When we think of building a no-code product – we often think of it’s just to test an idea, or to build an MVP. The reason for that is because it’s easier and more cost-effective than building from scratch, and it saves time!

There’s a misconception that products built through no-code aren’t as powerful but this isn’t necessarily true. People also think that large companies don’t use no-code tools because of limited functionality.

But I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the scope and impact of these tools with my testing experience (and I’ve written about it on my blog)

I'm not talking about making the next Uber or AirBnB, but rather client portals. Not sexy for sure, but it’s as important!

What is the best client portal no-code tool?

Here are my top picks for the best client portal no-code tools to try this year.

• Softr
• Bubble
• Stacker
• Glide Pages
• WeWeb

1. Softr

Best for building a professional web app from Airtable.

Softr is a great no-code tool that allows you to build a web app from Airtable. It’s easy to use, and powerful. A lot of no-code tools need a learning curve, but not this one.

The strength of the tool lies in its complete integration with Airtable. The data is updated in real time from Airtable to Softr. All clients or employees in the web app can have their own user accounts. With the right roles and permissions, they can add, edit and delete their data in the client portal.

Creating a client portal on Softr is like building lego. The static blocks are normal components that you see on all websites such as header, features, footer, etc.

I’m impressed by the advanced blocks such as calendar, kanban, lists, tables, charts and others. The dynamic blocks are the ones related to the users or the payment feature.

Besides Airtable, there are integrations with other tools used for analytics, support, email marketing, automation, payment, membership, etc.

The typical clients on Softr are SMBs or marketing, product, customer support teams from bigger companies. It means this tool is robust and secure.

Themes can be easily customized without a line of code to fit your brand. You can start with the client portal template and grow from there.

Features

• User accounts
• Design customization
• Airtable database (real-time data sync)
• Self-service access & data update
• Roles & permissions
• Member-only content
• Custom form builder
• Secure payments

Pricing

All plans have unlimited applications and live chat support. All paid plans don’t have Softr branding.

• Free: 1 custom domain, Softr branding and 5 members
• Starter: $24/mo for 1 custom domain and 5 members and more.
• Professional: $65/mo for 2 custom domains, 1 collaborator and 10 000 members and more.
• Business: $165/mo for 3 custom domains, 3 collaborators and 100 000 members and more.

2. Bubble

Best for building no-code web apps without compromise.

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Bubble is a powerful no-code tool that allows you to build whatever you want, including a customer portal. The sky’s the limit!

As you can do literally anything from scratch, there is a somewhat steep learning curve when you start using Bubble. No wonder why there are so many agencies and online courses on Bubble.

By anything from scratch, I mean that you can build, among other things, your own sign-up system. As for the data, it’s there too. The data and design are in the same place.

When building a client portal web app, you can use conditions. It means that if a client or employee does this, then that. A simple example is to change the color of a component on hover. All web apps are built with custom logic.

The drag & drop editor lets you create beautiful pages without knowing HTML and CSS. If you need something that is not native, you can use one of the 800+ plugins that makes Bubble even more powerful.

If you are new to Bubble, I’d suggest starting with the Billing Starter Kit. It pretty much has all the components you need to build a great client portal.

Features

• UX customization
• Manage data & accounts
• Integrate with anything
• Multilingual apps
• Dynamic content
• Robust hosting

Pricing

All plans give your app full access to the Bubble app editor and hosting. You can build your app for free and upgrade to access premium features and email support.

• Free: Core platform features, Bubble branding, community support
• Personal: Core platform + API, custom domain, email support and more.
• Professional: 3 units of server capacity, 2 application editors, 2 development versions and more.
• Production: 10 units of server capacity, 15 application editors, 20 development versions and more.

3. Stacker

Best for businesses that only need portals of all kinds.

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Stacker is a great no-code tool for building client portals and other apps such as internal tools, partner apps and custom CRMs.

This is the tool on the list that is the most limited in terms of functionality. Some see it as an advantage and others as a disadvantage, it depends on your needs. You can link your data from Airtable, Google Sheet and Salesforce.

Before sharing your web app, make sure you customize the branding so it fits with yours.

When you are ready, you can share the application with other members so they can view and edit their own records. They can edit data and it will update in your data source.

Features

• Customizable UI & branding
• Data from Airtable, Google Sheets
• User authentication
• Access control
• Securely share data
• Work collaboratively

Pricing

All plans have unlimited external users and community support.

• Starter: $59/mo for 1 app, 10 000 records and more.
• Plus: $149/mo for 3 apps, unlimited records, 3 collaborators and more.
• Pro: $290/mo for unlimited apps, 10 collaborators and more.
• Enterprise: Unlimited workspaces, whitelabel and more.

4. Glide Pages

Best for teams that build custom apps without code and design.

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Glide is a powerful no-code tool to build mobile and web apps. You can link your data from Google Sheet, Airtable, Excel and their own Glide data editor.

The Glide data editor is pretty powerful with the computed columns. You can even call APIs, do math, generate QR codes and more.

Glide takes care of the design so you can focus on the data. The advantage is that the client portal is beautiful on all devices. The disadvantage is that pretty much all the apps look the same.

Like all tools in this list, users of a Glide app can add, delete and edit their own data. Changes made on the data source instantly update the web app too. Once your app is made, you can share it with users using a simple URL link to sign up.

Features

• Looks right on all devices
• Simple to share
• Easy to secure
• Customizable branding
• Forever in-sync
• Data from Google Sheet, Airtable, Excel
• Their own data editor

Pricing

All plans

• Free: 100 data rows, Glide branding and more.
• Pro page: $40/mo (+ $2/extra user) for 25 000 data rows, 20 users included and more.
• Enterprise: Unlimited apps and more.

5. WeWeb

Best for businesses that need design and backend freedom.

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WeWeb is an excellent no-code tool to build scalable frontends. Without surprise, the client portal is reactive so your users can interact with it. You can set roles and permissions so you can control what they do within the app.

The design is fully customizable, there is no limit there. Like Bubble we saw above, you can add conditions, it means you trigger actions based on user behavior. You can connect to any REST API or SQL database or other no-code tools like Airtable and Xano. You literally bring your own backend, and use it in WeWeb.

Features

• Frontend freedom
• Backend freedom
• Real-time interactivity
• Roles & permissions
• Secure apps
• User authentication

Pricing

All plans offer unlimited external users on your app.

• Free: 1 collaborator and 100Mb of users uploaded files.
• Starter: $59/mo for 1 live project, 1 custom domain, basic roles & permissions and more.
• Scale: $199/mo for 3 live projects, 3 custom domains, 3 collaborators, advanced roles & permissions and more.
• Enterprise: Unlimited collaborators, unlimited live projects, unlimited custom domains and more.

What is a client portal?

A client portal, or customer portal, is a web app with private information and accessible via a secure account. Users of the application can have access only to certain sections predetermined by the admin.

Typically, the typical use case is a company that gives access to confidential information of its customers. The latter have access to digital information, but also to documents, invoices, etc. These portals are also accessible via a web browser or mobile application.

A client portal also provides access to an organization's network, a community forum, a knowledge base and/or other digital information.

What are the benefits of client portals?

You can start with an MVP and send emails, but it gets chaotic fast. The customer portal has many advantages.

Real-time information

Standards are getting higher and higher when it comes to a good CRM. If a customer has good service in one place, they can expect the same in another. In terms of customer portals, generally, customers expect to be able to interact with the application. They need to be able to see all the information updated in real time.

Less support & save time for the company

A client portal is by definition a self-service software. So if users are able to respond to their needs, it means less support on your side. This is especially true in the day-to-day, but it may turn out that customers still need support... just less than if you assign one agent per customer. So you can have a lot of users using your app, which allows you to grow faster and gives more time to other tasks.

Private data & security

If you haven't been a victim of identity or information theft, at least know that your old emails have definitely been sold to third parties. Yep! So it's important that your app users have a secure connection. Make sure you choose a tool that meets this need.

Custom & flexible

Unlike email, for example, a client portal does not have to be limited in terms of files, documents and other information. Also, your web app is unique in terms of design and branding, which gives users more confidence. With no-code enabling people to build more, do more, and save time, money, and effort – we hope this helps you build a robust and efficient client portal!

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Happy building!