Is it crazy to use Vue for the front-end and n8n as the backend (exposing REST endpoints)?

Posted by ragsappsai@reddit | ExperiencedDevs | View on Reddit | 8 comments

Hey everyone,

I’m thinking about building a project where the front-end is in Vue, and instead of a normal backend (Node, Python, etc.), I’d just use n8n to expose the REST endpoints and handle all the logic.

Basically: Vue → REST calls → n8n workflows → Airtable DB.

Is this a terrible idea? Has anyone here tried using n8n as the backend layer for a real app? Wondering about performance, security, and long-term maintainability.

Would love any opinions or experiences!

[-]

PsychologicalKick151@reddit

I say, just do it. Then you will know for sure one way or the other.

[-]

OkLettuce338@reddit

I mean why would you do this? If it’s due to some weird limitation ok. But it sounds expensive and slow

[-]

codescapes@reddit

I guess my question would just be "why"? What do you think these tools would get you that alternative ones wouldn't? That's not me saying yay or nay, just trying to promote thought about it.

And further, figure out what you want to build before you worry about the tooling. The tools are just there to serve a purpose, they're incidental to the project ambitions rather than ends in themselves.

Personally the only one I have non-superficial knowledge about is Vue and I mean yeah it's a solid framework. The only question is "why not react" because it's such a default option but frankly that's just a matter of personal preference and existing team skills.

[-]

ragsappsai@reddit (OP)

N8N makes it very easy to get anything integrated to anything in a matter of minutes

[-]

aaaaargZombies@reddit

Basically just hosting your own serverless functions (if you're not self hosting why not use a more conventional serverless functions provider?). Not looked at n8n for a while but I think the reason I haven't used it was the pain of deploying from a git CI thing. Maybe it's improved now?

[-]

ragsappsai@reddit (OP)

Easy integration with anything, airtable, AI, lots os n8n nodes available for plug and play

[-]

No-Economics-8239@reddit

Frameworks come and go. Sometimes, they form cults and religion along the way. In most cases, assuming a 'simple' use case, they don't matter. In my day, the term was, "There is more than one way to skin a cat." Which has evolved into something like, "There is always another way to do it."

This is to say, through technology, all things are possible. You can cobble together whatever you want and probably get it to work. Some people will see that as crazy and some will think it is neat, and many will just shrug and move on. And they are all correct because it is usually just a matter of opinion and preference until you scale things up to some architectural limits of those chosen frameworks. And most of us never scale things up that far. Possibly because more IT projects are abandoned than completed.