Should You Use Code or No-Code?

Topics & Timestamps

Choosing whether or not you should code up a completely custom code solution for a project versus using a no-code tool to quickly spin it up can be a major roadblock for project managers and freelancers alike. This week we discussed the difference between code and no-code solutions and how those differences lend themselves to different types of projects.

To Code or No-Code: Analysis Paralysis

• Introduction: code versus no-code | 00:01:41
  - Custom code can be used to create virtually anything you want - limited mostly by skill, budget, and time
  - Coding is hard to learn and can take a long time to get even a basic project off the ground
  - No-code solutions are typically more expensive than coding up a project yourself due to hosting/usage fees
  - No-code solutions offer a way for non-coders to quickly spin-up "basic projects" like blogs, marketing sites, and landing pages

When To Use Code

• Common scenarios that require a custom coded solution | 00:07:45
  - When making something completely unique, like a cutting-edge web app that has never been made before (ie very advanced photo editor)
  - Performance heavy applications may require the use of custom coded solutions to manage their heavy compute load on hosting servers and/or client machines
  - If you need an extreme amount of control over your app, custom code is the only way to control almost every facet of what you're building
  - Sometimes you need to manage the budget down to the dollar, self-hosted solutions are often cheaper than the hosted solutions that many no-code platforms offer
  - Security conscious projects may require self-hosted options (ie intranet site)
  - When you need to really dial-in your project on all sides (scaling features & hosting, developing only features you need & cutting what you don't, manage technical debt)
• Is there a technical debt crisis? | 00:25:48
  - Dialing-in your project responsibly can help you save your developer's time on maintenance and refactoring
  - Hashnode article: A Technical Debt Crisis Is Brewing in the Land of Software – And Here’s Why (hashnode.dev)
  

When To Use No-Code

• Common scenarios that are ripe for a no-code solution | 00:44:48
  - Projects that need to be spun up fast, beyond all else
  - Standard websites (ie blog, landing pages, marketing sites)
  - Projects that need maintenance, but the budget doesn't allow for it
  - Testing if an idea is viable before diving in on a massive custom solution
  - Projects that will not scale out of a no-code tier that you have the budget for (ie a local event website will primarily get traffic from local sources)