App Development with Flutter: All You Need to Know About!

• By Amardeep Singh Sandhu

• 20th August 2024

In 2017, who would have thought that a newly debuted innovation like Flutter would revolutionize mobile app development forever? Certainly, no one! But Flutter did this so effortlessly. In the ever-evolving world of tech industry, app development with Flutter has emerged as a game-changer. This Google-developed innovation has given the developers their biggest power – ‘An ability to create a cross-platform mobile application.’ Unlike other tools (which often require separate codebases for iOS and Android app development), Flutter allows developers to build visually pleasing, high-performance apps from a single codebase, saving their time and resources without compromising quality. With the introduction of Flutter 3.0 and several other advancements, Flutter has officially become one of the best frameworks to execute cross platform development.  

‘Flutter is the most popular framework for cross-platform app development. Around 46% of the developers around the globe prefers an app development with Flutter’. 

– According to the June 2023 Statista Survey by Lionel Sujay Vailshery, 

As we have moved ahead from 2023, Flutter continues to evolve, introducing new features and improvements that further solidify its position as a leading app development tool. 

Considering the massive interest of developers and businesses in leveraging this framework, Deftsoft has decided to walk you through the essential information you need to know about Flutter. This is why we’ve come up with a detailed guide related to app development with Flutter. 

We’ll start by exploring what Flutter is and why it stands out from other development tools. From there, we’ll dive into the key benefits of executing app development with Flutter. Next, we’ll guide you through the process of setting up this reliable app development too. Moreover, this guide will also explore the heart of Flutter – its widgets – starting with an introduction to the difference between stateless and stateful widgets and highlighting must-know widgets for beginners. Finally, we’ll share the best practices and tips to help you finish app development with Flutter seamlessly. 

So, without further ado, let’s jump straight into this blog post. 

What is Flutter? 

Flutter is an innovative open-source UI software development kit developed by Google in 2017. Unlike other tools, Flutter can help create cross-platform applications by using a single codebase only. It was first described and unveiled at the 2015 Dart developer summit. The first-ever version of Flutter was called ‘Sky,’ and it was used on Android devices. Google officially launched ‘Flutter’ on May 12, 2017. In no time, this unique application framework gained a lot of popularity and acclaim. A year later, Google released Flutter 1.0 during the framework’s live event on December 4, 2018. Taking constructive criticism in mind, Flutter 1.12 was launched on December 11, 2019, to provide better services. 

2020 was the year when industry people started recognizing the potential of Flutter. In May 2020, Flutter Dart SDK (Software Development Kit) version 2.8 and 1.17.0 were released. Both these versions proved to be revolutionary for Flutter as they enable developers to leverage Metal API and new material widgets. 

After this, Google didn’t stop to elevate the functionality and advancements in Flutter’s mechanism. Eventually, they ended up launching various versions – Flutter  2 in 2021, Flutter 3 & Dart 2.17 in 2022 and Dart 3 in 2023. 

Recently, the Flutter 3.24 version was launched in August 2024. 

Key Benefits of App Development with Flutter 

According to recent 2024 surveys, over 2 million developers have executed hassle-free app development with Flutter. Moreover, the 2022 Stack Overflow Developer Survey has counted Flutter as one of the ten most popular technologies in the tech field. This data clearly indicates the level of trust Flutter has gained among industry experts. This framework offers many benefits, contributing significantly to its rising popularity. Let’s explore these key benefits of Flutter. 

1. Fast Development Cycle 

Flutter’s innovative architecture enables developers to create high-quality applications across multiple platforms (desktop, web & mobile) through a single codebase only. Moreover, adding new features to apps with Flutter’s help is quick and efficient (Thanks to the availability of the ‘Hot Reload’ feature). Altogether, Flutter’s fast development cycle saves developers valuable time and resources. 

2. Customizable UI Design Options 

What sets Flutter apart from its competitors is its availability of highly customizable UI design options. App development with Flutter also offers easy customization, even for complex UI designs. Whether it’s shared element transitions, shadow manipulations, color & shape, or transformative, Flutter allows effortless design solutions. Moreover, Flutter’s mechanism also allows its applications to adapt to different screen sizes and ratios (according to device – phone or tablet). In short, a developer can create beautiful and well-managed user interfaces on Flutter. 

3. Top-Tier Native App Performance 

Flutter is a robust and versatile framework for building high-quality native apps across multiple platforms. Many businesses often struggle to create native apps, so they consider alternative options like PWAs (Progressive Web Apps). However, with the arrival of Flutter in the market, these alternative options have also fallen off. Businesses have started using Flutter to create high-end native apps. Flutter’s mechanism offers top-notch native app development capability, eliminating the use of any separate code or performance bugs. 

4. Easily Accessible

As an open-source framework, Flutter is free to use. This reduces development costs as no licensing fees are involved. This transparency of Flutter allows users to inspect, understand, and contribute to the framework, ensuring high-quality and secure code. The framework’s open-source nature also fosters a strong and active community of developers. This means extensive resources, libraries, and tools are available, and developers can seek help and share knowledge about app development with Flutter easily. 

Setting Up Flutter: A Step-by-Step Guide

Setting up Flutter for app development is a streamlined process that enables developers to create natively compiled applications for mobile, web, and desktop from a single codebase. Here’s a detailed step-by-step guide to start app development with Flutter.

Step #1: Install Flutter

A. Download Flutter SDK

Visit Flutter’s official website and download the latest stable version of the Flutter SDK for your operating system. This is a foundational step to execute an app development with Flutter. 

B. Extract the SDK

Extract the downloaded zip file to a desired location on your machine. For example:

For Windows: C:\src\flutter

For macOS/Linux: ~/flutter

C. Update Your Path

For: Windows:

1. Open Start Search, type in “env” and select “Edit the system environment variables”.
2. Click on “Environment Variables”.
3. In the “System variables” section, find the Path variable and click “Edit”.
4. Add the full path to the flutter/bin directory (e.g., C:\src\flutter\bin).

For macOS/Linux:

1. Open your terminal.
2. Add the following line to your shell startup file (.bashrc, .zshrc, or .bash_profile):

3. Run source ~/.bashrc or source ~/.zshrc to refresh the environment variables.

D. Run Flutter Doctor

Open your terminal or command prompt and run:

This command checks your environment for any dependencies you need to install and provides guidance on how to fix any issues.

Step #2: Install Required Tools

A. Android Studio (for Android Development)

1. Download and install Android Studio.
2. Open Android Studio, go to “Plugins” and install the Flutter and Dart plugins.
3. Set up an Android Emulator via the AVD Manager in Android Studio.

B. Xcode (for iOS Development) (macOS Only)

1. Download and install Xcode.
2. Open Xcode and agree to the license agreement.
3. Install additional components if prompted.
4. Open Xcode, go to “Preferences” > “Locations”, and set the Command Line Tools to the latest version.

Step #3: Set Up a New Flutter Project

A. Create a New Project

Open your terminal or command prompt and navigate to the directory where you want to create your project.

Run this: 

Replace my_app with your preferred project name.

B. Navigate to Your Project Directory

C. Open the Project in Your IDE

Open the project directory in Android Studio or VS Code.

Step #4: Run Your Flutter App

A. Connect a Device

Ensure an Android Emulator or iOS Simulator is running, or connect a physical device.

B. Run the App

In your terminal, run:

You can also use the “Run” button in your IDE.

Step #5: Build and Release Your App

A. Build for Android

To build a release APK, run

B. Build for iOS

To build for iOS app development with Flutter, ensure you have a physical device or simulator connected and run:

Sample Code: Basic Flutter App

Here’s a simple example of a Flutter app that displays “Hello, World!”:

Exploring Flutter Widgets

The building blocks of the user interface (UI) in Flutter are known as Widgets. Everything you create in a Flutter app, from the simplest button to complex layouts, is in a widget. In short, these widgets in Flutter represent an app’s visual and interactive elements. Widgets (the heart and soul of Flutter) can be categorized into five divisions. 

Categories	Different Widgets in Each Category
Structural Widgets	Center, Container, Column, Row, Stack
Functional Widgets	GestureDetector, Form, Expanded, ListView, Navigator
Styling Widgets	Padding, Align, DecorateBox, Transform, Opacity
Composition Widgets	Column, Row, Stack, GridView, Wrap
Text and Icon Widgets	Text, RichText, Icon, Image, FlutterLogo

Two Types of Flutter Widgets (On the Basis of Change of State): Stateless vs Stateful Widgets 

Flutter Widgets can also be classified into two primary types – Stateless and Stateful, on the basis of their change of state. Let’s differentiate both of them to understand their crucial meaning. 

1. Stateless Widgets: 

Meaning: 

Stateless widgets are immutable, meaning that once they are built, they cannot change their state or properties. They are particularly designed for situations where the UI doesn’t need to update or change based on user interaction or other events. 

Key Characteristics: 

• The properties of a Stateless widget are final and cannot be altered once the widget is created. 
• They have a single build() method. 
• Since stateless widgets are immutable, they don’t need any updates or an internal management system. 

Example:

Container, Padding, Center, DecoratedBox, Opacity & More. 

2. Stateful Widgets 

Meaning:

As the name ‘Stateful’ itself suggests, Stateful Widgets are dynamic and can change over time in response to user action or other events. Unlike ‘Stateless Widgets,’ they maintain a mutable state that can be updated, causing the widget to rebuild and reflect the changes. 

Key Characteristics 

• They are mutable, dynamic, and ever-evolving. 
• The State object can be updated, and when it is, the widget’s build() method is called again to reflect the updated state.
• They have a plethora of lifecycle methods that allow developers to handle initialization and resources and perform cleanup. 

Examples: 

Checkbox, Slider, Textfield & Animated0pacity.

Summing Up: Stateless vs. Stateful Widgets 

Aspect	Stateless Widget	Stateful Widget
Mutability	Immutable	Mutable
State Management	No internal state management	Manages state via State object
Lifecycle Methods	Only build() method	Full lifecycle methods
Use Cases	Static content, simple layouts	Interactive, dynamic UIs
Performance	Typically faster due to immutability	Slightly slower due to state management

Must-Known Widgets for Beginners

Flutter offers a wide variety of widgets, but as a beginner, it’s important to understand some core widgets that are essential for building basic apps. Here’s a list of must-known widgets that beginners can consider in successful app development with Flutter. 

1.  Container 

What does it do? 

This versatile widget allows you to apply padding, margins, borders, and background color to its child widget. 

2. Text 

What does it do? 

It helps to display a string of text or labels within an app. 

3. Row and Column 

What Does It Do? 

During app development with Flutter, They help to arrange widgets either horizontally or vertically. 

4. Image 

What does it do? 

It aims to display images in your app, such as logos, profile pictures, or any media. 

5. Scaffold 

What does it do? 

It provides the basic structure of a visual app, such as the AppBar, body, and floating action button. 

6. Listview 

What does it do? 

It is used when you need a scrolling list of items. 

7. Elevated Button 

What does it do? 

It is used for clickable buttons in the app. 

8. TextField 

What does it do? 

A widget that allows users to enter text. 

9. Padding 

What does it do? 

This widget aims to facilitate the successful padding around a widget. 

10. Icon 

What does it do? 

It displays an icon from a predefined icon set. 

Best Practices and Tips for Flutter Development

App development with Flutter is an effective way to turn your vision into reality. The process of app development with Flutter may seem easy to many. However, if we dig deep, this may pose various challenges. Following are some expert tips and practices to consider for successful app development with Flutter. 

1. Use Widgets Efficiently

Flutter is built around widgets, so focus on creating reusable, efficient widgets to keep your code organized and reduce redundancy. During an app development with Flutter, consider breaking your UI into smaller components for better maintenance.

2. Leverage State Management

Choose the right state management solution based on your app’s complexity. Providers, Riverpod, and Bloc, are popular options for managing the app state efficiently.

3. Optimize Performance

Minimize build method calls, use const constructors where possible, and avoid unnecessary rebuilds. Profiling tools like Flutter’s DevTools can help identify performance bottlenecks.

4. Testing and Debugging

During an app development with Flutter, prioritize writing unit, widget, and integration tests. Flutter’s flutter_test package provides robust tools for automated testing, ensuring your app’s stability across updates.

Conclusion: Is Flutter Right for Your Next Project?

So, now, we’ve finally reached the end of this blog. We would like to address your frequently asked questions related to app development with Flutter. 

Is Flutter the right choice for my next project? 

Today, Flutter stands as the most popular framework for app development. Unlike its competitors, Flutter excels in creating high-quality, natively compiled apps for both iOS and Android from a single codebase. With its wide range of pre-designed widgets and components, app development with Flutter provides a highly responsive and visually appealing user interface. On top of that, this leading framework has a vibrant community and strong support from Google. This means developers can find ample help and solutions within Flutter’s community. Considering all these points, Deftsoft believes.

“App development with Flutter for your next project is the right choice”

However, you only need to contact a reliable Flutter app development company to do so. 

With 19+ years of experience, Deftsoft is a premier provider of flutter app development solutions. Our experienced team is dedicated to providing successful app development with Flutter. Whether you’re looking to create a dynamic app or enhance an existing one, our team offers top-tier efficiency, scalability, and excellence. Trust us in our expertise to turn your app ideas into reality! Contact us now!