Modern frontend applications are increasingly evolving into complex distributed systems. When dozens of developers and multiple teams work on a single product and each part of the interface is developed independently, the traditional monolithic approach begins to slow things down. In such cases, microfrontend architecture becomes a solution that allows splitting the interface into independent modules while maintaining a consistent product experience.

Microfrontends give each team the freedom to release their module independently, change technology stacks, deploy updates, and experiment with interfaces. The main challenge, however, is to keep data and business logic consistent across all these separate parts. For users, it does not matter that the cart, catalog, and profile are built with different frameworks. What matters is that everything looks and works seamlessly.

What Are Microfrontends

A microfrontend is an architectural approach where a large application is divided into independent modules. Each module can have its own technology stack, build system, and release cycle. These modules are connected through a shell application that manages routing and integration points.

This approach is often implemented using Module Federation (Webpack, Vite, Turbopack), Single-SPA, or tooling systems such as Nx and Turborepo. It provides flexibility and independence but also increases the need for careful integration. Library versions, shared data, authentication, and event communication must remain consistent across all modules.

Advantages and Limitations of the Approach

The main advantage of microfrontends is scalability. Teams can develop their modules independently without waiting for synchronization with other parts of the project. This speeds up releases, simplifies testing, and allows new features to reach production faster.

However, flexibility also brings new challenges, particularly in maintaining consistency of data and logic across modules. If each team uses its own API or authentication system, discrepancies will eventually appear. To prevent this, a unified backend layer is required — one that serves as the single source of truth for data and provides centralized business logic for all microfrontends.

A Unified Backend as the Foundation for Microfrontends

From an architectural perspective, the idea is simple: the frontend is divided, while the backend remains unified. All modules communicate with a single API system that manages data and authentication. This eliminates duplicated logic and ensures overall consistency across the application.

In this context, OneEntry SDK becomes a convenient tool for frontend developers. It allows each microfrontend to connect to a shared backend through a simple SDK constructor, work with entities such as products, users, content, and forms, and receive real-time data. All communication is based on standard REST or WebSocket methods, without the need to maintain a separate server.

For developers, this means that every microfrontend can rely on the same business logic, data models, and access rules without causing conflicts between teams. As a result, all parts of the system remain independent in development but are connected through a common data foundation.

Tools for Building Microfrontends

There are several key technologies that shape the modern microfrontend architecture stack, each with its own niche and specific use cases.

Single-SPA is a framework that manages the routing and lifecycle of microfrontends. It allows integrating applications built with different frameworks (React, Vue, Angular) into a single unified interface. It’s well suited for integrating existing projects where compatibility and gradual migration are important. Its main drawback is complex configuration and the need for manual state and communication management between modules.

Webpack 5 Module Federation is a build-level mechanism that enables dynamic loading and sharing of modules between applications. This is a more modern approach that doesn’t require a central shell framework and works directly through the import mechanism. It’s ideal for cases where multiple applications are maintained under one organization and share a similar tech stack. Its main advantages are high performance and flexible dependency sharing.

Nx is a tool that combines monorepo management with microfrontend orchestration. It helps structure the project, manage dependencies, cache builds, and run CI/CD pipelines. Nx is especially useful when multiple microfrontends evolve in parallel and share a common environment. It reduces integration complexity but requires a disciplined workflow and strict version control.

Bit.dev is a platform for creating and sharing independent UI components. Unlike application-level microfrontends, Bit operates at the component level, allowing teams to reuse and distribute atomic elements across projects. It’s great for maintaining a consistent visual style and speeding up interface development but isn’t suited for large standalone modules with their own routing or logic.

Beyond specific tools, it’s also important to consider how microfrontends are composed:

• Server-side composition involves assembling modules on the server. It’s suitable for SSR applications and helps minimize load latency.
• Edge composition happens at the CDN or edge-node level, reducing response times globally. This approach is ideal for large-scale products with a worldwide audience.
• Client-side composition assembles modules directly in the user’s browser. It offers maximum flexibility but requires strict version control and careful load optimization.

In short, here’s how the main approaches compare:

• Single-SPA is best for heterogeneous stacks and gradual migrations.
• Module Federation works well for homogeneous projects with dynamic module loading.
• Nx is great for organizing large codebases with shared dependencies.
• Bit.dev excels at sharing and reusing UI components.
• Server-side and edge composition are preferred when rendering speed and SEO matter most, while client-side composition is the best fit for highly interactive interfaces.

Monorepository as an Organizational Foundation

Creating a monorepository is often a strong step toward organizing a microfrontend architecture. A monorepo is a single Git repository that contains all modules, libraries, and utilities of a project. It helps resolve version conflicts and simplifies dependency management across teams.

A monorepo also makes it easier to share common utilities and data types. For instance, a shared package can store common models such as DTOs, interfaces, or SDK utilities that are imported by all microfrontends. This way, when a data schema is updated, the changes are automatically propagated throughout the entire project.

Nx and Turborepo help automate builds, caching, and deployments within a monorepository. This is especially useful when different microfrontends use different frameworks but still need to evolve in sync and rely on the same shared dependencies.

Practical Integration with OneEntry SDK

Imagine you have two microfrontends: a catalog and a cart. Both live in a monorepo and are developed by independent teams. The catalog handles product display, and the cart processes orders. Through the OneEntry SDK, both modules connect to a unified backend, access the same entities, and follow the same business rules.

This removes the need to duplicate API requests or build separate services for data synchronization. Any change in the catalog is immediately reflected in the cart, and order updates become visible to all users without extra integration work.

The OneEntry SDK also provides typing and autocomplete support, which is especially convenient with TypeScript. As a result, each team remains independent while working within a single, consistent architecture.

When to Use Microfrontends with a Shared Backend

This approach is particularly effective for large projects composed of multiple interconnected parts:

– large e-commerce systems (catalog, cart, profile, payments)

– corporate dashboards and CRMs where different teams handle separate modules

– SaaS products with distinct functional areas

In all these cases, OneEntry SDK allows frontend developers to focus on building interfaces without spending time on infrastructure setup. The shared backend ensures unified business logic and data, enabling teams to develop their parts of the product without DevOps overhead or code duplication.

Conclusion

Microfrontends bring scalability and flexibility to frontend development, but without a solid foundation in the form of a unified backend, the entire structure can quickly lose stability. When each module operates in isolation and data becomes inconsistent, the product loses its coherence.

OneEntry SDK addresses this challenge by bringing independent teams together under a single architecture where data, business logic, and access remain aligned. Developers retain the freedom to choose their own stacks and tools, while the product stays cohesive, manageable, and ready to scale without unnecessary complexity.