-specific feature integration
6Accessing native APIs through platform channels requires knowledge of Kotlin/Swift/Objective-C. Specific features like Bluetooth LE, AR, biometrics, and native notifications either require unreliable third-party packages or custom implementation, reducing the efficiency of cross-platform development.