What’s the difference between a front-end, back-end, and full-stack developer?
If you’re exploring a web development career path, chances are you’ve heard about these roles. But what do they mean, and what are their key differences?
To start, we find it helpful to think of back-end development as the landlord and the foundation that a house is on, and front-end development as the house built on top of the land with permission from the landlord. With that in mind, let's dig more into what exactly each role does:
What is a front-end developer?
A front-end web developer builds the people-facing parts of a website that users see and interact with, also known as the "client-side" of a website. This includes text, images, buttons, menus, and more. Their goal is to build and style websites that are user-friendly and accessible. Front-end developers primarily use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript coding languages.
At Juno, we’re experts in helping people become front-end developers through our Web Development Bootcamp!
What is a back-end developer?
A back-end developer builds the host and database of a website that users cannot see, also known as the "server-side" of the website. This includes storing, fetching, and manipulating data from servers behind the scenes to make the website function securely. Back-end developers may use coding languages such as Node.js, PHP, Python, Ruby, C, and more.
What is a full-stack developer?
A full-stack developer has the diverse skill set of creating applications that allow for the front-end and back-end to interact seamlessly. They’re familiar with languages on both ends, which means they can jump into either the client-side (front-end website) or server-side (back-end database) as needed to troubleshoot and advise.
Should I learn front-end, back-end, or full-stack development? Which is better?
It ultimately depends on your learning style and interests! Take some time to think about the kind of tasks and goals that appeal to you.
Maybe you’re more drawn to the visual and user-facing aspects of front-end development, or maybe the data-centric systems of back-end development appeal to you more. Or maybe these all appeal to you, and you want to get the best of both worlds with full-stack development!
It's also important to know that the lines between front-end, back-end, and full-stack aren’t always clear. Developers often specialize in either front-end or back-end, but they will still have knowledge of and may dabble in the other depending on their job or learning goals.
Should I learn front-end, back-end, or full-stack development first?
At Juno, we specialize in teaching front-end development in our HTML, CSS, and our full-time Web Development Bootcamp. Here’s why we recommend this route to start:
Front-end development is a better launch pad
Learning front-end development is often a successful launching point for those brand new to tech, because you're building things such as websites and applications that you’re already familiar with using every day. This added context often makes the front-end a better starting point, as opposed to back-end development, which may involve less familiar concepts such as servers and databases.
"But I want to be a jack of all trades!"
While you may be eager to become a full-stack developer right away, being an expert at both front-end and back-end languages takes time — and that’s okay! Being a developer means being a lifelong learner.
At Juno, we specialize in training our Web Development Bootcamp students to become job-ready as front-end developers over the course of 12 weeks. While other coding schools and bootcamps may include full-stack development in their curriculum, it often isn’t enough for students to master in a few weeks.
Our Bootcamp curriculum is carefully designed to make the most of our short time together. We’ve found that thoroughly focusing on front-end development rather than briefly introducing full-stack fundamentals better sets up our graduates for success in their first junior roles!
Explore our Web Development Bootcamp
Front-end languages are guaranteed to be used at your job
Another reason why we choose to focus on front-end development at Juno is that front-end is a much more condensed pool of languages that are universally used. HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are tools used across every company’s front-end tech stack, whereas back-end languages are much more varied, with their uses differing greatly across each company.
To set you up for success, we’re teaching languages that you’re guaranteed to use right after graduation, rather than teaching you a selection of back-end languages that you may not even use at all, depending on the companies you work for.
Specializing in front-end development can give you an advantage
Specializing in front-end development rather than having a general sense of full-stack development gives you a competitive edge in your job search. In fact, we’ve had our graduates get hired for front-end positions over those with Computer Science degrees, specifically because they’re more specialized in front-end with more hands-on experience and up-to-date knowledge!
It's also worth noting that junior roles are often either front-end and back-end focused, while full-stack jobs are more intermediate/senior roles for those who are more experienced. Many of our Bootcamp alumni move into full-stack positions after growing in their first roles!
We want to make sure our students are ready to thrive on the job right after graduation. Our focus on front-end development brings better results for new graduates just starting out in their new careers.
Curious about our Web Development Bootcamp?
See what you'll learn and build in our Bootcamp Package!