Replatforming from Xamarin: Flutter or .NET MAUI?

As of May 2024, Xamarin will no longer receive support from Microsoft, and this could lead to app stores rejecting new builds on Xamarin projects. This news has left many developers scrambling to find solutions for their Xamarin projects. There are three options that can be taken into consideration.

1. Do nothing (good luck 🍀)
2. Migrate the app from Xamarin to Microsoft's new platform, .NET MAUI.
3. Rebuild the app with Flutter.

While .NET MAUI is an option for those who want to stay in the Microsoft ecosystem, there are many uncertainties regarding how long it will take to migrate, based on multiple factors. Integrations, dependencies, and UI design systems may need to be completely rebuilt or refactored to work in the new framework. The amount of effort to migrate a new project into a new platform contains too much uncertainty. It is not the best investment as you would just end up with the same build.

Our recommendation is to rebuild the app with Flutter, an open source mobile development framework. We support Flutter and see it as a better platform for many reasons: more open-source developer support, faster development, cross platform development, and a growing supportive community. You can also take this re-platforming time to fix issues you currently have, resolve technical debt, improve UX/UI, and utilize the efficiencies and support Flutter provides.

If you're considering replatforming your Xamarin app, we recommend taking a close look at Flutter as the potential option. With its massive and growing community and support channels, open-source tools, and ease of use, it may be the best choice for your app's future.

– Cody Larson, Senior Backend Developer