SolidJS vs React for Solo Developers

Quick Comparison

SolidJS Overview

SolidJS looks like React at first glance. JSX syntax, components, props, effects. But underneath, it's a completely different paradigm. SolidJS uses fine-grained reactivity instead of a virtual DOM. Components run once (not on every render), and only the specific DOM nodes that depend on changed data get updated.

The performance results are impressive. SolidJS consistently tops the JS Framework Benchmark. It's faster than React, faster than Vue, and comparable to vanilla JavaScript in many scenarios. Bundle sizes are tiny because there's no virtual DOM diffing engine to ship.

I've experimented with SolidJS, and the "aha" moment comes when you realize components don't re-render. You create a signal, use it in JSX, and SolidJS surgically updates only the text node or attribute that depends on that signal. No useMemo, no useCallback, no dependency arrays. Reactivity just works.

React Overview

React is the most popular UI library on the planet. It has the largest ecosystem, the most third-party libraries, the most job listings, and the most community resources. You can find a React solution for literally any web development problem.

React's virtual DOM approach re-renders components when state changes, then diffs the virtual tree to update the real DOM efficiently. It works well for most applications, but the abstraction adds overhead. Hooks (useState, useEffect, useMemo) give you control over state and side effects, though dependency arrays are a common source of bugs.

The React ecosystem is its superpower. Next.js for full-stack. React Native for mobile. Thousands of UI libraries, form solutions, animation tools, and state managers. When you're building alone, this ecosystem means you're never starting from scratch.

Key Differences

Reactivity model. This is the fundamental difference. React re-renders entire components and diffs a virtual DOM. SolidJS tracks fine-grained dependencies and updates individual DOM nodes. SolidJS is faster, but React's model is well-understood and has more tooling support.

The "looks like React" trap. SolidJS uses JSX, but the mental model is different. Destructuring props breaks reactivity. Components run once, not on every state change. Conditional rendering works differently. React developers will write SolidJS code that looks right but behaves wrong until they internalize these differences.

Ecosystem size. React's ecosystem dwarfs SolidJS by orders of magnitude. SolidJS has SolidStart (its meta-framework) and a handful of community libraries. React has thousands of packages for every conceivable need. For solo developers, this ecosystem gap translates to real development time.

Performance. SolidJS is objectively faster in benchmarks. Fine-grained reactivity eliminates unnecessary work. But for most web applications, React is fast enough. The performance difference matters for real-time data dashboards, complex animations, or apps with thousands of reactive elements. For a typical SaaS or content app, you won't notice.

Job market and community. React dominates the job market. SolidJS is niche. If you're building skills that might lead to employment, React is the pragmatic choice. If you're building a solo product and don't care about the job market, SolidJS offers a better reactive model.

When to Choose SolidJS

• Performance is a genuine, measurable requirement for your app
• You want fine-grained reactivity without the virtual DOM overhead
• You enjoy learning new paradigms and understanding how things work
• Bundle size matters for your deployment target
• You're building a solo product and don't need a massive ecosystem

When to Choose React

• You want the largest possible ecosystem of libraries and solutions
• You might hire React developers in the future
• You want React Native as a path to mobile development
• You need specific integrations that only exist in React
• You value community size and available learning resources

The Verdict

React is the safer choice for solo developers. The 8/10 vs 7/10 rating reflects the ecosystem advantage, not a quality judgment. SolidJS is a technically superior reactive library with faster rendering and a cleaner mental model. But "technically superior" doesn't help when you need a date picker at 1 AM and the only option is building one from scratch.

If you're working on a performance-critical project and you're willing to build more yourself, SolidJS is worth learning. The reactive model is genuinely better, and the community, while small, is passionate. But for most solo developers shipping products, React's ecosystem advantage means faster development, fewer custom solutions, and more time spent on your actual business logic. Pick React unless you have a specific reason not to.