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QuickBase vs Retool comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.1
QuickBase boosts efficiency, productivity, and ROI by reducing manual processes and enhancing automation, with significant financial benefits reported.
Sentiment score
6.5
Retool saves time and money, reducing developer dependency, while offering efficient, cost-effective solutions with a minimal monthly expense.
The ROI is huge; our company saved over 3.8 million in one year alone based on developments that year in QuickBase that saved time for many teams.
Data Entry Specialist at Pfizer
I have seen a return on investment, as I have seen a reduction in duplication of information and workflows, and unification of siloed systems.
Software Test Engineer at Roche
I have seen a return on investment with QuickBase, with both time saved and an increase in productivity.
Director at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
We had fewer front-end resources, and while developing with Retool, we did not need many front-end team members, which saved on salaries.
software engineer at a non-tech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I think we can see time saved to start the proof of concept and maybe money saved because I was able to develop the mobile app alone without needing additional resources.
IT consultant for healthcare sector at Freelancer
We have seen a return on investment because we are building these internal dashboards 30 to 50% faster, so we are saving approximately 30 to 50% of an employee's time.
Product Manager at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.6
QuickBase's customer service is responsive and effective, though some users desire more interactive support and weekend availability.
Sentiment score
5.5
Retool's customer service is mixed, with varying satisfaction levels, reliance on external resources, and praise for prompt assistance.
Technical support is really good, and I would rate it a nine out of ten.
Associate principal engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
The customer support of QuickBase is very proactive and responsive 24/7.
Software Test Engineer at Roche
The customer support is amazing; overall, AWS customer support is very professional and fast.
software engineer at a non-tech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
It is very easy to learn and integrate within our database and infrastructure because we are already on Amazon Web Services, and our entire tech stack is on Amazon Web Services.
Product Manager at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
Technical support team is available, but I haven't needed to contact them.
Full Stack PHP/Python AWS Developer at Binary Port
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
QuickBase is scalable and modular, allowing seamless growth for organizations despite initial data structuring challenges.
Sentiment score
6.7
Retool efficiently scales, supporting many users with large datasets, offering customization and security, although complexity may rise with features.
Quick Base has high potential to scale.
Associate principal engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
We are able to save time, especially because of the automation of tasks that are time-wasting or time-consuming and very tiresome.
Software Test Engineer at Roche
QuickBase's scalability is impressive; it is easily scalable from a few users to a few hundred or a few thousand users.
Head of Quality & Supply-Chain at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees
It's scalable and doesn't experience any slowdown when handling increasing data volumes.
Full Stack PHP/Python AWS Developer at Binary Port
Retool is more suited for startups, but it can get messy at scale.
software engineer at a non-tech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
QuickBase is stable with minimal downtime, reliable support, and performs well despite occasional traffic-related issues.
Sentiment score
8.4
Retool is highly rated for dependability, with users experiencing minimal issues, praising its stability and reliable performance.
Retool is stable in my experience.
IT consultant for healthcare sector at Freelancer
 

Room For Improvement

QuickBase requires improvements in training, customization, interface modernization, data management, cost management, and multilingual and mobile support.
Retool's front-end and usability limitations frustrate users, highlighting needs for enhanced customization, integration, and non-technical user support.
It can be difficult to navigate, and ideally, it should be simplified to facilitate use by anyone, not just certified individuals.
Associate principal engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
QuickBase can be improved, as some high-level integration can be tricky to develop without advanced understanding of the APIs and other functions.
Software Test Engineer at Roche
The cost can be a bit prohibitive, especially for small organizations to be able to use this tool.
Data Entry Specialist at Pfizer
Retool needs more customization options, as it should not be limited to a few customization features; it should be broader, with more features available for users to utilize.
software engineer at a non-tech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
AI tools, features, and machine learning capabilities should be added as they would be helpful in the future.
Full Stack PHP/Python AWS Developer at Binary Port
There should be better documentation or support for non-technical users, providing a platform to learn and implement Retool effectively.
Construction Data Analyst at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
 

Setup Cost

QuickBase offers competitive per-user pricing with extensive features, making it a valuable investment for many enterprises.
Retool's pricing is affordable for small setups but can be expensive for larger deployments compared to industry leaders.
Pricing could be cheaper.
Associate principal engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that the price is a bit expensive, especially when comparing QuickBase with its competitors.
Software Test Engineer at Roche
The pricing, setup cost, and licensing experience were good as the free plan was enough for us.
IT consultant for healthcare sector at Freelancer
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Retool is that it is straightforward but somewhat pricey compared to other industry leaders such as Sentry and others.
Product Manager at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
 

Valuable Features

QuickBase excels in customizability, seamless integration, and user-friendly automation, enhancing collaboration and efficiency without requiring technical expertise.
Retool streamlines development with a user-friendly interface, enabling rapid MVP creation and enhancing productivity with extensive customization features.
The dashboards and workflow management help my team significantly, as they have a drag-and-drop interface and prebuilt templates, which play a pivotal role in creating custom applications.
Software Test Engineer at Roche
The ROI is huge; our company saved over 3.8 million in one year alone based on developments that year in QuickBase that saved time for many teams.
Data Entry Specialist at Pfizer
QuickBase has allowed me to expand my workflows and tools to other markets to help compliance and to help other less sophisticated business users be able to do standardized and repeatable processes with much less error.
Lead & Initiatives Director, Strategic Projects at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
Retool positively impacts our organization by saving costs compared to using other data repositories, and teams prefer Retool for daily tasks that perform customizations to showcase web pages or link their data backend, making it more efficient and cost-effective than other software available in the market.
Construction Data Analyst at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Compared to other solutions, the time is 30 to 50% shorter when we are building an internal tool using Retool.
Product Manager at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
Retool provides built-in features with all processing happening within the platform, which is a significant advantage.
Full Stack PHP/Python AWS Developer at Binary Port
 

Categories and Ranking

QuickBase
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
14th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
81
Ranking in other categories
Low-Code Development Platforms (12th), Employee Time Tracking Software (1st)
Retool
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
20th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
AI Software Development (22nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of QuickBase is 2.6%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Retool is 1.3%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
QuickBase2.6%
Retool1.3%
Other96.1%
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

Morgan Victor - PeerSpot reviewer
Software Test Engineer at Roche
Automation has transformed project and inventory workflows and improves revenue forecasting
The best features QuickBase offers include being a no-code software, meaning it is very easy to use even for new users. It also provides life cycle management, workflow management, and dashboards. The dashboards and workflow management help my team significantly, as they have a drag-and-drop interface and prebuilt templates, which play a pivotal role in creating custom applications. Those features also help provide the ability to manage the entire application life cycle with QuickBase easily. Integration has been very seamless with our overall IT stack. The user interface is very user-friendly and intuitive, which makes it very easy to use, together with the no-code aspect. Any kind of personnel can use this tool easily.
YL
IT consultant for healthcare sector at Freelancer
Has provided a quick way to build mobile apps and could improve usability for non-technical users
The best features Retool offers include the ability to quickly create a mobile app and use this mobile app in a native mobile app for Android. I found the process of creating and deploying those mobile apps for Android with Retool to be smooth as the documentation is very good, and I found answers and examples to create a mobile app. I can access a debug mode in the mobile app which was really convenient to make tests and find what can be improved, where I have a problem, and how to correct it. Retool positively impacted my organization as the proof of concept we built gave us a way to convince power users and key users before developing the real software. It was a way to maintain the launch date of the project, which helped speed up the project timeline and save resources.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Construction Company
21%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business40
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise28
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for QuickBase?
I did not have any involvement with pricing, setup cost, or licensing.
What needs improvement with QuickBase?
The table size limits are small for really large apps. While I agree that there needs to be a cap on the size, it would be nice to adjust it up when needed. Also, the cost can be a bit prohibitive,...
What is your primary use case for QuickBase?
Our organization uses QuickBase for project management, production, fieldwork tracking, training, training tracking, travel tracking, and more. The platform allows us to standardize workflows acros...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Retool?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Retool is that it is straightforward but somewhat pricey compared to other industry leaders such as Sentry and others. I feel it is an eigh...
What needs improvement with Retool?
I do not have specifics on how Retool can be improved because we are using it for internal tool building only. Regarding needed improvements, perhaps Retool can focus on not building customer-facin...
What is your primary use case for Retool?
We started using Retool last September, so it has been more than nine months now. Our main use case for Retool is an internal operations dashboard built in Retool for our AI agents. Whenever we shi...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Quick Base, TSheets
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Procter & Gamble, Tesla, Norwegian Cruise Line, Google, Metso, Agero, Kayak, PTC, Patra Corp, TomTom, Southwest Airlines, FedEx Office
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about QuickBase vs. Retool and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.