Flowise
Retool
| Feature | Flowise | Retool |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $19/mo | Free / from $10/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.2 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | developers, startups, non-technical-users, ai-teams | engineering-teams, operations, startups, enterprise |
| Founded | 2023 | 2017 |
| Visual Builder | ✓ | ✗ |
| Llm Chains | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ai Agents | ✓ | ✗ |
| Rag | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Hosted | ✓ | ✗ |
| Open Source | ✓ | ✗ |
| Multi Agent | ✓ | ✗ |
| Drag And Drop | ✗ | ✓ |
| Data Connectors | ✗ | ✓ |
| Custom Code | ✗ | ✓ |
| Workflows | ✗ | ✓ |
| Permissions | ✗ | ✓ |
| Mobile Apps | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Flowise Pros
- Visual drag-and-drop for rapid prototyping
- Flexible model choice across LLM providers
- Self-hosting for full data control
- 100+ built-in nodes and connectors
✗ Flowise Cons
- Complex flows hard to debug at scale
- Enterprise features locked behind paid tiers
- Documentation quality inconsistent
✓ Retool Pros
- Fast development
- Many integrations
- Pre-built components
- Good for internal tools
✗ Retool Cons
- Not for customer-facing apps
- Vendor lock-in
- Expensive at scale
The Verdict
Flowise is built for developers and startups, with a focus on visual-builder and llm-chains. Retool targets engineering teams and operations and leads with drag-and-drop and data-connectors.
On pricing, Retool is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $10/mo compared to $19/mo for Flowise. That $9/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Flowise offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Retool takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Both tools are a solid fit for startups — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.