Low-Code vs No-Code Explained
What Is No-Code?
When it comes to the question of no-code vs low-code, defining no-code is somewhat problematic. The Gartner Magic Quadrant low-code app platforms 2020 report grouped no-code and low-code together as one. Although it is a different style of app creation, no-code is still seen as a subsection of low-code.
No-code development platforms are gaining popularity because they allow non-tech individuals to create applications and other tools. There is no need for coding in the app.
Instead, they use simple, innovative interfaces, generally with a drag-and-drop feature. This makes app development an agile process. There is no need to wait for a developer to build even the last 10% of an application.
The real advantage of no-code platforms is that app developers can respond to business needs quickly. Business process management no longer requires traditional programming specialists to create apps or tools.
Examples Of No-Code Platforms
If you have used Airtable for cloud workspaces, Canva for graphic design, or Pipedrive for your CRM needs, you will understand the benefits of no code solutions. They have taken complicated areas that generally require a high-level of coding skills and made them available to users.
Canva is especially an interesting case. The sudden increase in its popularity has led to the no-code development platform being valued at $3.2 billion. The market for no code solutions is growing, and developers may have to fret about their job security.
What Is Low-Code?
Low-code programming eliminates up to 90% of the coding process. These low-code platforms cut down on development by using drag-and-drop tools that:
Streamline the process
Save on turnaround time
Specialized knowledge of language becomes less of a problem because all basic work is already written. App development is faster because expert coders with narrow skills are not needed.
When you need to build and launch many applications, low-code helps minimize opportunities for bottlenecks in the workflow. In-demand skills are no more stretched in every direction: the low code platform handles that for you.
Because the demand for mobile app creation services is growing more than what the industry can deliver. Low-code platforms make it easy for non-developers to build apps. The definition of a developer has broadened. Now, non-professionals using low code platforms can answer the call for more applications – without support from specialists.
Examples Of Low-Code Platforms
The two most successful low-code platforms are Zoho and Salesforce. Both platforms allow users to build their own apps based on a variety of frameworks, such as through Salesforce’s low-code platform, AppExchange.
By providing the majority of code to their clients, both Zoho and Salesforce allow clients to customize what they show their end-users and customers. Rapid app development is easy because the low code requirements allow a customer relations program or content management system to be rolled out almost instantly.
How Low-Code/No-Code Is Changing The Industry?
It is impossible to deny that no-code and low-code tools have a significant impact on the industry. As knowledge about no-code/low-code platforms spreads, so is the anticipated market share and total worth of these innovative companies.
By 2024, Gartner anticipates that 65% of all application development will originate with low-code/no-code development tools. Business requirements will become too great to wait for people fluent in programming languages to create everything from the ground up. Instead, company users will take their needs into their own hands.
Forrester agrees with Gartner estimating that no-code and low-code resources will be worth up to $21 billion in 2022. This amazing growth is due to several reasons, but the most crucial benefit is speed.
Companies want to have their applications built quickly, but are they reducing the problems with this approach?
Who Has To Change?
The group in classical DevOps positions may have to change the most. Although the demand for traditional coders won’t disappear overnight, there is a possibility that fewer positions will be filled.
This may address the gap in the total number of developer jobs that go unfilled all year round. But is it disastrous for specialized workers?
Possibly, but it is not likely. Whereas specialized coders working in unique languages or one specific area of framework development might become less important to a business, jobs are still going to be available. However, the rise of citizen developers is a concern for a lot in the industry.
Are No-Code/Low-Code Platforms Perfect?
In short, no! These platforms may expose you to additional risk while solving one problem.
Problems With Low-Code
Many low-code platforms are hard to master. Although creating an application on someone else’s chassis is easy in the short term, the long-term scalability of high-quality apps may be out of reach.
These platforms may strive to balance both creation ease and high performance. If it is so easy, can it handle complexity? That is why low-code applications may be only short-term solutions for business needs.
Problems With No-Code
No-code causes more problems as compared to low-code for two reasons:
The risk of shadow IT
General technical debt
Because a developer has made no part of the platform, a non-professional may make mistakes that developers will not. From a technical viewpoint, having your entire code base developed by someone else can lead to inefficiencies and vulnerabilities that cause difficulties later on.
This leads to a big deal of technical debt – issues you will eventually need to deal with – that can cause a company to have slow and ineffective apps. For instance, the coding that makes up the basis of the app is full of irrelevant or unnecessary filler.
Of course, solutions of the best no-code development company make it easier to do what you want quickly, members of your business may experiment with untested or unsanctioned apps – shadow IT – that might not meet your business’s compliance and security needs.
Is No-Code/Low-Code The Future?
Low-code and no-code development platforms indeed have a place in the world of development. Moreover, Gartner is anticipating that they will start dominating the market within only a few years. So ignoring the advantages that these approaches bring can mean missed opportunities for a company.
But no-code and low-code are not going to eliminate the need for traditional coders just yet. No matter how helpful these platforms are, relying on others for all your app development needs can be a risk.
DevOps processes still have a spot in the workplace, even if low-code solutions may have a major share of the market in the upcoming years.