Ruby on Rails’ websites have been spreading across the media for over twenty years now. It is time-tested, reliable, agile, and object-oriented which makes it a great option for many marketplaces, real estate, streaming, and even data analytics applications. The popularity of Ruby is globally recognized, and the TIOBE index in 2024 shows Ruby among the top 20 programming languages, right beside Kotlin and Swift.
Many websites across the web leverage this technology, and in this article we will swiftly brush up on the top 30 most intriguing examples. Here’s a sneak peek: among the most famous Ruby on Rails websites are headliners like Goodreads, Airbnb, and Twitch.
So, without further ado, let’s look at the most famous examples of Ruby on Rails implementations.
What is Ruby On Rails
Ruby on Rails is actually not just a programming language, but rather a framework that consists of two parts: Ruby programming language and the Rails software library that extends its capabilities.
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Ruby
Developed more than twenty years ago by Japanese software developer Yukihiro Matsumoto, Ruby still ranks as one of the top ten most popular programming languages. Matsumoto stated that programming tools should be developed so they’ll be easier for humans to use, not for machines to understand, so it is very user-friendly, and designed specifically with usability in mind.
Ruby is a general purpose language. It can be used for various software development tasks, but it’s especially effective in web application creation.
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Rails/Ruby on Rails
Rails, also known as Ruby on Rails, is a software library that extends the capabilities of Ruby programming language. In simple terms, it’s program code that is added to Ruby to make it more versatile and add more features. Rails was created in 2003 by David Heinemeier Hansson, when he grew disappointed with the more common languages like Java, which he thought was unnecessarily complicated, or PHP, which was full of repetitive code. He combined HTML, JavaScript and CSS with Ruby, and created one of today’s most popular programming tools.
Now, RoR is a framework for the creation of a wide variety of websites. It is used for creating server-side (or back-end) web applications, i.e. those that run on the server (the applications that run on the user’s browser are called “front-end” applications).
Another core feature that makes RoR awesome for developers of Ruby on Rails sample projects is its RubyGems feature. RubyGems is a package manager that enables the creation and sharing of Ruby software libraries, called “gems”. There are many useful gems for all sorts of situations available on the dedicated RubyGems website, and are easy to download and use. And with the huge community Ruby on Rails has, new gems are appearing as fast as new issues in programming arise.
The Most Famous Websites Built With Ruby On Rails
With so many benefits, it’s no wonder that many successful companies and projects are choosing Ruby on Rails for their websites.
The list of the most famous Ruby on Rails websites includes:
1. Shopify
An e-commerce platform for online stores, Shopify was created in 2004 as a solution for the problems with website development that many e-stores had faced. Despite its immense amounts of data in the database, Shopify is successfully using Ruby on Rails.
2. Github
This is a website that allows developers from all across the globe to discuss and share their code. It’s quite telling that the most famous portal for software developers uses Ruby on Rails to design its website.
3. Basecamp
The place where Rails was born still claims the title of one of the best sites built with Ruby on Rails. When working on the Basecamp website fifteen years ago, a developer named David Heinemeier Hansson created what would later become one of the most used programming languages. Today Basecamp is a popular project management tool based on the website of the same name.
4. Urban Dictionary
Who hasn’t heard of Urban Dictionary? The dictionary of slang run by regular people, this project is yet another example of a famous web application using Ruby on Rails. It has massive amounts of data, storing numerous words and definitions.
By the way, Urban Dictionary itself in its usual manner defines Ruby on Rails as “a popular first choice of developers that don’t intend to actually be around when the product is finished or put into production”.
5. Airbnb
An invaluable service for anybody who travels a lot, the Airbnb website is run by the global company of the same name. It allows travelers to book a room in more than 190 countries. A lot of valuable data is stored on this website, but it still runs smooth.
6. Twitch
An online streaming service that has become very popular with the gaming community, Twitch has an impressive 1,000,000+ broadcasts per month and suffers no scalability problems using the Ruby on Rails.
7. Hulu
This popular streaming service even went so far as to officially sponsor the RailsConf event back in 2012.
8. Kickstarter
Kickstarter, the website that redefined crowdfunding, and its current 151 thousand successful projects were also made possible thanks to Ruby on Rails. It stores large volumes of data, works promtly, flexible, and intuitive.
9. Groupon
Groupon is a website that collects the best deals. It is used in 45 different countries and has more than 35 million registered users. This large business website has immense data volumes, yet it has been using RoR since its founding a decade ago.
10. Goodreads
A useful website for anybody who likes to read, Goodreads gives its users the possibility to create reading lists and provides a platform for book discussions. The website also stores a lot of data regarding books annotations, release dates, and authors. It works as a community developed on RoR.
A hosting system for documents and presentations, Slideshare platform managed to hit the 3 million viewers milestone in just three years after its initial launch.
12. Internet Yellow Pages
Also known as IYP, this business telephone directory moved to the web almost a decade ago, but still remains among the top popular search terms.
13. Indiegogo
A crowdfunding site with more than 9 million viewers per month, Indiegogo also runs on Ruby on Rails.
14. We Heart It
We Heart It is a social network for sharing inspiring photos, videos and texts that unites 25 million users. It has been named “one of the happiest places on the internet” by various online media.
15. ThemeForest
ThemeForest platform allows you to buy or sell HTML templates that are used in products like WordPress or Drupal. This is the best place to find a multitude of templates at varying prices.
16. Scribd
A digital library platform founded back in 2007, Scribd now hosts more than 60 million files. Despite its exponential growth, the site still runs on RoR.
17. Genius
Known as the “world’s biggest collection of song lyrics and musical knowledge”, the Genius website is a true godsend for any music fan out there.
18. Soundcloud
This online platform was initially created as a place for musicians to share their tracks with each other. Now it hosts more than 135 million recordings and is used by the world’s most famous artists.
19. Fiverr
Fiverr is a freelance marketplace where people offer all kinds of services from a wide variety of categories: from legal translation to managing online game accounts. Founded in 2009, it has since reached wide popularity across the web.
20. Couchsurfing
This social network for travelers needs no introduction. The Couchsurfing community reached 15 million members in 2016 and still continues to grow. The website uses Ruby on Rails.
21. X (ex-Twitter)
The famous app needs no introduction. Now Twitter uses Scala, but originally back when it had just started, Ruby on Rails and iQuery were its primary technology stack. However, even rewritten, Twitter still has a spot for RoR in its back-end.
22. Ask.fm
This website was immensely popular among millennials and Gen-Z. With over 300m registered users, Ask.fm is a portal where users can anonymously ask questions and get answers in a separate thread. This simple idea brought millions to the screen, created celebrities, and was built on RoR in its back-end tech stack.
23. Dribble
Websites for designers to build and showcase their portfolio. Dribble also prompts specialists to look for job opportunities and immensely helps with it, since the website allows demonstration of their skills. Nowadays, Dribble has over 3 million registered users. And, of course, Ruby on Rails is a big part of the tech stack.
24. CrunchBase
This website is among the must-visit for investors and those who wish to keep track of the market. It has all the necessary public information about companies of various profits, industries, and sizes; from Fortune 5000 to seed startups. And the back-end part of this website is written using Ruby on Rails.
25. Bloomberg
Bloomberg is a big and recognizable brand, a news portal dedicated to covering everything finance and economy-related. It has over 100 million users monthly and employs over 15K of people. All this immensity is based on Ruby on Rails, with specks of PHP, jQuery, and other stacks in their directory.
26. MyFitnessPal
An extremely popular fitness app that has over 200 million users is also built on Ruby on Rails, as much as their website. They help people determine their desired calorie intake based on exercise and diet.
27. 500px
A social network for photographers that allows users to connect with each other, showcase their portfolio, inspire, and be inspired by others. Users can even get hired by sharing their content on 500px website. And, of course, it utilizes Ruby on Rails, leading the industry for photographers with 16 million registered users.
28. AngelList
This is a website for you if you’re a startup owner or an active investor. AngelList is a listing platform that helps startups acquire funding from interested investors. The website has over 5 million users and around 300,000 active investors. It has Ruby on Rails among other technologies in the main stack.
29. Codecademy
This website teaches aspiring students how to code, and the funniest thing about it is that on their Ruby learning page, they state that a student could learn how to write a website much as theirs. Over 85 million active users enjoy their courses and all thanks to responsive Ruby on Rails in their stack.
30. Cookpad
One of the most popular cooking and recipe platforms it has over 100 million unique monthly users. The website of Cookpad is written on Ruby on Rails, Python, Swift, and other technologies. By the way, Sloboda Studio has expertise in building recipe apps and using very similar technologies.
31. Xing
An equivalent for LinkedIn for German-speaking users, Xing is extremely popular in countries such as Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. This network has over 14 million active users. The functionality of Xing allows one to search for employees and work, upload a CV, and seek professional advice.
How Much Time Does It Take To Build Ruby Websites
The time required to build Ruby websites depends on various factors, including project scope, complexity, team size, and resources available. Simple websites can be developed in a matter of weeks, while larger and more intricate projects may take several months or longer to complete.
Conclusion
Developed more than 20 years ago, Ruby still remains one of the most popular programming languages, and the addition of the software library Rails has made it a favored tool for developers.
From the Ruby on Rails applications examples listed above, we can clearly see that despite its age, RoR hasn’t lost any of its popularity or usability. Many developers, along with some of the most viewed websites in the world like Kickstarter, Shopify and Twitch, choose Ruby on Rails for its many advantages: quality, usability, extensive libraries, and its active community.
If you want to create a reliable and feature-rich web application, you can contact our team. We are recognized as top Ruby on Rails agency at Designrush and will happily help you with development
