No-code vs. Low code: which method to choose?

The introduction of no-code and low-code in software development has opened up new perspectives for businesses. These concepts, which have the potential to transform the way companies create and innovate, are paving the way for a new era of agile, enterprise-specific application development. What are the differences between no-code platforms and low-code platforms? How do you choose the development method that will bring your projects to fruition? Our answers in this article.

Definitions and principles

No-code and low-code are technologies that simplify the creation and development of web and mobile applications by eliminating (or limiting) the need for traditional computer coding.

The no-code approach is based on intuitive visual tools that enable users to design and deploy applications without any particular technical skills. To do this, they use pre-designed templates and drag-and-drop functionality. All lines of code are generated automatically.

Low-code is a slightly more advanced concept, combining visual development tools with hand-coding capabilities. It's possible to use graphical interfaces to create the bulk of the application, then add custom code snippets to integrate specific or more advanced functionality.
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The no-code and low-code approaches can be used independently or in a complementary way to design websites, develop mobile applications, automate business processes, manage databases, create workflows, integrate APIs or create chatbots...

The advantages and disadvantages of each approach

By avoiding the need for traditional coding, no-code and low-code both speed up and reduce the cost of development processes. However, each of these approaches also has distinct strengths and weaknesses:

The strengths of no-code

• Rapid digitization force: No-code enables IT project managers to form a rapid digitization force. By sending them out into the business, they will transform business needs into easy-to-use applications, reducing development cycles and frustrations between business and IT, while at the same time regaining control of IT and moving the company forward from a digital point of view. 
• Shadow IT eradication: It has never been easier to eliminate shadow IT (SaaS taken over by the business, Excels, Access) by offering them a better alternative solution, both compliant (RGPD, logs...) and secure.
• Business transformation: No-code enables you to create tailor-made, everyday software that runs your business the way you want it to run. This reduces dependence on expensive, impractical "catch-all" software on the market, and allows you to ask yourself what your real needs are. 

The limits of no-code

• Platform dependency: As with low-code, no-code solutions are generally based on specific platforms, which can create a dependency on these suppliers. If a no-code platform disappears or changes radically, this can have an impact on existing applications.
• Extreme innovation applications : If you want to create Machine Learning-type applications or other cutting-edge technologies in digital innovation, you'll always need to use code. 
• Applications without interfaces: No-code is designed to create software with human-machine interfaces and some automation, but other tools are more appropriate for creating microservices without interfaces.

The strengths of low-code‍

• ‍Flexibilityand customization: by allowing lines of code to be added manually, low-code enables finer adaptation and greater creative freedom. ‍
• Support for more complex scenarios: Low-code tools often offer extensive functionality and can handle more complex scenarios than no-code.
• ‍More granular control: low-code gives developers more precise control over the development process. ‍
• Greater extensibility and scalability: Developers can easily integrate third-party functionality, APIs and external services, and scale applications to handle growing workloads.

The limits of low-code

• Increased complexity: Users need to understand low-code functionality and components, as well as coding logic, which requires advanced technical skills. This limits access to those less familiar with programming, and requires a specialized development team.
• Longer learning curve: Because of the possibility of adding custom code and the need to understand the specific features of low-code, learning and mastering it takes significantly longer than with no-code.
• Vendor dependency: As with no-code, applications developed with low-code tools are often specific to a particular platform, which can lead to portability and continuity problems in the event of a change of supplier.

Examples of use

No-code and low-code technologies can be used in a variety of ways, depending on the specific needs of your project or organization. Here are a few examples of concrete use cases where no-code and low-code can meet your business needs faster than traditional approaches:

• Creation of in-house applications: companies can use no-code to create in-house applications such as human resources management tools, customer relationship management systems, sales tracking systems, project tracking tools or customized databases...
• Business process automation, for example: creating a claims approval process, managing claims, managing supply flows, streamlining recurring tasks... These automations will improve your organization's operational efficiency.
• Website creation: no-code tools make it easy to create attractive websites and landing pages, corporate portals, e-commerce or reservation sites... These features can be useful for small businesses, freelance professionals or marketers who want to quickly launch an online presence.
• Mobile application development: no-code platforms can also be used to create mobile applications.
• Data analysis and dashboard creation: no-code and low-code tools can be used to create interactive dashboards, customized reports and data visualizations to track your company's performance and aid decision-making.

From VSEs to the world's largest corporations, no-code and low-code are accelerating innovation and moving the development envelope.
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Representatives from Netflix, for example, consider that no-code has enabled them to work smarter and gain in agility and flexibility.

Dropbox, meanwhile, reports that it has been able to produce blogs three times faster, and has seen a 30% increase in traffic to its blogs since using a no-code solution.

Ultimately, whichever solution you choose, no-code and low-code will enable you to improve the efficiency of your business processes, create attractive user interfaces and design functional applications. The main difference between applications created with no-code and low-code lies in the complexity of functionality, the level of customization and the technical skills required.

How do you choose between no-code and low-code?

The choice between no-code and low-code development can depend on a number of factors, such as the specific needs of your project and the skills of your team. Here are a few points to consider to help you decide:

• Interfaces: If your application is not intended to offer interfaces (screens), then low code may be more interesting than no-code. If you want an application with interfaces, then no-code is much more relevant. 
• Usage: if you want your software to be used by a whole range of different users (internal staff, customers, suppliers, partners, etc.), choose no-code. If, on the other hand, you have a highly technical profile (developer) and wish to use it for yourself only, with the intention of sharing it only with members of your team, turn to low-code. 
• Your team's technical skills: if you have a team with little or no development skills, or if you want to focus developers on what they're trained to do (traditional development, in short), no-code will be more appropriate. On the other hand, to take full advantage of low-code functionalities, advanced knowledge of development and coding may be required. In short, low-code enables developers to move faster, while no-code enables project managers to create beautiful, useful applications for their business. 
• Development speed: no-code is often considered faster in terms of development times, as it relies mainly on highly intuitive and visual interfaces, popularizing many of the abstract concepts of computer science. If you need to gain in development speed, no-code will be more effective.
• Future developments: if you want someone who hasn't developed the first version of a software application to start developing on it, then choose no-code. The interfaces of no-code solutions are designed from the outset to facilitate the transmission of a project from one person to another, making the main concepts making up an application visual. 

To sum up, it's advisable to carefully assess your project's needs, available resources and objectives in order to make an informed decision. Most companies choose to focus exclusively on no-code because of its simplicity and speed, while others prefer low-code to support their developers.

But it's also important to note that the two approaches are not mutually exclusive. Some projects may benefit from a combination of the two concepts, using no-code for applications used by several people and low-code for development teams.