Difference Between Repeater, DataList and GridView

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Difference Between Repeater, DataList and GridView
vinaykhatri

Vinay Khatri
Last updated on October 31, 2024

    To display and modify data in an Asp.Net web application, we can use data-bound controls, such as Repeater, DataList and GridView. These 3 data-bound controls are bounded to data source control, such as LinqDataSource and SqlDataSource . These controls also contain some other basic Asp.net control, which includes DropdownList, Labels, and Textbox.

    Difference Between Repeater, DataList and GridView

    Here in this article, you will learn the difference between DataList, Repeater, and GridView.

    DataList vs Repeater: A Head to Head Comparison

    DataList Repeater
    Object Rendering
    Its object is rendered as a table. It uses templates to render its object.
    Columns Generation
    It automatically generates columns using the data source. It cannot generate columns.
    Row Selection
    It can select a row from the data source. It cannot select rows.
    Content Editing
    Using DataList control, we can edit object content. It does not support content editing.
    Data Arrangement
    It has the RepeatDirection property, which allows it to arrange data vertically and horizontally. It cannot manually arrange data.
    Performance
    It is slower than Repeater. It is very fast because of being lightweight.

    GridView vs Repeater: A Head to Head Comparison

    GridView Repeater
    Debut
    GridView was introduced in Asp.Net 2.0. The Repeater was introduced in Asp.Net 1.0.
    Columns Generation
    It automatically generates columns using the data source. It cannot generate columns.
    Row Selection
    It can select a row from the data source. It cannot select rows.
    Content Editing
    Using GridView control, we can edit object content. It does not support content editing.
    In-built Methods
    It comes with built-in paging and sorting methods. No built-in support for paging and sorting. Thus, the developer has to code.
    Auto Formatting and Styling
    In GridView, we get inbuilt auto format and styling features. It does not support these features.
    Performance
    It is slower than Repeater. Because of its lightweight nature, it is faster as compared to GridView.

    GridView vs DataList: A Head to Head Comparison

    GridView DataList
    Debut
    GridView was introduced in Asp.Net 2.0 version. DataList was introduced in Asp.Net 1.0 version.
    In-built Methods
    It comes with built-in paging and sorting methods. No built-in support for paging and sorting. So, the developer has to code for these features.
    Build-in CRUD Operation
    It comes with built-in Update and Delete Operations, so the developer does not need to write code for simple operations. If the developer uses DataList then he/she has to write code for the Update and Delete operations.
    Auto Formatting and Styling
    In GridView, we get inbuilt auto format and styling features. It does not support these features.
    Customizable Row
    We do not get the Customizable row separator feature in GridView. DataList has SeparatorTemplate for customizable row separators.
    Performance
    Its performance is the lowest as compared to Repeater and DataList. It is faster than GridView.

    Conclusion

    In this article, you learned all the differences between Repeater, DataList, and GridView. You can choose any of these data-bound controls according to your application needs. These 3 controls can be used to show the collection of records.

    The GridView provides more features as compared to the Repeater and DataList, and it even makes the code implementation faster. But it does so at the expense of speed, resulting in slow loading. Although DataList and Repeaters lack built-in features, they are more customizable and faster.

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