FlutterFlow vs Bubble: Our full comparison

A brief presentation of the two tools

FlutterFlow

FlutterFlow is a powerful Nocode tool that uses Google's Flutter framework to enable the production of mobile and web applications. It offers a visual editor for designing user interfaces and integrates a variety of pre-designed functions.

Bubble

This is one of the pioneers of the Nocode movement. It features a drag-and-drop editor for creating web applications, enabling users to add complex functionality without programming skills.

If you'd like to find out more, here's our dedicated tool page.

Differences by function between FlutterFlow and Bubble

User experience, user interface (UX/UI) and personalization

Overall, both platforms offer a pleasant, intuitive experience for users who do not necessarily have technical skills.

Pre-designed templates and modules (=components) are made available via adrag-and-drop interface.

Bubble can be more complicated to get to grips with, as the tool offers a plethora of functions in Nocode to give its users great flexibility.

FlutterFlow is a priori simpler to manage, but you'll need Flutter or even Node.js skills if you want to create complex applications. FlutterFlow can quickly be associated with low-code rather than nocode.

Templates

FlutterFlow excels in the field of modern design, and is particularly suited to those looking to create mobile apps with a polished aesthetic. You'll find more polished templates, but in smaller quantities.

Bubble is probably the best choice for those looking for a wide variety of templates for web applications, especially for specific niches or diversified application types.

Web application

FlutterFlow has recently been extended to the web, and continues to improve day by day.

But for the moment, it's hard to compete with Bubble, the most advanced Nocode tool available today.

By the way, to anticipate the next part, the latter can be used to create PWAs, which means that although they are web apps, they can offer certain native functionalities, such as push notifications and an offline mode.

Native Application

To obtain a "native application" from Bubble, it is common practice to "wrap" the web application in a native shell using tools such as Cordova or BDK. However, this approach has limitations in terms of performance and access to native functionality.

As for FlutterFlow, this is its strong point. The framework used is primarily designed for the creation of native applications. This means that applications created with FlutterFlow can fully exploit the functionalities of Android and iOS devices. Native applications created with FlutterFlow are generally high-performance, offering a fluid, native experience.

Backend

When we talk about the "backend" part of application creation, we're referring to the underlying logic, database management, user authentication, API integrations and so on.

FlutterFlow offers simple integration with Firebase, a popular backend solution, enabling real-time database management, authentication, file storage and more.

Bubble has its own integrated database management system, which is visual and very practical. This eliminates the need to manage a separate database, but it can also limit some of the advanced features offered by solutions like Firebase.

SEO

Bubble is clearly ahead of the game here. Today, they have many more native features, such as automated sitemap and robots.txt generation, and dynamic URL management, which is highly beneficial for SEO. It supports dynamic content in meta tags, enabling title and description to be adjusted according to page content.

Being Flutter-based, SEO is not FlutterFlow's primary strength, as Flutter is primarily designed for the development of native mobile applications.

If SEO is a major priority for your project, Bubble currently has the edge over FlutterFlow thanks to its dedicated features and web orientation.

However, it's essential to note that the technological landscape is evolving rapidly, and FlutterFlow, thanks to the evolution of Flutter for the web, could strengthen its SEO capabilities in the future.

Multilingual

Both tools support multilingualism, but this requires additional configuration.

You'll need to use third-party tools like Weglot for Bubble (highly recommended rather than trying to manage this with an in-house solution).

Flutterflow's native multilingual functionality enables you to automatically translate all pages according to language with Google Translate. Alternatively, the platform has - along with Flutter - a library that makes it easy to manage different languages and orientations (LTR/RTL). But this requires some familiarization with the way Flutter handles localizations. You may need to manually add translations for each language and configure the language choice for the user. We're gradually moving away from thenocode approach.

Programming language and code integration

FlutterFlow side:

Programming language: The tool is based on Flutter, a UI development SDK that uses Dart as its programming language. Dart is a modern language designed to be highly expressive, with clear and concise syntax, while performing well on mobile and web platforms.

Custom Code: offers the ability to integrate custom Dart code for specific functionalities that the platform itself cannot handle. This allows developers to extend and customize their applications beyond FlutterFlow's standard functionality.

Bubble side:

Programming language : PostgreSQL is used as a database management system (DBMS). PostgreSQL is an open source relational database widely recognized for its robustness, scalability and advanced functionality. But it's not possible to access it in a way that makes it as easy to use as possible for its users.

Custom Code : The tool offers a feature called "Custom Actions" that lets you execute custom JavaScript. This is useful for situations where the default logic just won't do. This means that users with a knowledge of JavaScript can extend the capabilities of their applications by integrating custom code.

There is one notable difference: unlike Bubble, FlutterFlow allows users to export code.

Scalability and Performance

Flutterflow, thanks to Flutter, offers excellent performance for mobile applications, but its scalability depends largely on how the backend is configured.

On the other hand, Bubble offers an all-in-one solution for development and hosting, facilitating scalability for users, but with potential performance limitations in very demanding scenarios.

The choice between the two will depend on the specific needs of the project, the target audience and the technical skills available.

Collaboration

Both tools offer solid features for team collaboration.

FlutterFlow focuses on real-time collaboration and flexible sharing with internal and external users.

Bubble offers granular permission levels and a real-time visualization of employee activities.

Your choice will depend on the nature of your project and your team's specific collaboration needs.

Integrations and plugin libraries

Bubble boasts a vast library of plugins. FlutterFlow, though growing, still has some way to go to match its competitor's ecosystem.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration

Generative AI has shaken up the tech industry, and the two nocode tools have got in on the act.

FlutterFlow lets you generate code, styles and data structures.

Bubble lets you plug the Open AI API into your projects, and only your imagination can limit you.

Support, community and resources

Bubble.io is older and therefore has a large, active community. Its forum is full of discussions, solutions and advice. What's more, the tool offers a wide variety of educational resources, and its plugin market is vast, enabling great extensibility.

FlutterFlow benefits from the underlying support of Flutter, which has a massive and active community. If you run into problems or have questions specifically related to Flutter, there's a good chance you'll find answers quickly. But again, this is a departure from the "nocode" approach. In this respect, resources are less abundant than for Bubble.

Pricing

Flutterfow Award

We offer a range of pricing plans (including a freemium plan) tailored to the needs of start-ups and larger companies alike

Bubble price

Bubble offers a freemium model with pay-as-you-go plans for advanced features.

Advantages and disadvantages: summary table

Our opinion of the two tools

Your choice will depend primarily on your needs. If you're looking to develop a native mobile application, FlutterFlow could be the ideal choice. If you want to quickly create an application with a vast library of plugins, Bubble is your best ally.

Whatever the case, the emergence of Nocode tools is revolutionizing the way we approach development, making application creation accessible to all.