Below are some of the differences between a website and a web app
1. Created for
A website is created mostly to consist of static contents. It is publicly accessible to all the visitors while a web app is designed for interaction with the end user.
2. User interaction
A website provides visual & text content which user can view and read, but not affect it’s functioning. Whereas in a web app the user not only reads the page content but can also manipulate the restricted data.
3. Authentication
Authentication is not obligatory for informational websites. The user may ask to register to get a regular update or to access additional options. This features not available for unregistered visitors.
Web applications need authentication, as they offer a much broader scope of options than websites.
4. Task and Complexity
A website displays the collected data and information on a specific page.
Web apps functions are higher and more complex compared to a website.
5. Type of software
A website is a complete product, which you access with the help of your browser.
A web app development is part of the website. It is itself not a complete website.
6. COMPILATION
A website doesn’t need to be precompiled.
A web app must be precompiled before deployment.
7. DEPLOYMENT
In a website, small changes never require a full recompilation and deployment. You just need to update the HTML code.
In a web app, all changes require the entire project to be recompiled and deployed.