When should you leverage no-code or low-code
Tags: webdev, css, frontend, design
Published: 2023-04-20 06:34:04

When starting on a new website, even before selecting a framework or a JavaScript library, you should first decide if you want to write code. Perhaps, 10 or more years ago, this wasn't even a question, but now there are so many extremely powerful yet easy-to-use no-code and low-code solutions. More and more companies are tapping into the potential of low-code to save them time and money. Low-code seems like the perfect solution for an early-stage startup or someone who wants to build out a test version of their website.

So, should you delete all your JavaScript apps and immediately switch to low-code? Well, it's not that one-sided. In my experience, almost every startup I've helped leveraged a no-code solution when they had just started, but practically no one ended up going with it all the way through. Since, with low-code, it can be impossible to customize your website beyond what the low-code platform allows you, and often the customization can be limited. So when and why using a modern JavaScript framework instead of a low-code platform can be a better choice?

## You want to have more control over your website

Even if you are building out a small website, no-code, and low-code platforms provide a pretty high level of abstraction. Sometimes, it's good enough, but you'd often want to customize SEO, install a custom library or a design framework. Those all can be impossible since low-code platforms provide you with a pre-defined set of tools. 
Using a modern JS framework like React or NextJS can make your website faster than a no-code platform because you can leverage the newest tools and library versions. For example, NextJS 13 supports React Server Components, making your app much faster. Want to use it? Well, a low-code platform probably doesn't support it. 

## Avoid vendor lock-in

If you've built out your app on one low-code platform, transferring it to another may be cumbersome. But, for example, if you use React, you can deploy your app anywhere you want. If you deployed your frontend on AWS Amplify and it stops working one day, you can always deploy on Firebase or Vercel instead. Of course, you'll have to change your CI/CD, but it's still easier than changing a low-code platform, in my experience. 

## More longevity

On the one hand, it can be easy to innovate with a low-code solution, since you spend less time writing code and more time creating business features. So, you can iterate faster and try out new ideas without investing much time. 
On the other hand, the no-code and low-code world innovates even faster than the JavaScript world. React has been around for many years, and you can expect it to be actively maintained for the foreseeable future. There are many more low-code development websites than JS frameworks, so many can be less maintained and have less longevity. 

## Conclusion
There is no one size fits all approach when it comes to going with low-code or not. It all comes down to personal preference, and mostly the deadlines and the budget. Need to get a good-looking website quickly and for a low development cost - use low or even no-code solutions. Want to invest more time and build a more future-proof and customizable app - build it from scratch with a modern JS framework.