The way we build modern web applications has drastically changed, and one of the key trends in website development is micro frontends with module federation.
According to a recent report, over 68% of enterprise-level companies are adopting micro frontend architecture to scale their frontend teams and improve code maintainability.
But how do you make micro frontends work seamlessly together?
That’s where Module Federation comes into play. Since its release with Webpack 5, Module Federation adoption has grown by 40% year-over-year, thanks to its ability to simplify cross-team collaboration and dynamic code sharing.
Let’s walk through how to combine these two powerful concepts to create flexible, scalable, and high-performing applications—the kind modern businesses demand.
Before diving into Module Federation, let’s quickly recap what micro frontends are. Micro frontends apply the same core principles as microservices—only this time, to the frontend. Essentially, you break down a large frontend monolith into smaller, more manageable pieces, each responsible for a specific part of the application. These smaller parts can be developed, deployed, and updated independently.
Why should you care about micro frontends? They allow different teams to work on different parts of a project simultaneously, making website development faster, more efficient, and more flexible. Plus, it’s a great way to avoid bottlenecks and improve maintainability.
Module Federation is a feature introduced in Webpack 5 that enables multiple independently built and deployed JavaScript applications to share code in a seamless manner. It allows micro frontends to load parts of other applications dynamically without having to worry about duplicating code or complex integration processes.
With Module Federation, components or entire applications can be exposed and consumed by other parts of your app, making it easier than ever to integrate micro frontends. It’s a game-changer for web development companies who want to scale their frontend architectures while keeping everything modular and maintainable.
The journey begins with setting up a Module Federation environment. Let’s assume you have two applications: one acting as a host (or shell) and the other as a remote (the part you want to load dynamically). You’ll need to install Webpack 5 and configure the necessary parts of your project.
Install Webpack 5 in both projects.
To enable Module Federation in your micro frontend architecture, you’ll need to configure webpack.config.js files for both your host and remote applications. This setup defines how components or modules are shared across different independently deployed applications.
Let’s start with the host application. In the host’s webpack.config.js, you specify its name and define the remote apps it will consume. For example:
module.exports = {
name: ‘host’,
remotes: {
remoteApp: ‘remoteApp@http://localhost:3001/remoteEntry.js’,
},
// Other configurations…
};
Here, the remote field tells Webpack where to find the remote application named remoteApp, pointing to the URL where its remoteEntry.js file is hosted. This is essential for dynamically loading remote components at runtime.
Now, in the remote application’s configuration, you need to declare what it’s exposing for use by other apps. Here’s a basic example:
module.exports = {
name: ‘remoteApp’,
exposes: {
‘./Button’: ‘./src/Button’, // Exposing the Button component for external use
},
// Other configurations…
};
The exposes field maps module identifiers (like ‘./Button’) to actual file paths (such as ‘./src/Button’). This allows the host app to import the Button component from the remote, enabling seamless integration between micro frontends.
This simple setup forms the backbone of a Module Federation-powered architecture, allowing teams to develop, deploy, and update components independently, boosting flexibility and speed in modern website development projects.
One of the biggest challenges in micro frontends is managing shared dependencies. If you’re using React or any other framework, you want to avoid loading multiple versions of the same library in different micro frontends.
Module Federation solves this by allowing you to share dependencies across applications. In the webpack.config.js of both the host and remote apps, you’ll define shared libraries.
For example, you could set up React and ReactDOM to be shared:
module.exports = {
shared: [‘react’, ‘react-dom’],
// Other configurations…
};
Now comes the fun part—integrating the remote components into your host application. With Module Federation, the remote app’s components can be dynamically loaded into the host app at runtime.
In your host application, you can dynamically load a remote component, like a Button, from another micro frontend using React’s lazy() function. Here’s how it works.
First, you import React and Suspense from the React library. Then, using React.lazy(), you define RemoteButton as a component that’s fetched from the remoteApp. This method ensures that the component is only loaded when needed, which significantly reduces the initial bundle size and improves your app’s performance.
Inside your main App component, you wrap RemoteButton with the Suspense component and provide a fallback (like a simple “Loading…” message) to display while the remote component is being fetched. This not only enhances the user experience but also keeps your architecture clean and efficient.
By leveraging this pattern, you’re using Module Federation to pull in functionality from a remote micro frontend seamlessly, making your micro frontend architecture more dynamic, responsive, and scalable.
Now that everything is set up, you can start your development servers. Ensure that both the host and remote applications are running and accessible.
Host app: http://localhost:3000
Remote app: http://localhost:3001
When you visit the host app, it will dynamically load the Button component from the remote app. If you have multiple remote apps, you can repeat this process to load other parts of the application as needed.
As your application grows, you’ll want to add more micro frontends and integrate them with Module Federation. This architecture allows you to scale your application in a way that’s maintainable, testable, and easy to deploy.
For instance, you might have a shopping cart micro frontend, a user profile micro frontend, and a product list micro frontend—all running in their own independent applications but seamlessly integrated into the host app using Module Federation.
Integrating micro frontends with Module Federation goes beyond a passing tech trend—it’s a game-changing strategy for crafting modern, scalable web applications. Here’s why more and more development teams (and every forward-thinking web development company) are embracing this architecture.
Remember those days when multiple front-end teams had to tiptoe around the same codebase? With micro frontends, each team owns its piece of the puzzle. Combine that with Module Federation, and you’ve got true independence—teams can build, test, and deploy their features without stepping on each other’s toes. It speeds up development and drastically reduces merge conflicts.
One of the most annoying issues in large-scale apps? Using multiple versions of the same library can drag down performance and bloat your application unnecessarily. Module Federation intelligently manages shared dependencies, so you’re not loading React twice (yes, that happens!). Your app stays lightweight and efficient, even as it grows.
Want to add a new feature? Or maybe roll out a new user dashboard built by another team? With micro frontends, scaling is smooth. Module Federation allows you to plug in new micro apps like LEGO bricks—no need to refactor the entire monolith.
Time-to-market is everything. Thanks to independent deployments, each micro frontend can go live on its own schedule. That means bug fixes, feature updates, or A/B tests can be launched instantly—no need to wait for a full app redeploy.
For a mid-sized application, adopting micro frontends with Module Federation can cost anywhere from $30,000 to $120,000 initially. The exact amount depends on the complexity of the system, the number of micro frontends, and your development strategy. While the initial investment can be significant, the long-term benefits, like scalability, independent deployments, and faster development cycles, can far outweigh the costs when implemented properly.
Embracing a micro frontend architecture with Module Federation demands a strong foundation to ensure seamless integration and scalability. The initial setup usually ranges from $5,000 to $15,000, depending on the project’s scope and the current infrastructure in place. This phase includes architectural planning, team onboarding, and the setup of development tools such as Webpack, version control, and CI/CD pipelines. If you’re migrating from a monolithic frontend, there may also be additional costs associated with codebase restructuring and technical debt resolution.
The bulk of the investment lies in the development stage. Depending on the number of micro frontends, the complexity of UI elements, and the technologies used (like React, Angular, or Vue), development costs can range from $20,000 to over $100,000. Each micro frontend may be handled by a different team or squad, which allows for faster and parallel development. However, this also means that managing consistent standards, versioning, and shared libraries becomes more crucial.
Once the micro frontends are deployed, regular maintenance is essential to ensure long-term performance, scalability, and integration consistency. Expect monthly maintenance costs to fall between $1,000 and $5,000, which covers updates, bug fixes, optimization efforts, and ongoing infrastructure adjustments. As the application scales, these costs may increase, especially if new micro frontends are added frequently.
The overall cost is heavily influenced by your team structure and their geographic location. Hiring an in-house team might offer better long-term control, but it comes with higher upfront costs. Alternatively, working with a professional web development company can be more cost-effective, especially if the company has prior experience in micro frontends and Module Federation. For instance, partnering with a development agency in India may cost around $25 to $60 per hour, whereas agencies based in the US or Europe might charge between $100 and $200 per hour.
Beyond core development and maintenance, there are often hidden or additional costs involved. These may include performance monitoring tools such as Sentry or New Relic, hosting and managing separate deployments for each micro frontend, and licensing for any third-party tools or plugins. It’s crucial to account for these costs in your overall budget to prevent unexpected expenses later on.
As powerful as micro frontends and Module Federation are, getting them right isn’t always straightforward. Especially when you’re dealing with enterprise-level apps, multi-team collaboration, or legacy code, things can get complicated quickly. That’s where partnering with an experienced agency with web app development services becomes a smart move.
Let’s face it—architecting micro frontends and configuring Module Federation involves more than just splitting code. You need to align routing strategies, handle shared dependencies, manage version control, and keep performance in check. A seasoned web development company brings hands-on experience to solve these technical puzzles efficiently.
When different teams (or even different vendors) build separate parts of your app, integration can become a nightmare. A professional agency ensures that each micro frontend communicates smoothly with the others. From setting up module boundaries to maintaining consistent UX across the board, they handle the nitty-gritty so you don’t have to.
With the right expertise, your architecture won’t just work—it will scale. A top-tier website development team knows how to optimize lazy loading, cache strategies, and shared bundles using Module Federation, ensuring your app remains fast and responsive as it grows.
Tech evolves fast. The tools and techniques you use today need to be flexible enough for tomorrow. A professional web development company builds with best practices in mind—laying the foundation for long-term success, maintainability, and future upgrades.
By leveraging these tools and strategies, you’ll be able to build robust, flexible, and highly maintainable applications that can grow with your business needs.
There you have it! A simple step-by-step guide to integrating micro frontends with Module Federation. Want to dive deeper into the world of micro frontends or need help implementing this in your next project? Reach out to the best web app development company that specializes in scalable frontend architectures to ensure your app is set up for success!
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