JetBrains has officially launched Compose Multiplatform 1.0, a new tool designed to streamline the development of user interfaces for desktop, Android, and web applications using Kotlin. Announced on December 2, this stable release marks a significant milestone for the cross-platform UI framework, making it suitable for building production-level applications. With a declarative and reactive approach to UI development, Compose Multiplatform enables developers to share UI code across platforms, significantly reducing the complexity of managing UI update logic.
One of the key features of Compose Multiplatform is its ability to preview parts of the UI without the need to build the entire application. This makes the development process faster and more efficient. The framework shares a common API with Google’s Jetpack Compose, ensuring a smooth transition for developers familiar with Android development. Additionally, the integration of a Gradle plug-in simplifies the packaging of applications for major operating systems while offering interoperability with existing Java frameworks. This allows developers to leverage Java components in Compose Multiplatform apps and vice versa.
For web development, Compose Multiplatform extends Kotlin’s capabilities, providing a reactive Kotlin API for manipulating the DOM with built-in CSS-in-JS support. Unlike other JavaScript interoperability mechanisms, this approach enhances type safety, reducing errors and improving long-term maintainability. Developers can share code between Android, desktop, and web applications, allowing for seamless portability of Jetpack Compose-based Android apps to desktop environments.
Since the initial alpha release this summer, JetBrains has made significant improvements to Compose Multiplatform, addressing edge cases and enhancing the framework’s power. The beta version earlier this fall added crucial updates, including improved accessibility features for Windows. Furthermore, JetBrains has adopted Compose Multiplatform for its own JetBrains Toolbox App, resulting in better performance, reduced memory consumption, and a smaller installer size. With these advancements, Compose Multiplatform positions itself as a robust and efficient solution for cross-platform UI development using Kotlin.