# Cordango vs Retool: internal tools without a dev team

> An honest comparison of Cordango and Retool. Retool is a strong builder for developers with databases. Cordango builds and hosts internal apps on one secure EU core, no dev team needed.

Source: https://www.cordango.com/vs/retool/
Language: en

# Cordango vs Retool

Retool is what developers reach for to put an admin panel on top of a database, and it’s good at that. It gives a skilled maker a lot of freedom, and the company gets whatever governance that maker sets up per app. Cordango gives the freedom to everyone and keeps the governance in one place, so an app built on Tuesday already has your people, your permissions and your audit trail.

## The short version.

Where Retool wins 

If you have engineers and your data already lives in databases, Retool is a mature, flexible builder.

-   DEV Full control with SQL and JavaScript everywhere
-   DATA Connects to almost any database or API you already run
-   UI A deep component library, refined over years
-   SCALE Proven in large engineering-led teams

Where Cordango wins 

Cordango starts one step earlier. There is no canvas and no query editor. You describe the app.

-   BUILD Describe it in plain words, answer a few questions, it runs
-   CORE Identity, roles, permissions and audit are the platform, not per-app wiring
-   DATA Apps share one data core instead of each wiring its own sources
-   EU EU-hosted and GDPR-first by default, nothing to self-host

## Side by side.

|     | Cordango | Retool |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Build an app by describing it | ✓   | ~   |
| Usable without developers | ✓   | ✗   |
| Identity, roles & permissions built in | ✓   | ~   |
| Apps share one data model | ✓   | ~   |
| Audit trail across every app | ✓   | ~   |
| EU-hosted by default | ✓   | ~   |
| Custom-built apps on request | ✓   | ✗   |
| Shared company context by default | ✓   | ~   |
| Governance built into every app | ✓   | ~   |
| Company-owned rather than builder-owned | ✓   | ~   |
| Every user shapes their own interface | ✓   | ✗   |
| One platform price instead of per-tool subscriptions | ✓   | ~   |

✓ built in  ·  ~ possible with plan upgrades or your own work  ·  ✗ not what the product is for  
If your engineers love Retool, let them keep it. Cordango is for every company that doesn’t have engineers to spare.

## Which one should you pick?

### Pick Retool if

-   01 Your developers build and maintain internal tools as part of their job
-   02 Your data already lives in databases and APIs you run
-   03 You want full control over queries, logic and pixels

### Pick Cordango if

-   01 Nobody has time to build internal tools, they just need to exist
-   02 You want one permission model and one audit trail across every app
-   03 Your data should stay in the EU without you running servers

NEXT

## See it on your company.

Watch Cordango stand up a company and build an app from a description, live, in about 30 minutes.

[Book a demo →](https://www.cordango.com/contact/) [All comparisons](https://www.cordango.com/vs/)