We know how crucial apps are in today’s world, whether for connecting businesses with their clientele, accelerating automation and innovation, enabling firms to expand, etc. For whatever reason, you’re probably considering creating an app. But how to do it without spending much time, money, and effort?
Have you heard about no code and low code? The main goal of this type of software is to make technology available to everyone and to remove obstacles so that anyone can create any app.
Both non-developers and developers can design apps utilizing visual interfaces rather than writing code using no-code and low-code tools.
How? By dragging and dropping various elements on an interface or platform to design your apps and websites visually. No-code platforms are a fantastic way to reduce the time it takes to market your product or solution, facilitating the quick and straightforward automation of workflows.
Although there are many no-code products on the market, not all of them may be ideal for you. Make sure you use a no-code platform that utilizes the most cutting-edge technologies.
FlutterFlow and Bubble are two of these platforms. Since it might be challenging to determine which platform is the best, let us help you with a detailed comparison of these two top no-code platforms that have recently dominated the landscape. We’ll consider things like their costs, features, and usability, among other things. Which performs better, then? Let’s find out!
What is FlutterFlow?
FlutterFlow prides itself on being ten times faster than traditional app development. Users may connect data, including API connectors, and quickly create multilingual apps using this visual drag-and-drop builder.
FlutterFlow is a no code app builder for creating mobile applications available on iOS and Android app stores. Thanks to Google’s Firebase integration, developers can promptly handle user authentication, create data types in the software’s editor, and link widgets to the Firebase database.
To build the most outstanding apps possible, FlutterFlow additionally offers services from outside parties. Algolia and Codemagic have teamed up with the platform to support deep search, and Codemagic will test and validate the app before it is released. FlutterFlow’s user interface is straightforward to use. A variety of tools are available to build fully functional mobile applications.
A very unique feature of Flutterflow is that it’s built on top of Flutter, a traditional coding language. This means that when you hit the limit of the no-code interface, you can always get a Flutter developer to come in and add some code in order to achieve what you want.
Listen to our latest episodes of the Low-Code/No-Code Podcast and discover how to build powerful applications without writing a single line of code!
What is Bubble?
Bubble is a no code web app builder that enables users to create stunning online and mobile web apps without writing a single line of code. The software’s drag-and-drop builder allows complete user freedom, enabling them to develop pixel-perfect creations.
Although there is a learning curve, Bubble enables you to create apps with a drag-and-drop interface that goes beyond the constraints of the templated design.
By using third-party templates from Bubble, you may strengthen the stability of your software and increase its functionality.
Bubble users can execute transactions, send emails, change the text or visual aspects of the app for various users, and save and display data. Through the software’s cloud platform, users can rapidly deploy their apps. As the site’s traffic increases, Bubble hosts it and scales it. Due to the software’s provision of a secure, production-ready, and scalable infrastructure, users are not required to deploy servers or establish an operations team.
If you’re interested in giving Bubble a try, you can check out a cool feature on their homepage that lets you update their website to see how it functions by clicking here.
FlutterFlow vs Bubble Detailed Comparison
FlutterFlow vs Bubble: Pricing
Even if developing apps using no-code platforms is significantly less expensive than using conventional software development techniques, costs must still be considered. While creating an app, cost-effectiveness will probably be your primary concern.
With Bubble, you may use a free plan and just pay when you want your app to go live. That way, you may spend as much time as you need to construct it without worrying about paying for it. But you’ll need to fork over a minimum of $29 a month when you launch.
FlutterFlow also has a free starter plan that allows users to start building and testing their app with core-platform features, pre-built templates, Firebase integration, and 2 API endpoints—followed by Standard, Pro, and Teams plans. The last two have almost the same features, but collaboration features in the last one.
| Bubble | FlutterFlow | |
| Starter | Free till your app launches | Free |
| Basic | $29/mo | $18/mo |
| Business | $129/mo | $42/mo |
| Enterprise | $529 per month | $42/mo |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
FlutterFlow vs Bubble: Features
In general, FlutterFlow has more features than Bubble. You can take advantage of a variety of solid features, such as:
- API’s
- Alerts/notifications
- Customizable branding, fields, forms, and templates
- Custom development
- Authentication software
- Graphical user interface
- Integrated development environment
- Pre-built templates
- Real-time data
- Database support
You can navigate through the full FlutterFlow list of features here.
On the other hand, Bubble provides a code-free design, development, and hosting platform with powerful features such as built-in message boards, multilingual localization, eCommerce checkout, password user management, and the chance to work with up to 40 collaborators on one app.
FlutterFlow vs Bubble: Plugins and Integrations
FlutterFlow and Bubble share some plugins and integrations such as Algolia, GitHub, Google Maps, PayPal, and Stripe.
But Bubble is undoubtedly the winner with the most significant number of integrations, among which we can find:
- Airtable
- Asana
- Basecamp
- Box
- Calendly
- Clarifai
- Disqus
- Dropbox Business
- Figma
- Gmail
- Google Calendar
- Google Drive
- Heap
- Hotjar
- Intercom
- Mailchimp
- Microsoft Outlook
- Mixpanel
- OneSignal
- Optimizely
- Peltarion
- Plaid
- Segment
- SendGrid
- ServiceBot
- Slack
- Trello
- Twilio
- Typeform
- Vimeo
- WordPress
- Zapier
- Zoom Meetings
And for FlutterFlow’s integrations, we have:
- Braintree
- Firebase
- Firestore
- Google AdMob
- Google Analytics 360
- RevenueCat
As you may notice, in addition to the integrations that both platforms share, FlutterFlow lags in this aspect. With Bubble, you can integrate almost anything your app requires, while FlutterFlow has just a few integrations at the moment.
FlutterFlow vs Bubble: Support, Community & Resources
Bubble recognizes its complexity, so it provides endless resources through its academy for beginners and not-so-beginners who want to start using the platform.
On the other hand, FlutterFlow’s support is a work in progress; nevertheless, they have an incredibly active community where people collaborate and solve doubts together with other developers. They also have a Discord group to support these goals.
The Hackathon is an example of FlutterFlow’s great community. It is a global competition where people compete to build the best casual mobile game they can using the platform. The winner can win up to $2,000!
FlutterFlow vs Bubble: Pros and Cons
There are a few things to consider if you’re worried about no-code platforms’ usability. Naturally, some customers might be turned off by such a claim because creating an app without coding can seem difficult.
The main goal of most no-code platforms is to make app creation easy, and they have made sure that their products are easy to use.
Overall, we would say that FlutterFlow is much easier and faster to use than Bubble. However, there are some observable pros and cons between them. Here’s the count to help you make a decision more easily
FlutterFlow
Pros
- Produces stunning native apps that include all native features.
- Since FlutterFlow makes native apps, it will be easy for you to get your app into the app stores.
- Better transitions and UX.
- FlutterFlow lets you export clean code without bulk or obfuscation and import your code.
- FlutterFlow apps are much faster because they use Firebase. You can simply interface with many services both within FlutterFlow and through Firebase extensions.
Cons
- You must establish a connection to a different back end. Firebase integration is supported by FlutterFlow, but that is it; if you need back-end logic, you will need to write additional Firebase code.
- There is no current feature upgrade like Bubble. The updated app needs to be manually rebuilt and uploaded.
- Some FlutterFlow users report that the platform sometimes has a browser lag, forcing them to redo some of their screens.
- The learning curve for customizing application logic is somewhat complicated.
- Inability to support sub-collections in Cloud Firestore.
Bubble
Pros
- Bubble allows users to create full-stack online apps without having to worry too much about user authentication features, connecting the front end to the database, etc.
- You don’t have to worry about rebuilding the app for updates when you wrap your web with a webview component because updates happen instantly.
- Visual programming and drag-and-drop features make it possible to create complex workflows while cutting down on development time and getting rid of any problems.
- Bubble integrates with a wide range of plugins and third-party services.
Cons
- Zero control over your data and code. The entire project cannot be exported because Bubble’s platform is where everything is hosted.
- Responsiveness might occasionally be a hassle.
- Bubble doesn’t count with offline functionalities, and native functionality must be obtained through plugins.
- For scale and maintenance, Bubble apps need to be rebuilt afterward using FlutterFlow or another native platform.
- The learning curve of Bubble from the beginning is quite complex. If you are new to the platform, even creating a single-page app can be a major problem.
FlutterFlow vs. Bubble: Who Wins?
You made it to this point! But let’s be honest, deciding between two low-code/no-code tools is particularly difficult. Everything hinges on perspective and objectives. We could say that you should use Bubble if you need to make changes to your app quickly and have a lot of integrations. On the other hand, you should use FlutterFlow if your app needs to be updated often or is already well-defined.
Even though FlutterFlow and Bubble have easy-to-use interfaces, making a fully responsive (mobile and desktop) app still takes a lot of work, so you may want to think about hiring an extra set of skilled hands. Luckily for you, we at LowCode Agency no code agency can surely help; we’ve used both tools to create +267 apps. We’ll be able to determine which is best based on your demands and other factors.
Now is the time to schedule a free discovery call. Your fantastic ideas and our experience and knowledge will work well together to create your dream app!
Jesus is the founder of Low Code Agency: a low-code development agency that allows small business owners to get their mobile and web apps done fast and cost-effectively while maintaining quality.
