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We know a lot about how to make websites as a company - in fact, our team of software development experts can build anything for you using numerous technologies and coding languages.
However, when it comes to building highly functional websites, internal tools and web apps for clients quickly, there are no better code alternatives better than Bubble.
We have tested numerous platforms for making social networks, CRMs, marketplaces and other types of digital products, but Bubble always came out on top, with the exception of making apps for mobile devices, but more on that later.
We've chosen to highlight its strengths in this article, so you too can see why, if you are looking for a fast way to get your next website built, Bubble should be at the top of your list! After all, there has to be a reason why most No Code developers use Bubble as their primary tool.
Speed
We know that speed is key when it comes to building products, especially in their early stages. If you come up with a business idea that might just take off, you want to validate it as quickly as possible. That's why we love using the Bubble platform for our clients.
Not only do you have access to a wide variety of templates, but you can get your site up and running quickly with little or no coding knowledge required on your part!
There are many No Code app templates for sale, which can get your project up and running in no time. It takes less than an hour to set up the basics - just choose from one of their pre-made designs or customise everything yourself and start adding in features like pages, headers, text boxes, videos and more.
Updating Content
Another aspect where Bubble is superior in speed, especially when compared to traditional coding, is the ease with which a regular user can update the content of his or her website that was built by someone else.
There is not a steep learning curve here: if you're familiar with Google Sheets or Excel then Bubble will be simple as pie for you to maintain.
We love how user-friendly this program is when we work on our clients' projects; it provides us peace of mind that they'll be able to make content changes by themselves after the launch date, so there is no lag between you wanting to shake things up, contacting a developer, them putting it into their task flow and finally getting round to your request.
Compared to other No Code development platforms, Bubble isn't really the fastest, but it is the most versatile.
The interface and UI design of Bubble are top-notch - the developers have been thoughtful about how an end-user will interact with this program, which means that everything has a logical flow to it.
We love the cleanliness of features like importing data from Excel files or Google Sheets: instead of having to copy rows and columns manually into tables on your site's backend system, you can select them all at once quickly for importing.
And because we follow best practices in web development (we're No Code experts after all!), every line item, as well as each feature throughout our website, has its own section so nothing gets missed when creating content pages or posts without complications; errors happen less often too!
Power
Simply put, Bubble is a powerful No Code tool. It's easy to use but has all of the features you need for making your site unique and branded specifically for your company or idea, more than any other comparable No Code tool.
Keep in mind, of course, that more design freedom comes with a steeper learning curve.
However, you can create pages, add in forms with autofill functionality, customize images and video backgrounds, update text on the fly without having to code anything at all - it's really an amazing product!
It also features custom API integration, which means it can be adapted to do many more things than it was originally designed to.
Features
A more detailed list of Bubble features:
- Up to 40 collaborators (editors, viewers, etc.) in one project
- Ability to see changes being done in real-time and put notes, comments and tasks on a project
- Ability to use both local and external databases
- Javascript and API integration
- Workflow modification with custom code, if needed
- More than 800 plugins for solutions like Stripe, Facebook, Google, etc.
- Automatic backups
- Ability to easily edit SEO-focused aspects of the website like meta tags, URLs, site maps and more.
Making Mobile Apps
The largest No Code tool is finally filling the gap, that we've been asking for the last 5 years. And now they are bringing that No code tool power to mobile. No more wrapping your web apps into native ones on Bubble.
It has been announced in this year's Bubblecon 2023 that native mobile apps built on Bubble will share the same databases, backend APIs, and logic Bubble has today, and will integrate with your existing web apps.
They are taking the best parts of Bubble no code tools, and remixing them for mobile. This will include swiping, layer and screen management, device functionality, and more. Also, you’ll be able to preview your app on your phone while you build.
It is reasonable to expect that when this feature is rolled out, the Bubble platform will be able to produce apps without code that are on par with traditional programming-based native apps, but only in a fraction of the development time.
If you are very eager to start building mobile apps with Bubble you can join the waitlist on their website to be notified as soon as it is rolled out to the public.
Responsive Design
Another feature of the Bubble platform that developers are usually unhappy about is the platform's responsive design interface. It is unintuitive, difficult to learn and adapt to the many unique screen sizes that modern devices have.
Nevertheless, similarly to native app development, the Bubble team is working on a complete revamp of the responsive design system, which will make users' lives a lot easier in the future and help Bubble establish an even more dominant position in the market.
If you are concerned about these factors negatively affecting your experience of building with Bubble and your end product - don't worry.
Agencies that are experienced in using the platform usually have adapted to its quirks and can make fully responsive software products without a problem, you can contact a Bubble developer to finish your Bubble journey with you.
Affordability
The third best thing about the Bubble platform is that it's affordable. As is a common business model for SaaS products, the basic plan is free.
It can be used for as many pages on your site as you want, which means if you're a small business or someone just getting started with their own company, you can see if Bubble fits your needs with no investment at all!
Of course, depending on the functions, server space, level of support and so on, the monthly price can increase to 349$ for the most powerful plan. However, if you are reading this, you have probably looked into the prices of hosting traditionally hosted solutions, which are usually quite exorbitant.
Hosting a Bubble web app is a doddle: access to a backend database, variable server space, e-commerce platforming, secure payment processing (and security of the whole website and its data) are all included in the single monthly price.
While hosting a website made with traditional programming, you have to take into account the fact that would have to search for all of these things yourself (which costs time, if not money directly), each of them would have separate providers (separate invoices too!) and, in the end, would simply be more expensive.
Free Resources
In addition to the savings mentioned above, since it is quite a popular tool, there are loads of video tutorials, articles and an online Bubble group forum where ordinary Bubble users share tips on tackling responsive design issues, building without code, app design, etc. all provided for free (paid plans get access to email support from the Bubble team).
This means that if you are willing to become a citizen developer, spend more time to save money and learn how to build a product yourself, you can certainly do that as well.
What's next for Bubble?
Bubble has announced earlier this year that insight partners led a $100M funding round in Bubble. If that round size seems huge, it’s because Bubble has had a long history as a bootstrapped company before reaching its current scale.
Emannuel Straschnov stated that the funding would be used to hire more engineers and launch boot camps to teach students and others how to use Bubble.
Upcoming exciting new features for Bubble
On top of that investment, just about a month ago in Bubblecon 2023 some other big updates were announced:
- Bulk operations to make changes 2 times faster
- Schedule API workflow on a list of 10 times quicker
- Live formulas that react to data and make adjustments on their own
- Improved keyboard controls resulting in faster development
- Integration of Bubble AI to create anything design wise
If you were were considering starting to use No Code or create something. There has never been a better time.
Summary
Bubble.io is our favourite No Code platform for a number of reasons, but the most important are its speed, power and affordability.
First off, the fact that we can help clients see their vision come true in just a few weeks makes our jobs worth it. Adding to that, non-tech-savvy users can make changes to their website post-launch themselves, which results in stress-free maintenance after the project has been handed over.
Secondly, being simply the most powerful No Code tool out there, Bubble's effective workflows can be used to implement your vision precisely and without compromise in most cases.
Finally, summing up all of the costs that making, setting up and maintaining a traditional website entails, the single and low monthly price of Bubble makes the choice a no-brainer.
There really isn't anything better than using Bubble when you want a highly functional website with little time or money invested in development and it will only get better in the future, a future without code.
References
Cover: Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash
Image #1: Photo by ThisisEngineering RAEng on Unsplash
Image #2: Photo by Mathew Schwartz on Unsplash
Image #3: Photo by Chandler Cruttenden on Unsplash
Image #4: Photo by Ibrahim Rifath on Unsplash
2021: What Happened in the No Code Industry This Year? Code or No Code
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