The Evolution of Angular: From AngularJS to Modern Framework

When Angular started its journey back in 2010, it offered developers a completely new angle on building websites. Basically, what used to be complicated became much simpler, and thanks to that, Angular quickly became a favorite for dynamic web applications. But as time passed, what worked well in the beginning, needed a makeover in order to keep up, like most things in tech. 

Along with major updates and rewrites, Angular has gone through a lot of changes in the last 15 years. All this with the purpose of making it more powerful, smarter, and faster. Today, it is one of the top frameworks used for building modern web apps. 

Let’s take a trip down memory lane, see how it all started, how different Angular versions evolved over the years, and where it stands in 2025.  

The Start of AngularJS (2010)

Building interactive websites in 2010 was quite a struggle for developers. Complex code was needed even for the most basic function, or something as simple as getting your page to update without refreshing. This is when Google introduced AngularJS by Miško Hevery. 

Using AngularJS opened many possibilities and it made it easier to create interactive, data-driven websites by handling a lot of the heavy lifting. Developers loved it, especially for one of its coolest features: two-way data binding, which meant that when you updated something in the user interface, the data updated automatically behind it, and vice versa. It just made the process much easier. 

AngularJS allows developers to concentrate on creating interesting and unique features without getting bogged down by the fundamentals. It was an easy choice for businesses because it saved time in development while making apps faster and more interactive for users.

But of course, as with any early tech solutions, AngularJS wasn’t 100% perfect. As websites got bigger and more complex, it had a hard time keeping up. Still, it had a huge impact on how websites were built. 

Angular 2 and the Big Change (2016)

AngularJS got off to a good start in 2010. But as websites got more complex by 2016, it started to show some cracks. This meant that developers needed something that was faster, cleaner, and easier to keep up to date. This made Google rethink the whole framework, and they made a bold decision: they gave Angular a total reset and rebuilt it from the ground up.

Google introduced Angular 2 in 2016. 

Angular 2 brought major changes. One of the biggest ones was switching from JavaScript to TypeScript, which made coding more organized and easier to manage, especially for large-scale projects. Developers loved the switch to a component-based structure—it made building clean, reusable parts so much easier and saved them from the headache of messy, hard-to-maintain code.

Not everyone was happy about this change because it was a whole new framework to learn, but the improvements Angular 2 came with made it worth it. The performance got a major boost, while developers got more tools to help them build responsive web apps. 

Angular 2 meant a whole new beginning for the framework and laid the foundation for what came next. 

Improving Angular (2017–2019)

Google didn’t stop at version 2 of Angular. During the period between 2017 and 2019, constant updates and improvements were released, all in attempts of fine-tuning the framework and speeding things up. 

The next release was Angular 4 (yes, they skipped version 3). This new version focused mostly on reducing the size of its apps to make them load faster. Then Angular 5 and 6 came out, which had better tools for working with forms, better server-side rendering, and faster builds.

One of the best things about Angular 8 was differential loading. It let apps send modern code to newer browsers while still working smoothly on older ones. Translation? Faster apps for most users without leaving anyone behind.

Thanks to these updates and improvements, Angular became easier and faster to work with. In this period, Angular wasn’t just trying to keep up anymore; it was staying ahead of the curve. 

The Ivy Era (2020–2021)

By 2020, Angular was a reliable and high-performing framework. But Google wasn't done yet—they introduced something transformative: Ivy.

Ivy gave Angular’s rendering engine a serious upgrade, designed to make apps faster and more efficient. Also, with Ivy, developers worked with smaller bundles, making load times much quicker for users. 

Developers also loved the updates that came with Ivy. It made debugging way easier, and they didn’t have to rewrite their apps to get the benefits. 

Ivy gave Angular a nice refresh and made it even more adaptable for modern web development needs and challenges. 

Modern Angular (2022–2024)

Between 2022 and 2024, Angular kept working on and releasing new updates that helped developers and offered better performance. 

Standalone components were one of the biggest updates of Angular 14, which helped in building clean, lightweight components without modules. This change simplified app structures and helped developers get things done faster.

With Angular versions 15-16, there were improvements made in server-side-rendering (SSR), making apps more SEO-friendly and giving a boost to performance in complex applications.

Angular 16 was introduced. A game-changer for handling data, improvements in reactivity, and state management, apps could now respond faster to user interactions. 

Angular in 2025

In the present, is still going strong. It has become a preferred framework for companies of different sizes needing modern and dynamic web applications. 

Why is Angular still relevant in 2025? Simply put, its ongoing improvements keep making things better for both users and developers.

Angular has some really cool features, like Signals for handling reactive data and standalone components, which make it super powerful.

Plus, the strong support for TypeScript makes it easier to handle larger and more complex apps.

The fact that Google keeps adding new features to Angular is another reason why it stays popular. They did a great job developing a system that can keep up with new web standards and trends.

Why Choose Angular for Your Business?

At MoldoWEB, we’ve been working with Angular for quite a while now, and we can honestly say it’s a framework we trust.

It’s full of benefits and works great for web apps across different types of businesses.

First, Angular is designed to grow with your needs. The framework is capable of managing both a small, straightforward app and a larger, more complex enterprise platform. Angular’s structured platform lets you easily expand your app.

Secondly, there’s performance. Angular’s features, such as optimized rendering and efficient data handling keep your apps, even with lots of features running fast. This high performance improves user experience too, which is what you want when building a responsive app. 

Angular also has strong security features built in, like automatic protection against common vulnerabilities. For developers, making sure data is handled safely and securely is a must when building web apps.

Angular's community support is another big plus. Backed by Google, it has a solid group of developers who keep things fresh with regular updates, useful tools, and best practices.

Conclusion

Angular’s evolution over the years has been impressive. From its modest start in 2010, it has grown into a modern framework that now supports all sorts of scalable applications.

We can only recommend Angular for your next app, whether that’s a smaller one or a more complex project with many different features, the framework can handle it.

As technology continues to evolve, one thing is for sure: Angular is here to stay, helping businesses stay ahead of the curve.