Breaking into app development without coding skills has long felt impossible for entrepreneurs with great ideas but limited technical resources. The rise of no-code tools is changing that reality, opening doors for founders who previously couldn't afford developers or didn't have years to learn programming.
Adalo lets you build database-driven web apps and native iOS and Android apps — published to the App Store and Google Play — from a single no-code editor. This accessibility is empowering a new generation of non-technical founders to turn their visions into fully functional applications and drive their careers forward.
The global app development market has an expected growth rate of 497.09 billion during 2020-2026. The impact of the pandemic is significant in this massive growth of the mobile app development industry. To keep pace, rapid prototyping, no-code & low-code tools, and constant upskilling are enabling people without technical skills to build software. This highly adaptable new set of software developers are creating solutions that would otherwise not have been viable from a resource perspective, and they’re powering the creator economy in innovative ways.
Platforms like Adalo, 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, are at the forefront of this transformation. These tools empower entrepreneurs like Jason Dupree to turn their app ideas into reality without writing a single line of code.
Here’s the story of two such entrepreneurs that are using no-code to build creative software solutions.
Meet Jason Dupree, Founder of Strong by Bodyweight and No-code Entrepreneur
I grew up in Plano, TX, and after graduating from SFASU with a degree in Kinesiology, I moved to Austin, TX to become a personal trainer, and I've been here since 2014. For fun I like to sing, hike, and play video games, and I have 2 cats.
Most of my career I was a 1-on-1 personal trainer. For a few years I was also a manager at a small fitness company where I was basically in charge of technology and operations. I discovered my love and talent for automation and no-code there.
Now, I'm focusing on adding online training to my 1-on-1 training, and have started Strong by Bodyweight, to help people build an athletic body without the need for a gym. I wanted to make an app, but couldn't afford the developers. So I googled how to make my own app, and stumbled upon no-code software. I've built 2 apps for Strong by Bodyweight.
One is the user app, where you can follow programs and track progress. My clients can also receive their custom programs and coaching in this app. The other is the coaching app or the backend, that helps me manage my business using a shared database.
Building a Fitness Coaching App on Adalo
I came into Adalo knowing how to use a database (thanks Airtable!), so I had a quick learning curve. The challenging part was taking the vision I had and translating it into a no-code app. Some things are easy, and some things take some creative workarounds. For example, scheduling and tracking workouts turned out to be more complicated than they sound, and I've come up with a pretty unique solution for both.
One of the biggest things I learned is that just because you can't do things a certain way, doesn't mean it can't be done in another way. Adalo is relatively young, so there's definitely some features that, when added, will make it even better, but there's still usually a way to get things done in the meantime.
Just being able to drop other training apps and use my own in my business has been great. It's cheaper, and I have 100% control. It's a little more work, but my clients get the experience I want them to get.
If You’re Thinking of a No-Code Business Idea
Just start building! It costs nothing to get started. You'll go through learning curves and many iterations of your app, but in the end, it's worth it to have something you made that will save you time and make you more money.
Adalo allowed me to do what I thought would never be possible: create my own app! I remember looking at the cost of building an app a few years ago - $20,000 for what I wanted. Now I've built it for next to nothing.
Meet Patrick, No-Code App Maker and Founder of Showroom
Hi I'm Patrick!! I build + automate websites with no-code tools, I've worked for multiple startups and have just recently started my own business called Showroom.
I graduated from Miami of Ohio and went directly to work for a startup in LA that helped bartenders & servers find gig work for weddings, happy hours, birthdays etc. Once the pandemic hit, that business dried up quickly, but what I took from it was how powerful Airtable and Zapier are!
When I was working at that startup, we hired a no-code consultant/Zapier wizard to help automate our scheduling process we had inside Airtable. I started using no-code tools in April of 2021 and worked on a bunch of projects since then:
- Showroom: The Trusted Marketplace of Independent Jewelry Collections
- OpenFee: An Opensea Webflow Cloneable
- NFTsentiment: An Art Board made by the Robotos NFT community
- InverseGallowayIndex: A platform to protect investors from cold takes
- All my other projects can be found on https://patrickfinnigan.xyz/
My Experience Building Out No-Code Projects
Since I had to learn no-code tools to start, the first 3 months of building Showroom were focused on setting up a functional marketplace rather than going and marketing to our customers.
Now that I'm comfortable with no-code tools (especially Webflow, Airtable, and Zapier), I'm confident I can go out and talk to new/existing customers without the website or automations breaking.
I built out inversegallowayindex.com after sending out a tweet with the landing page and I received over 70 email sign-ups! I had to give the people what they wanted so I connected a Carrd site with an Airtable base to show all the data. The OpenSea Webflow cloneable I built has also received some great attention. For something that I built out over two nights, I wasn't expecting that many people to like/use it.
If you’re looking for ways to get started with your no-code work, I recommend that you start by watching Youtube/Makerpad tutorials and build in public on Twitter. You don't need to know CSS or HTML, just start building today!!
We hope this article sheds light on how no-code is democratizing creativity and providing new and exciting career growth opportunities for today’s makers. If you'd like to chat with a career advisor to plan out your next steps, give Lloyd a try for free for 14 days.
FAQ
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Can I easily build a fitness coaching app without coding experience? | Yes, with Adalo's No Code App Builder, you can easily build a fitness coaching app without any coding experience. As demonstrated by Jason Dupree's Strong by Bodyweight app, you can create user-facing apps for tracking workouts and progress, plus backend coaching apps to manage your business—all using Adalo's intuitive drag-and-drop interface. |
| Why choose Adalo over other App Builder solutions? | Adalo is a no-code app builder for database-driven web apps and native iOS and Android apps—one version across all three platforms. AI-assisted building and streamlined publishing enable launch to the Apple App Store and Google Play in days rather than months. This app store publishing capability is crucial because getting your app into the hands of users through the Apple App Store and Google Play is often the hardest part of launching a new app or business—Adalo removes this barrier entirely. |
| What's the fastest way to build and publish a fitness or business app to the Apple App Store and Google Play Store? | Adalo is the fastest way to build and publish a fitness or business app to the Apple App Store and Google Play. With No Code App Builder's drag-and-drop interface and AI-assisted building, you can go from idea to published app in days rather than months. Adalo handles the complex App Store submission process, so you can focus on your app's features and user experience instead of wrestling with certificates, provisioning profiles, and store guidelines. |
| How much does it cost to build an app with no-code tools compared to hiring developers? | Building with no-code tools like Adalo is dramatically more affordable than hiring developers. Jason Dupree shares that traditional app development would have cost him $20,000, but he built his fitness coaching app for next to nothing using Adalo's platform. |
| Do I need database experience to build an app on Adalo? | While having database experience (like working with Airtable) can speed up your learning curve, it's not required. Adalo provides the tools and resources to help beginners understand how database-driven apps work, and the platform is designed to be accessible to non-technical users. |
| Can I build multiple types of apps using no-code platforms? | Absolutely. No-code entrepreneurs like Patrick have built diverse projects including marketplaces (Showroom), NFT-related platforms, and various web applications using tools like Adalo, Webflow, Airtable, and Zapier. The flexibility of no-code tools allows you to tackle virtually any app idea you have. |
| What's the best way to get started learning no-code app development? | The entrepreneurs in this article recommend just starting to build—it costs nothing to begin. Watch YouTube tutorials, explore platforms like Adalo, and consider building in public on social media to get feedback. You don't need to know CSS or HTML; the key is to start creating and iterate from there. |
