Why Did Bootstrap Stop Using jQuery?

In the world of web development, Bootstrap is a popular front-end framework that is used to create responsive websites. It has been around since 2011 and has become the go-to choice for many developers. Recently, Bootstrap 5 was released and it made a major change to the framework – it removed jQuery as a requirement. This article will discuss why Bootstrap stopped using jQuery and the implications of this change.

What is jQuery?

Before we can discuss why Bootstrap stopped using jQuery, it is important to understand what jQuery is. jQuery is a JavaScript library that was created in 2006. It is used to simplify HTML document traversing, event handling, animation, and Ajax interactions for rapid web development. It is a popular choice for many developers and is used in many websites.

Why Did Bootstrap Stop Using jQuery?

There are several reasons why Bootstrap stopped using jQuery. The first is that jQuery is no longer necessary for many of the tasks that it was used for. Modern browsers have become much more capable and many of the tasks that jQuery was used for can now be done natively in the browser. This means that developers can use less code and the website will be faster and more efficient.

The second reason is that jQuery is a large library. It adds 85KB of minified JavaScript to the page, which can be significant as Google starts to use page speed as a ranking factor for mobile web sites, and soon for desktop web sites as well. By removing jQuery, Bootstrap 5 can save this 85KB of JavaScript and make websites faster.

The third reason is that jQuery is not as popular as it once was. Many developers are now using other libraries such as React and Vue.js, which are more modern and perform better than jQuery. By removing jQuery, Bootstrap 5 can make it easier for developers to use other libraries and create more modern websites.

The Implications of Removing jQuery

The removal of jQuery from Bootstrap 5 has several implications for developers. The first is that developers will need to use other libraries for certain tasks. This means that developers will need to learn how to use these other libraries, which can be time consuming.

The second implication is that websites built with Bootstrap 5 will be faster and more efficient. This is because the 85KB of minified JavaScript that was added by jQuery is no longer needed. This can help websites rank higher in search engine results and can improve the user experience.

The third implication is that developers will need to update their existing websites to use Bootstrap 5. This can be a time consuming process, but it is necessary to ensure that websites are using the latest version of Bootstrap and are taking advantage of the performance improvements.

Conclusion

Bootstrap 5 has removed jQuery as a requirement, which has several implications for developers. It saves 85KB of minified JavaScript, which can help websites rank higher in search engine results and can improve the user experience. It also means that developers will need to use other libraries for certain tasks and will need to update their existing websites to use Bootstrap 5.