New Kotlin Framework Gains Popularity: What Developers Need to Know

New Kotlin Framework Gains Popularity: What Developers Need to Know

The Kotlin ecosystem continues to evolve rapidly, and 2024 has brought another surprise for the developer community. A new framework built on Kotlin Multiplatform has unexpectedly surged to the top of GitHub rankings, gathering thousands of stars. This is Kotlin Full Stack — a project that unifies server-side and client-side development in a single syntax, without switching between languages.

Unlike classic Spring Boot or Ktor, the new framework offers a radically different approach. Instead of separating backend and frontend, developers get a single codebase that compiles to JVM, JavaScript, and native platforms. This is not just "another library" — it is a full-fledged ecosystem that includes:

• Unified DSL for markup — HTML templates, styles, and UI components are written in pure Kotlin, without JSX or HTML files.
• Built-in WebSocket support — no additional dependencies required for real-time applications.
• Automatic serialization — Kotlinx.serialization works out of the box at all levels.
• Integration with Ktor — for those already using Ktor on the server, migrating to the new framework takes hours, not weeks.

According to JetBrains' 2024 survey, 38% of Kotlin developers already use or are actively learning Kotlin Multiplatform. The new framework is a natural extension of this trend. Its popularity is driven by three key factors:

• Development speed — eliminates the need to write code in two languages (Kotlin + JavaScript) and synchronize API contracts.
• Performance — the Kotlin/Native compiler delivers up to 40% speed improvement compared to similar solutions on Node.js.
• Community — the project is actively maintained, releases come out monthly, and the number of contributors has grown 5x in six months.

However, competitors should not be dismissed. For example, Spring Boot remains the standard for enterprise solutions, while Ktor leads in microservice architecture. The new framework is primarily aimed at full-stack developers who want to build web applications entirely in Kotlin, without "gluing" together TypeScript or React.

For those new to Kotlin, there is another side: the language's popularity is also growing in adjacent fields. On the website PythonLib.ru, we often discuss how Kotlin integrates into data processes — through Kandy for visualization or Krangl for working with tables. The new framework expands this picture, making Kotlin a universal tool for the web.

Conclusion: if you write in Kotlin and are looking for a way to speed up the development of full-fledged web applications — take a closer look at the new framework. It is already gaining critical mass and will likely become part of every Kotlin developer's standard toolkit by the end of the year.