Rails Keeps Getting Better
Ruby on Rails 8 is one of the most significant releases in years. While the framework has always prioritised developer happiness and productivity, Rails 8 takes it further with improvements that matter for both developers and the businesses that rely on them.
No Build, No Problem
Rails 8 doubles down on the "no build" approach. With Propshaft as the default asset pipeline and importmap-rails for JavaScript, you can build modern web applications without webpack, esbuild, or any other JavaScript bundler. This dramatically simplifies deployment and reduces the surface area for build failures.
Solid Queue, Solid Cache, Solid Cable
The new Solid adapters let you use your existing database for background jobs, caching, and WebSockets. For many applications, this eliminates the need for Redis entirely — meaning one less piece of infrastructure to manage, monitor, and pay for.
Authentication Out of the Box
Rails 8 includes a built-in authentication generator. While Devise and other gems are still perfectly valid, having a simple, framework-supported authentication system means less dependency on third-party code for one of your application's most critical features.
Kamal 2 for Deployment
Kamal 2, the deployment tool from 37signals, is now deeply integrated with Rails. It makes deploying Rails applications to any server as simple as a single command — no Heroku, no complex Kubernetes setup required.
What This Means for Your Business
Simpler infrastructure means lower hosting costs and fewer things that can break. Faster development means your features ship sooner. Rails 8 is a strong signal that the framework is not just surviving — it is thriving.