🔍 Razor Pages vs MVC vs Blazor: How to Choose the Right ASP.NET Core Web Framework for Your Project

As a .NET developer, you're spoiled for choice when it comes to building modern web applications. The ASP.NET Core ecosystem offers Razor Pages, MVC, and Blazor — all excellent options, but each with its own sweet spot.

So how do you choose?

This post will break down:

• What each framework is
• Pros and cons
• When to use each one (with real-world scenarios)
• Decision matrix to help you choose confidently

🧭 Quick Overview

Framework UI Style Hosting Model Ideal For Razor Pages Server-rendered ASP.NET Core backend Simpler apps, forms, admin UIs MVC Server-rendered ASP.NET Core backend Complex, layered web apps Blazor Interactive SPA WebAssembly or Server Rich UIs, SPA-like experiences

📘 1. Razor Pages: Simple, Page-Based Web Apps

What is it? Razor Pages is a page-focused programming model for building web UI. Each page is self-contained and handles its own routing, logic, and markup.

Folder Example:

/Pages
  └── Index.cshtml
  └── Contact.cshtml

✅ Pros

• Clean, minimal boilerplate
• Great for simple apps and CRUD
• Tight integration with Razor syntax
• Easier learning curve than MVC

❌ Cons

• Less control over advanced patterns
• Not ideal for large-scale apps

🛠 Best Use Cases

• Internal tools and admin panels
• Forms-based websites
• Apps with a clear "page-by-page" flow

💡 Code Example

// Pages/Contact.cshtml.cs
public class ContactModel : PageModel
{
    [BindProperty]
    public string Message { get; set; }

    public void OnPost()
    {
        // Process form submission
    }
}

🏗 2. ASP.NET Core MVC: Mature, Scalable Web Architecture

What is it? MVC (Model-View-Controller) is a battle-tested architectural pattern. It separates concerns into three layers, ideal for larger apps where maintainability is key.

✅ Pros

• Excellent for complex applications
• Great separation of concerns
• Mature ecosystem with many extensions
• Clear routing and RESTful conventions

❌ Cons

• More boilerplate than Razor Pages
• Slightly steeper learning curve

🛠 Best Use Cases

• E-commerce platforms
• Content-driven websites (blogs, news sites)
• REST API + HTML combo apps

💡 Code Example

// Controllers/HomeController.cs
public class HomeController : Controller
{
    public IActionResult Index()
    {
        return View();
    }
}

// Views/Home/Index.cshtml
<h1>Welcome to MVC!</h1>

🧪 3. Blazor: Modern, Component-Based Web UI (SPA)

What is it? Blazor lets you build rich, interactive web UIs using C# instead of JavaScript. You can choose between Blazor Server and Blazor WebAssembly (WASM) hosting models.

✅ Pros

• Full-stack C# (no JS required)
• Component-based, like React/Vue
• Real-time UI updates with SignalR (Server model)
• Great for modern, SPA-style apps

❌ Cons

• WASM payloads can be large
• SEO can be tricky
• Steeper learning curve for Razor components
• Server model may not scale as well under heavy traffic

🛠 Best Use Cases

• Internal dashboards with live updates
• SaaS apps with rich client-side interactions
• Desktop-like web apps

💡 Code Example

<!-- Counter.razor -->
<h3>Counter</h3>

<p>Current count: @count</p>

<button @onclick="IncrementCount">Click me</button>

@code {
    private int count = 0;
    void IncrementCount() => count++;
}

⚖️ When to Choose What? (Decision Matrix)

Question Go With Razor Pages Go With MVC Go With Blazor Is the app simple or form-based? ✅ ❌ ❌ Are you building a large or layered app? ❌ ✅ ✅ Do you want SPA-like interactivity? ❌ ❌ ✅ Do you want server-side rendering & SEO? ✅ ✅ ❌ (WASM) Do you want to write UI in C# only? ❌ ❌ ✅ Is developer onboarding speed important? ✅ ❌ ❌ Is JavaScript integration a priority? ❌ ✅ ✅ (JS interop)

🧠 Final Thoughts

If you're building... Use... An internal admin panel or CRUD app Razor Pages A content-heavy or layered web app MVC A rich, desktop-like web UI Blazor (WASM or Server) And remember — these aren't exclusive choices. You can mix Blazor components into Razor Pages or MVC apps for hybrid experiences!

📚 Want to Dive Deeper?

• ASP.NET Core Razor Pages Docs
• ASP.NET Core MVC Docs
• Blazor Docs

If you want a follow-up post comparing Blazor Server vs WASM, or a deep-dive into Blazor hybrid apps, let me know!