Top 6 low-code platforms developers choose in 2024

The low-code development approach allows you to greatly reduce programming efforts and build internal tools, mobile, and web apps via a graphical user interface. With low-code platforms available today on the market, it’s possible to optimize software development cost-effectively. 

Low-code development platforms are becoming more popular among developers and citizen developers. More and more large, midsized, and small businesses are opting for no-code/low-code development to scale faster without overpaying for out-of-the-box third-party software with unneeded features.

Low-code dev platform benefits

It’s easy to explain the popularity of no-code and low-code tools among businesses. The most essential benefits are:

• No skilled software developers are needed to build an app with low code. Basic coding understanding is enough since no-code and low-code tools are easy to use.
• Low-code development is approximately 10 times faster than traditional manual development.
• Easier maintenance, fewer errors, and debugging.
• Improved agility, team productivity.
• Faster application delivery.
• Accelerated digital transformation and process automation.

Top 6 low-code platforms for developers

Low-code tools and app builders vary in the skills they require, catering to both novice and experienced developers. Some platforms are beginner-friendly, while others are tailored for seasoned engineers, offering development environments to create complex processes, map data, visually customize UIs, or add custom JavaScript.

Today, we'll explore the most powerful and popular low-code internal tools and web app builders, suitable for developers with different levels of expertise and backgrounds.

Retool

Retool is declared as a “remarkably fast way” to build internal tools. It allows you to visually build the tools you need, connect a database or third-party API, and add custom code pieces almost anywhere.

💰 Retool pricing

• Starts from $10 per user per month. A free plan with limited functionality is available.

🔧 Retool features

• Ready-made templates and building blocks including Tables, Charts, and Wizards.
• Connection to any REST, gRPC, GraphQL API.
• Integration with Amazon, BigQuery, SQL Server, Jira, and several other third parties.
• Customization opportunities including the ability to add JavaScript code where needed.
• On-prem Retool version.
• An ability to write data with queries.
• Detailed documentation. 
• Fine-grained access controls and audit logs.
• SAML SSO and 2FA.

UI Bakery

UI Bakery is a fast visual internal tools builder that allows you to decrease costs and deliver solutions in no time. You can connect your data sources or third-party services, send HTTP requests, and configure SQL queries inside your app. 

💰 UI Bakery pricing

• Starts from $10 per user per month. A free plan with limited functions is available.

🔧 Retool features

• Templates, dashboards, and 25+ ready-made UI components.
• A customizable UI library under the hood.
• Free training and onboarding sessions.
• Very comprehensive and regularly updated documentation.
• Automatic generators of the predefined component and action pairs.
• Data structure generation.
• Internal tool modification with JavaScript code.
• Integration with MySQL, PostgreSQL, Google Sheets, Stripe, and a range of other third-party APIs.
• Unlimited app pages.

Quixy

Quixy is a no-code app development platform that enables developers and citizen developers to automate various business processes by creating simple or complicated solutions. It offers ready-made templates not to start from scratch.

💰 Quixy pricing

• Starts from $18 per user per month (minimum 20 users). A free 14-day trial is available. 

🔧 Quixy features

• A drag-and-drop interface allows you to work with more than 40 form fields.
• Integration with third parties via ready connectors, webhooks, and APIs. 
• Sequential, parallel, and conditional workflow modeling.
• Notifications and reminders configuration.
• Single-click app deployment.
• Data export (reports, dashboards) available.
• ISO 27001 and SOC2 Type2 certification.

Appian

Appian is a low-code dev platform allowing you to build web apps and business process management applications 10X times faster than with traditional coding. Appian allows you to integrate with Jenkins and other DevOps tools, deploy your applications, etc.

💰 Appian pricing

• Open-source 

🔧 Appian features

• A convenient drag-n-drop building interface.
• Real-time monitoring and optimization of the business processes.
• Integration with AI from Google, AWS, and Azure.
• Databases, web services, APIs integration.
• Enterprise-grade platform security.

Microsoft PowerApps

Microsoft PowerApps is a low-code development platform for building and customizing business apps. Developers tend to choose this tool due to its pro-developer extensibility allowing to significantly extend the app functionality when needed.

💰 Microsoft Power Apps pricing

• Starts from $5 per user/app per month. A free trial is available.

🔧 Microsoft Power Apps features

• A drag-n-drop building technique.
• Ready-made templates – no need to start from scratch.
• A library of 500+ connectors (Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and others).
• Power Automate: it allows you to design business logic without writing a single line of code. 
• Built-in Common Data Service.
• An ability to build iOS, Android, and Windows-friendly applications.

Quickbase

Quickbase is a powerful low-code development platform for software engineers and citizen developers. It offers a number of features like business process automation, data management, etc.

💰 Quickbase pricing 

• Starts from $600 per 50 apps per month.

🔧 Quickbase features

• WYSIWYG approach.
• End-to-end business process automation.
• Easy workflow orchestration.
• HIPAA, DFARS, SOC 1/SOC 2, and other certificates.
• Third-party integrations with Salesforce, Dropbox, Slack, and other services.
• Developer Sandbox to roll back the changes.

On a final note

The no-code and the low-code markets are continuing to expand in 2024. Although low-code platforms and visual internal tools builders can’t fully replace traditional hand-coding, no secret that they can greatly simplify routine and manual work for developers and citizen developers.

Decreased costs, less development time, less app maintenance and bugs, automated business processes – these are only some of the great benefits the use of low-code tools brings.

If you’re not sure which low-code dev platform to choose, contact our team to get a free demo. We’ll be glad to answer any questions you have and discuss your case details.