Show the modern default: "AssetMapper for most projects — no build step, no Node.js, and importmaps handle JavaScript dependencies natively. I reach for Encore only when I need Sass compilation, TypeScript, or a full frontend framework like React."
AssetMapper (Symfony 6.3+): maps asset files to public URLs with versioned filenames for cache busting. No build step, no Node.js required — works with native browser ES modules and importmaps. Best for simpler projects and when you want to avoid a JavaScript build toolchain. Webpack Encore: a Symfony wrapper around Webpack. Handles bundling, transpilation, CSS preprocessing (Sass, PostCSS), code splitting, and hot module replacement. More powerful but requires Node.js and a build step. Strong candidates explain: that AssetMapper is now the default recommendation for new Symfony projects, that Encore is still appropriate for complex frontend needs (React, Vue, TypeScript compilation), and that the asset() Twig function handles versioned URLs regardless of which system is used.
Tests awareness of current Symfony tooling. Candidates who only know Encore or who manually link CSS and JS files in templates are not using modern asset management. Those who understand the trade-off between AssetMapper simplicity and Encore power make informed choices.