Like many other legacy businesses in the worldwide market, the simmering “battle” between low-code and custom software development has always been a protracted affair.
Despite the fact that each type of software development has its own strengths and weaknesses and is perfected to serve the nature of each project and the unique needs of each customer, these two outstanding types cannot avoid the possibility of being brought to the table for comparison and consideration.
And the key distinction between low-code and custom software is summarized here.
Brief About Two Concepts Low-Code and Custom Software
Low-code
In software development, the low-code concept automates complex and time-consuming processes so that humans may concentrate on more essential things.
A low-code development platform offers a graphical user interface for app development.
Depending on the demands of the company, this kind of producing completely working programs does not need numerous procedures linked to hiring and recruiting employees.
- When to consider utilizing Low-code solutions?
Low-code development may be an excellent option for building a business-oriented application.
It focuses on quick prototyping through “drag and click” operations to construct basic desired categories based on existing templates.
So, if your company wants to catch up with the digital transformation wave as soon as possible, or merely modernize a certain process, this solution is ideal.
Custom Software
Custom software development company implements everything from idea to concept in a more systematic manner than low-code.
It necessitates diligence in establishing goals, software development models, the number of engineers participating, and so on.
As a result, specialized software takes longer to develop than low-code software.
However, one advantage of custom software that has made it so popular today is that it is designed and built to meet the needs of the user while also supporting the enterprise’s business.
At the same time, because of the unique properties of each product, it brings additional benefits to the market for clients.
- When to consider utilizing Custom Software solutions?
With a wide variety of ideas, needs, and functionalities, bespoke software development is the ideal answer for a particular purpose in the near future and future upgrades and maintenance.
Significantly, the ability to build custom software using a variety of development techniques and personnel with a diverse set of skills makes custom software extremely efficient.
Comparison of Low-Code and Custom Software#1: Pricing
The first distinction is in pricing.
When we first hear the term “low” in the phrase “low-code software development,” we generally relate it to the low cost.
In reality, custom software may be paid depending on the whole project, while low-code is billed by the month or by the service that the company uses.
| Low-code | Custom Software |
| Of course, we won’t need to hire coders, and this lowers the employment expenses. What service does the organization use? They just need to pay for that service.
The cost of low-code will vary based on the service you desire and the vendor you choose. |
In contrast to low-code, custom software needs a complete team of engineers, developers, etc. to complete. The organization has to pay the fee for the whole process.
Custom software provides a more complete image of the project’s nature, and the price of the service varies greatly based on the SOW and the client’s needs. |
Comparison of Low-Code and Custom Software #2: Software Development Conduction
| Low-code | Custom Software |
| There really isn’t much to say about software development for a low-code solution. Because you don’t have to go from start to finish.
All you need to do is just start utilizing it with hardly any development. Using an available interface, users may start creating their own business software.”Drag and drop”. That’s exactly what it takes to accomplish the editing goal you want. |
As far as software development is concerned, corporations or third-party developers are responsible for defining the concepts and functionalities of the product. Design, coding, and finalization will commence if both sides agree on the design and design specifications, respectively.
The next step is to conduct testing. The end user will connect to the program at this point and conduct a trial to ensure that the product functions properly. |
Comparison of Low-Code and Custom Software#3: Completion Time
When it comes to low-code vs. custom software, there is no defined time estimate.
Because these two categories have quite different approaches to software development.
As a result, the time difference is comprehensible.
| Low-code | Custom Software |
| Pre-built templates and interfaces are the two main factors that make low-code faster than custom software.
If custom software is developed based on ideas and strict requirements, low-code makes full use of available items to assemble and complete. |
Building a complete application, or pursuing a project from scratch, is not easy. However, it is well worth our consideration because we can perfect a product just the way we want it!
Generally, custom software development takes a long time from start to finish. A project will typically take 4–9 months to complete using this strategy. |
Comparison #4 – Business Integrity
| Low-code | Custom Software |
| For businesses with limited IT talents, or for businesses that have a solid understanding of their working process and want to enhance it rather than completely revamp it, the hands-on nature of low-code solutions provides a simple and efficient method to accomplish so.
Low-code solution actually only covers a small part of the total project you are working on, or you already know the overall picture and now just need to change it a bit with a few simple steps through low-code. -code. So, the concept of business integrity is not really emphasized with this solution. But actually, if you take a closer look, in fact, business values have been emphasized before, and are waiting to be embellished with a few other highlights. |
With custom software development, frameworks and libraries of all kinds are created. The core values of the business need to be fully guaranteed. It allows you to construct more flexible and comprehensive software. And with the ever-improving completeness of software products, custom software development requires more time to complete than low-code. |
Thanh (Bruce) Pham – CEO of Saigon Technology Solutions
Thanh (Bruce) Pham strives to deliver successful projects maximising value for the Client by clearly establishing the project objectives and risks, controlling the programs and costs and pro-actively managing the project teams.
Email: thanh.pham@saigontechnology.com
A Member of Forbes Technology Council
Mobile: (+84) 913 666 227
Skype: tienthanh.pham (Thanh Bruce Pham)
Petr is a serial tech entrepreneur and the CEO of Apro Software, a machine learning company. Whenever he’s not blogging about technology for itechgyan.com or softwarebattle.com, Petr enjoys playing sports and going to the movies. He’s also deeply interested in mediation, Buddhism and biohacking.