Low Code vs No Code - TigerSheet - Custom Software for Business

You may hear the terms “No Code” and “Low Code” thrown around by developers and entrepreneurs. There’s a lot of ambiguity as to what these terms even mean. To add to the confusion…

At first glance, it’s easy to confuse low-code and no-code. They sound the same for one. Even the big analyst firms seem to have a hard time differentiating them. Gartner views “no-code” application platforms as part of the low-code sphere, lumping them together into its latest Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Low-Code Application Platforms, 2019 (LCAP).

But there are a number of very significant differences between low-code and no-code platforms. If you’re considering moving away from traditional application development, or even just want to try out visual application development, you’ll want to be aware of what you’re getting in each offering.

Low-code vs No-code: Decoding the difference

The key differences between low-code and no-code platforms are their target users and their output capabilities.

Low-code platforms primarily target developers, enabling them to rapidly build working front-end prototypes in a matter of days, or even hours.
This allows them to get to the most interesting part of software development much faster: customization.
Low-code platforms are suitable for the creation of more complex applications and processes that require integration with other application databases or systems.

No-code platforms target smaller businesses, those without the budget to outsource development, or hire a developer internally.
Using a no-code platform, a citizen developer can create and deploy complete applications without needing to write a single line of code.
The downside of this speed, ease, and simplicity, is that no-code platforms are only really capable of developing basic applications that don’t require integration with any other systems. They may help to simplify a manual internal process, but they simply don’t have the capabilities to develop competitive, innovative software.

Low-Code vs. No-Code: When to Use What

Both low-code and no-code platforms are built with the same thing in mind: Agility. And although at a distance they look similar, each is suitable for very different purposes.

Low-code is good for developing sophisticated applications that run important, often mission-critical processes at the core of your business. It’s also good for building standalone mobile and web apps that may or may not require sophisticated integrations. In fact, it can be used for just about anything.

Conversely, no code’s limitations mean it should only be used for front-end use-cases.

Having said this, there’s room for both, or at least a combination of both, in the modern enterprise. And for those embracing DevOps—another methodology designed to create greater agility in development—the combination of low-code and no-code could present the perfect application development environment.

In a world where everything has to happen faster, both low-code and no-code platforms can provide a competitive advantage for developers and the organizations employing them. However, unless you’re developing only the simplest applications, and require little in the way of customization, low-code will always be the better option.

Low-code offers greater flexibility and control, which means you can build more varied, powerful, and responsive apps. Yet, it still has the simplicity to get those apps up and running much faster than if you were to hand-code them. And, since low-code still requires some knowledge of coding, you know the people creating your applications will do so properly, and your new applications won’t saddle you with security risks or compliance issues.

Tigersheet for No Code Development

At Tigersheet, we acknowledge that technology is at the tip of the iceberg. Change is always more significantly more complicated than merely designing a new application or moving to a new infrastructure.
That’s why we do what we, helping organizations get the most of their technology today and tomorrow. Whether you need to replace an accounting system or develop a plan for becoming truly cloud-native,
our experts can help your experts build a plan and move ahead. And,
most importantly, we can help you manage change along the way.

One of the significant movements in IT over recent years has been a trend towards the low code and no code tools and platforms.

Low code application development lets businesses build apps faster with minimum coding. While, it’s been a while for these low code platforms to come into existence, they were initially introduced as auto code generation tools that evolved into enterprise-grade app development platforms covering the entire app delivery.

Present day low-code platforms speed up the entire app delivery process right from requirements to deployment stage. Some of the critical app delivery areas that get optimized using low code platforms are:

• Coding gets replaced by visual app building, where the developer creates the entire end-user experience right from the start, using simple drag and drop interface of UI components.

• Using, Low code platforms the entire artefacts of the project including front/back end coding, executables, configuration files are easily generated based on standard best practices. They also eliminate human errors in coding.

• Continuous deployment and integration of the app gets simplified.

Uncovering No-code platforms – Is it a new phenomenon?

Off late joining the family of a new breed of platforms, akin to low code platforms, No code platforms have also emerged.

Low code platform tend to have an edge over no code platforms, particularly during the development phase because the former involve a more intuitive visual development approach. A visual development approach allows the app builder to drag and drop predefined out of the box components into the work area.

However, in some scenarios, during app development, there are certain features that require customization.

For example, when building a particular page of an app, your visual designer would have given an innovative clock widget, in his screen mocks based on the company’s’ standardized widget set, and that is not a part of the default UI widget library of the platform. In this scenario, low-code platforms allows you to extend the platform capabilities by letting you build such a widget and make it available as a drag-n-drop component for future projects.

However, if the same company employed a team of developers who built an UI widget library based on the company’s approved design template and is made available out-of-the-box in the platform itself. Then app building becomes a no-code experience.

Hence, no-code-platforms are more like an evolution of low-code-platforms to particular scenarios, where the coding extensions are taken care of by providing out of the box visual components.

To put it as final thoughts, no code platforms are no different from low code platforms, rather are a specialized version of the low code platforms where the customization have been taken care of by pre-building all the required visual components.

Low Code Vs. No Code: Making a Choice for Your Organisation

As is the case with many up and coming technology trends, low code and no code are often used together, reflecting on how this innovative technology will change the face of traditional software applications. But, if you are considering one for your organization, how will you decide which one to choose and when?

Low Code	No Code
Used for more complex applications	Use for reporting, analytics and tracking apps
Apps that are foundational in nature or run important business processes	Apps that evolve with frequent updates and changes in use-case
Apps with more than 5 years lifecycle, fewer updates	Can be integrative or stand alone
Can be mission critical	Good for self-deploying apps
Offer Better Developer Control	Mobile responsive

How to get started choosing a low-code/no-code platform?

With so many vendors in space, the decision to determine which platform is the best fit can seem overwhelming for companies. Here are some tips to narrow down the selection:

Determine who is going to work

Broadly speaking, low code/no code platforms fall into two market segments: Those for developers and those for the business side. For developers, low code platforms make it easier to deliver more software in shorter time periods-say weeks instead of months. On the other hand, for the business side or “citizen developers”, low code lets people without any prior programming experience to create their own software.

Companies must decide which side they need a platform for, and which will fit their purpose best. For instance, let’s say you are trying to empower your business people and you don’t intend to put a tool designed for developers in front of them. It makes things complicated. On the opposite side, developers will ask for more control than a readymade product that has been given to them.

Chalk out the use cases the company wants to deliver

Each tool offers functions in different areas, including workflow and business process applications. You should select a low-code platform that fits your individual project needs.

Build a strategy that comprises governance

Whether done with or without coding, building and maintaining software is difficult. In order to make the most out of low code platforms, work on building a strategy which includes a portfolio management system, which can help employees keep track of what apps have already been built in the platform. Experts recommend to start small, invest in staff training, and identify a business leader to champion low-code projects.

What are the differences between the profile of a Low Code/ No Code User?

No code platforms are better suited for innovative and problem solving professionals who are aiming for better performance in the competition curve.

With basic spreadsheet skills, business professionals can leverage no code platforms to quickly build custom applications to solve business challenges, securely manage data, view real time reports and accomplish similar tasks without writing a single line of code. They can use existing templates or drag and drop features to build apps right from scratch. Continuous business improvement also becomes a cakewalk as app admins with access permission can easily update apps and workflows as needed.

On the other hand, Low code platforms are an ideal fit for professional developers and coders who wish to achieve higher productivity and better service to clients by streamlining the application development process. Using declarative tools, these coders can create complex, enterprise grade apps with high-control data permissions. Whether it’s tracking core business process for supply chain inventory or building a complex customer database, low-code platforms allow developers to be on the cutting edge of innovation while reducing project backlogs with self-service tools to support line of businesses.

Final Thoughts

As you disembark on the journey, evaluating low code and no-code platforms, make sure to visualize your end goal. Do you wish to decrease your IT expenditure on traditional software applications that require frequent maintenance and yearly renewals? Or, you are aiming for digital transformation of your company empowering teams, and more technically-minded personnel to create the applications that incorporate the features and workflow they need to be successful.

Then you are in luck: No code and low code platforms can actually help! Once you have determined what you wish to accomplish, move forward evaluating your skill and staff. No-code and low-code application development platforms have a lot to offer and choosing the one right for your needs and goals will go a long way.

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