The Bottom Line: Appy Pie is a very easy-to-use no-code app builder but comes with the drawback of limited design customization. It is more dated than most no-code app builders, and as a result, it makes not-so-gorgeous-looking apps.
Pros:
- Appy Pie’s simple interface makes it one of the easiest-to-use no-code app builders.
- You can make a native mobile app that you can publish to the Apple App Store or Google Play store.
- Pricing is very competitive compared to other app builders.
Cons:
- To activate the short, 7-day free trial, you have to provide credit card information.
- Appy Pie’s cheapest versions aren’t available to iOS users.
- Appy Pie does not allow you to change its templates, meaning you have little design freedom.
- In terms of aesthetics, Appy Pie’s apps are nothing to write home about.
- If you want to publish to the Apple App Store, you have to buy a more expensive version.
Pricing: Appy Pie doesn’t come with a truly free version. If you want to test out Appy Pie for a free 7-day trial, you need to provide your credit card information. Appy Pie’s paid Standard Version costs $16/month, and its recommended Professional Version, with more features, is $36/month.
But if you’re an iOS user, you need to purchase the most expensive version, at $60/month.
What is Appy Pie?
Appy Pie is a no-code native mobile and web app builder with a low learning curve and, for Android users, low pricing. After providing your credit card information, you can start building your app by choosing from about 20 pre-selected templates.
The overall design and app-building process is very straightforward. It’s quite simple to get the ball rolling by choosing the color theme and adding elements like text, icons, and pictures - you’ll be building right off the bat.
Conveniently, each time you add a new feature, you’ll see how it will appear on a mobile phone using the preview screen to your right.
You can also navigate to different app screens directly from the preview app feature. Doing this makes navigation from screen to screen more seamless and intuitive than sieving through the dashboard.
If you want to build a website or web app, Appy Pie has an SEO tool that lets you write meta descriptions and insert keywords for each page you build. This tool will help get your web app in front of Google users, which will give it even more exposure because Appy Pie also lets you publish your app to the Apple App and Google Play stores.
Appy Pie comes with around 1,800 integrations (Appy Pie calls these “connects”), which is a fair amount and will allow you to build a decent app. For instance, Appy Pie integrates with MailChimp, Airtable, Shopify, and many more.
Appy Pie’s Positives
- The Appy Pie Academy has an extensive library full of tutorials and courses that cover a variety of topics, many beyond building your app. You’ll be able to learn about polishing your Instagram profile to attract a following, how to become a freelance copywriter, and more.
- Having issues when you’re building your app? Appy Pie has live chat support that you can access at the push of a button. Just let them know what problems you’re having with your app, and they’ll walk you through a solution. This support is available 24/7.
- The overall vibe I get when using Appy Pie is that it lets people build an app fast. All the templates and elements are premade, so you can throw together features in no time. This is great for people who want to release an app tomorrow.
Appy Pie’s Hangups
- While you can delete certain elements of the premade templates, you can’t modify the templates. For instance, you can’t move icons or headers to different places on the screen. This is a big barrier to customizing your app to your exact taste.
- When navigating from page to page or searching for features, I found that Appy Pie has a slower load time than other app builders. To check, I opened up a competing app builder and clicked through a few pages.
In the time it took for Appy Pie to load up any part of its app-building tool, I was able to click through 2 or 3 pages on the competing app builder.
- Appy Pie doesn’t build the most aesthetically pleasing or attention-grabbing apps. This seems to be part of the sacrifice you must make to be able to build an app quickly and with such a low learning curve.
- Many of the Appy Pie Academy tutorial videos that show you Appy Pie’s features aren’t free - some of them cost over $300!
- I can’t emphasize enough how expensive Appy Pie is for iOS users. Given the huge number of iOS users out there, $60/month puts Appy Pie among the highest-priced app builders for iOS users. But app builders at a comparable price can create much more beautiful and modern-looking apps than Appy Pie can.
Is Appy Pie Right For You?
Appy Pie works great for some people. Select Appy Pie if:
- You’re an Android user on a budget.
- You want a super-simple, easy-to-learn app builder.
- You want to design a startup app, which you will then develop further with a more advanced app builder that has more design freedom and customization.
However, you should take a look at other app builders if:
- You want a high degree of design freedom and customization.
- You are a creative person and want to build an aesthetically pleasing app.
- You want to delve into the app’s features by getting access to free tutorials.
- You’re an iOS user.
What Kinds of Apps Can I Build With Appy Pie?
You can build a wide variety of simple apps using Appy Pie, such as an app for your restaurant, a salon scheduler, an online store, and more. However, Appy Pie’s functionality is not as powerful as that of other app builders, so you’ll have difficulties building apps with customizable logic and other core functions.
Appy Pie also falls short of providing sleek design features, so apps made using Appy Pie may appear dated compared to apps created using other app builders.
One market segment Appy Pie really appeals to is the medical industry. Appy Pie is HIPAA compliant. Medical professionals who want to create apps for their practices for scheduling, recording-keeping, CRM, and other medical-industry processes may find Appy Pie a great fit.
Appy Pie Pricing: Is it worth it?
While Appy Pie only comes with a 7-day free trial after entering your credit card information (which is a huge turnoff for many), you’d be hard-pressed to find a cheaper app builder.
At about the same cost as a Netflix subscription, or $16/month, you can get Appy Pie’s Standard Version. You’ll be able to build up to 5 apps, and you’ll be able to add up to 40 integrations (connects).
$36/month buys you Appy Pie’s Professional Version. You’ll get all the features from the Standard Version and be able to build as many apps as you want, with unlimited integrations.
Appy Pie’s Business version, at $60/month, gets you everything from the Professional Version. You can also allow multiple people to work together to build out apps at the same time.
If you’re an iOS user, you’ll need to purchase the Business Version to build your app. Because Appy Pie’s cheaper versions are not compatible with building iOS apps, iOS users will have to pay a premium if they want to build with Appy Pie.
Appy Pie does have an Enterprise Version - but you’ll have to contact Appy Pie for more details.
Appy Pie Alternatives: What other tools should you try?
If you’re looking for an app builder that works better than Appy Pie, check out the following:
- Adalo, a web and native mobile no-code app builder that offers more design freedom and power than Appy Pie.
- Glide, an intuitive no-code app builder that allows you to build web apps that are more beautiful and aesthetically pleasing than Appy Pie.
- GoodBarber, a no-code native and web app builder specializing in creating good-looking e-commerce apps; it's easier to use and more intuitive than Appy Pie.
All of the above platforms have versions that cost at most $60/month and are compatible with iOS. They also have free versions or trials and don’t require giving your credit card information.
Verdict
What do I think about Appy Pie? Should you avoid it, shortlist it, or sign up now?
Sign up now if: you’re building specifically for Android and want one of the cheapest no-code app builders on the market, and you care more about building quickly than you do about making your app look visually appealing.
If you want to design a simple app on the cheap and get it on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, look no further than Appy Pie.
Shortlist it if: you want to use an easy app builder to make a native mobile app, but you aren’t quite sure how you want it to look. Use Appy Pie to determine how much you value design freedom and aesthetics. Then, figure out if you want to move on to another, more powerful app builder.
If you really want to unleash your inner creativity and control a lot of the design process, check out Adalo. You’ll be able to build an eye-catching native mobile app that you can publish on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
