Architecture : MERN / Full stack framework for simple projects

I've seen that during the past few years, tech stacks such as MERN, MEAN, ... are getting more and more popularity.

I am pretty sure there are many reasons for this (such as raw performance or the possibility to make dynamic progressive web apps, and things like that).

However, currently working as a full stack developer in Ruby on Rails, I am wondering:

Is there any way splitted frontend/backend stacks (such as MERN, ...) can compete in any way in terms of development time with full stack frameworks (such as Laravel, Rails, Django, ...), especially to make small apps?

I find that tools such as Express.js, React,.. often don't come "battery included", meaning that you often have to reinvent the wheel, or install a lot of packages and extensions to get even a simple work done.

Is my vision true? If yes, I dont really understand why frameworks such as Rails are becoming less and less popular over time (and no other frameworks seem to have a huge popularity boost). Are everyone accepting the boilerplate coming with MERN, MEAN,... stacks, or is there anything I get wrong?

Best