Bubble vs Retool: which platform to pick in 2026?
Bubble is the industry leader for external web applications, with starter plans from $59 a month (billed annually) covering 175K workload units. Retool is built for internal business software, charging $10 a month per builder and $5 a month per internal user on its Team plan. Choose Bubble for customer-facing commercial apps, and Retool for secure internal dashboards connected directly to your databases.
Data checked:
TL;DR verdict
Pick Bubble when building public web apps, SaaS products, or mobile tools targeting thousands of external users. Pick Retool when building internal business dashboards, database GUIs, or tools for operations teams where security and direct database connections matter.
| Bubble | Retool | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry paid plan | $59/mo (Starter, billed annually) | $10/mo per builder (Team) |
| What's included | 175K workload units/mo, 1 app editor, 5 mobile build submissions/mo | Unlimited internal apps, 1,000 AI credits/mo, 5,000 workflow runs/mo |
| Free option | $0/mo, 50K workload units/mo | $0/mo per builder, $0/mo per internal user, 250 AI credits/mo, 500 workflow runs/mo |
| Internal user cost | N/A (unlimited public users) | $5/mo per internal user (Team) or $15/mo (Business) |
| Strongest at | External consumer web apps and SaaS products | Internal admin panels, database frontends, CRUD tools |
| Learning curve | Medium: proprietary visual database and logic | Medium: requires SQL and JavaScript knowledge |
| AI features | Via API integrations | 1,000 to 3,000 native AI credits/mo on paid plans |
| Workload limits | 175K to 500K workload units/mo | 5,000 workflow runs/mo (extra 5,000 runs for $75) |
Sources: Bubble pricing · Retool pricing · data checked: Jul 18, 2026
Which we'd pick, scenario by scenario
A SaaS startup building a customer portal
Bubble. It is designed for external public applications, handles user registration, custom domains, and styling, and offers a Starter plan at $59 a month (billed annually).
A logistics team needing a dashboard to manage SQL databases
Retool. It connects directly to PostgreSQL or databases out of the box and charges only $5 a month per internal user on the Team plan, bypassing the need to build a custom UI from scratch.
A company building internal AI-driven operations tools
Retool. Paid plans provide between 1,000 and 3,000 native AI credits per month alongside 5,000 workflow runs, making it a highly cost-efficient control room for company data.
Our take
We see many founders try to build their internal admin tool on Bubble or their customer SaaS on Retool, and both directions usually end in frustration. Bubble's visual editor excels at creating pixel-perfect consumer designs, handling stripe billing, and managing public user registration, but it forces you into its proprietary database logic. If you just need a frontend for an existing PostgreSQL database, Bubble is a nightmare to configure. Retool, by contrast, connects to any database in thirty seconds, giving you pre-built tables, forms, and charts that require SQL and JavaScript to tie together. However, Retool is prohibitively expensive for public consumer audiences, charging up to $15 per internal user on its Business plan, though external users can scale down to $4 per user if you exceed 500 users. For internal tools, we rely on custom workflow automation and Retool frontends, while reserving Bubble strictly for standalone consumer web applications where we own the entire stack from the database up.