What is Backend Web Development?

Have you ever wondered that when you sign up for a web application, you generally get a confirmation code on your registered mail id? As soon as you confirm it, you get access to that web application.

What is the mechanism behind all this?

The answer to these questions lies in backend web development.

According to Indeed, the average base salary of backend developers is $94,973 in the United States.

So, if you are a developer and looking to build your career in backend, this blog will provide you the complete information. Being a leading web development company, we have curated this exclusive guide for you, along with all the information that you need to know for backend web development.

Let’s start with the basics of backend web development.

What is Backend Web Development?

The backend developers are the ones who build backend logic which helps the database and the application communicate with one another.

For instance: If someone searches for a shirt on Amazon. A backend developer uses server-side language to pull all the information about shirts from a database. That information is then processed in an application and returned to the user through front-end.

Some famous backend web applications are Instagram, Pinterest, Reddit, Trivago and Amazon. To know more about backend web development, you need to know more about front-end and back-end development.

Let’s understand the difference.

Difference Between Frontend and Backend Web Development

Let us understand the differences between frontend and backend development

Since you already know the difference about front-end and backend web development, let’s understand backend web development with examples.

Types of Backend Web Development Programming Languages

Now, let’s look at the popular backend programming languages used in backend web development.

1. C# – Provides Excellent Integrity and Better Interporability

C# is a Microsoft-developed object-oriented programming language built on the foundations of C, a widely used programming language. It was intended to be used as part of the.NET framework to develop Windows applications.

C# is a general-purpose programming language used in backend web development, game development with Unity, mobile app development, and other areas. Its MVC (Model-View-Controller) architectural pattern delegated backend development to a controller, who interacted with a model to process data. The result is then displayed to the viewer as a frontend web page.

It can be used not only on the Windows platform but also on Android, iOS, and Linux. It is one of the most effective programming languages for web development. Some famous companies that use C# for backend technologies are Microsoft, Starbucks, Stack Overflow etc.

The pros and cons of using C# are:

Pros of C#	Cons of C#
Capable of collaborating on shared codebases	Less flexible than C++
When compared to C and C++, it is more secure	Takes time and effort to learn
Completely integrated with the.NET library	Need to have good knowledge and expertise to resolve errors
Contains a diverse set of data types and library functions	–
Faster compilation and execution process	–

2. Java – Emphasis on Security

Java is a powerful object-oriented programming (OOP) language that is used for Android development as well as desktop and web application development. Java is a platform-independent multi-purpose programming language that has been a popular choice of language in many organizations for decades.

Because of its stability, it has been adopted by most businesses. It is one of the best web development languages 2022 that you should learn. Some famous companies that use Java for backend technologies are Airbnb, Uber, LinkedIn, HubSpot etc.

Here are the pros and cons of Java.

Pros of Java	Cons of Java
It offers a wide range of open-source libraries	The lack of templates limits the development of high-quality data structures
It has inbuilt automatic garbage collection and memory allocation	Memory management is costly
With the help of the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), it is possible to achieve a high level of platform independence	Java is slower than other languages such as C and C++
Java supports multithreading	–
Provides a wide array of APIs for performing various tasks such as networking, XML parsing, utilities, and database connection	–

3. Ruby – Easy to Manage Changes

Ruby on Rails (also known as Ruby) is a web development language based on the Ruby programming language. Ruby on Rails includes tools that allow you to create basic tasks quickly. For instance, you can create a simple blog with one line of code.

Ruby requires little backend work, allowing developers to create and launch applications quickly. Its popularity grew after the release of Ruby on Rails, which has since been used as a server-side language for web applications. Some famous companies that use Ruby for backend technologies are Airbnb, AngelList, Scribd, Codecademy, etc.

Want to know in-depth about this technology? From this blog, know what Ruby on Rails is.

The pros and cons of using Ruby are:

Pros of Ruby	Cons of Ruby
It is much easier to learn than other programming languages	The performance is much slower when compared with other programming languages
It offers a wide variety of tools and libraries	Ruby has a lack of flexibility
It has a huge and active community	–
Development is easier and faster	–

4. Python – Clean Syntax and Easy to Read Code

Python is the most powerful and best multi-purpose programming language for web development and data analysis. It is an open-source language that is simple to learn and use, as well as simple to deploy.

It is one of the best backend languages for web development, and it integrates seamlessly with programming languages such as C and C++. Python development can be used for scalable pages and applications. Some famous companies that use Python for backend technologies are Uber, Spotify, Quora, Netflix etc.

However, most of the people get confused between which technology to select Python or Ruby. If you want to know which is the best one for you, check this blog about Ruby on Rails vs Python for backend development.

The pros and cons of using Python are:

Pros of Python	Cons of Python
It supports a variety of platforms and systems	Python uses a lot of memory
It provides a diverse set of support libraries	The Global Interpreter Lock (GIL) in Python prevents multiple threads from running simultaneously
It allows you to scale even complex web applications easily	–
It is easy to learn	–

5. JavaScript – Best for Code-sharing and Reusability

JavaScript is the most flexible programming language and is the most preferred language for web development. It can be used by frontend and backend developers, making it the most powerful language.

Node.js, a backend programming language, is a type of JavaScript. The Node.js framework, among other things, enables a developer to manage data updates from the front end and create scalable network applications capable of handling numerous concurrent user requests. Here are the popular companies that uses JavaScript websites including eBay, HotelTonight, Square etc.

The pros and cons of using JavaScript are:

Pros of JavaScript	Cons of JavaScript
It is fast and runs immediately on browsers without requiring compilation	It does not support multiple inheritances
It is simple to integrate and implement with other languages	As the JavaScript code is visible to the user, it can be easily exploited
It is highly versatile and provides data validation functionality	–
It can be used in the frontend and backend, so you don’t need to learn a new backend language	–
Just like Python, the syntax is easy, making learning easier	–

6. PHP – Easy and Simple to Learn

PHP is a great language for web development. Despite strong competition from other languages such as JavaScript and Python, there is still a high demand for PHP development services in the market today.

Furthermore, PHP is a dynamic and general-purpose language for developing server-side applications. It can run on Mac, UNIX, and Windows systems. It is used in the web industry to build and deploy applications rapidly. Here are the best PHP development tools for backend web application development.

Facebook, one of the most popular social platforms, is developed using PHP. Some famous companies that use PHP for backend technologies are Facebook, Viber, Lyft, Mint etc.

The pros and cons of using PHP are:

Pros of PHP	Cons of PHP
There are numerous frameworks available	When compared to other languages, creating a web page with only PHP can be slower
Simple to use when creating web pages	It lacks security and error-handling features
It has the Xdebug extension, which is useful for debugging	–
It provides a massive ecosystem as well as excellent community support	–
It supports a variety of automation tools for testing and deploying applications	–
PHP also supports functional and object-oriented programming paradigms	–

7. TypeScript – Makes Code Management Easier

TypeScript is the superset of JavaScript that expands on the foundation of JS to allow you to write higher-quality, less buggy code. Microsoft created it to make JS code easier to understand. Further, read more to learn about the difference between TypeScript and JavaScript.

It can be used with other JS technologies such as NodeJS and Express in the backend, which makes it quite powerful.

Furthermore, JavaScript is a scripting language, whereas TypeScript is an object-oriented programming language. Also, it is statically typed, which means that unless you specify the variable type, the code will not run, making error detection simple. Some famous companies that use TypeScript for backend technologies are Slack, Canva, DoorDash, etc.

The pros and cons of using TypeScript are:

Pros of TypeScript	Cons of TypeScript
It supports inheritance, private members and interfaces	You will have to write more code per line of code
It has rich IDE support with autocomplete and code navigation features	Debugging in the browser can be a cumbersome task
It is easier to learn if you know the basics of JavaScript	–

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8. Golang – Well-scaled and Provides Faster Execution

GO is also called Golang. It is a statically typed compiling programming language developed by Google. It was made available to the general public in 2009. It has a syntax similar to C/C++ but also has memory safety, garbage collection, and other features that make it ideal for backend programming. It also makes code more readable than C, Python, or Java.

Go is a fast backend programming language because its compiler can translate its source code to machine code. It also has a feature that makes bug identification easier. Some famous companies that use Golang for backend technologies are Google, Shopify, Twitch, etc.

The pros and cons of using GO are:

Pros of Golang	Cons of Golang
GO is a lightning-fast programming language	It has a limited library, so you must rely on external libraries
It also offers built-in lists, maps, and primitive types such as byte, int, and string which are simple to use	The GO community is very small
Unlike C and C++, memory management has been made purposefully simple and easy in go programming	–
The syntax is very easy to learn	–

Since we have understood the most used technologies with its pros and cons, let’s even understand the responsible person for creating a backend of the web application.

Who is Responsible for Creating Backend of Web Applications?

A backend web developer is responsible for creating the backend of the web applications.

Backend developers typically create web services and APIs used by frontend developers. The primary objective of the backend developer is to write server-side logic, maintain the central databases and ensure high responsiveness and performance for frontend requests.

The backend developer works on these four technologies. These are

• Backend programming languages
• Databases
• Servers
• Application programming interfaces (APIs)

Let’s understand four of them in brief.

What are the Roles and Responsibilities of a Backend Developer?

The responsibilities of a backend developer include writing APIs, interacting with the database, debugging, creating libraries, and improving the data architecture of the web application.

The daily roles and responsibilities of a backend developer in any organization are

• Coordinate with the front end developer and develop server-side algorithms to transfer data efficiently.
• Collaborate with Project Managers and Quality Assurance to optimize the code.
• Building the architecture while keeping the applications’ speed, scalability and stability.
• Implementing security structures in the application.
• Writing code that is reusable.
• Handling all the bugs and errors.
• Testing the application before deploying it on servers.

We have discussed the pros and cons of all the commonly used languages in the field of backend development. We recommend you pick a language and start implementing it. Instead of memorizing the concepts, start building a website and apply the concepts and code fundamentals. The more you put your knowledge to use, the more you’ll gain practical knowledge.

Ready to Start with Web Development

Becoming a backend developer is a very rewarding career now. But it is essential that you follow the right steps, or you will waste valuable time and money.

You must be open to continuous learning as technology keeps evolving daily. After all, even successful developers are continuously learning and updating themselves.

Keep it simple, focus on practical knowledge, and write as much code as possible. With enough practice, you’ll feel much more confident.
Still have doubts?

You can contact Monocubed to develop the right web solution for your company. Our web developers can provide expert guidance throughout the website development process if you require assistance.

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