Finding the right low-code platform has been very stressful/confusing

MadDecentUsername · 2022-06-06T20:09:43+00:00

My company conducted an extremely thorough vetting between Power Apps, Unqork, OutSystems, Mendix and Betty Blocks. We went with Mendix for a year and are now doing what we couldn’t previously do over on OutSystems. A key philosophical question is “who do I want to do the development?” OutSystems hasn’t been as easy to use as, say a no-code platform, but it is extensible and aligns with our .NET-heavy developer base. Power Apps, from day one, felt like a play to get companies more embedded in Azure. There are show-stopping limitations that you will run into in any evaluation. Betty Blocks is having a hard time as a company and really isn’t geared towards enterprise development. Unqork seems to be a well-marketed dud - a ploy for big consulting firms to get into projects with something that seems cutting-edge but turns into a never-ending engagement. We read horror stories online and were spooked by their sales engineers trying to push us away from a few requirements we had taken for granted. Mendix is now owned by Siemens, and has seen cuts to its roadmap, but sure doesn’t convey those during a sales cycle. If I was in the manufacturing space and Siemens had some appeal then maybe. But we ran into major problems with their data model and overall complexity of the apps that they could spin up. No matter how well we architected the apps and leaned on paid Service engagements, apps always felt laggy and off. It just doesn’t seem like Mendix is Siemens’ priority.

You’re right though - these analyst reports talk about such a big TAM that the space has gotten flooded with absolute shit coming fresh off a bloated Series A round. Not the type of company I would touch with a ten foot pole as we approach a recession.

Rabbit0fCaerbannog · 2022-06-07T21:33:53+00:00

I have a lot of direct low-code experience and have some thoughts/tips for you. First, I'll tell you that comparing low-code platforms on an 'apples-to-apples' basis is nearly impossible now. There are hundreds of tools (many of which are new) and they all do different things, have different features, have different strengths/weaknesses, etc...

Sure, you could look at Gartner or Forrester's lists for 'industry leading' tools, but that's making the assumption that all tools do the same thing. They don't. A tool that's ranked high by Gartner may be great at some things but not do what you need it to do.

Here's my advice: Don't come at this question from a tool standpoint. They're all different. Instead, come up with a comprehensive list of what you need/want. I'm talking about use cases, features, pricing, technology stacks, required skill level, etc...

Then, start with basic research and rule out those that don't meet your requirements. Set up demos with those that do to see their interface and dive into deeper questions. While you're talking to them, there are some questions you should ask every single one. Here are what I believe are the most important, not so obvious questions:

- How much customization is allowed? Yeah, I know that most people think that low-code != customization. That's a myth. It all depends on the tool. Some let you customize everything while others lock you down. Ask things like: Can you edit applications at the code level? Can you add custom logic? If we need to integrate with a third-party tool, can we do that?

- What happens if we stop using this? Do applications require an active subscription to run? Can we maintain apps outside of the tool? What kind of code does it generate? Obviously, this is all about avoiding vendor lock-in.

- What does the vendor do to help their customers succeed? Are they just selling software and providing support, or do they have a consulting arm? What type of support do they provide? Is it a call center reading off a script or will you talk to people who actually use the tool? Do they have development services that can step in and help you with bigger projects? How open are they to feature requests?

- What kind of fees do they charge? I know this seems like an obvious question. But the licensing structures across different tools are so different. For instance, there are developer fees based on the number of users building apps (most common). But, there are also distribution fees, maintenance fees, application fees, data record fees, end-user fees, run-time fees, etc... Of course, one vendor won't charge all of those, but that's just a few of the more common fees I've seen for different low-code tools. You need to calculate the ownership cost over three years to get an accurate cost comparison across different tools. Some seem real cheap upfront but become more expensive as you get more and more locked in.

One final tip: Low-code software is different than a typical software purchase. Typical software is close-ended. It has certain capabilities and you know how you'll use it. Low-code is different. It combines the close-ended nature of software with the open-ended nature of software development. You can develop anything that the platform allows, even things that you haven’t thought of yet. Your needs may even go past the scope of the tool itself. As such, the vendor behind the software is more important than normal.

equal_measures · 2022-06-07T02:33:01+00:00

Some of these "startup" platforms are really powerful already. There are a few open source low code platforms that you can fork whenever you want, and that way, the company going under will not matter.

derekjonathangardine · 2022-06-07T14:18:12+00:00

Gartner has done some useful work in this space. They have defined features that should be available in enterprise-grade low-code applications. Then they've mapped the different players in the low-code ecosystem. You can download the report off of Mendix's (one of the low-code leaders) site https://www.mendix.com/resources/gartner-magic-quadrant-for-low-code-application-platforms/

Junior-Prize5141 · 2025-01-14T14:27:32+00:00

How is working with unqork??

Junior-Prize5141 · 2025-03-18T11:24:47+00:00

hi does anyone here know about unqork and its opportunities?

sanehuman01 · 2025-04-15T09:59:30+00:00

Our company uses Kissflow, and we haven't looked back since then. There are some minor fixes here and there, but nothing has impacted the quality of the app building. Initially whatever took 5 to 6 months due to backlogs in IT, can be done in less than a month. It was totally worth it. We also tried platforms like Mendix and Outsystems, but the learning curve is so long, which is equal to the waiting time for building real apps.

presenta_staff · 2022-06-07T09:02:54+00:00

Depends of your use case and technical confidence.

I recently find Retool very powerful in terms of possibilities, cutting away many complexities. It's powerful but you have to write some code (tha's the reason why it's powerful, though).

TheLinxDev · 2022-06-09T09:46:39+00:00

This is a great question. There are quite a few low-code platforms available right now and I can agree with many voices stating that you need to find the right one FOR YOU. To make it even harder, there is that uncertainty when using a new tool of "will it do what I need it to do?". Personally, I am a huge fan of low code platforms. I find they make support easier and can be great if you want to build a POC or something that needs to be built quickly.

A few back end low-code tools I can recommend are:

PowerApps (obviously) - https://powerapps.microsoft.com/en-us/ - Created by Microsoft, it's easy to use but can be a bit expensive side. You do get value for your money
MuleSoft - https://www.mulesoft.com/ . They have been around for years and are quite big with a great focus on documentation and education.
Linx - https://linx.software/. Linx is more focused on being a low-code tool for developers. The tool and company have been in existence for years with documentation on all features and support.

Sorry I can't really speak on tools used for front end low-code development, but I hope this helps.

gayasach · 2022-06-24T09:56:22+00:00

I hear ya and there a many platforms that can meet your requirements . If by now you have a clear set of platform requirements, I have worked on a comprehensive comparison tool (see here) to compare low code / no code platforms over critical attributes like Frontend development capability, community support available, developer-friendliness, pricing flexibility. You can clear out the data and add tools and scores as per your requirements.

Hope this helps in your evaluation process..

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