Problem Statement
What is the difference between JIT and AOT compilation in Flutter?
Explanation
Just-in-Time (JIT) compilation compiles code during runtime and is used in Flutter's debug mode to enable hot reload and fast development cycles. JIT compiles code on-demand as needed, allowing the Dart VM to inject updated code without full recompilation, making development iteration incredibly fast.
Ahead-of-Time (AOT) compilation compiles Dart code directly to native ARM or x64 machine code before the app runs, used in release builds for production. AOT produces faster startup times, better runtime performance, and smaller app sizes because there's no need for the Dart VM at runtime, just the compiled native code.
During development, Flutter uses JIT for hot reload magic where you see code changes instantly. For production releases, Flutter uses AOT compilation to create highly optimized native code that performs as well as apps written in Swift, Kotlin, or Java, giving Flutter its excellent performance reputation.
