What is .NET MAUI? (Interview Question Short and Long Answer)

✅ Short Answer

.NET MAUI is a cross-platform framework that enables developers to build native applications for multiple platforms using a single codebase. It is the successor to Xamarin.Forms and provides a unified UI framework with enhanced performance, extensibility, and platform-specific customizations.

📖 1. Introduction to .NET MAUI

.NET MAUI (Multi-platform App UI) is an open-source framework developed by Microsoft that simplifies cross-platform application development. It extends the capabilities of Xamarin.Forms by offering a single project structure to target multiple platforms, reducing the need for platform-specific code.

✨ 2. Key Features of .NET MAUI

• 🧩 Single Codebase: Write once, deploy on Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows.
• ⚡ Native Performance: Uses platform-native UI controls.
• 🗂️ Unified UI Framework: One project, all platforms.
• 🔁 MVU Pattern Support: Clean UI updates using Model-View-Update.
• 🔥 Hot Reload: See UI changes live.
• 🧪 Blazor Integration: Combine Razor components with native UI.
• 🧠 Dependency Injection: Built-in support for modular code.
• 🎯 Platform-Specific Customization: Easily apply custom handlers/effects.

💻 3. Example: Creating a Simple .NET MAUI App

using Microsoft.Maui.Controls;

namespace MauiApp
{
    public class MainPage : ContentPage
    {
        public MainPage()
        {
            var button = new Button
            {
                Text = "Click Me"
            };

            button.Clicked += (sender, args) =>
            {
                button.Text = "You clicked me!";
            };
        }
    }
}

⚖️ 4. Comparison: .NET MAUI vs Xamarin.Forms

Feature	.NET MAUI	Xamarin.Forms
Project Structure	Single Project	Separate Projects
Performance	Improved with .NET 6+	Less Optimized
Handlers	Replaces Renderers	Uses Renderers
Platform API Access	Simplified	More Complex
Blazor Support	Yes	No

💡 5. Why Use .NET MAUI?

• ⏱️ Reduces development time and effort.
• ⚙️ Better performance than older cross-platform tools.
• 🔧 Single project structure simplifies customization.
• 🧬 Strong support from Microsoft ecosystem.

📱 6. Common Use Cases

• 📊 Business apps for Android, iOS, macOS, Windows
• 🏢 Enterprise tools with shared backend logic
• 🛍️ Consumer apps needing native UX
• 🌐 Hybrid Blazor apps with native features

🧠 7. Interview Tips and Final Thoughts

• 🆚 Know .NET MAUI vs Xamarin.Forms.
• 🔬 Practice platform-specific customization.
• 🛠️ Build simple MAUI apps to get hands-on.
• 🧱 Understand dependency injection & MVU pattern.
• 📰 Stay up-to-date with releases and improvements.