No-Code · head to head
Directual vs Noloco
Directual
No-Code
No-code backend with a visual workflow engine, used behind other tools rather than instead of them
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Noloco
No-Code
Client portals and internal tools built over data you already have
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Directual has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Directual the front-end builder is basic, so any project needing a designed interface means learning and paying for a second tool, and time to launch is closer to a two-system build than a one-tool build.; Noloco pricing follows user counts, and a client portal is by definition many low-activity users, so an agency with a few hundred client logins climbs the bands quickly for people who sign in twice a month.
- They diverge on capability: Directual covers Visual database designer, Noloco covers Row-level permissions.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Directual and Noloco actually diverge.
Identical on both: pricing model (quote), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (No-Code).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Directual
- Visual database designer
- Scenario builder
- Generated API endpoints
- Event-driven triggers
- Role and permission model
- Scheduled jobs
- Basic web page builder
- Self-hosted deployment
Only in Noloco
- Row-level permissions
- Multiple data sources
- Client portals
- Workflows
- Forms and record detail pages
- White labelling
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Directual
- Providing the backend for a Webflow or FlutterFlow front end that needs real data, authentication and logicnot Noloco
- Replacing an Airtable base that has outgrown its row limits without hiring a backend developernot Noloco
- Event-driven workflows such as order processing or scheduled billing runs that must run without a person triggering themnot Noloco
- Organisations with a data residency requirement that rules out most no-code platforms, using the self-hosted tiernot Noloco
Noloco
- Giving clients a branded portal onto their own records in an Airtable basenot Directual
- Replacing shared spreadsheets with a permissioned internal tool for an operations teamnot Directual
- A lightweight CRM over a PostgreSQL database that already existsnot Directual
- Partner or contractor dashboards where each party must see only its own jobs and documentsnot Directual
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Directual
- The front-end builder is basic, so any project needing a designed interface means learning and paying for a second tool, and time to launch is closer to a two-system build than a one-tool build.
- Visual scenarios become unreadable once the logic is non-trivial; a workflow that would be forty lines of code sprawls across a canvas, and reviewing what a colleague built is slow.
- Debugging asynchronous, event-triggered scenarios is harder than debugging code, because failures surface as records left in an unexpected state rather than as a stack trace at the point of failure.
- Self-hosting is confined to the top commercial tier, so the ownership advantage is available only to buyers already spending at the high end.
- The pool of agencies and freelancers who know Directual is small next to Bubble or Airtable, so handing a finished system to someone else to maintain is harder and more expensive.
Noloco
- Pricing follows user counts, and a client portal is by definition many low-activity users, so an agency with a few hundred client logins climbs the bands quickly for people who sign in twice a month.
- Limits are inherited from the data source. Airtable record ceilings, API rate limits and slow queries appear in the portal your customers use, and no setting inside Noloco can fix them.
- Design control is deliberately narrow. You get a consistent application shell rather than a bespoke interface, which is fine for operations and a problem for anything marketing-led.
- It is a small vendor competing directly with Airtable Interfaces and Softr, both far larger, so roadmap pace and long-term viability are legitimate procurement questions.
- Output is responsive web only, with no native mobile application and no offline mode, so field staff on poor connections are not served by it.
Pricing, plan by plan
Directual
Free- Directual$undefined/month
- Free tier with capped records and API calls
- Paid tiers priced by database rows, API calls and scenario runs
- Self-hosted deployment on the top tier only
Noloco
On request- Noloco$undefined/year
- Tiered plans differentiated by user counts, data sources and white labelling
- Trial period rather than a permanent free plan
- Higher tiers add custom domains, advanced permissions and priority support
Which should you pick?
Choose Directual if
- You need visual database designer.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want scenario builder.
Questions people ask
- Is Directual or Noloco better?
- Neither clearly leads. Directual starts at Free and Noloco at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Directual or Noloco?
- Directual has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Directual and On request for Noloco.
- Does Directual or Noloco run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Directual for free?
- Yes. Directual has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Noloco starts at On request.
- What is Directual best used for?
- Directual is most often used for providing the backend for a webflow or flutterflow front end that needs real data, authentication and logic, replacing an airtable base that has outgrown its row limits without hiring a backend developer, event-driven workflows such as order processing or scheduled billing runs that must run without a person triggering them, organisations with a data residency requirement that rules out most no-code platforms, using the self-hosted tier. Of those, providing the backend for a webflow or flutterflow front end that needs real data, authentication and logic and replacing an airtable base that has outgrown its row limits without hiring a backend developer are not what Noloco is typically brought in for.
- What can Directual do that Noloco cannot?
- Directual covers Visual database designer, Scenario builder, Generated API endpoints, Event-driven triggers. Noloco covers Row-level permissions, Multiple data sources, Client portals, Workflows.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Directual: Is Directual a replacement for Bubble?
Not directly. Bubble builds the whole application; Directual builds the backend and expects you to bring a front end such as Webflow or FlutterFlow.
Noloco: Do I need Airtable to use it?
No. Airtable is the most common source but PostgreSQL, MySQL, Google Sheets, HubSpot and built-in Noloco tables all work.
Directual: Can I host it myself?
Yes, on the top commercial tier. That is unusual in no-code and it is the main reason regulated buyers look at it at all.
Noloco: Can external clients log in without paying for seats?
Client and internal users are counted differently, but they are still counted, so a portal with many client logins moves you up the plan bands. Check the current band definitions before committing to a per-client model.
Directual: How does it cope with large data volumes?
It is built on a real database with indexing rather than a spreadsheet abstraction, so record counts that break Airtable-class tools are within its normal range.
Noloco: How is this different from Softr?
Both build portals over existing data. Noloco leans harder on permissions and multiple database sources; Softr leans on templates, speed to a first version and a bigger ecosystem.
Directual: What happens to my logic if I leave?
The data exports and the API is documented, but scenarios are platform-specific and have to be reimplemented, unless you are already on the self-hosted tier.
Related pages
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