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Retool vs Softr

An in-depth head to head comparison

In this article, read a side-by-side comparison between two no-code tools: Retool and Softr. We'll compare pricing, the benefits, the drawbacks, give examples of what you can and can't build, as well as our overall recommendation.

What is Retool?

Build internal tools, remarkably fast
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What is Softr?

The easiest way to build powerful portals and tools on top of your business data—flexible, fast, and no coding required.
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Pricing

Retool pricing

  • Free plan with editor mode only and up to 5 modules
  • $10/month - $50/month per user enables user mode (people can use your app without the ability to edit your set up), version history, more modules, and more advanced features

Softr pricing

  • Free basic plan with unlimited app visitors, 5 internal / 100 external app users, 5 workspace collaborators, CRUD, Global data restrictions, 1 custom domain
  • $49/month for custom CSS/JS, 10 internal / 1000 external app users, Embed Softr apps, Option to buy extra custom domains, 
  • $139/month - $269/month for 100 internal / 10000 external app users, 15 workspace collaborators, Conditional Forms, Downloadable mobile apps (PWA), No Softr branding, 

Benefits

Retool benefits

  • Build internal apps connected to your company's data
  • Supports data from just about every database and data source
  • Lots of templates and components
  • Display, filter, and edit your company's data directly from retool
  • Allows businesses to create custom dashboards without developer resources

Softr benefits

  • Easy to use, no-code interface allows non-technical users, such as operators, analysts, and team leads, to create and manage their own tools.
  • Build internal tools or portals on top of your data with AWS-powered server-side security
  • Integration with a variety of data sources, including SQL Databases (MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MariaDB), Airtable, Google Sheets, HubSpot, BigQuery, SmartSuite, Xano, SupaBase.
  • Customize layout and design to align with your brand
  • Advanced user groups and custom permissions
  • Custom code (Javascript, HTML/CSS) available 
  • Responsive design, plus option to create mobile applications as PWAs
  • Hundreds of templates for use cases across various verticals and departments.
  • Integrate with 30+ tools including Zapier and Make
  • 24/7 high quality support, regardless of plan.

Drawbacks

Retool drawbacks

  • Somewhat high learning curve

Softr drawbacks

  • Can't build more complex logic into web apps (check out Bubble or Glide for more complex logic
  • Can't fully customize design

What you can build

Retool use-cases

  • Internal dashboards
  • Internal apps for your business such as a refund management system, data visualization, inventory management, content scheduler, promo code manager and more

Softr use-cases

  • Internal tools and portals for businesses such as client portals, team intranets, inventory management, HR portals, employee directories, CRM, reporting dashboards
  • Public facing apps

What you can't build

What you can't build with Retool

  • Customer-facing apps (Retool apps are meant to be used internally)

What you can't build with Softr

  • Fully custom designed websites

Overall Recommendation

Retool recommendation

Retool is a fantastic tool for building internal apps at your business.

Where Retool really shines is allowing non-technical people to build apps that interact with a live database without needing to use developers.

Retool is the best tool for this use-case.

Softr recommendation

Softr is best for building powerful internal tools and client portals incredibly fast, without needing any coding skills. It’s ideal if you’re looking for a solution that doesn’t require high-level design flexibility but offers ease of use, affordability, and the ability to build apps for both internal and external use.

If you want more control over the design and more complexity, I'd recommend Webflow connected to Memberstack for a membership site, but that also comes with a higher learning curve.

If you're looking to build a web app with more complex logic I'd recommend checking out Bubble or Glide.

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Unlock premium step-by-step tutorials building real apps and websites
Easy to follow tutorials broken down into lessons between 2 to 20 minutes
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Bring Your Ideas to Life with AI and No Code

Unlock premium step-by-step tutorials building real apps and websites
Easy to follow tutorials broken down into lessons between 2 to 20 minutes
Get access to the community to share what you're building, ask questions, and get support if you're stuck
Access all of this with No-Code MBA Unlimited
Unlock premium step-by-step tutorials building real apps and websites
Easy to follow tutorials broken down into lessons between 2 to 20 minutes
Get access to the community to share what you're building, ask questions, and get support if you're stuck
Friendly Tip!
Companies often reimburse No Code MBA memberships. Here's an email template to send to your manager.

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