Getting Started with Vite

A Practical Guide to the Fastest Frontend Dev Experience

Frontend tooling has changed dramatically in the last few years.
If you’ve used Webpack-based setups, you probably remember:

• Slow dev servers
• Long rebuild times
• Complex configuration
• Painful hot reloads

This is exactly the problem Vite was created to solve.

What Is Vite?

Vite is a modern frontend build tool that focuses on:

• ⚡ Instant dev server startup
• ⚡ Near-instant hot module replacement (HMR)
• 📦 Optimized production builds
• 🧠 Minimal configuration

Vite is not just a bundler — it’s a new way of thinking about frontend development.

Why Vite Is So Fast (The Secret Sauce)

Traditional tools:

• Bundle everything before the dev server starts

Vite:

• Serves source files directly via native ES modules
• Bundles only for production

What this means

✔ Dev server starts instantly
✔ Files are loaded on demand
✔ HMR is blazing fast

Step 1️⃣ Install Node.js (If Needed)

Vite requires:

• Node.js 18+ (recommended)

Check:

node -v

Step 2️⃣ Create Your First Vite Project

The easiest way is using Vite’s official scaffolding tool:

npm create vite@latest

You’ll be prompted to choose:

• Project name
• Framework (Vanilla, React, Vue, Svelte, etc.)
• TypeScript or JavaScript

Example (React + TS):

npm create vite@latest my-app -- --template react-ts

Then:

cd my-app
npm install
npm run dev

🎉 Your app is running in milliseconds.

Step 3️⃣ Project Structure (Simple & Clean)

Typical Vite project:

my-app/
├─ index.html
├─ src/
│  ├─ main.ts
│  ├─ App.tsx
├─ vite.config.ts
├─ package.json

Key difference:

index.html is part of your source, not hidden inside a build system.

This improves:

• Transparency
• Debugging
• DX

Step 4️⃣ Understanding vite.config.ts

Minimal config example:

import { defineConfig } from 'vite';

export default defineConfig({
  server: {
    port: 5173
  }
});

You don’t configure loaders, plugins, or bundling unless you really need to.

Step 5️⃣ Hot Module Replacement (HMR)

This is where Vite shines ✨

• State is preserved
• UI updates instantly
• No full reloads

Perfect for:

• Forms
• Dashboards
• Component-driven development

Step 6️⃣ TypeScript Works Out of the Box

Vite supports:

• TypeScript
• JSX / TSX
• CSS Modules
• PostCSS
• SCSS

No extra setup needed.

Step 7️⃣ Production Build (Powered by esbuild + Rollup)

Dev mode:

• Native ES modules

Production build:

• Bundled using esbuild + Rollup
• Optimized
• Tree-shaken
• Code-split

Build command:

npm run build

Preview production build:

npm run preview

Vite with Angular: The Reality (Important)

Angular does not officially use Vite by default.

Instead:

• Angular CLI uses esbuild
• Provides Vite-like DX
• With full Angular integration

You can use Vite with Angular via community tools, but:

• It’s not the recommended default
• Angular’s native build system already delivers similar speed

👉 For Angular apps: prefer Angular CLI (esbuild)
👉 For framework-agnostic or React/Vue apps: Vite is ideal

Vite vs Webpack (DX Comparison)

When You SHOULD Use Vite

✔ New projects
✔ React / Vue / Svelte apps
✔ Component libraries
✔ Design systems
✔ Micro-frontends

When You Should NOT Use Vite

❌ Legacy Angular CLI apps
❌ Heavy Webpack plugin dependency
❌ Highly custom build pipelines

Why Developers Love Vite

• Faster feedback loop
• Less mental overhead
• Cleaner configs
• More fun to work with

Vite makes frontend development feel modern again.

Final Thoughts

Vite isn’t just faster tooling —
it’s a developer experience upgrade.

If Webpack was about control,
Vite is about speed, simplicity, and clarity.

TL;DR

• Vite is a next-gen frontend build tool
• Instant dev server & fast HMR
• Minimal configuration
• Best for modern frontend frameworks
• Angular gets similar benefits via esbuild