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Firebase vs Kinvey: What are the differences?
Developers describe Firebase as "The Realtime App Platform". Firebase is a cloud service designed to power real-time, collaborative applications. Simply add the Firebase library to your application to gain access to a shared data structure; any changes you make to that data are automatically synchronized with the Firebase cloud and with other clients within milliseconds. On the other hand, Kinvey is detailed as "Cloud Backend as a Service for any app". Kinvey makes it ridiculously easy for developers to setup, use and operate a cloud backend for their mobile apps. They don't have to worry about connecting to various cloud services, setting up servers for their backend, or maintaining and scaling them.
Firebase belongs to "Realtime Backend / API" category of the tech stack, while Kinvey can be primarily classified under "Mobile Backend".
Some of the features offered by Firebase are:
- Add the Firebase library to your app and get access to a shared data structure. Any changes made to that data are automatically synchronized with the Firebase cloud and with other clients within milliseconds.
- Firebase apps can be written entirely with client-side code, update in real-time out-of-the-box, interoperate well with existing services, scale automatically, and provide strong data security.
- Data Accessibility- Data is stored as JSON in Firebase. Every piece of data has its own URL which can be used in Firebase's client libraries and as a REST endpoint. These URLs can also be entered into a browser to view the data and watch it update in real-time.
On the other hand, Kinvey provides the following key features:
- User Management- Add any number of users, using the authentication systems of your choice.
- Business Logic- Kinvey's custom business logic allows you to host your code in our cloud.
- Data Storage- Instantly and securely sync data between your app and Kinvey backend.
"Realtime backend made easy" is the primary reason why developers consider Firebase over the competitors, whereas "Easy setup" was stated as the key factor in picking Kinvey.
We are starting to work on a web-based platform aiming to connect artists (clients) and professional freelancers (service providers). In-app, timeline-based, real-time communication between users (& storing it), file transfers, and push notifications are essential core features. We are considering using Node.js, ExpressJS, React, MongoDB stack with Socket.IO & Apollo, or maybe using Real-Time Database and functionalities of Firebase.
FirebaseI would recommend looking hard into Firebase for this project, especially if you do not have dedicated full-stack or backend members on your team.
The real time database, as you mentioned, is a great option, but I would also look into Firestore. Similar to RTDB, it adds more functions and some cool methods as well. Also, another great thing about Firebase is you have easy access to storage and dead simple auth as well.
Node.js Express MongoDB Socket.IO and Apollo are great technologies as well, and may be the better option if you do not wish to cede as much control to third parties in your application.
Overall, I say if you wish to focus more time developing your React application instead of other parts of your stack, Firebase is a great way to do that.
AblyHello Noam 👋,
I suggest taking a look at Ably, it has all the realtime features you need and the platform is designed to guarantee critical functionality at scale.
Here is an in depth comparison between Ably and Firebase
Pros of Firebase
- Realtime backend made easy367
- Fast and responsive268
- Easy setup240
- Real-time212
- JSON188
- Free132
- Backed by google126
- Angular adaptor82
- Reliable67
- Great customer support35
- Great documentation30
- Real-time synchronization25
- Mobile friendly21
- Rapid prototyping18
- Great security14
- Automatic scaling12
- Freakingly awesome11
- Chat8
- Angularfire is an amazing addition!8
- Super fast development8
- Firebase hosting6
- Awesome next-gen backend6
- Ios adaptor6
- Built in user auth/oauth6
- Speed of light4
- Very easy to use4
- Great3
- Brilliant for startups3
- It's made development super fast3
- Push notification2
- Free hosting2
- Free authentication solution2
- Cloud functions2
- JS Offline and Sync suport2
- Low battery consumption2
- The concurrent updates create a great experience2
- I can quickly create static web apps with no backend2
- Great all-round functionality2
- Easy to use1
- Easy Reactjs integration1
- Free SSL1
- Faster workflow1
- Google's support1
- Simple and easy1
- CDN & cache out of the box1
- Large1
- .net1
- Serverless1
- Good Free Limits1
Pros of Kinvey
- Easy setup5
- Excellent documentation2
- Great free tier for testing prototypes2
- MongoDB2
- Will be discontinued sometime in 20231
- Great customer support1
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Cons of Firebase
- Can become expensive31
- No open source, you depend on external company15
- Scalability is not infinite15
- Not Flexible Enough9
- Cant filter queries6
- No Relational Data3
- Very unstable server3
- Too many errors2
- No offline sync2
Cons of Kinvey
- Base plan starts at $2,500 / year1
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