Being in the web and app development world for over a decade, I’ve seen trends come and go. But Flutter and React Native have stuck around. A lot of Indian startups ask me—“Which one should we choose?” So, I thought why not share my thoughts as someone who has built apps in both.

First, what are Flutter and React Native?

In simple words, both are frameworks. They help you build apps for Android and iOS—with one single codebase. That means faster development and lesser cost. Perfect for startups, right?

• Flutter is made by Google.
  
  

• React Native is built by Facebook (Meta).
  
  

Both are strong. Both have huge communities. But still, there are some key differences.

My experience with React Native

Let me be honest. I started with React Native first. Back then, it was the go-to for cross-platform apps. It’s based on JavaScript, so our web developers also could pick it up easily. That helped us build MVPs really fast.

But over time, we hit some performance issues. Especially when clients asked for animations or more complex UI. Some native modules didn’t work smoothly. We had to write native code separately for Android and iOS. Bit of a hassle.

Then came Flutter

We picked up Flutter around 2019. At first, it felt new. Dart language was unfamiliar. But once the team got comfortable, it changed everything. The performance felt just like native apps. The UI? Super flexible. We could literally create any design.

We built a food delivery app for an Indian startup from Jaipur—they were blown away. Smooth animations, fast loading time, and less bugs. Flutter handled it all like a champ.

So, what should Indian startups choose?

I’ll break it down based on what we’ve seen with our clients:

Developer Availability

• React Native wins here.
  
  

• More devs know JavaScript.
  
  

• Flutter devs are rising, but still catching up.
  
  

Cost

• Both are budget-friendly.
  
  

• Flutter might need a bit more time in learning flutter developer skills if your devs are new.
  
  

• But in long run, it can reduce debugging and testing cost.
  
  

Performance

• Flutter apps feel smoother.
  
  

• React Native sometimes struggles with large-scale animations or complex UI.
  
  

UI & Design

• Flutter gives more freedom.
  
  

• You can literally match the app design pixel to pixel.
  
  

• React Native depends a lot on third-party libraries for custom UI.
  
  

Maintenance & Upgrades

• Flutter is more consistent.
  
  

• React Native breaks sometimes after updates or due to plugin issues.
  
  

• We’ve faced that more than once.
  
  

Final Verdict from My Side

If you are a new Indian startup, just starting up with a small budget and need fast delivery, React Native could work. Especially if your app is not too heavy or complex.

But, if your app needs top performance, rich UI, and long-term scalability—go with Flutter. It’s more stable and future-ready.

At AARK Tech Hub, we now recommend Flutter for 80% of our new startup clients. It just makes things simpler. Less bugs. More control. Better performance.

Still Confused? Let Us Help You Decide.

Choosing the right tech stack isn't easy—especially when you’ve got a startup to run. If you're leaning towards Flutter and want to see what it can really do, check out our full range of Flutter App Development Services and how we've helped Indian startups build scalable, high-performance apps.
👉 Hungry for more insights? Check out all our latest blog posts here.