10 Best CI/CD For Flutter

When you click on this article, there must be an obvious question in your mind, like “What is CI/CD?” “Why do we need it in Flutter?” “How can it help me become a better flutter developer?” etc. To answer all your questions and share best CI/CD for Flutter, read this article till the end.

Suppose you made an app using Flutter and then uploaded it on GitHub. When your friend clones the app to their device, it crashes with multiple breakages. So, how do they prevent that from happening? The answer is CI/CD.

In easy words, CI/CD (Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment) is like a robot that helps developers make applications make sure that their new code works well with the old code and can be sent out to be used by people quickly and easily.

Continuous Integration (CI) is the process of automatically building and testing code changes. This helps developers catch and fix any bugs or issues before they become huge problems and hamper the development process.

Continuous Deployment (CD) is the process of automatically releasing code changes to production. CD allows for faster updates and new features to be delivered to users with ease.

Imagine you are building a big Lego tower. Every time you add a new Lego block, the robot (CI/CD) checks to ensure it fits well with the other blocks and doesn’t make the tower fall. Then, once the robot is sure the new block is good, it helps you put it on the tower (CD), so the tower can be taller and cooler to look at.

But which one should you use and why? There are several CI/CD tools available on the web. So, we filter out the ten best CI CD for Flutter Projects and App Developers.

Best CI/CD Tools For Flutter

1. Jenkins

Jenkins is CI server-based application that is built with Java and is open-source. It requires a web server like Apache Tomcat to run on various platforms like Windows, Linux, macOS, Unix, etc.

It can help developers to build and test software at a rapid rate. If you are building software, Jenkins will continuously test the software for you.

Let’s say ten programmers in the team are building software daily by uploading it to GitHub. But there is a chance that an error caused by one programmer’s code can break the whole project. To prevent this, Jenkins tests the integration before actually integrating it. It makes sure that no bugs are present during deployment.

2. Travis CI

Travis CI is an open-source CI/CD tool developed by Idera and written in Ruby. It was the first CI that provides services to open-source projects for free and continues to do so now.

Travis CI services are used by well-known brands such as Microsoft, AWS, Google, Facebook, etc. It provides clean VMs (Virtual Machines) for every build.

Travis CI provides live build requests, and when passing those builds, it auto-deploys the code. Its multi-environment testing ensures your software runs on every platform without errors.

It can be helpful for developers to find bugs in their code easily and ensure their software doesn’t break when delivering new features to users. Its pinpoint features help you find specific bugs in your code without making you waste your time in guesswork.

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3. Circle CI

Circle CI is a CI/CD tool that automates software development and testing. Circle CI is beginner friendly and is developed keeping in mind a wide range of languages and frameworks.

It offers a fast build and has a wide range of integrations with third-party tools like GitHub and Slack. With Circle, CI bugs can be detected early on and ensure the codebase remains bug-free.

This powerful tool is configured to run very complex and robust pipelines effectively. It provides developers with two options to select from either you can choose its cloud-based service or its self-hosted option.

4. GitLab CI

GitLab CI came out in 2011 and was developed by Dmitriy Zaporozhets with Valeriy Sizov. Its purpose was to help development teams automate the process of building, testing, and deploying their code. But, at its core, it was software meant to help teams collaborate, so to aid that they support a variety of frameworks and languages.

GitLab CI enabled teams of software engineers easily set up and manage their CI/CD pipelines and automate their repetitive tasks. GitLab CI is easy to learn and use. It provides users with an economical solution. Its faster system is used for both code deployment and development.

It offers tight integration with the GitLab platform. If your team is on Slack or Jira, don’t worry. GitLab CI can be integrated with those tools too. This comes in handy when teams have to connect their CI/CD pipeline with other tools in their workflow.

5. Fastlane

Fastlane is an open-source CI/CD tool that can help in automating the process of building, testing, and deploying Flutter applications. Many developers favor it as it can greatly reduce deployment time.

It comes with a set of command-line tools which can be used to automate simpler tasks, such as generating app icons or creating good screenshots; it can do it all.

It offers its users a tool called Match that can come in handy if you want to share or use your code across platforms or environments for development, production, or testing.

To make life even easier for the developers, they also provide a tool called Lane, which works as an organizer for multiple tasks in a specific order. It helps developers focus on the code’s logic rather than on repetitive tasks. It is a powerful tool that ensures your apps undergo rigorous testing before being launched in the market.

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6. Bitrise

Bitrise is a CI/CD tool that works on the Platform-as-a-Service model. Its primary focus is on mobile application development, so it supports many frameworks, such as React and Flutter, which are used for cross-platform application development.

It makes it easy to build, test, and deploy mobile applications and deliver new features reliably to the users without breaking the application as a whole. Many applications, such as Duolingo and GoDaddy, use Bitrise for their CI/CD needs.

Bitrise offers simplified code signing and debugs builds for remote access, and it validates code changes to smoothen the code build process. Bitrise could test your application extensively while never compromising on seamless deployment.

Bitrise provides easier integration with tools such as Slack, GitHub, and Jira to help teams connect their CI/CD pipelines with other tools they use in their workflow.

To help developers test their applications on different versions of OS and various devices, Bitrise offers Virtual Machine Management, enabling developers to build, test and deploy their applications without maintaining a local environment.

7. Codemagic

Codemagic is a CI/CD tool that is cloud-based and is specifically made for Flutter applications. It aids developers in delivering new features to customers while automating the building, testing, and deployment process.

Codemagic can be integrated with GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket or be self-hosted with other cloud-based Git repositories. Codemagic runs applications on simulators or even real devices as part of continuous integration and delivery pipeline to test your applications for bugs and errors.

It provides robust code signing and deployment due to its smooth integration with Apple Developer Portal, App Store Connect, and Google Play Store. It is rated as a CI/CD tool of choice by Flutter developers across the globe.

Its customized workflow and integration with third-party software help save 20% time in the software development lifecycle. One feature that distinguishes it from other CI/CD tools is its support for Flutter Web, which helps developers easily build web apps and sites using Flutter.

CodeMagic’s Customizable Build Environment eliminates the need to maintain a local environment, making the development process more reliable.

8. AppCircle

Appcircle is a mobile application-focused CI/CD tool used for streamlining the development process and rollout of the delivery of new features to users without any hassle.

Appcircle offers Build Flows, a pre-configured workflow that automates building, testing, and deployment processes. Appcircle also provides you with How-to videos on YouTube so you can learn from the people who built the system. Developer teams at Coca-Cola, Panasonic, and Renault prefer Appcircle.

It provides detailed build reports for every application. Appcircle also helps with app distribution on Firebase and TestFlight for testing with small groups.

The fact, AppCircle is developed for mobile DevOps makes it better when compared with generic DevOps. Appcircle comes in handy when integrating with different tools such as Slack, Jira, and GitHub.

Appcircle provides developers with a feature called Virtual Device Testing that allows developers to run tests on multiple devices and emulators, ensuring that the app works well on different devices without any errors.

9. AWS CodeBuild

AWS CodeBuild is a service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS). It helps users automate the code’s build, test, and deployment phases. It is highly scalable and can be implemented with frameworks like Flutter.

AWS CodeBuild helps in detecting bugs early on in the software development lifecycle. It ensures your code is always release-ready and new features reach users in time. CodeBuild ensures you won’t need to provide or manage your build servers.

Its main advantage is its integration with AWS services. If you don’t know, AWS is used everywhere and drives nearly 3% to 50% of the internet. Famous brands like Adobe, Airbnb, and Netflix use their service.

Its integration with AWS provides developers with services like Codedeploy and Codepipeline to create an end-to-end CI/CD pipeline, where both services remain true to their name; Codedeploy helps deploy the code.

Codepipeline is used for orchestrating the entire process. It is a powerful tool that offers developers to run multiple builds concurrently and comes with ease when deploying the code changes and testing. It also provides integration with GitHub to host your code. In a nutshell, it is a robust CI/CD platform with an all-in-one package.

10. Azure DevOps

Azure DevOps is developed and managed by Microsoft with its initial release on February 2010; this tool comes with loads of features like Azure Repos, which provides unlimited cloud space for private Git Repos and collaboration with your teammates with pull requests and advanced file management.

Azure pipelines is a CI/CD tool used to build, test and deploy applications that run using various frameworks and platforms.

Azure Artifacts are used to create, host, and share packages with your team.

Azure Test Plans are used to test applications with ease. Azure also provides developers with a big marketplace for extensions for any need.

Azure DevOps is used to fix bugs early and ensure no bugs during deployment. Azure is one the best tools available in the market and can be easily customized to your development needs.

In a nutshell, Azure is a cloud-based platform that can be easily integrated with a range of tools like GitHub and GitLab and deliver new features faster than usual to the users. It has a user-friendly User Interface (UI). It is easy to use, with numerous tutorials and courses available on the internet for free.

Azure DevOps is a great choice, and companies are switching from other platforms to Azure, which is regularly growing in market size. Learning Azure DevOps can add extra weight to your developer profile too.

Conclusion:-

So, that’s a big list of the best CI CD tools for Beginners, Intermediate, And Experienced Flutter App Developers. But which one should you use? As a beginner, we suggest you start with simpler CI/CD tools like Jenkins and Travis CI and then move on to the complex ones for your large projects.

Also, your choice could be based on your preference too. Whatever you set your mind to, don’t forget these are just tools. And you are the real hero who’s going to make wonderful applications. Hope you like this list of best CI/CD for flutter.

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