Angular 21 shipped Signal Forms as an experimental API—reactive form management built on signals, not observables. The form() function wraps a WritableSignal model, making your data the source of truth. Validation, state tracking, field binding all happen reactively without zone.js overhead.
Signal Forms are low-level by design. You still write templates for each field, wire validation manually, handle conditional visibility yourself. Fine for bespoke UIs. Less fine when you're building the fourteenth variation of a multi-page registration flow.
ng-forge Dynamic Forms adds a config-driven layer on top. One typed configuration defines fields, validation, conditionals, computed values, multi-page flows. The framework generates the rest—no custom glue code.
The type safety works both ways. While authoring configs, you get autocomplete for field types, options arrays, validator properties. At compile time, typos and invalid properties fail. At runtime, the form's output type is inferred automatically from the config via InferFormValue<typeof config>. Add a field, the type updates. Rename a key, TypeScript catches every reference.
The library addresses ngx-formly pain points its creator hit in production—untyped configs, imperative lifecycle hooks for conditionals, wrapper-heavy DOM, sluggish rendering on large forms. The Signal Forms foundation enables localized change detection and declarative logic without fighting Angular's reactivity model.
The trade-offs: Signal Forms are experimental—APIs may change. If you need maximum template flexibility or one-off forms, raw Signal Forms make more sense. ng-forge optimizes for consistency across pattern-heavy forms, but you're configuring rather than templating.
Integration hooks exist for Material, Bootstrap, PrimeNG, Ionic. No performance benchmarks published yet, though signal-based reactivity should reduce zone.js coupling compared to Reactive Forms.
History suggests experimental APIs stabilize slowly in Angular—watch for breaking changes through Angular 22-23. For enterprises building form-heavy apps (government portals, fintech onboarding), the type safety and reduced boilerplate matter. For teams with design systems requiring pixel-perfect control, raw Signal Forms give you more leverage.
The real question: Does your form architecture repeat patterns enough to justify config-driven generation? If yes, this is worth testing. If your forms are mostly unique, the abstraction costs more than it saves.