There are one million no code app
builders, but you just need one. It all depends on the kind
of app you want to build, and the way I see it, there are three kinds: The plug and play,
just add water kind The kind that needs a decent amount of drag and dropping, and those that need some custom code. In this video, I’ll be sharing my recommendations for no code mobile and web app builders for each of these categories. And as always. I know not everyone wants
to me talk for ten minutes. So I’ll start with the list of
recommendations and why I chose them. There’s links to them in the description so
you can destroy my viewer retention rate. It’s ok. I still love you. For plug and play apps, the main factor I look
at is the quantity and quality of templates. Adalo for mobile
Softr for web For apps that need custom UI/UX, main factor
is the built-in customization options. Thunkable for mobile.
WeWeb for web And if I think I’ll need to extend
an app with mainly custom code, I’d look at how well the no code app
builder can import external components. Flutterflow for mobile
Plasmic for web Whichever suits your needs, link to them below. But you know. I’m sharing my specific recommendations
out of dozens of options. You’re the one who’s actually
building the damn thing. So before you put your trust in some dude
on the Internet, let me share a little bit about how I evaluate these no code
app builders based on the main factor. In my head, what I hope to
happen is for you to think. Adrian has the right idea, but I
wouldn’t do it exactly like that, so I’ll tweak it to suit my needs In real life, what usually happens is people
decide I don’t know what I’m talking about. And ignore me completely. Just in case that happens, could
I trouble you to subscribe now? Editor, help me. Alright, let’s start.
1. Plug and play apps and beginner app builders This is the kind of app where you
don’t really need much editing. The app isn’t the business, it’s just a
scalable vehicle for a business - and I say a business because all these app look the
same, just with a different name and logo. It could be a digital extension
for an existing business. Or it could be a simple online
platform to promote and sell stuff. Think a restaurant that wants a food ordering app. They’re not trying to build the best app, they’re trying to be the best restaurant
and they figure they need an app for that. There are other examples. A doctor who wants a way for
people to book appointments, or A fitness instructor who
wants to sell online coaching. For these kinds of use cases, you take
a good template, change the name, logo, and colors to your brand and then do
the bare minimum needed for the app. So now why Adalo and Softr specifically? Well, I think they have a good
variety of templates and their templates look complete in terms
of functions - just needs a reskin. And Softr specifically has an AI app
generation feature where you can get a sort of custom app generated with just a
prompt - I covered it in a video sometime back where my non tech scriptwriter used it to
generate a working directory in a few minutes. Also, with simple apps like this, the ‘founders’ don’t want to think about hosting - is
the app online? Yes? Then good enough. So I think that going with established names gives added security that you can take
for granted - your directory app or coaching app is probably always going to
be there unless you choose to take it down. Now for the intermediate level no code app
builder, long accepted as an official concept and not something I made up for this video. 2. Custom apps and intermediate app builders This will include a huge range of use cases
and many of you will be in this group. For me, this is where the app is the business,
and what I think of when I think ‘app founder' It could still be a directory
or appointment booking system, but maybe now you’re building a system
for others to use and not just doctors.- Or you want to build a coaching platform
that can accommodate all sorts of coaches career coaches,
boxing coaches, coach handbags,
and even coachella. You don’t want to use it yourself. You want to attract and retain other users. And different users will have different requests. A good app founder listens to their
feedback and makes changes that make sense. And by make sense I mean make money. For this, your app builder should give you some
control over the app, and three things I look for: Editable logic Customizable UI, and
An editable backend If you go to the documentation section of an
app builder, you can get a pretty accurate idea of what you can expect from the app builder.
So here we are on Thunkable’s documentation page. Look at the left, here are the parts that tell me Thunkable will let me customize my app
beyond just the logo and font style. All these blocks and component documentation
tells me hey, you can customize quite a bit. Now let’s put it next to Adalo’s documentation page and I think you can
really see the difference. And it’s the same with WeWeb vs
Softr, just for web instead of mobile. You might think maybe it’s not a fair assessment
because an app builder could be really capable, but it just doesn’t have good documentation. 1. Again, if you stick to established names, they are usually honest and up
to date with their capabilities. 2. There are lots of capable app builders WITH
good documentation so why take the risk, and 3. If you wanna take the risk,
don’t say uncle Adrian didn’t warn you. Third tier - for the discerning founder,
who knows that even the best of no code, is still just no code. 3. Custom code and advanced app builders This is like the opposite of a plug and play app. Custom code means it doesn’t exist on the app
builder like the other pre-built blocks and functions - it either has to be imported
or entered into a custom code widget. So, in the context of no code, a non tech
founder would see it as a last resort. Because by definition,
non-tech founders don’t code. If you start coding, you’re
now a technical founder. So what this means is the non tech founder
learns to code or hires a developer. And there’s no specific function, feature,
or design element that you can look at and immediately say aha, I’m definitely
going to need custom code for that. Cause no code tools get more and more powerful. But there’s always going to be a limit
- that’s part of the deal with no code. So I think of this third level as founders
who want to future-proof their apps. They want the most flexibility
and freedom possible. They want the speed of no code,
and the flexibility of custom code. So if something needs to be done and no
code is good enough they use no code. If not, they hire a developer or
learn a bit of coding themselves. It could be that same coaching app. Or better yet, two coaching apps by two founders. One of them uses an app builder that
allows custom code, the other doesn’t. Let’s say they are the only
two coaching apps in the world. The one with custom code possibilities is going to outgun and outclass the purely
no code version. Not even close. If you’re that kind of founder, then you want
an app builder like this - and what I look for is the list of external framework
and design language compatibility. And if you look at Plasmic, it has an
insane number of codebase integrations. The most I’ve seen in a tool that’s still
designed for non techs to build apps. You could get someone who knows ZERO coding,
and someone who knows literally ALL THE CODE IN THE WORLD, and they can both work on
the same project, using the same tool. Should I? I don’t want to make it all seem like
an advertisement, cause it’s not…really. But sometime back Plasmic reached
out to me and I made a video on them. Point is, they gave me a code that my viewers can use to redeem 2 months of free
unlimited access to Plasmic. The sign up link is in the description
and the promo code is ADRIAN. Take it or leave it, but I’d prefer you
take it, and we move on to Flutterflow, where you can see in their documentation
they allow custom code integration. If you can find another app builder that
offers custom code integration, then go for it. And there you go, my recommendations for beginner, intermediate, and advanced mobile and web
app builders based on one main factor. Templates for beginner app builders. Customization for intermediate app builders.
Custom code import for advanced app builders. Also, while the main factor
should always be given priority, there are secondary factors
that can be used as tiebreakers. This list can go on like my girlfriend, so I’ll just stick to my top three
most important general factors. Code export - which is where you can
download the source code of your app and deploy and host it on a different platform
Automated testing - that’s where you test the behavior of an app without needing a human
Version controlling - where changes to the code are tracked and you can
restore previous versions in case someone f*** up - and that someone is you. They’re more common in intermediate and advanced app builders, but it’s not always
the case so make sure you check. And you should be able to find out
through the documentation section as well. If you can satisfy your main factor AND you
get to enjoy these extra benefits, why not? By the way, if you run a business
making between 5 to 10 million a year and you want to get to 15 million
and think you need custom software to get there, ANNND you don’t currently have tech team Check the pinned comment for a link
to apply to work with me and my team. I don’t think I’ll ever be comfortable
just telling people ‘hey, use this’. For me it’s important people
know why I’m recommending it, because if they know, they may decide
it’s not going to help their goals. I think it’s much more important to
understand your needs and pain points. Cause tools come and go. But pain points come and stay. So, while you can absolutely
take my recommendations. I invite you to watch this video on how to find the best no code app builder
that addresses YOUR needs. I go over seven metrics, and I think
this can really help you evaluate app builder suggestions, or better yet, find your own. So subscribe and leave a like if you haven’t
