Better than Next.js? I Tried Rust’s New Full-Stack Web Framework: Topcoat
Is Rust finally ready for full-stack web development?
After interviewing Carl Lerche, the creator of Tokio, I decided to try Topcoat myself. Topcoat is a new batteries-included Rust framework for building full-stack reactive web applications, created by the team behind Tokio and Axum.
Related video: • Better than Next.js? Is Rust Finally Ready...
In this video, I build my first Topcoat application and explore its developer experience, server-side rendering, hot reload, reactive components, module-based routing, Tailwind support, UI components, asset bundling, sessions, database integrations, and more.
Could Topcoat become the Rust alternative to Next.js, Laravel, Django, or Ruby on Rails?
My first impression was much better than expected. Hot reload works, the syntax feels surprisingly simple, and the potential is huge. Topcoat is still at an early stage and breaking changes should be expected, but it could become one of the most important projects in the Rust web ecosystem.
🔗 Links & Resources
Topcoat GitHub Repository:
https://github.com/tokio-rs/topcoat
My conversation with Carl Lerche and Julien Scholz:
• Better than Next.js? Is Rust Finally Ready...
Website:
https://francescociulla.com
📌 Timestamps
0:00 What is Topcoat? A batteries-included Rust web framework
1:33 GitHub repository, basic syntax, Topcoat UI, macros, and components
2:35 Building a Hello World application with Topcoat
5:56 Topcoat CLI, the topcoat dev command, and hot reload
9:00 Components, shards, HTML templates, module-based routing, UI, assets, fonts, icons, and Toasty
12:27 Conclusions and first impressions