ASP.NET Web API and ASP.NET Core | Quick Comparision | 2023

ASP.NET Web API and ASP.NET Core are both frameworks for building web applications in C#. And, If you are a .Net Developer and being involved in the Microsoft tech stack for a long. You would definitely work with both.

Let’s try to understand the basic difference between both of these frameworks.

1. Architecture: ASP.NET Web API is built on top of ASP.NET MVC, whereas ASP.NET Core is built on top of a new, lightweight framework that is not tied to any specific UI layer.
2. Cross-platform support: ASP.NET Core is designed to be cross-platform, meaning it can run on Windows, Linux, and macOS, whereas ASP.NET Web API is primarily designed to run on Windows.
3. Dependency injection: ASP.NET Core has built-in support for dependency injection, whereas ASP.NET Web API does not.
4. Performance: ASP.NET Core is generally faster than ASP.NET Web API, due in part to its lightweight architecture.
5. Middleware pipeline: ASP.NET Core uses a middleware pipeline to handle requests, whereas ASP.NET Web API uses controllers and actions.
6. Hosting model: ASP.NET Core uses a new, modular hosting model that allows applications to be run in a variety of environments, whereas ASP.NET Web API relies on IIS or a self-hosted HTTP server.
7. JSON serialization: ASP.NET Core includes a built-in JSON serializer based on the popular Newtonsoft.Json library, whereas ASP.NET Web API uses a custom serializer.

Compare in terms of Performance

In terms of performance, ASP.NET Core generally outperforms ASP.NET Web API due to its lightweight architecture, improved request processing pipeline, and optimized runtime environment.

Here are some factors that contribute to the performance differences between ASP.NET Web API and ASP.NET Core:

1. Request processing pipeline: ASP.NET Core’s middleware-based request processing pipeline is more flexible and efficient than ASP.NET Web API’s controller/action model. It allows requests to be processed in a more modular and extensible way, with fewer unnecessary steps.
2. Cross-platform support: ASP.NET Core is designed to run on multiple platforms, including Windows, Linux, and macOS, while ASP.NET Web API is primarily designed to run on Windows. This means that ASP.NET Core can take advantage of the performance benefits of Linux and other non-Windows platforms.
3. Modular design: ASP.NET Core is designed to be a modular and extensible framework, allowing developers to include only the components they need in their applications. This helps to reduce the size and complexity of applications, leading to better performance.
4. Optimized runtime environment: ASP.NET Core uses the .NET Core runtime, which is optimized for performance and designed to run on multiple platforms. This can lead to faster startup times and lower memory usage than the full .NET Framework used by ASP.NET Web API.

Conclusion

Overall, ASP.NET Core is a more modern and efficient framework that is better suited for building high-performance web applications. However, the performance differences between ASP.NET Web API and ASP.NET Core may vary depending on the specific requirements of the application, and other factors such as hardware configuration and network latency can also impact performance.