What is Retool and What is it Good For?

Every business relies on internal systems, yet not everyone has the time or resources to build them from scratch. This is where Retool proves to be very useful. It is a platform that helps you create exactly what you need without the usual headaches. Instead of spending weeks building dashboards or admin panels, Retool allows you to use ready-made components and customize them as needed.

In this article, we’ll take a closer look at how Retool works, why it’s so effective, and where it can make the biggest impact.

What is Retool and Why Do We Use It?

At its core, Retool is a low-code platform for building custom internal tools like dashboards, admin panels, and data management systems. It provides a robust set of pre-built components, including tables, forms, buttons, and modals, which you can drag and drop to create complex applications without starting from scratch.

But Retool is more than just a drag-and-drop tool. It allows you to use custom JavaScript, SQL, and APIs for extra flexibility. This gives you complete control over how your applications work and look. This flexibility makes Retool a good option for businesses that want a quick setup with a low-code solution while still being able to customize their tools for specific needs.

Why we use Retool?

• To quickly build internal tools without reinventing the wheel.
• To simplify database connections and workflows.
• To create accessible, user-friendly admin panels.

Key Benefits of Using Retool

Now you might be thinking, “Why not just build a custom app from scratch?” The answer is that Retool makes it so much easier and faster while still giving you the flexibility to create tools that work well for your needs. Here’s why Retool is a great option:

Speed. One of the biggest advantages of Retool is speed. Retool comes with a library of ready-to-use components like tables, buttons, and modals. These are like building blocks that save you from writing everything from scratch. Sure, these blocks might not let you build something super specific or exactly how you imagined, but they’re good enough to create functional tools that get the job done.

Flexibility and Customization. Although Retool is a low-code platform, it doesn’t hold developers back. If you need advanced functionality, you can write custom JavaScript or SQL to add the exact logic or data manipulation you need. This makes Retool suitable for a wide range of uses.

Integrations. Retool makes it incredibly easy to connect with the tools and systems you’re already using. This includes MySQL, PostgreSQL, and external APIs. Retool integrates smoothly with your data sources. Instead of spending time on complicated setup processes, you can focus on actually using your data to power your tools.

Of course, like any low-code platform, Retool has its drawbacks that are worth considering before making a decision. Based on our experience, these are three key things to keep in mind:

1. Customization Limits

While Retool is highly flexible, there are certain limits to how much you can customize. Traditional development might still be a better choice for highly specialized or unique applications. Retool works best for common internal tools like dashboards and admin panels rather than tools requiring very specific functionalities.

2. Scaling Challenges

Retool works exceptionally well for small-to-medium-scale applications. However, when you start dealing with big, enterprise-level tools with lots of data and really complex workflows, it can struggle a bit. So, if you’re planning to grow big, make sure Retool can keep up with your needs.

3. Cost Considerations

Retool’s pricing is generally fair for smaller teams and projects, with monthly plans starting at $10 per user. However, as your team grows or you need enterprise-level features, costs can scale up quickly. This can become a challenge for businesses with large-scale requirements. So, we recommend you compare Retool’s pricing against alternative platforms to ensure it aligns with your budget.

Our Experience with Retool

We use Retool to create dashboards, admin panels, and tools for managing and visualizing data. Retool is very flexible and comes with ready-made components, which saves us a lot of time. If we need something special, we can easily add our own custom code to make it fit our needs. Connecting to databases is simple, and Retool even has built-in storage for managing data directly within the platform.

So, Where We Use It?

Retool is great for automating day-to-day operations that typically would require a significant amount of manual effort. It helps you work faster and more flexibly to solve business problems. Here are some common ways Retool can help you:

1. Dashboards and Data Management

Every business needs a way to monitor its operations, and dashboards created with Retool make that super simple. With Retool, you can connect to databases and set up dashboards that display real-time metrics, data trends, and any other crucial information. There's no need to use multiple tools or create reports manually. Everything is centralized in one place, so you can easily view and update your data.

On the PushTok project, we used Retool to build a system for managing and analyzing new advertising orders. The dashboard allowed us to track statistics and monitor ad performance in real-time, saving time and effort by automating data processing and report generation.

2. Automating Repetitive Tasks

Repetitive tasks can take up so much time and are often prone to mistakes. Retool makes it easy to automate these kinds of processes. Things like generating reports, updating records, or sending notifications can all be set up to run automatically, so you don’t have to worry about them.

We’ve seen how automating these tasks can make a huge difference for businesses. It saves time, reduces errors, and lets teams focus on more important work. For Flymingo, we built a complete back-office management system using Retool. It automated a lot of routine tasks, like handling user data and organizing admin tasks, making every day operations faster and less error-prone.

3. Admin Panels

Admin panels are very helpful for managing all the behind-the-scenes operations in a business. With Retool, you can easily set up panels to handle things like managing users, reviewing reports, or organizing workflows. The best part is that you can fully customize these panels to meet your needs, whether you want to track team performance, manage inventory, or simplify HR tasks.

A great example of this is how we used Retool for Propex. We built a content management system that makes it simple to update page content, such as text, images, and blocks. This gave the team full control over their website, saving time and making content updates much more efficient.

We’ve built admin panels for a wide range of industries using Retool, always tailoring them to match the specific needs of each business. If you’re curious, check out our article How to Create a Niche Service Marketplace, where we discuss how Retool has helped develop admin panels tailored specifically for that type of business.

4. CRM Tools

Managing client relationships is a big deal for any business, and most CRMs out there either cost too much or don’t let you customize them enough. With Retool, you can build a CRM that’s tailored to exactly what you need. You can pull data directly from your databases, let your team manage leads, track progress, and even set up custom workflows.

These are just a few ways Retool can be useful. You can also use it for things like student information systems, fraud detection, sales tracking, telemedicine platforms, and more. Basically, if you need a tool to manage data or automate something, Retool is a great option to get it done quickly and easily.

Retool vs. Building from Scratch: Cost and Time Comparison

One of the biggest questions businesses have when considering Retool is whether it actually saves time and money compared to building internal tools from scratch. The short answer? Yes, it usually does — especially when it comes to admin panels, dashboards, and other internal tools. To put it into perspective, let's break down the difference between building an admin panel from scratch versus using Retool.

Custom Development

In our experience, building a custom admin panel from scratch can take weeks or even months, depending on the complexity. It requires setting up the front-end and back-end, database connections, API integrations, user authentication, and more. Of course, there are plenty of libraries and frameworks available that can speed up parts of the process. But even with these libraries, you still have to write a lot of boilerplate code and manually handle all the integrations.

Also, one important thing to keep in mind is the design aspect. When building a custom admin panel from scratch, you definitely need at least a basic understanding of how it should look and function.

Using Retool

On the other hand, using Retool cuts down this process significantly. Instead of coding the entire front-end from scratch, you can use pre-built components. This means you’re focusing on connecting data and customizing the logic rather than building the whole structure from the ground up.

However, it’s also important to be realistic about Retool's limitations. There are some scenarios where using Retool might not be the most practical choice. For instance, if your project requires complex data processing or advanced back-end logic, it can be more efficient to handle those parts directly on your own back-end rather than writing code within Retool's constructor. Sometimes, it just makes more sense to use traditional development when you need highly specialized features.

Here’s a simple comparison to give you a clearer picture:

Please note that this comparison is quite individual and can vary a lot depending on the project’s specifics. For some tasks, Retool might be a perfect match, while for others, a more custom-built approach would make sense.

Wrap-up

Retool is a practical way to build the tools your business needs without spending a ton of time on development. It’s great for things like dashboards, admin panels, or automating repetitive tasks. You don’t have to start from scratch — it gives you all these pre-built components, and if you need something specific, you can easily customize it with your own code.

It might not be the best fit for highly specialized or enterprise-scale projects, but for most businesses, it’s a reliable and efficient solution. And if you’re looking for help with development or want advice on how to get started with Retool, feel free to reach out to us — we’d be happy to help!