Laravel Spark vs Wave: What are the differences?

Introduction

Laravel Spark and Wave are both popular web development frameworks, but they have key differences that set them apart.

1. Pricing Model: Laravel Spark follows a paid subscription model, where users are required to pay a monthly or yearly fee for access to the features and support offered by the framework. On the other hand, Wave is entirely free to use and does not require any subscription fees. This difference in pricing models can be a determining factor for businesses or developers looking for a cost-effective solution.

2. Features: Laravel Spark offers various features that are specifically designed for building SaaS (Software as a Service) applications. It provides authentication, billing, user management, teams, and other necessary components needed to develop and deploy an SaaS platform. In contrast, Wave primarily focuses on accounting and financial management. It offers features like invoicing, expense tracking, accounting reports, and bank connections. The difference in the features offered by both frameworks makes them suitable for different purposes and target audiences.

3. Integration with Laravel: Laravel Spark is built on top of the Laravel framework, which means it integrates seamlessly with Laravel applications. It follows Laravel's coding conventions and leverages Laravel's core functionality. On the other hand, Wave is not built on Laravel but can still integrate with Laravel applications through various APIs and libraries. This integration difference can affect the development process and ease of use for developers already familiar with Laravel.

4. Customization and Extensibility: Laravel Spark provides an extensive customization and extensibility options, allowing developers to modify and adapt the framework to suit their specific needs. It provides an intuitive UI for managing and customizing various aspects of the application. In comparison, Wave has limited customization options and does not provide the same level of flexibility as Laravel Spark. This difference can be crucial for developers who require a high degree of customization for their applications.

5. Community and Support: Laravel Spark has a large and active community of developers, providing a wealth of resources, tutorials, and support for users of the framework. It is backed by Laravel, which is one of the most popular PHP frameworks. On the other hand, Wave has a smaller community and may lack the same level of support and resources available for Laravel Spark. This difference can affect the availability of documentation, forums, and community-driven plugins or extensions.

6. Target Audience: Laravel Spark is primarily targeted towards developers and businesses looking to build and deploy SaaS applications. It provides specific features and tools tailored for this purpose. On the other hand, Wave is more suited for freelancers, small businesses, and individuals who require accounting and financial management tools. This difference in target audience makes each framework more suitable for specific use cases.

In summary, Laravel Spark and Wave differ in their pricing models, features, integration with Laravel, customization options, community support, and target audience. Laravel Spark is optimized for building SaaS applications and offers extensive customization options, while Wave focuses on accounting and financial management and is free to use.