Spring Framework is the foundation for building Java applications; Spring Boot is a related project that helps you start and configure a Spring-based application quickly. For a first project, use Spring Boot to create a small web app, then learn the Spring concepts behind it: beans, dependency injection, controllers and request handling.
What is Spring Framework?
Spring Framework is a Java framework whose core includes a configuration model and dependency injection, with additional support for web applications, persistence, transactions and messaging. “Spring” can also refer to the wider family of projects built around the framework.
Spring Framework’s reference documentation describes Spring Boot as providing “a quick (and opinionated) way to create a production-ready Spring-based application.” Boot builds on Spring Framework; it does not replace it.
Spring Framework and Spring Boot are different
Spring Framework supplies foundational capabilities and programming models. Spring Boot favors convention over configuration and uses the dependencies and beans in an application to make configuration choices, reducing the setup a beginner must do by hand.
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Do I need Spring Boot to learn Spring?
No. Spring Framework concepts can be learned without Boot, but Spring’s beginner guidance recommends starting with a Boot-based application and learning the underlying concepts as they appear. Boot gets a runnable app in place; Spring MVC annotations, beans and dependency injection are still Spring concepts.
Boot auto-configuration is not code generation. As the Spring guide “Building an Application with Spring Boot” puts it, “Spring Boot does not generate code or make edits to your files.” It applies configuration when the application starts, based on the modules and beans it finds.
What do I need installed to run a Spring app?
You need a JDK and a build tool such as Maven or Gradle. An IDE is useful but not required: Spring Boot can also be used with a text editor. Spring lists IntelliJ IDEA, Spring Tool Suite, VS Code and Eclipse with Spring Tools among the IDE options.
Use the requirements on the current installation page rather than copying a version number from an older tutorial. Spring’s current first-application tutorial demonstrates Java 17 and offers Maven or Gradle. The Spring Boot installation page lists Maven 3.6.3 or later and Gradle 8.14 or later in the 8.x line, or Gradle 9.x. Spring’s Quickstart recommends BellSoft Liberica JDK 17 or 21; that is the page’s recommendation, not a universal requirement.
Check whether Java is available by opening a terminal and running:
java -versionThen choose Maven or Gradle. Both are supported. Maven describes the project and dependencies in pom.xml; Gradle uses a build script. Spring recommends using a build tool with dependency management rather than manually copying framework JAR files.
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How do I get started with Spring?
The most direct beginner path is to generate a small web project with Spring Initializr, add one controller, run the app and follow a request through it. The current Spring first-application tutorial demonstrates Java 17 and lets you use Maven or Gradle.
- Choose a build tool and language. Select Maven or Gradle and Java for the project.
- Generate a web project. In Spring Initializr, select the web dependency, generate the project and unpack the downloaded archive.
- Open the project. Import it into an IDE or open its files in a text editor. Use the build tool and project structure that Initializr generated.
- Add a controller. Create a controller with a route such as
/that returns a short string. The example below illustrates the shape of such a controller; match package declarations and project files to the generated application. - Run the application. Use the run instructions or build-tool task for the generated project. Its main method passes the application class to Spring Boot startup.
- Make a request. Open the route in a browser or send a request to the running app. Trace the path to the controller method and its returned response.
@RestController
class HelloController {
@RequestMapping("/")
String home() {
return "Hello, Spring!";
}
}This snippet is an illustration of the controller pattern, not a complete project: it omits the generated build files and main application class. The web MVC starter supplies Spring Boot and web-related dependencies, including Tomcat in the official example, so Boot can configure the web stack for the app.
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@RestControllermarks a class as a controller for web requests and returns method results to the caller.@RequestMapping("/")connects the root URL path to the method.- The method’s returned string becomes the response content in this simple example.
Spring MVC handles the route and response. These MVC annotations are Spring features, not features exclusive to Spring Boot. The application’s main method starts Boot, and @SpringBootApplication combines configuration, auto-configuration and component scanning.
What does dependency injection mean?
Dependency injection means that a component receives the objects it needs instead of constructing and coordinating all of them itself. This lets Spring manage application objects and connect them. The Spring container manages registered objects called beans.
For example, a service might need a repository to retrieve data. Rather than creating the repository inside the service, the service can receive it through its constructor. Spring recommends constructor injection for wiring dependencies.
When @SpringBootApplication is on the main application class in a suitable top-level package, component scanning can find annotated components beneath that package. Annotations such as @Component, @Service, @Repository and @Controller identify objects that Spring can register as beans. The Spring Boot guide to beans and dependency injection explains the mechanism and constructor-injection approach.
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What should I learn after the first app?
- Follow a request from its URL path to the controller method and response.
- Learn how component scanning finds annotated classes and how Spring manages them as beans.
- Practice constructor injection by giving a service a dependency it needs.
- Explore the task-focused guides in Spring’s documentation, then study web, persistence or transaction features as your project needs them.
A one-route app is a learning exercise, not a complete production application. Its value is that it makes the startup process, request mapping and basic component wiring visible in a small project.
Sources and version context
The version-sensitive guidance above reflects Spring’s official pages accessed September 30, 2026, including the Spring Boot 4.1.1 first-application tutorial and the Spring Framework 6.2 overview. Spring’s overview also lists a newer stable 7.0 documentation branch. Requirements and documentation can change, so check the linked installation page and tutorial when setting up a project.
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