In the world of building web applications, developers have many front-end technologies to choose from. For those with experience in C#/.NET, a particularly interesting comparison is between three popular approaches: Blazor, Angular, and React. Each of them lets you build modern, interactive user interfaces, but they differ in philosophy, programming language, and ecosystem.
In this article I explain what characterizes each of these solutions and offer advice on when each might be the best choice for a beginning .NET developer.
Blazor – C# on the front end
Blazor is a relatively new technology from Microsoft that enables creating interactive web applications using the C# language and the .NET platform instead of JavaScript.
In practice, Blazor allows running .NET code in the browser via WebAssembly (or, alternatively, by running on the server and communicating with the browser in real time via SignalR).
Thanks to this, .NET developers can write front-end in familiar C#, using Razor syntax and reuse logic between front and back ends. Blazor heavily leans on components (similarly to Angular and React) — UI is built from reusable components with their own logic and view.
Advantages of Blazor:
- The major advantage of Blazor is a unified technology stack—you can build an end-to-end application in C#, without needing to switch to another language on the client side.
- You can also use the vast .NET library ecosystem in your web app.
- Blazor offers two working models: Blazor WebAssembly (app runs entirely in user’s browser, enabling offline mode and full front-end autonomy) and Blazor Server (app runs on server, UI is rendered remotely, delivering fast first load and lighter browser workload).
Challenges:
- Blazor is a younger technology—it appeared a few years ago and is still gaining production maturity. Although it evolves rapidly (Microsoft actively supports and improves it in successive .NET versions), the Blazor community is still smaller than Angular’s or React’s.
- Not all solutions known in the JavaScript world are immediately available in Blazor—sometimes you must use JavaScript interop (for example to use existing JS libraries in a Blazor app).
- The size of a Blazor WebAssembly app is often larger (because the browser must download the .NET runtime), which can slow initial page load.
- On the other hand, for C# developers, learning Blazor is usually easier than mastering an entirely new environment like Angular or React, since you use your existing skills.
- Blazor is a great choice for .NET teams working on internal apps, SaaS apps or business tools — it helps maintain technology consistency across the project.
- Its popularity is growing fast — according to BuiltWith, the number of sites using Blazor increased in two years from a few thousand to nearly 150,000, showing rising trust in the technology.
Angular – full front-end framework
Angular is a longstanding, mature framework for building front ends, developed by Google among others. Its modern version (often called Angular 2+ to distinguish from AngularJS) is based on TypeScript (a statically typed superset of JavaScript) and a component + service architecture.
Angular is a very complete solution — it includes modules for routing, forms, HTTP communication, state management, two-way data binding, and powerful tools like Dependency Injection.
Choosing Angular gives you a full ecosystem and a clearly defined project structure.
This makes it especially suitable for large, complex enterprise apps — it’s easier to maintain order in code through enforced conventions.
Advantages of Angular:
- Structure and scalability: ideal for big projects where modularity and code clarity are crucial. Angular’s strictness (e.g. requiring TypeScript, architectural patterns) helps maintain order in large codebases.
- Rich support and community: it’s existed since 2010 (AngularJS → Angular), so there is a large community and many educational resources. Many libraries and tools (e.g. Angular Material) provide ready UI components.
- Performance: Angular uses optimizations like Ahead-of-Time compilation, change detection zones, etc., ensuring smooth operation even in large apps. With the right setup, Angular supports Server-Side Rendering (SSR), improving SEO and first-load times.
Challenges:
- For beginners, Angular’s learning curve can feel steep. You must master TypeScript, understand framework-specific concepts (decorators, services, RxJS for async handling etc.).
- The default Angular scaffold has many files and structure, which may feel heavy at first. Over time, the project becomes more manageable thanks to consistence.
- But once mastered, Angular gives predictability and completeness. For a .NET developer, learning Angular means entering the Node.js/TypeScript world, but the knowledge gained applies to many front-end projects.
React – front-end library with massive popularity
React is somewhat different from Angular — it is a JavaScript library (not a full framework) originally built by Facebook (now Meta) for building user interfaces.
React focuses on the view layer and provides an efficient mechanism to render UI via a “virtual DOM.” The core idea is componentization and unidirectional data flow: you build reusable UI components that react to state changes and update the DOM efficiently.
Unlike Angular, React does **not** impose a full structure on your app — you usually pair it with other libraries (e.g. for routing, HTTP, state management) as needed (React Router, Redux etc.). This gives great flexibility: you choose only what you need.
Advantages of React:
- Easy start: if you know JavaScript/TypeScript basics, starting with React is relatively straightforward. Components can be functions or classes; JSX allows embedding HTML-like syntax in JS.
- Large community: React has been among the most popular front-end libraries for years — its ecosystem is biggest among these three. Tons of tutorials, UI libraries, tools, and community support exist.
- Versatility: React isn’t limited to the browser — there’s React Native (for mobile), and support for server-side rendering via Next.js, etc. Learning React extends beyond web development.
Challenges:
- Because React is a lighter library, beginners may feel overwhelmed by the ecosystem — you need to choose which additional tools to use.
- While core React is simple, advanced React apps use hooks, context API, optimizations, etc., which require deeper understanding.
- Compared to Angular, React does less for you out of the box — more responsibility lies on the developer.However, due to its popularity in the industry, knowing React is often a valuable skill.
Blazor vs Angular vs React – which to choose?
Each of the discussed solutions has strong points and trade-offs. There is no one universally “best” option — choice depends on project context and your preferences.
Below are tips for when each may have the advantage:
• Blazor — excellent choice if you are a .NET developer and want to build front-end without learning a completely new language. It allows using C# both on server and client, simplifying end-to-end app building. Works well in projects with Microsoft stack or internal tools in .NET ecosystem.
You should keep in mind, though, that Blazor is younger — in huge distributed web projects Angular or React may be more proven. On the other hand, for C# enthusiasts, Blazor is often a hit, letting you build front-end without leaving your favorite language.
• Angular — choose Angular when you need a full framework with built-in tooling for many aspects of app development, especially in large business projects with long lifecycles. In corporate environments where standardization and maintainability by large teams matter, Angular is often preferred.
Be prepared to learn TypeScript and Angular’s specifics — beginning may be tough, but you get a highly structured environment. Angular also benefits from long-term support and updates from Google. If you prefer a “framework that makes decisions for you,” Angular gives that.
• React — pick React when you value flexibility and a rich ecosystem. React works well in small and large apps but requires you to pick additional libraries and architecture. Because it is widely used, React offers the largest pool of third-party solutions and community support.
For those who want to jump into front-end quickly, React is often accessible. But to be effective, over time you adopt state management, routing, build tooling, testing. React is also a valuable addition to your portfolio due to its industry demand.
Summary
Blazor, Angular and React are three distinct paths to building modern web applications. The best choice depends on your background and goals:
- For a C# developer, Blazor is a natural path (Microsoft-backed, evolving tech that lets you apply .NET skills on the front end).
- Angular and React are front-end pillars — they benefit from mature ecosystems, large communities, and broad industry adoption.
It’s worth noting that these technologies share core concepts (components, app state, routing), so learning one helps with others. Choose the technology that fits your project or motivates you most.
If Blazor especially appeals to you and you’d like to dig deeper, consider joining my online course Blazor School. In this course we build applications step by step — from fundamentals to advanced techniques. It gives you solid foundations and confidence to use Blazor in real projects.
Good luck learning and choosing the best tool for your needs!
