Hi all, new ex-bubble user here, exploring Blocs. I was wondering does anybody here have some experience with Wappler?
They offer free trial, but before jumping in i wanted to check if you can share any experience?
Hi @p.becks, I havenāt actually used Wappler, but I hope you arenāt comparing them to Blocs they are VERY different intended audience and do very different things.
Wappler is basically aiming to replace your entire software stack (both front and back-end). Thatās a really big lift.
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Iāve just seen the pricing and it would cost me ā¬59 a month as a company, possibly with VAT on top. Thatās about three months on a subscription compared to a perpetual plus licence for Blocs. I wouldnāt be comfortable with anything like that charging a monthly fee.
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Welcome to the Blocs forum @p.becks
You can find reviews even from Bubble as obviously they must feel the competition concerning Wappler. The Wappler forum has various posts by many former Bubble users giving comparisons and insight into the migration from Bubble also.
Over there you will notice an almost cultist defense of Wappler regardless of actual merit. But I guess the same can be said of this community and others when users really love or depend upon an app. I think Wappler is a nice app which like Blocs is getting better all the time. Not trying to disparage Wappler but I never got a great feeling from their developers back to DMXzone through until now from things Iāve read. But what they have created with Wappler is a rather interesting dichotomy of development cycle.
Understand though Wappler is not built entirely upon industry open standard frameworks (React, Vue, etc.,). Instead they have rolled their own frameworks that handle most things. So when you develop a site you are somewhat locked into their lifecycle which I guess is their intention being a subscription based solution. Keep that in mind if thatās important to you moving forward, for most developers it would be.
If you are interested in backend logic then Blocs does not offer that inherently. It does offer Wordpress theme creation with Blocs Plus which opens up the huge ecosystem of Wordpress to Blocs users. Blocs like Wappler offers front-end Bootstrap centered development but Blocs is a more designer centric focused approach with many entry points for developers as well.
You can certainly use Blocs to create clean Bootstrap sites to then later move onto backend development post export from Blocs if you are comfortable with doing so. Pinegrow is another app that maybe falls between Blocs and Wappler. For front-end all three are capable for Bootstrap creation while Pingrow offers other frameworks and vanilla front-end development also. Neither Pinegrow or Wappler currently have the ease of what Blocs offers but they do offer access to full source if thats important to you. With Wappler and Pinegrow though get ready to learn concerning complex interfaces and workflows. With Blocs by contrast you can start building sites after minimal awareness of the app.
Coming From Bubble it sounds like Wappler is more comparative. Though in that regard you need to search out and ask yourself what aspects are important to you for your desired workflow. Ultimately making the best decision for your personal needs based upon your own requirements and the outcomes that you seek to achieve.
If thatās not Blocs no biggie, but for the price you canāt go wrong with Blocs in your applications folder regardless. Especially if your desire is to create clean modern Bootstrap based sites visually and easily.
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Thanks for the replies guys, yes i am actually trying to compare blocs with wappler.
Trying to choose a new platform and it seems wappler price is a bargain for its features compared to webflow or bubble. Iām actually not that concerned about the subscription price - more about the features. I read about blocs as well so i decided to take a look here as well.
Itās a pity it doesnāt offer serverside tools though and i donāt really want to deal with the bloated Wordpress.
Yeah itās a totally different set of concerns. You are building a we based application so you canāt get around a tool like the ones weāre mentioning. There are several.
Iām like you, subscriptions are fine if I get what I need. Also, building and deploying apps that you will charge end-users for requires a safety net of a proper Service Level Agreement. Something youāre only going to get with a subscription anyway.
I am concerned about proprietary libraries though. Might be a non-starter for me.
I trust youāre not here merely as a cloaked PSA for Wappler or Bubble, I slightly get that feeling.
Each individual can determine that, many would certainly not agree.
Aside from other concerning tradeoffs, a user whould logically need an active license for the duration they hope to use the features just like any cloud based subscription. The app does not default to perpetual at the given feature set when a user stops paying. So the subscription must remain current. For those who canāt or choose not to code its perhaps a viable solution given what it offers. That is if a user can learn the complex interface, acquire and keep clientele and projects.
I really feel bad though for un-expecting clients and developers when a Wappler site gets passed on to an actual developer and they have to contend with those custom frameworks. Whats the option, dig through, swap out, rebuild or buy the interface themselves to deal with said frameworks. If a person can code then why use hundreds of clicks and their closed framework to accomplish something? I would rather pair an actual designer with an actual developer than cobble up something.
Looking at their forums its obvious some users have solid previous knowledge of backend and development. They are just at the point which they want to forgo coding, many of which are older members. Honestly though I doubt any actual developer worth their weight in the prime of their career is using Wappler. People can certainly use it to make a site or forge an āatypicalā career if their actual chops or desire to learn to be a developer donāt match up though.
Blocs has given many developers the ability to design and designers the ability to create complex sites. It outputs standard source that can carry forward easily in the lifecycle of a project across developers. Most developers would not be bewildered with a Blocs site if passed on. Which is not the case concerning Wappler and its custom frameworks.
I think weāve already effectively done that here. Given this is a Blocs forum and the differences are obvious, it sounds like you now need to migrate over and start asking questions at the Wappler forum.
As said earlier if you decide to also acquire Blocs and reap the many benefits that it offers then we would be happy to have you here. If anything download the Blocs trial and take it for a spin regardless.
Good luck on your journey.
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Hello and thanks for your reply.
Iāve spent last evening testing both blocs and wappler and i understand what you guys are saying, they are different tools. They do, however, have similar controls on the design canvas and quite similar properties options for the elements.
@Blocs_User i also checked what frameworks are wappler using, and it is producing html code just as blocs. I see thereās bootstrap 4 and 5 for websites, which i am used to and unlike bubble i can edit my files manually even if i donāt pay for subscription. So i can change anything in the css and on the page in any text editor. I even managed to setup a basic crud system following some of the video tutorials there, and checked the code - itās plain PHP code which you also can edit.
What i like in blocs is the direct controls for width/border radius in the design canvas so you can directly design your elements there. The lack of backend tools might be an issue for me, as half of the projects i am working on require at least basic backend and i donāt want to use the bloated wordpress for that.
Exploring both for now ā¦ who knows maybe both will fit for different projects of mine. Glad i escaped from bubble, but not so glad i didnāt make this move earlier 
It sounds like you were already in love with Wappler and are just provinding a PSA for the app here when you came to the Blocs forum :ā).
But no my comments were based upon their AppConnect, ServerConnect, etc., in comparison to React and Vue, etc., not Bootstrap CSS, etc. Of course they say theirs is just as powerful, in fact they declare theirs is āthe most powerful front-end frameworkā. I mean give me a break with this type of marketing nonsense.
It obviously works but comparing it like that is laughable at best. Compare the number of developers who know and use React, Vue, etc., to create millions of sites verse Wapplers framework numbers. Or go to any job site and see how many jobs are found for Wappler. So depending where people are with their career I would just express caution when considering hitching their wagon to that horse when it comes to frontend + backend focus, concerning their career.
If all a person is concerned with is the ability to point click (click, click, click, click, click, ā¦) to create something with backend capabilities then maybe its right for them. As I said above people can certainly use it to forge a very atypical career in the industry and create things. Itās up to each individual to make that choice, best wishes.
Itās good to see many of the Blocs community have offered help.
Out of interest, how did you get on with the Wappler community, did you get the same sort of helpful responses?
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Me too since the last time Blocs seems to be mentioned over on their forum is 2019. I guess this is a one sidded comparision for Wappler on the Blocs forum. 
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If you are looking at Wappler, youāre better off going with Webflow. Itās cheaper and the design tools are way better. Wappler is way expensive in my opinion for what it does.
With respect, Wordpress isnāt bloated. Itās page builders that are bloated, or rather, the code they output, is bloated. The only one currently that isnāt is Oxygen, which is lean and fast in its output. This is because it is a website builder and not a page builder.
It all depends on what you want. I also use Blocs and recommend it.
Pinegrow has just released an update to use with Tailwind, which looks exciting.
I donāt build web apps so Bubble and Wappler are not for me. Wappler is very expensive. Similarly, I would not use Webflow because you are tied into their hosting and I am uncomfortable with that. But, it would never do if we are all the same.
I think Normās Blocs to be excellent. Along with his personal contact here, I thoroughly recommend it and yes, I did vote for Blocs!
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