No-code solutions give non-technical users the ability to easily create fully-fledged web and mobile apps using visual development tools and a graphical user interface. Instead of having to write lines of code, all users have to do is drag-and-drop the different elements of the app into a layout and add functionality using the options that the platform provides.

In the last few years, no-code platforms like Bubble, Adalo, Softr, Glide and Betty Blocks have not only seen a rapid increase in new users, but existing users have also been spending more time on these platforms.

This is not surprising since demand for custom app development continues to increase year after year, and these sophisticated no-code tools make creating an app look as easy as creating a blog or a website using a WYSIWYG site builder.

No-Code Does Not Mean No Limits

No-code platforms excel at making it easy for non-developers to design user interfaces and application workflows. They also have the ability to read and update databases so your slick looking app can also accept user inputs and return results, which is what most people are looking to accomplish when developing an app.

However, when using no-code platforms, you’re also limited by the tools that are given to you. Although these platforms strive to offer as many tools as possible to be able to cater to most use cases, it’s simply impossible for them to have a solution for every scenario.

The ‘missing link’ that most no-code users have trouble with is the middle layer that exists in between the UI and the database. Many no-code users hit a roadblock once they need to add complex calculations and business logic to their app.

If you want to manipulate the data a user inputs and perform complex calculations with it, you’ll need to comb through the documentation to find out if what you want to do is even possible, and then figure out how to use the tools that are available to get it to work the way you want. Alternatively, you can also find a suitable plugin that has the functionality that you’re looking for.

For example, if you want to create a relatively simple app that can compute monthly payments you’ll need more than just basic math.

Though the monthly payment formula is not overly complicated, the main hurdle is figuring out how your no-code platform of choice handles working with exponents and subequations. This can take longer than originally planned and usually requires a lot of trial and error to get right. If you need to make lots of complex calculations, the amount of work involved adds up really quickly.

A plugin will make your life easier, but again, it might end up having limitations once you add more complexity to the mix. Plugins usually also only work with one specific platform, so if you decide to try out another no-code platform, you’ll have to find another plugin that gives you the same functionality. Lastly, plugins need to be continually updated to work perfectly with the platform that they’re on. If the plugin developer stops supporting the project, your app might eventually stop working when the platform you’re on starts changing things around.

Simplifying No-Code Logic With ConvertCalculator Engines

ConvertCalculator Engines provides a much more flexible and elegant solution by giving you the ability to use hundreds of Excel functions with your app via an API call. Simply create a custom calculator using our Calculator Builder (which is also no-code) or any of our pre-made templates, and use it as the logic back-end of your no-code app.

Using CC Engines, you won’t have to waste time figuring out how to make your app perform complex calculations using different no-code tools.

Excel functions are much easier to work with and are much more powerful when it comes to handling numbers and data compared to most no-code solutions. In a sense, you can basically ‘describe’ how you want to manipulate the data using different Excel formulas instead of having to write a set of instructions that the program needs to execute.

With the monthly payment app example discussed earlier, all you need to use is Excel’s PMT function to calculate the monthly payment and you can quickly release your app with full confidence that it will return the correct results every single time. If you also want to give your app the ability to calculate interest rates, total interest payments and total loan amounts, there are corresponding excel functions you can use.

Most business users already have a firm grasp of Excel, so any existing or new business logic can be easily translated into an app with the help of CC Engines, no matter how complex the calculations are.

Even if you’re not overly familiar with Excel’s advanced functions, there are a lot of resources online that can quickly point you in the right direction, if not give you the exact solution that you’re looking for.

CC Engines features Excel functions from the following categories:

• Math and Trigonometry

• Statistics

• Engineering

• Finance

• Date and Time

Using CC Tables, CC Engines can also read and update data stored on Google Sheets or Airtable. So you can use functions like VLOOKUP to find specific information in a table/database and get the results to show up on the front-end of the app.

Another huge advantage that ConvertCalculator Engines has over plugins is that it will work exactly the same way on any no-code platform, as well as with apps that are coded from the ground up, because all of its capabilities can be accessed via an API call. If you decide to use a different platform, you can keep all of the complex business logic intact and just focus on optimizing the UI.

At the core of CC Engines is our logic and calculation engine which we call FormulaScript. It’s the same engine we use for our Calculator Builder but we’ve now made it available as an API via CC Engines so you can use it however you want.

Want to find out if ConvertCalculator Engines is as good as it sounds? Sign up today for free and head on over and discover how ConvertCalculator can solve your no-code dilemmas.