React is the ecosystem giant: unmatched library support, hiring pool, and flexibility. Its strength—unopinionated composition—is also its tax: you choose routing, data fetching, state, and SSR strategies. If your team values freedom and has strong front-end leadership, React is a safe bet.
Vue shines with approachability. The template syntax feels natural, the reactivity model is intuitive, and the official router/store are cohesive. For teams moving from jQuery or needing fast onboarding, Vue reduces friction. Its ecosystem is smaller than React’s but more integrated, with fewer breaking changes between major versions.
Next.js wraps React with batteries: file-based routing, built-in data fetching modes, image optimization, and hybrid rendering (SSG/SSR/ISR). It suits marketing sites and SaaS apps that need SEO and speed out of the box. The downside: you inherit Next conventions and upgrade cadence, and server/client boundaries must be respected.
How to choose: For content-heavy, SEO-critical sites, Next.js is the most productive starting point. For internal tools where speed of building UI matters and team experience is mixed, Vue is excellent. For product teams that want maximum flexibility, long-term ecosystem bets, or plan to build custom rendering strategies, React core is still king.
Operational considerations: check hosting model (Node vs edge vs static), preferred data layer (REST vs GraphQL), and design system constraints. Evaluate bundle size budgets, internationalization needs, and caching strategy. Run a one-week spike building the same feature in two frameworks and decide based on DX, performance, and maintainability—not hype.