Full-Stack vs Half-Stack Developers
Web developers are often divided into front-end and back-end developers. Back-end developers write code which runs on a server, and front-end developers write code which runs on a user’s browser. Back-end and front-end developers are sometimes called half-stack developers. By contrast, full-stack developers are responsible for engineering both the server and client parts of a web application.
The divide between full-stack and half-stack developers raises many questions. Are software development teams consisting of full-stack developers more efficient than their half-stack equivalents? Is there a difference between the quality of web applications created by these two types of developers? Which type of role is a better career choice for an individual developer? We’ll go over some of the key differences between full-stack and half-stack development to shed some light on the answers.
Development Efficiency
Full-stack developers are much more efficient when integrating the server-side and client-side parts of a web application. By contrast, half-stack developers often spend a significant amount of time coordinating with their front-end or back-end counterparts. Front-end developers frequently need to build features based on API endpoints. This means back-end developers must either have the API endpoint ready in advance or provide a detailed spec prior to implementation.
Furthermore, the front-end developer will often find that the API endpoint needs adjustment. At this point, they must negotiate the change with the back-end developer. This time-consuming interaction can repeat several times when implementing even a single feature. Full-stack developers circumvent this type of interaction completely. They also don’t need to interpret API specs or documentation because they implemented the API endpoint and thus know exactly how to use it from the client part of the application.
Full-stack developers can more efficiently troubleshoot parts of an application which require complex client-server interaction. Modern web applications frequently include features which require multiple requests to the server, and the orchestration of the server’s responses by client-side code. When bugs occur in these types of features, it can be difficult to determine whether they stem from server-side code or browser-based code. Full-stack developers can troubleshoot these issues much more efficiently as they can pinpoint bugs in both server-side and client-side code. By contrast, a front-end developer may spend a long time eliminating the possibility of a client-side bug before finally passing it on to a back-end developer.
Half-stack developers are much faster when completing tasks which only involve either the client or the server part of the application. For example, front-end developers’ greater familiarity and experience with the client-side code-base allows them to identify and implement required changes easily. They might not even need to deliberately think about what is required to complete the task, as they have probably completed similar tasks in the recent past. Furthermore, the front-end or back-end developer is likely to already have the technical skill to accomplish the task, whereas a full-stack developer may need to do some research or use existing code as a reference.
Half-stack development teams allow for a more granular division of software work. Any feature which requires changes to both server and client code, can always be split into two tasks which can be completed somewhat independently and in parallel. Dividing work between a team of full-stack developers can be more challenging. Often, full-stack developers will each be responsible for the end-to-end completion of individual features.
Software Quality
Specialized back-end developers are much more likely to create versatile web services which can be used by many types of client applications. Full-stack developers can easily fall into the trap of tightly coupling client-side and server-side code. They may create an API endpoint which is tailored for one specific action on the client-side. This results in high code duplication and low code maintainability. Changes to the server-side code end up requiring a corresponding change to the client-side code and vice versa.
Half-stack developers can implement specialized requirements with a higher degree of correctness than full-stack developers. Examples of specialized requirements include ARIA and accessibility compliance on the client-side and the use of different SQL Server transaction isolation levels on the server-side. Full-stack developers will often have to learn specialized skills like these on the job and will be more likely to make minor mistakes in their implementation. Specialized half-stack developers are much more likely to already have expertise in these skills and will be able to implement the specialized requirements with the correct best practices.
Half-stack development typically results in more secure applications due to the natural divide introduced between client and server. One of the primary duties of back-end developers is to maintain application security. These developers can devote more time to advanced security concerns such as securing sensitive configuration settings, implementing application monitoring and the correctly assigning authorization policies. Full-stack developers might be tempted to loosen server-side security restrictions for easier client-server integration and faster development. They are more likely to expose server-side secrets to users and to overlook authorization vulnerabilities.
Developer Experience
Individual full-stack developers can completely develop an extensive web application feature all by themselves. They are left with the sense they alone brought this feature into existence and with a clear way to demonstrate how they brought value to the project. This is in stark contrast to back-end developers, who may not feel responsible for how their work is being used. It can be difficult for a back-end developer to feel impactful, because they don’t implement the part of the application which the user interacts with directly. Full-stack developers also feel empowered because they can develop an entire web application from the ground-up. Most specialized back-end and front-end developers cannot make that claim.
However, switching between very different tasks can often be frustrating for full-stack developers. For example, a full-stack developer who has just finished optimizing indexes in a SQL database, may need a moment to get their bearings before creating a new Angular component. Specialized half-stack developers often maintain peak efficiency by focusing on similar tasks.
Half-stack development is more conducive to the development of specialized expertise than full-stack development. Full-stack developers will often only gain the level of expertise they need in any particular skill since they have to be competent with twice as many skills as half-stack developers. Half-stack developers have more time to further specialize in skills which the market demands. This can result in much better paying positions. For example, back-end developers with expertise in blockchain and machine learning technology earn much more than the typical web developer.
Summary
Full-stack and half-stack development have considerable differences. Let’s summarize the advantages of each.
Full-Stack Development
- Seamless integration of the client and server components of a web application
- Efficient troubleshooting of bugs in features with complex client-server integration
- Complete ownership of application features by individual developers
Half-Stack Development
- Granular distribution of software work
- Versatile web APIs and services
- Correct implementation of specialized requirements
- Excellent application security
- Conducive to the development of expertise in specific skills and technologies
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