Client-side rendering (CSR) and Server-side rendering (SSR)

Client-side rendering (CSR) and server-side rendering (SSR) are two different approaches for rendering web content and delivering it to the user's browser.

Client-side rendering (CSR) is a technique where the majority of the rendering process is performed on the client-side, typically using JavaScript frameworks like React, Angular, or Vue.js. In CSR, the initial HTML document sent by the server is minimal and includes references to JavaScript and CSS files. The browser downloads these files and executes the JavaScript code, which dynamically generates and updates the HTML content based on data fetched from APIs. This approach provides a more interactive and dynamic user experience since the rendering and updates happen on the client-side without requiring full page reloads. However, CSR can have slower initial loading times as the client needs to download and execute JavaScript files before rendering the content.

Server-side rendering (SSR), on the other hand, is a technique where the server generates the complete HTML content for a web page and sends it to the client. The server executes the application code and combines it with data to generate the HTML response, which is then sent to the browser. SSR provides faster initial loading times since the server delivers a fully rendered page to the client. It also enables better search engine optimization (SEO) since search engines can easily parse and index the complete HTML content. However, SSR can be less interactive compared to CSR since it may require full page reloads for certain dynamic updates, and it can put more load on the server as it needs to generate HTML for each request.

Both CSR and SSR have their own advantages and considerations. CSR is often preferred for complex, interactive web applications where frequent updates are required, while SSR is favored for content-heavy websites or when SEO is a crucial requirement. Some frameworks and libraries, such as Next.js, offer hybrid solutions that combine both CSR and SSR to leverage the benefits of both approaches.