What is a Front End Developer?

Globally, web developers are some of the highest-earning professionals. In this digital era, their ability to build attractive and user-friendly websites is in demand. Therefore, we have designed our blog to help you learn more about this domain. With the help of our blog, you will be able to fast-track your process of pursuing web development.

While looking at some websites, do you not wish to design one that makes users want to revisit it and make use of it? You can do it too. This blog aims to show you the path to do it and become a certified front-end web developer.

However, before getting into the details of this profession, let us learn what front end development is.

What is Front End Development?

Front-end development, referred to as client-side development, uses JavaScript, HTML, and CSS to build web applications that users can use and interact with. This domain revolves around the look of a website and how the design is implemented.

Now, let us briefly understand what front-end developers do.

Have a look at the Top CSS Interview Questions

Who is a Front End Developer?

Professional front-end developers design and implement the user interface of web pages. Users need this interactive interface to access and use the web application for various purposes. By using programming languages to code.

The front end developers ensure that the designs they build work well. They need to stay updated with the latest tools and technologies that are used in this domain because the ways of creating websites keep changing.

Have a look at the Top JavaScript Interview Question

Front End Development vs. Back End Development

Let’s try to understand the difference between front end and back end development.

Check out our Full Stack Interview Questions to ace your next interview!

Why Is Front End Development Important?

Creating a user-friendly website is essential for a company to maintain its digital presence. Front end developer manages the visual aspect of the website, which impacts the face of the business. The following points will help you discover why front end developer is an important part of the team.

1. Improve User Experience 

A skilled front end developer can easily build an intuitive website with a seamless user experience.

2. Fast Loading Time

Any website’s loading speed is influenced by the method you use to load your data. A skilled front end developer can optimize the website’s performance by efficiently loading the data, which will eventually reduce the website’s load time.

3. Responsive Website

There are lots of different devices available on the market that have different screen sizes and resolutions. However, the user experience should be the same for every resolution. A front end developer can make that happen by using CSS frameworks like Tailwind CSS or Bootstrap.

4. Search Engine Optimization

Your brand’s image is greatly impacted by the website’s ranking. To achieve this, we have to focus on Search Enginer Optimization (SEO) and quality of the meta tags. Front end development includes these meta tags and optimizes your website according to current online trends.

Watch this video on how to become a professional in Front End Development:

Front End Developer Roles and Responsibilities

The following are some of the roles and responsibilities of Front End Developers :

• Design and implement the functional techniques and principles of web design
• Create codes that are reusable in the future
• Define the right balance between functional and aesthetic design.
• Enhance the speed and scalability of the website.
• Monitor the performance of the website and fix usability problems
• Creating codes that can also be used in the future.
• Develop tools and features that enhance customer experience
• Work with the organization’s web development team ensuring accuracy in the complete Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
• Integrate the backend with the front end.

Are you interested in Full Stack Development? Enroll in our Full Stack Developer Certification to learn from experts.

Front End Developer Skills in 2024

To become a successful front end developer in 2024, it is important  to have the necessary web developer skills. Following are some of the most important skills that a front end developer must possess:

1. HTML (Hyper Text Markup Langauge)

Front end developers must have proficiency in HTML, as it creates the structure for the website.

2. CSS (Cascading Style Sheet)

CSS is very important for the styling of web pages. It includes the color theory, typography, and other visual elements of the website design.

3. JavaScript

Mastery of JavaScript is important to become a front end developer, as it is used to create interactive and dynamic features. Apart from that, we also use javascript to create the functionality of the website.

4. Knowledge of Frameworks and Libraries

At present, companies do not prefer to code their websites using HTML and CSS. They utilize Javascripts frameworks and libraries, like AngularJs and ReactJs. Therefore, knowledge of frameworks and libraries is very important.

5. Cross-Browser and Device Testing

A frontend developer has to make sure that the developed website works on any screen size and resolution. Also, it should look the same on any web browser. 

6. Testing and Debugging

It is important to deliver a bug-free and production-ready website. To do so, front end developers also have to be proficient in browser developer tools for debugging and testing.

7. Web Performance Optimization (WPO)

Certain parameters can create a bad user experience, which includes a long loading time and amount of request it sends to the backend, and how much time it takes to fullfill any request. A frontend developer has to make sure that the loading time, of the website is minimal (1-2 seconds on average) and that fewer requests and responses are going on between the frontend and backend.

8. API (Application Programming Interfaces) Integration

A front end developer might have to fetch the data from the backend. To do so, knowledge of API integration is important.

Prepare yourself for next interview with DOT NET Interview Questions.

Front End Development: Commonly Used Programming Languages

As a Front-End Developer, you must be well-versed in various front end coding languages These languages help in creating scalable websites.

Following are the top recommended front end programming languages:

HTML

It stands for Hyper Text Markup Language. HTML is used for defining the design of the website and crafting a suitable structure for it. It is highly recommended for any front-end developer.

CSS

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets, and this language is used for providing a personalized touch to the website. Both HTML and CSS go hand in hand and are the most used languages by front-end developers.

VueJS

VueJS is an easy-to-use front-end programming language. It  is used for designing web pages and applications, preferably for shorter-duration projects that demand quick delivery.

JavaScript

It is the only language that can be used  to communicate between the front end and the back end. jQuery

This language makes use of JavaScript libraries for carrying out various functions, such as HTML traversal, event handling, various animations, document manipulation, etc.

Have a look at the JQuery Interview Questions.

React JS

React uses a JavaScript framework and is used in big web applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, etc. It is highly used in creating web front ends and visual user interfaces.

Have a look at the  React JS Training provided by Intellipaat!

Angular JS

Angular is used for creating single-page web applications and attractive visual designs.

Interested in React JS? Here is the React JS Training in Bangalore provided by Intellipaat.

How to Become a Front End Developer? Step-By-step Roadmap

To become a front-end developer, you will need to meet the following criteria:

Learn HTML

To start with frontend development, you first require the knowledge of basic HTML, which is hyper text markup langauge. It helps you to create and understand the basic structure of any web application.

Learn CSS

After creating the  basic web structure, it is very important to style it. We use CSS and CSS preprocessors  for the styling of the website. 

Learn JavaScript

Javascript plays an important role in the functionality of any website. It is not only used for creating frontend but also to create backend logic and integrating backend and frontend. 

Have a look at the Top JQuery Project Ideas

Learn Front End Development Tools

The top used front end development tools used are as follows:

• GitHub
• CodePen
• Angular.js
• Sass
• Sublime Text
• jQuery
• Google’s Chrome Developer Tools
• Cacoo
• Coggle
• Postman
• Pug
• Skeleton
• Cerebral

Check out the Top Postman Interview Questions

Learn the Command Line

Having knowledge of a command-line interface or a command-line language is very important, as it is required while using some specific front-end development tools. Another reason behind learning command-line is that it can be easily integrated with all tools as compared to the graphic line. Also, command-line is faster and simpler, and moreover, having ‘ skilled in command line knowledge’ adds more weightage to your resume.

Want to get good jobs in web development? Check our Front End developer interview questions.

Learn Version Control

One of the mandatory skills is knowledge of version control. Let us first understand the meaning. Version controls help in maintaining the records of the changes or modifications (addition or removal) made to the code. Version control can be used to create either a repository or a copy of work. If you are skilled in version control techniques, it adds value to the team as the web development process is sped up. 

Enhance Your Skills

After acquiring the above-mentioned skills, it is recommended that you further enhance these skills by working on practical projects. This will not only enhance your skills but also make you stand out from the other candidates. To be a successful Front-End developer, it is also important to remain updated about the latest front-end tools in the market and learn them.

Get an Internship

Internships are a great way to hone your skills and apply the knowledge you have gained. As a Front-end developer who is entering the industry, you should look for the right internship opportunities and apply the fresh ideas that you have to your job. This will help you become an expert in the same and prepare for bigger projects in the front-end development domain. Also, internships are a great way to sharpen your skills because you have a mentor who will provide you with the professional guidance in your work.

Scope of Front End Developers

This blog gives you an insight into what kind of professionals are front-end developers and what they do. Further, you learned about the various skills, tools, and languages that you will need to master to get into this domain. You also learned about the several front-end developer job opportunities awaiting you across the top MNCs of the world. So, with the help of our Web Development courses, become proficient in this field and land a high-paying front-end job.

Looking to crack your Web Development Interview? Read our comprehensive Web Development Interview Questions now!

What’s the Future of Front End Developers?

The requirements needed to become a Front-End Developer were different a decade ago from what it is today. A mere knowledge of HTML, and CSS was sufficient enough. But now, there are many tools involved and skills needed to decide the right fit as a Front-End Developer. This domain definitely has a future ahead but the entry of Full-Stack has occupied a certain space in the industry.

However, the qualities and skill set of a professional who only focuses on Front-End Development are of equal importance as a Full Stack Developer. The reason is- Full Stack even though combines Front-End as well as Back-End, has fewer skilled professionals in the market. Also, it is uncertain how many professionals will switch to Full-Stack. Hence, Front-End development is expected to continue being an in-demand skill set.

Front End Developer Jobs

Professionals in this field have a number of job profiles that they can apply for. Some of those include:

• Front end developer
• Front end engineer
• HTML or CSS developer
• Front-end web designer
• Tablet or mobile front-end developer
• Front-end SEO expert
• Front-end accessibility expert

There are over 11,000 jobs for these professionals in India, and more than 5,000 vacancies in the United States as per the jobs listed on LinkedIn.

Learn more about Front End Developer salary insights in India from our blog on Front End Developer Salary in India.

Now, let us check out the job descriptions that recruiters use while hiring these professionals.

Front End Developer Job Description

Front End Developer Job at Tesla, Salt Lake City:

Front End Developer Job at Morgan Stanley, Bengaluru:

To apply for these jobs, apart from learning all the concepts, you must prepare a front-end developer resume that consists of all the skills and tools that you have mastered, matching the skills in demand in the current market.

Become proficient in the field of Front End Web Development by enrolling in Intellipaat’s Angular Course.

Front End Developer Salary

The salaries earned by these professionals range based on multiple factors such as the company they work for, their position in the company, geographical location, and others.

As per Indeed, these developers earn an average of US$110,1000 p.a. in the United States.

According to PayScale, they earn about ₹487,699 p.a. on average in India. The highest salary received by such professionals is around 12,40,000. Refer to the graph below.

The average salary of a senior front-end developer is US$114,473 p.a., while a junior front-end developer earns an average of US$49,619 p.a.

Learn Web Development from top instructors by signing up for Intellipaat’s Web Development courses.

Is Front End Development Easy?

Front end development is considered one of the easiest programming fields, as it does not require any difficult logic building or knowledge of programming languages. However, you must be proficient in HTML, javascript, CSS and CSS framework, if you are planning to become a front end developer.

Every front end developer must know how to debug and troubleshoot the developed code. This process could be a little time-consuming and difficult when you are dealing with poorly written code.

Conclusion

This blog has thrown light on various topics related to Front-End Development and the professionals building a career or aspiring to build a career in it. The domain has evolved over time and will continue to remain a popular career choice in web development. We also learned what are the various skills and steps involved in becoming a Front-End Developer. We hope the blog has helped you with insightful information. If you wish to master web development, check out this Web Development Courses on intellipaat and start your journey in web development.

If you have any doubts, reach out to us at our Web Development Community!