Microsoft Fast Design vs Web Components: What are the differences?

## Introduction
In this comparison, we will explore the key differences between Microsoft Fast Design and Web Components.

1. **Architecture:** Microsoft Fast Design is based on a modular design system created by Microsoft, focusing on consistency and scalability across products. Web Components, on the other hand, are a set of web platform APIs that allow creating and using custom elements that encapsulate styling, structure, and behavior.

2. **Browser Support:** While Web Components are supported by all the major browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge, Microsoft Fast Design is specifically tailored for Microsoft products and may not be as widely supported across different browsers.

3. **Customization:** Microsoft Fast Design provides a more structured and predefined set of design guidelines and components, making it easier for developers to create consistent user interfaces. Web Components offer more flexibility in customization since they allow developers to define their own reusable components.

4. **Components Libraries:** Microsoft Fast Design comes with a curated set of components and design patterns for building Microsoft experiences. Web Components, being a web standard, can be used with any library or framework, allowing for a broader ecosystem of components to choose from.

5. **Tooling:** Microsoft Fast Design is integrated with tools like Visual Studio, making it seamless to work with Microsoft's development environment. Web Components, being a web standard, can be developed using any code editor or IDE without the need for specific tooling.

6. **Community and Support:** Web Components have a larger community and support from major tech companies, fostering innovation and sharing of best practices. Microsoft Fast Design, being more limited to Microsoft ecosystem, may have a smaller community and resources available for developers.

In Summary, Microsoft Fast Design and Web Components differ in architecture, browser support, customization, components libraries, tooling, and community support.