12 Best Frameworks and Toolkits to Build Desktop Applications [#2023]

Byadmin

Desktop applications are stand-alone programs that are typically installed on a user’s computer. They are usually much more powerful and customizable than web-based applications, but they can also be more complex to build.

There are many different frameworks and toolkits available for building desktop applications, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. In this article, we’ll take a look at 12 of the best options out there.

Tauri

Tauri is a new framework for building Desktop applications using web technologies. It’s based on Electron but uses Rust instead of JavaScript for the renderer process. This makes it more secure and much faster than Electron-based applications.

Pros:

  • – Very fast and lightweight
  • – More secure than Electron
  • – Uses web technologies (HTML, CSS, JS)

Cons:

  • – Limited to Windows and macOS at present
  • – Requires some knowledge of Rust

Electron

Electron is the most popular framework for building Desktop applications using web technologies. It was originally created by GitHub and is used by many big-name companies, including Microsoft, Slack, and Docker.

Pros:

  • – Cross-platform (Windows, macOS, Linux)
  • – Uses web technologies (HTML, CSS, JS)

Cons:

  • – Can be slow and resource-intensive
  • – Limited to JavaScript for the renderer process

Qt

Qt is a cross-platform application development framework that enables developers to write GUI applications for a wide range of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. Qt also provides many features not found in other toolkits, such as 3D graphics rendering and a powerful integrated development environment (IDE).

GTK+

GTK+ is another cross-platform application development framework, with a focus on creating visually appealing applications. It’s widely used in the Linux world, but it can also be used on other platforms, including Windows and macOS. GTK+ has a large number of widgets (pre-built GUI components) that can be used to quickly create beautiful applications.

wxWidgets

wxWidgets is yet another cross-platform application development framework, similar to Qt and GTK+. It enables developers to create native-looking applications for a wide range of platforms using a single codebase. wxWidgets also provides many advanced features, such as support for OpenGL and multimedia.

.NET Framework

The .NET Framework is a comprehensive development platform for building all sorts of applications, including desktop applications. It enables developers to write code in any . NET-compatible language, such as C# or Visual Basic. The .NET Framework also provides a rich set of libraries and tools that can be used to create powerful desktop applications.

Electron

Electron is a framework for building cross-platform desktop applications using web technologies, such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It enables developers to create apps that look and feel like native desktop applications but are actually just web pages running in a special browser window.

Electron is used by many popular applications, including Slack, Visual Studio Code, and WhatsApp Desktop.

nw.js

nw.js (formerly node-webkit) is another framework for building cross-platform desktop applications using web technologies. It’s similar to Electron but uses the Chromium rendering engine instead of Electron’s own engine. This makes nw.js apps feel more like traditional web applications than Electron apps.

JavaFX

JavaFX is a framework for building desktop applications in Java. It enables developers to create rich, interactive applications that can run on any platform that supports Java. JavaFX also provides many features not found in other toolkits, such as 3D graphics rendering and support for running apps in a web browser.

FLTK

FLTK (pronounced “fulltick”) is a cross-platform application development framework for creating GUI applications with a focus on simplicity and speed. It enables developers to write code that is portable across Windows, Mac, Linux, and other platforms. FLTK also provides many features not found in other toolkits, such as support for OpenGL and threading.

libavg

libavg is a multimedia framework for building interactive applications, such as games, simulations, and visualizations. It enables developers to write code that is portable across Windows, Mac, Linux, and other platforms. libavg also provides many features not found in other toolkits, such as support for 3D graphics and audio.