Visual Basic Developers Nottingham | Visual Basic Development

What is Visual Basic (VB) ?

So, you may well have heard of Visual Basic (or VB if we’re being casual). It’s a programming language and integrated development environment (IDE) that Microsoft first launched back in 1991. The whole point of VB was to make Windows software development a lot less painful. Instead of typing thousands upon thousands of lines of code, you could drag and drop your way to a user interface, then tie it together with event driven programming, resulting in functional Windows applications that were FAR quicker to build than writing everything from scratch

Over the years, VB evolved into Visual Basic .NET (VB.NET), which does of course live within the wider .NET framework. That means, it can even be used for cross platform development these days. For simplicity and for the purpose of this information, when we say “VB,” we're talking about VB.NET (unless we specifically call out VBA - It's sibling that lives inside Microsoft Office).

Is VB still a thing?

Great question. The short answer: kind of...

Classic VB? Not so much - it’s mostly retired now but VB.NET is still alive and kicking, especially in enterprise software, legacy systems and companies that have VB baked so deeply into their processes that ripping it out and replacing would cost more than their 5 year IT budget.

To be clear, it’s not winning popularity contests against C#, Python or JavaScript but if yours, like many businesses, revolves around Microsoft tech, VB.NET is still a very viable option. And let’s not forget VBA which continues to quietly power thousands of automated reports, macros and time saving hacks inside Excel, Word and Access.

What’s good about VB.NET?

So why would anyone still use VB.NET? Well, there are actually a few good reasons...

Integration with Microsoft tech

VB.NET is still a good option with all things Microsoft - Office, SQL Server - you name it. If your business lives inside that ecosystem already, it may make logical and financial sense to use it as a programming language.

Rapid development

It’s quick. The syntax is clean, the tools are integrated and you can even drag and drop your UI.

Legacy support

If you've got old systems written in VB, you don’t have to start from scratch. VB.NET lets you maintain and modernise your existing legacy VB systems.

Support (for devs)

Whilst the VB fan club isn’t as big as it once was, there’s still a decent community and a mountain of existing resources out there to help your developers or development team.

'Easy to learn'

Developers often say VB is beginner friendly. It’s not “learn it in a weekend” easy, but it’s a lot more readable than some other languages.

Windows applications

As a Microsoft technology itself, VB.NET is particularly well suited for building Windows desktop applications and services, especially for businesses that primarily operate in Windows environments. Microsoft fans rejoice!

What do businesses actually use VB for?

Whilst it may not be the most common choice in 2025, VB can still be a practical option depending on your business's specific needs and existing infrastructure. Here, we take a look at some common use cases for VBA and VB.NET.

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA)

Microsoft Office Automation - VBA is widely used for automating tasks in Microsoft Office applications such as Excel, Word and Access - all the boring office stuff.
Custom Solutions in Enterprise - Many enterprises use VBA to build custom solutions that integrate with their existing Microsoft Office workflows. These existing codebases are the output of significant investments and rewriting them in a new language may not be a plausible or cost effective option.

Visual Basic .NET (VB.NET)

Legacy Systems Maintenance - Businesses of all shapes and sizes still have legacy systems and applications written in VB.NET that can continue to be maintained and updated.
Windows Desktop Applications - VB.NET is still used to develop Windows desktop applications, especially in scenarios where businesses have developers that are highly experienced in the language. This is particularly common in SMEs.

Best projects for VB

As we have already covered, newer languages and frameworks dominate modern software development but Visual Basic (VB) and particularly VB.NET still hold a valuable place especially in maintaining legacy systems and building certain types of business applications. Here are some of the most suitable and practical use cases for VB today -

Maintenance and/or enhancement of legacy systems

If your invoicing, reporting or stock control system runs on VB, it’s still your best bet for keeping it alive (and way cheaper than rebuilding everything).

Internal tools and administrative applications

VB is still a good choice if you're after a straightforward, form based Windows desktop applications to automate routine business tasks including data entry, file management and employee scheduling. These tools are quick to develop and easy to deploy across small teams with minimal infrastructure.

Integration with Microsoft Office and Access Databases

Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), closely related to VB, is still widely used to automate and extend Microsoft Office tools. VB developers can create custom Excel macros, Word templates and Access database forms to streamline office workflows.

Prototyping line of business applications

If your business needs quick internal prototypes to test ideas such as a sales dashboards, a timesheet app or an internal tracker, VB.NET allows for rapid development in environments already built around the Microsoft tech stack.

Educational and training tools

VB’s simplicity makes it a great choice for developing educational software, training simulators or beginner level programming exercises, particularly in schools or organisations already using Microsoft technologies.

System utilities and data processing scripts

VB is effective for creating small desktop utilities that interact with the Windows operating system such as file converters, log file readers or batch processing tools used by support and IT teams.

How can we help

If your business relies on legacy systems built with Visual Basic or you need to develop new solutions that must be built in VB - we’re here to help. With nearly three decades of experience, our team can provide expert support, from maintaining and upgrading your existing VB projects to helping you modernise your business applications by migrating them to more modern technologies. Whether it's custom VBA automation, VB.NET application development or legacy system maintenance & support, we can ensure your systems remain robust, efficient and functioning how they should! Get in touch with us today and let’s discuss how we can support your business’s unique needs.

FAQ's

Q) Are VB .NET and .NET the same?

A) VB.NET is simply Visual Basic using the .NET framework. .NET describes the general framework and can be written in a choice of languages with Visual Basic being one of them.

Visual Basic/Visual Basic .NET