# WeWeb PWAs vs. WeWeb Native Apps with Despia: What You Really Need to Know If you’re building with **WeWeb**, you already have a big advantage: speed. You can launch complex applications in days, not months. But at some point, you’ll need to decide how your users actually experience that app: * As a **Progressive Web App (PWA)**, which runs in the browser. * Or as a **native app** compiled and published through [**Despia**](https://despia.com). Both paths are valid, and both come with trade-offs. I’ve been digging into the differences - especially now that Despia has released a native WeWeb plugin - and here’s what I’ve found. --- ## Why PWAs Still Matter PWAs get overlooked sometimes, but they’re still incredibly powerful. A WeWeb PWA is basically your app running in the browser, with the option for users to “install” it to their home screen. The upside is obvious: * You can launch instantly - no waiting on app store approval. * You have one codebase that works across devices. * Costs stay low, since all you need is hosting. The downside is equally clear: * Native integrations (Face ID, push notifications, offline databases, background tasks) are limited or inconsistent. * You won’t be listed in the App Store or Google Play. * Some users don’t think of a PWA as a “real app,” even if the experience is good. PWAs are perfect for early-stage projects, or tools that don’t rely on mobile hardware. --- ## Where Despia Changes the Game Despia has been around as a way to wrap WeWeb apps into native binaries. But the recent **native WeWeb plugin** makes it much smoother. You can now install Despia directly from the [WeWeb Marketplace](https://marketplace.weweb.io/libraries/1a493afa-9487-44e3-8cb9-8fe666fbf10e/), follow no-code-friendly guides, and tap into a huge range of native features. Here’s what that really means in practice: * You can build with WeWeb as usual, but also use native capabilities like biometric login, background location, NFC, Siri, push notifications, offline databases, and even GPU-based rendering. * You still don’t need to touch Xcode or Android Studio. Despia handles the signing, builds, and submissions. * Updates aren’t painful. Thanks to **over-the-air updates**, you can push changes live to your native app when you update your WeWeb project, similar to how CodePush works. In short: Despia takes away much of the friction that usually comes with going native. --- ## Comparing the Two When you strip away the technical details, the comparison looks like this: * **PWAs** are fast, lightweight, and cost-effective. Great for testing ideas or shipping tools that don’t depend on native features. * **Despia native apps** give you app store visibility, access to everything a modern phone can do, and a more polished, native-like feel. The big difference isn’t just functionality - it’s perception. An app in the App Store signals legitimacy in a way a PWA never will, even if the code behind them is the same. --- ## So, Which Should You Choose? If you’re at the stage where you just need to validate an idea, go with a **PWA**. It’s the fastest and cheapest option. If you’re moving into production, want to reach a broader audience, or need serious device integration, then **Despia is the way forward**. The fact that you can now go native with minimal extra effort makes that decision even easier. --- ## Final Thoughts I don’t see this as an either/or question anymore. The real power of WeWeb and Despia is that you can start as a PWA and upgrade to native when the time is right - without rebuilding your app or switching platforms. That flexibility is rare in app development, and it’s one of the reasons WeWeb + Despia is such an interesting combination for makers and teams right now.