Dart vs. Swift Comparison: Common Types, Syntax, and Usage

Dart vs. Swift Comparison: Common Types, Syntax, and Usage

1. Integer Types

• Swift: Int, Int8, Int16, Int32, Int64, UInt
• Dart: int
• Comment: Swift provides various integer sizes including unsigned (UInt), while Dart uses a general int type for integers.

2. Floating-point Types

• Swift: Float, Double
• Dart: double
• Comment: Both languages use floating-point types, with Double in Swift and double in Dart providing higher precision.

3. Boolean Types

• Swift: Bool
• Dart: bool
• Comment: Both languages use a boolean type to represent true and false values.

4. String Types

• Swift: String
• Dart: String
• Comment: Both Swift and Dart use String to represent sequences of characters.

5. Character Types

• Swift: Character
• Dart: String (single character)
• Comment: In Swift, Character is distinct from String, whereas in Dart, a single character is a String of length 1.

6. Collection Types

• Array/List:
• Set:
• Dictionary/Map:

7. Optional/Null Handling

• Swift: Optional (?) and Implicitly Unwrapped Optional (!)
• Dart: null with nullable types (?)
• Comment: Swift uses Optional for nullable types, while Dart uses null and nullable types are marked with ?.

8. Function Types

• Swift: (Int, Int) -> Int
• Dart: int Function(int, int)
• Comment: Both languages define function types, but Dart uses Function explicitly for function types.

9. Class and Object

• Swift: class, AnyObject
• Dart: class, Object
• Comment: Both languages use class to define reference types. Swift uses AnyObject, and Dart uses Object for any object reference.

10. Structs

• Swift: struct
• Dart: N/A (does not have structs)
• Comment: Swift supports struct, which are value types. Dart does not have struct, but classes are used instead.

11. Enums

• Swift: enum
• Dart: enum (available from Dart 2.17)
• Comment: Both languages support enum, but Dart has more flexible enum features since version 2.17.

12. Tuple Handling

• Swift: (Int, String) or typealias
• Dart: N/A (Dart doesn’t have native tuple support)
• Comment: Swift allows tuples for grouping values of different types. Dart does not have native tuple support but can use List or Map.

13. Type Aliases

• Swift: typealias
• Dart: typedef
• Comment: Swift uses typealias and Dart uses typedef to create type aliases.

14. Anonymous Functions (Closures)

• Swift: { (param) -> ReturnType in ... }
• Dart: () => { ... } or (param) => returnValue
• Comment: Both languages support closures, though the syntax differs.

15. Never Type

• Swift: Never (for functions that don’t return)
• Dart: Never (from Dart 2.13)
• Comment: Both languages use Never to indicate that a function never returns, such as in infinite loops or error-throwing functions.

16. Void

• Swift: Void
• Dart: void
• Comment: Swift uses Void, and Dart uses void to represent functions that don’t return any value.

17. Any Type

• Swift: Any
• Dart: dynamic
• Comment: Both languages allow the use of Any (Swift) or dynamic (Dart) for variables that can hold any value.

Key Differences Between Swift and Dart Types:

1. Nullable Types:
2. Structs:
3. Tuples:
4. Enums:
5. Void/Unit:

Example Comparison:

Function Declaration with Parameters and Return Type

Swift:

func add(a: Int, b: Int) -> Int {
    return a + b
}
        

Dart:

int add(int a, int b) {
    return a + b;
}
        

Optional/Null Handling

Swift:

var name: String? = "Alice"
if let unwrappedName = name {
    print("Name is \(unwrappedName)")
}
        

Dart:

String? name = "Alice";
if (name != null) {
    print("Name is $name");
}
        

Conclusion:

• Swift is tailored for native iOS/macOS development, with robust features like structs and optional types.
• Dart, often used with Flutter, is optimized for cross-platform development (mobile, web, and desktop).

Both languages have powerful and unique features, making the choice between them dependent on your project requirements and platform.

This format ensures that the comparison is clear and easy to read for anyone, regardless of the platform they're using. It should work well across all systems and text-based editors.