With superior built-in functionality, advanced security features, greater scale, and better customer support, Tadabase is the #1 Knack alternative.
Top 10 reasons why customers switch from Knack to Tadabase
1. Tadabase is the only platform you need to run your business
When you run your business on a Tadabase application, you’ll have all the services you need natively built-in to your app, including multi-file uploads, PDFs, app-side importing, auto-generating domain certificates, native integrations with any external service, and so much more. On Knack, many of these critical services you need to run your business are not included, requiring Knack customers to waste money on 3rd party tools and spread their data too thin among multiple unnecessary services. With Tadabase, you’ll get all the features and services you need to run your business from A-Z without ever having to leave the Tadabase platform. While more features and built-ins may make Tadabase a more complex platform to master, that slight learning curve is worth its weight in gold. A faster learning curve for a limited, simpler platform can seem tempting, but it can be penny wise, pound foolish.
2. Tadabase has Pipes
When it comes to integrations, specifically, Tadabase uses its internal integration system, Pipes, to dynamically integrate any external data into your app without the need for 3rd party integration tools like Zapier, Integromat, or Workato. Customers who switched from other no-code platforms such as Knack report an 80% decrease in their tech stacks since switching to Tadabase. By using Tadabase’s built-in Pipes integration system, these customers have saved thousands of dollars a month in integration costs and can now integrate their data seamlessly, and in real-time, with all their favorite external services without ever leaving their Tadabase apps.
3. Tadabase is scalable
While all technology will have some natural limitations, Tadabase thrives on breaking the tech ceiling with its all-powerful SQL-backed infrastructure. With over 30 years of combined experience with building robust infrastructures and scaling large applications as well as long-standing certifications in Microsoft Engineering and AWS architecture, the Tadabase founders built Tadabase from the ground up with scalability and limitless growth at the forefront of the platform’s design.
4. Tadabase is enterprise ready
With Tadabase’s superior, enterprise-ready infrastructure, your app will seamlessly scale alongside your business, with the ability to scale to millions of records at faster speed and greater efficiency than any other no-code platform. Scaling on Tadabase is smooth and easy with the ability to add dedicated resources on the fly, on a straightforward pricing structure, with our self-manageable dedicated servers. From the convenience of your dedicated server dashboard, you’ll enjoy the freedom and peace of mind of self-monitoring your app performance and dedicated resources and scaling your servers up and down as you see fit.
5. Tadabase apps can be white labeled, for real
While Knack claims to offer white-label apps, Knack’s information will still appear throughout its customers’ app codes and URLs, disabling customers from ever having truly custom or white-labeled apps. At Tadabase, when we say that our apps are customizable, we mean what we say. A white-labeled app on Tadabase will have zero mention of Tadabase throughout the app code, URL, or design, allowing your consumer-facing app to present entirely as your own or your app built for a client to present entirely as if you built it from scratch.
6. Tadabase is customizable
A Knack app is like any other Knack app, and once you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all. At Tadabase, we know your business is like no other and that your app should reflect your particular business brand and style. From custom login forms to drag and drop themes to over two dozen unique components, including the Custom Component, which empowers you to create your own custom designs, your app design is limited only to your imagination. Gone are the days of sticking square data in round views. With Tadabase, the custom app you envision is just waiting to be built.
7. Tadabase prioritizes your security
At Tadbase, the security of your data is our #1 priority. While Knack claims to value security, one look at a Knack app's code and you'll quickly find API keys and other sensitive data. To customize your app on Tadabase, you don't need to expose your API keys in Javascript- we have server-side methods for doing all of that. With Tadabase, you can achieve even greater customizations without ever having to expose your API credentials.
8. Tadabase offers more admin controls and app-side features
It’s your data, and Tadabase believes you should have the flexibility to control your data as you see fit. Tadabase provides more admin controls as well as greater flexibility for your app users to interact with your data from the app-side at your discretion. For instance, with app-side importing, you can choose to allow your users to systematically import records directly from the app and even run automation on those imports. With app-side logging of user logins and record changes, you can also choose to allow your users to view logs of user logins and record changes directly from the app. Knack does not offer similar features or flexibility, depriving their customers of the control and flexibility they deserve and depriving app users from interacting with data in critical ways.
9. Tadabase is developer-friendly
Unlike Knack, Tadabase segments your custom code to a page, layout, or app level. No more crashing your entire app by adding a breaking change. Tadabase also offers Page Versioning so developers can log their page versions and roll back changes in an instant. If you're working with a team, Tadabase offers more granular control over what each team member can do and modify, unlike Knack's full permissions for everything. With Tadabase, developers can also utilize our Builder API to manage their apps via API endpoints as well as show off their development skills by building any custom component design they can imagine with Tadabase’s Custom Component.
10. Our mission
At Tadabase, our mission is to help your business succeed. We view each customer as our partner, and we work with you to build the database solution that will unlock your company’s competitive advantage. We pride ourselves on listening to our customers, and our roadmap is ever-full with requests from our thriving community of engaged and satisfied Tadabase customers who know that at Tadabase, we like to say “yes.” We are committed, customer obsessed, and we steadily release updates at ~20X the rate of Knack.
Hosting and Deployment
Custom domain
Use your own custom domain for visitors to access your apps. For example, mybusiness.com vs. mybusiness.tadabase.io.
SQL-backed infrastructure
With its all-powerful SQL-backed database, Tadabase was designed from the ground up to scale to millions of records at faster speed and greater efficiency than other no-code platforms.
SEO
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, which is the practice of increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results.
SSL certificates
SSL Certificates issued for a custom domain
True white label
Create custom applications that present entirely as your own, with your own company branding throughout your apps' interface, email addresses, backend code, and URL.
Integrations
Tadabase Pipes
Pipes is Tadabase's internal integrations system which natively integrates external data from all your favorite services directly into your Tadabase app, dynamically and in real-time.
AWS S3
Use your own S3 bucket to store uploaded files.
Cloudinary
Built-in Cloudinary integration facilitates the upload and access process for app images.
Dropbox
Save uploaded files directly into custom folders in your own Dropbox Account.
Google Data Studio
Create advanced reporitng using Google Data Studio. Automatically pull your app data into Google Data Studio by simply supplying an api key.
PDFs
Natively customize PDFs for each page of your application. Save PDFs as files in your database that you can attach within outgoing emails.
Slack
Connect Tadabase with Slack to post and edit messages, modify your status, and view and modify reminders.
SMTP
Use your own SMTP server for all outgoing emails.
Stripe subscriptions
Turn your app into a subscription model and enable subscription fees per user.
Tableau
Connect Tadabase with Tableau to use your database as a data source for powerful charting capabilities.
Twilio
Use your own Twilio settings to send automated text messages from your app.
Webhooks
Trigger secure webhooks that run when a record is created, updated, or deleted.
Design and Customization
Custom component designer
The Custom Component is our low-code solution to custom designs using standard HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
Advanced page customization
Customize each page with its own settings for title, slug, status, parent layout, page rules, security, JavaScript, and CSS.
Custom themes
Custom themes can be added to your application by adding custom CSS to a page or layout, or by linking to an external stylesheet in the app's Custom Header/Footer Code section.
Security and Compliance
2FA
Enable 2FA (Two Factor Authentication) which will require anyone logging in via email to verify their email using a one time 6-digit code.
Builder change logs
Track all changes performed in the Builder.
Granular page security
Fine-tune your app security by defining individual page security permissions as well as security options for components within your pages.
Login logs
Track all successful and failed login attempts to your application.
Logout existing sessions
Manually log users out of active sessions and set up timeout rules when needed.
Record delete history
Track all deleted records from within your app.
View change logs app-side
Ability to view record change logs from the Live App.
SOC2 Type2
SOC 2 is an auditing procedure that ensures that we securely manage your data to protect the interests of your organization and the privacy of your clients.
Forms and Fields
Multi-step forms
Create multi-page and multi-step forms to auto-direct users through complex forms
Advanced form redirect
Upon form submission, direct users to an app page or external URL based on defined conditions.
Advanced form layouts
Using rows and columns, form layouts can be customized to group related data or control the flow of data entry.
Assign score values to dropdowns
Assigning score values to each value within an option field will empower you to track and analyze complex calculations on your values.
Color badges in options
Assign colors to option values
Enable/disable display rules
Toggle display rules on and off.
Get form values from URL
Prefill form values with parameters from a URL.
Insert non-connected records in rules
Use record rules to insert records into any existing data tables.
Logged-in user values for record rules
Use data values from a logged-in user in your record rules.
Require/unrequire fields in display rules
When a form field is triggered to show itself based on the value of another field, you can chose to require or not require that field.
See connected values in forms
Show more information by dynamically showing data that's connected to a record.
Slider field
Use a range slider with custom Start and End numbers to set a value based on the slider position.
Validation error messages
Customizable error messages to display when form validation fails.
Components
Custom component designer
The Custom Component is our low-code solution to custom designs using standard HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
Accordion
List your data in a compact interactive view allowing page visitors to expand and highlight records as needed.
Cards
Display summaries and other important information inside simple, intuitive and aesthetically pleasing cards.
Kanban
Visualize your workflow with this ultimate productivity tool.
Resource grid / Gantt chart
Utilize resource components to visualize your records spanning across periods of time.
Timeline
Visual timelines are a great tool for displaying events in a date/time-based order.
Automation
Tadabase Pipes
Pipes is Tadabase's internal integrations system which natively integrates external data from all your favorite services directly into your Tadabase app, dynamically and in real-time.
Batch updates
Update groups of records within your data table all at once.
Export templates
Export your data as CSV files anytime with the click of a button. Create custom export templates to export a defined set of columns and data.
Front-end importing
Allow your end-users to import CSV files into your data tables directly from the Live App.
Import templates
Set up import templates to map your CSV values to your Tadabase data table values and set up rules to determine appropriate behavior based on your imported values.
Triggered related tasks
Triggered tasks
Create custom processes to run updates on data table records or send out notifications, triggered with a click of a button.
Advanced Features
App variables
Reference-able values that can be used and re-used throughout your application.
Table rules
Automatically set multiple field values within a data table based on defined conditions every time a record is updated or changed.
Builder API
Make instant, powerful changes to your apps without ever having to log into the Builder.
Filter by records connected to logged-in user
Configure components to only display records that are connected to the logged-in user.
Hide columns in filter tabs
Chose to hide specific columns when using Filter Tabs.
Multi-select update/delete
Update groups of records within your data table all at once.
Send emails to/from the logged-in user
Use the current logged-in user in the From field of emails.
Universal inline editing
Make instant changes to your data directly from the front-end component without having to open an edit form.
Frequently Asked Questions
We can probably do better. Contact our sales team at sales@tadabase.io with 2 of your most recent Knack invoices and we'll be happy to work with you.
For one, think of all the money you'll save on your monthly/ annual Zapier subscription. With Pipes, Tadabase's internal integrations system, you'll be able to integrate with all your favorite services directly from your Tadabase app without having to pay for extra 3rd party integration tools. Secondly, Pipes work in real-time, not after the fact. View integrated Pipe values dynamically without even having to save the records. Click here to learn more about Tadabase Pipes.
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