Updated Jan 27, 2026

Bubble Review: Is It Worth It? (Expert Advice) [2026]

Table of Contents

If you're exploring no-code platforms to build your next app, you've likely come across Bubble—one of the most established names in the space. But with so many options available in 2026, is Bubble actually the right choice for your project?

Adalo is a no-code app builder for database-driven web apps and native iOS and Android apps—one version across all three platforms, published to the Apple App Store and Google Play. Bubble is a powerful visual programming platform primarily focused on building complex web applications with extensive customization options.

When comparing these platforms, what matters most is app success: launching your MVP as fast as possible and reaching the biggest audience. That means publishing not just a web app, but native iOS and Android apps to the app stores—unlocking massive user bases and essential features like push notifications that drive engagement and retention.

Bubble Review Introduction: What is Bubble?

Bubble is a visual web app builder that creates web applications and progressive web apps (PWAs)—browser-based apps that mimic native mobile experiences without actual App Store distribution. Bubble pioneered the visual app-building space since 2012, building a massive ecosystem of templates, plugins, and developers over more than a decade.

The platform's maturity shows in its stability. Glitches and bugs during building are rare, and the community has documented solutions for most common challenges. However, Bubble's web-only architecture means users seeking true native iOS and Android apps must look elsewhere or rely on third-party wrapper services.

Getting Started with Bubble

Account creation is straightforward—enter your email and password, then choose between a blank canvas or one of Bubble's templates. Bubble's template library is among the largest available, with 400+ free options organized across 20+ categories.

If free templates don't match your vision, Bubble offers 700+ paid templates created by independent developers familiar with the ecosystem. Paid templates typically feature more polished designs and additional screens, with pricing ranging from $15 to over $200.

Learning Bubble

After selecting a template or starting fresh, you'll encounter Bubble's building canvas with a drop-down editing dashboard on the left. This is where Bubble's steep learning curve becomes apparent. The platform compensates with extensive educational resources.

Bubble's four learning tools:

The Bubble Academy: Essential for first-time users, featuring videos and interactive exercises to build familiarity with the interface.
Bubble's Video Library: Nearly 200 videos covering specific components, plugins, and elements.
The "How To Build" Series: Step-by-step video lessons walking through different app types from start to finish.
Bubble Docs: Comprehensive text documentation for reference during building.

Expect to invest several months before becoming fluent with the interface if you can dedicate multiple hours daily. This time investment is significantly higher than platforms designed for immediate productivity.

Building with Bubble

Bubble's complexity enables powerful customization for those who master it. The building dashboard at the top lets you toggle between screens and select elements, while 7 icons on the far left serve as tabs for accessing specific interface sections.

These icons control your app's design elements, APIs, integrations, SEO features, and workload unit monitoring. The full properties editor allows fine-tuning of every component's style and logic—an insanely high degree of visual customization once you've climbed the learning curve.

However, this flexibility comes with trade-offs. More customization options mean more opportunities for performance-impacting decisions. Apps built without optimization expertise often suffer under increased user load, which is why many Bubble users eventually hire specialists to address scaling challenges.

Is Bubble Right For You?

Bubble serves a specific audience well. Select Bubble if:

You have months to dedicate to learning the complex building interface
You need a web app or PWA only—not native mobile apps
You want maximum customization and can invest in optimization expertise

Consider alternatives if:

You want true native mobile apps published to the Apple App Store and Google Play Store
You need an intuitive platform that lets you start building immediately
You're budget-conscious and want predictable pricing without usage-based charges
You want one codebase that automatically updates web, iOS, and Android simultaneously

What Kinds of Apps Can I Build With Bubble?

Once you master Bubble's interface, the possibilities for web apps and PWAs are extensive. Internal business tools like Kanban boards, CRM systems, social networks, and finance applications with third-party integrations are all achievable.

Bubble's limitation is native mobile apps. The platform cannot publish directly to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. Users must rely on third-party wrapper services like Nativator, which introduce additional complexity and potential performance issues.

Wrapper-based mobile apps face inherent constraints. They're essentially web apps packaged for app stores, which means they can't match the performance of true native applications—especially under heavy user load. This distinction matters significantly for apps expecting substantial mobile traffic.

For comparison, Adalo is an AI-powered app builder that compiles to true native iOS and Android code from a single codebase. One build publishes to web, the Apple App Store, and Google Play Store simultaneously, with updates propagating across all platforms automatically.

Bubble Pricing: Is it Worth It?

Bubble's free tier works for learning the interface and connecting to third-party APIs, though community-built plugins require paid plans. The free version includes 50,000 workload units (WUs)—Bubble's metric for measuring computational work including database operations, integrations, and logic.

More complex tasks consume more WUs. Exceeding your monthly allocation triggers overage charges, which can create unpredictable bills for power-intensive applications.

Plan	Monthly Price	Workload Units	Key Features
Free	$0	50,000	Learning, third-party APIs
Starter	$59	175,000	Custom branding, Bubble APIs, all plugins
Growth	$134	250,000	10 prototype versions
Team	$399	500,000	Separate client databases
Enterprise	Contact sales	Custom	Custom solutions

The workload unit model creates uncertainty around monthly costs. Unlike platforms with unlimited usage on paid plans, Bubble users must monitor consumption and potentially pay overages—a significant consideration for growing applications.

Adalo's pricing offers a different approach. Starting at $36/month, Adalo provides unlimited usage with no workload-based charges, unlimited database records on paid plans, and direct App Store publishing with unlimited updates. There's no bill shock from unexpected usage spikes.

Bubble Alternatives: What Other Tools Should You Try?

If Bubble's pricing model, web-only architecture, or learning curve don't fit your needs, consider these alternatives:

Adalo: An AI-powered app builder for database-driven web apps and true native iOS and Android apps—one codebase across all three platforms. Magic Start generates complete app foundations from descriptions, while Magic Add creates features from natural language requests. Starting at $36/month with unlimited usage and no record caps, Adalo handles App Store submission directly, launching apps in days rather than months. Over 3 million apps have been created on the platform, with the visual builder described as "easy as PowerPoint."

GoodBarber: A lower-cost option with a gentler learning curve, focused on native mobile apps for online stores and content subscriptions.

Betty Blocks: An enterprise-focused builder with a simpler interface for creating native mobile apps, designed for large organizations.

Bubble vs. Adalo: Key Differences

The fundamental difference comes down to architecture and accessibility. Bubble builds web apps that can be wrapped for mobile; Adalo compiles to true native code for iOS and Android while also supporting web deployment.

Feature	Bubble	Adalo
Native Mobile Apps	No (wrapper required)	Yes (true native compilation)
App Store Publishing	Third-party service needed	Direct publishing included
Starting Price	$59/month	$36/month
Usage Charges	Workload units with overages	Unlimited usage
Database Records	Limited by workload units	Unlimited on paid plans
Learning Curve	Months to proficiency	"Easy as PowerPoint"
AI Features	Limited	Magic Start, Magic Add, X-Ray
Cross-Platform Updates	Manual per platform	Automatic across all platforms

Adalo's 2025 infrastructure overhaul (Adalo 3.0) delivered 3-4x faster performance with modular architecture that scales to serve apps with over 1 million monthly active users. X-Ray identifies performance issues before they affect users—proactive optimization rather than reactive troubleshooting.

Note on third-party ratings: Many platform comparison sites and reviews predate Adalo 3.0's complete backend rebuild. Ratings from before late 2025 don't reflect the current platform's performance, scalability, or feature set.

Verdict

After this Bubble.io review, here's the breakdown:

Get Bubble now if you have several months to invest in learning the interface, need only web apps, and have budget flexibility for potential workload overages and optimization expertise.

Shortlist Bubble if you want a mature ecosystem for web app development but aren't certain about the time commitment or usage-based pricing model.

Choose Adalo instead if you want to start building immediately with an intuitive interface, need true native mobile apps for the App Store and Play Store, or prefer predictable pricing without usage charges. Adalo's AI-assisted building and single-codebase deployment across web, iOS, and Android make it the more accessible path to launching a production app.

The right choice depends on your specific needs—but for most users seeking native mobile apps with straightforward pricing, Adalo offers the faster, more predictable path to launch.

FAQ

Question	Answer
Why choose Adalo over other app building solutions?	Adalo is an AI-powered app builder that creates true native iOS and Android apps from a single codebase. Unlike web wrappers, it compiles to native code and publishes directly to both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store—handling the hardest part of launching an app automatically. With unlimited database records on paid plans and no usage-based charges, pricing stays predictable as your app grows.
What's the fastest way to build and publish an app to the App Store?	Adalo's drag-and-drop interface combined with AI-assisted building through Magic Start and Magic Add lets you create complete apps in days rather than months. The platform handles the entire App Store submission process directly, eliminating the need for third-party wrapper services or manual configuration.
Which is more affordable, Adalo or Bubble?	Adalo starts at $36/month with unlimited usage and no record caps. Bubble's comparable tier starts at $59/month with workload unit limits that can trigger overage charges. For predictable budgeting, Adalo's flat-rate pricing eliminates bill shock from unexpected usage spikes.
Which is faster to build with, Adalo or Bubble?	Adalo is significantly faster for most users. Its visual builder is described as "easy as PowerPoint," while Bubble typically requires months of dedicated learning before users become proficient. Adalo's Magic Start generates complete app foundations from simple descriptions, accelerating the initial build phase.
Which is easier for beginners, Adalo or Bubble?	Adalo is designed for immediate productivity with an intuitive drag-and-drop interface. Bubble has a steep learning curve requiring significant time investment—even dedicated users need several months to become comfortable with the building interface.
Is Adalo better than Bubble for mobile apps?	Yes. Adalo compiles to true native iOS and Android code and publishes directly to app stores. Bubble creates web apps that require third-party wrapper services for mobile distribution, which introduces performance limitations and additional complexity.
Can I migrate from Bubble to Adalo?	While there's no automated migration tool, Adalo's intuitive interface and AI features like Magic Start make rebuilding straightforward. Many users find they can recreate their Bubble apps faster in Adalo than they originally built them, with the added benefit of true native mobile deployment.
What is a workload unit in Bubble?	A workload unit (WU) is Bubble's metric for measuring computational work—database operations, integrations, and logic all consume WUs. Each plan has a monthly cap, and exceeding it triggers overage charges. This creates unpredictable costs for growing apps, unlike Adalo's unlimited usage model.
Can Bubble create native mobile apps?	No. Bubble creates web apps and PWAs only. For app store distribution, users must use third-party wrapper services, which package web apps for mobile but can't match true native performance—especially under heavy user load.
How does Adalo handle app scalability?	Adalo 3.0's modular infrastructure scales to serve apps with over 1 million monthly active users with no upper ceiling. The platform is 3-4x faster than previous versions, and X-Ray proactively identifies performance issues before they affect users.