Retool vs Salesforce Platform comparison

Retool and Salesforce are both solutions in the Rapid Application Development Software category. Retool is ranked #16 with an average rating of 8.3, while Salesforce is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.3. Retool holds a 0.7% mindshare in RADS, compared to Salesforce’s 5.9% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Retool users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 89% of Salesforce users who would recommend it.

Retool

Read 7 Retool reviews

420 Views
420 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Salesforce Platform

Read 95 Salesforce Platform reviews

6,403 Views
4,162 Comparison Views

89% willing to recommend

Retool

Salesforce Platform

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

Salesforce Platform and Retool compete in the business application development category. Salesforce Platform tends to have the upper hand due to its scalability and extensive integrations, while Retool is favored for its flexibility and rapid development capabilities.

Features: Salesforce Platform provides robust CRM functionalities, automation tools, and wide-ranging third-party integrations, enhancing its value with analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities. Retool excels in flexibility and rapid application customization with its drag-and-drop features, making it easy to connect to diverse databases and APIs.

Room for Improvement: Salesforce Platform could benefit from faster deployment times and improved agility in customer service. It may also consider reducing initial setup complexity. Retool might enhance its scalability for larger enterprise use. Additional support for enterprise-level customization and more advanced security features would be beneficial.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Salesforce Platform offers a cloud-based deployment with comprehensive support, offering extensive training resources but potentially requiring more time due to customization possibilities. Retool provides both cloud-based and on-premises deployment options, with customer service noted for agility and responsiveness.

Pricing and ROI: Salesforce Platform involves a higher setup cost, justified by its comprehensive solutions and potential for long-term ROI in large-scale deployments. Retool presents a cost-effective initial investment, focusing on reducing development time for quicker returns, making it ideal for smaller teams or projects.

To learn more, read our detailed Retool vs. Salesforce Platform Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Retool vs. Salesforce Platform

July 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Retool

Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software

16th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Salesforce Platform

Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software

5th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

PaaS Clouds (8th), Mobile Development Platforms (2nd), Low-Code Development Platforms (6th), No-Code Development Platforms (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of Retool is 0.7%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Salesforce Platform is 5.9%, up from 6.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Rapid Application Development Software

Featured Reviews

PriyankJain

Full-stack Developer at Dashy Dash

Has notably streamlined the creation and management of admin panels in my organization

One area for improvement in Retool is expanding its library support to include a broader range of third-party JavaScript libraries. This would enhance the tool's versatility and allow more complex functionalities to integrate seamlessly into the admin panels. Retool should include enhanced graphical customization tools in its next release, particularly for creating more dynamic visual representations within the admin panels.

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Yasser_Anter

Independent Business Consultant at Freelance

Has customization and integration capabilities which increase efficiency

Salesforce could improve by offering AI features or functionalities to help business decision-makers analyze business history, suggest forward strategies, and participate in events. The previous version had a complicated interface where multiple pages and data entries were required, which was not pleasant for sales teams or business users. Also, deploying Salesforce took a long time, about four to five months, which is not ideal for any business.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Retool provides us with the opportunity to save time and be more efficient."

"There are several key aspects to Retool that make it stand out. Firstly, its extensive range of components makes integration straightforward. Secondly, its support for SQL and JavaScript allows for the implementation of complex logic, which is particularly beneficial for developers like yourself with experience in .NET development."

"Retool's most valuable features are its drag-and-drop components and the ability to customize them extensively."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is connectivity with APIs and other databases."

"The most valuable feature of Retool is the workflow because I can integrate multiple features, such as RESTful API, JavaScript API, or different databases on the same dashboard."

"We can create the dashboards quickly."

"The stability is okay."

"A great platform to import, manage and save customer data."

"The keyword search helps me in finding stuff quickly. So, I don't have to click around a lot."

"I find Salesforce Platform to be stable."

"The solution scales extremely well."

"The activities, opportunities, follow-up of the opportunities, and business tracking are valuable features. It provides everything that we need. It works pretty well."

"It is a great platform. It's definitely an improvement from the GCP application that we were using previously."

"The presentation is clear and easy to comprehend."

"I like the reports and the dashboards. Since I'm a managing partner, I use the reports and dashboards to understand my team's contact management, opportunity management, and account management activities. We use Pardot for marketing campaigns."

More Salesforce Platform pros

Cons

"The solution lacks inbuilt customization to customize bar charts."

"The components are changed frequently, which is very irritating."

"One area for improvement in Retool is expanding its library support to include a broader range of third-party JavaScript libraries."

"There are restrictions on the front-end side."

"Retool should add more resource integration."

"The part where we can add some custom logic or custom plugins could be better."

"Retool could enhance support, including efforts to establish support centers in Europe, which was lacking previously. However, the community is still in the growth phase, leading to potential delays in receiving responses to queries."

"When it switched to lightning, it threw me for a loop. When they changed the look and feel, I had a hard time finding things and doing what I used to do."

"Sometimes it would be a little bit slow, however, it's manageable."

"The product's pricing model could be improved, as some features are only available in paid modules, which can be costly."

"I would like to have integration with Google."

"The reporting needs improvement and the dashboard could have more components added."

"UI needs to be more intuitive and user friendly."

"Some business functionalities could be improved."

"Salesforce is incredibly slow. It was difficult to run live sales calls and leveraging Salesforce at the same time."

More Salesforce Platform cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is very expensive. It costs for each user, for automated users, open-end users, et cetera."

"For me, I'm in India right now, and we have Retool's subscription for one team member for $10 per month."

"For new users, evaluate the scale of their administrative needs as Retool provides excellent free services for smaller setups, but larger deployments might require transitioning to a paid plan."

"The tool is a little bit expensive."

"I don't know Retool's current pricing, but it cost around $12 per month earlier."

"The licensing is on the expensive side, but most clients engage in negotiations to reach a more favorable agreement. For stand-alone or medium-sized clients, it can be relatively costly."

"It is expensive. Licensing is on an annual basis."

"For the number of people that are using Salesforce Platform in my organization, I feel the price is reasonable."

"The licensing is per user per month, which we took out a contract on a long time back. It's really an okay price for what solutions are available and for how many features and what kind of functionality you get."

"The price of Salesforce Platform is very expensive. There are other solutions that are similar that cost a quarter of what Salesforce Platform does, such as HubSpot."

"The price varies depending on the cloud."

"In general, the price is an area where there is always room for improvement."

"It is very expensive. Its licensing is on a monthly basis."

More Salesforce Platform pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

17%

Comms Service Provider

15%

Outsourcing Company

University

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Retool?

For new users, evaluate the scale of their administrative needs as Retool provides excellent free services for smaller setups, but larger deployments might require transitioning to a paid plan.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Retool?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Retool?

I employ Retool primarily to build admin panels that effectively manage office and backend project staff. These panels facilitate the management of various organizational functions and streamline u...

See all answers

How would you choose between Microsoft PowerApps and Salesforce Platform?

I think it depends on your use case. If your organization uses Microsoft Enterprise products, PowerApps will work better in your environment. Similarly, if you have a Salesforce integration in pla...

See all answers

How does Salesforce Platform compare with Azure?

Microsoft’s Windows Azure platform is not easy or intuitive to deploy. The difficulty will be impacted by the type of application that you are trying to use the platform to build. Organizations tha...

See all answers

Do you build applications using low-code or pro-code builders on Salesforce Platform?

At my organization, we have only used Salesforce Platform's low-code builder. The reason for this is not because we do not like the pro-code option, but because we do not see the need of using it, ...

See all answers

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Compared 8% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Retool

August 2025

Download Retool product report

Buyer's Guide

Salesforce Platform

July 2025

Download Salesforce Platform product report

Also Known As

No data available

Salesforce1, Force.com, Salesforce App Cloud

Overview

Retool enables rapid construction of internal tools with minimal coding, streamlining workflows across HR, customer support, and compliance. Praised for its drag-and-drop interface, extensive component library, and SQL support, it boosts organizational efficiency by automating tasks and enhancing data management.

Retool

Salesforce Platform is a tool that provides application building with open application programming interfaces (APIs), integration tools, back-end services, starter templates, and developer environments. With a low-code interface, users are able to build applications and benefit from automated processes. The product helps customers to increase work productivity and save on IT costs through efficient, easy-to-understand, methods for creating applications.

Salesforce Platform allows companies to build and operate intelligent applications at scale and share them with employees and customers in real time. The tool secures companies' data while connecting and synchronizing it simultaneously across their Customer 360 accounts. The main components of the product are:

Application development: With low code, companies can build applications faster and automate their businesses.
Automation: The product can connect with Salesforce Genie, allowing employees to create seamless processes.
Security: The Shield component allows companies to secure their data and build applications.
Hyperforce: Companies have the option to scale globally and serve customers locally, providing secure, private, and agile solutions.
Einstein Intelligence: Organizations can utilize artificial intelligence (AI) to create personalized experiences for customers, potentially increasing companies’ growth.
Sandboxes: Salesforce Platform offers developers secure development environments where they can test, build, and deploy changes before rolling out final products.

Salesforce Platform Features

Also referred to as a “drag and drop app builder," this solution offers various features for customers to create intelligent applications and build personalized services for clients, partners, and employees within the apps.

Mobile feature: The mobile feature of Salesforce Platform allows users to build applications for mobile as well as turn already-made apps into mobile apps instantly.
AI: Through AI, users are able to personalize their applications, utilizing the smart assistant of the platform (called Einstein). The creation of customized services for clients can drive engagement and scale customer experience.
Vision feature: The Vision feature also utilizes Einstein Platform, where users can take advantage of Einstein Prediction Builder, Bots, Vision, and Language to create AI-powered applications.
Data protection: Salesforce Platform offers a data protection feature called Salesforce Shield. With it, companies can monitor app and data use, automate security policies, run compliance audits, and encrypt sensitive data.
Privacy and identity feature: Salesforce Customer Identity is a feature for privacy that offers user access through a single login. The feature provides a seamless user experience while maintaining a high level of security.
Community feature: The community feature of the product offers a digital experience platform where companies can create secure portals, applications, and websites.
Builder feature: The application building feature of Salesforce Platform offers various ways for users to create apps, including through low-code builders and pro-code tools.

Salesforce Platform Benefits

The benefits of using Salesforce Platform include:

Compared to manual coding products, Salesforce Platform is simpler for beginner users who want to develop a product.
The tool requires a low amount of coding, making it a quick and agile way to develop applications.
The adaptable design of the platform offers multi-layered security which maintains data accessible to users while protecting it from outside sources.
The product can be incorporated with various platforms and coding languages for application development.
The platform can be used to create applications compatible with large database systems like MySQL and Oracle.
Salesforce Platform allows collaboration between users, as it offers simultaneous access to various users at the same time.
Salesforce Platform is compatible with desktop databases such as Microsoft Access.

Reviews from Real Users

A vice president at a healthcare company values Salesforce Platform because it is flexible and user-friendly with helpful pre-built schemas.

Peter G., a senior technical consultant at a tech services company, rates Salesforce Platform highly because it is intuitive, quite easy to learn, and stores all kinds of relevant sales information.

Salesforce

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

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Buyer's Guide

Retool vs. Salesforce Platform

July 2025

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