This is more of a hypothetical question- could I build a SaaS product with Retool? Essentially, Retool would serve as the frontend layer, connecting to other services on the backend. Users would log in to the frontend layer via an external authentication service.
So basically, we would pay for "development" licenses for the team of developers that are building the product, and the end user would not be a Retool user, but instead would only exist in our external SaaS database.
I think this is counter to the Retool business model. They need to get a cut of every person that makes use of Retool. The also do not allow a third part authentication as an end-run around this.
However, similar method that does not need authentication could work using a public facing app. A "user" has a long, unique ID that is passed in through the querystring. Anyone on the wire could read the URL so I would not call this secure, but would be useful for certain situations where security is not an issue. I have a client with low security requirements who needs to service many people outside their office for but a $50/month license for every one of those is not workable for their business model. I will be trying that model out on them, which I believe is the intent of the public app feature.
I have a somewhat related discussion on this forum category (Using Retool as a SaaS platform for verticals - #3 by bradlymathews) about creating a vertical SaaS application.
I would love to hear other people's ideas and viewpoints around Retool SaaS potential.
Yes, it’s definitely possible to use Retool for building the frontend of a SaaS product. Retool is great for rapidly building internal tools, and if you're planning to use it as the frontend layer, you could integrate it with your backend services and external authentication systems as you mentioned. By using external authentication services and connecting to your own database, you can avoid requiring end-users to interact directly with Retool, which would keep them within your SaaS environment.
For saas based app development, Retool could be a useful tool for speeding up development, but you might want to carefully consider scalability, customizability, and user experience as your app grows. If you need complex features or custom logic, you might still need to rely on traditional frontend frameworks for certain parts of the product. Overall, Retool can serve as a great foundation for a fast MVP or internal tools, but the structure of your product will ultimately depend on your long-term goals for the SaaS product.
Hi @conorhollern,
I would say @bradlymathews summarized it best.
You can make an external app, but you have to pay for external users. As outlined in the External app docs here, you would need to be on a business or enterprise level plan. With enterprise giving you the ability to control your end users permissions to keep them from editing apps and changing things as well as having the account be charged for more app editors.
We have also a terms of service as well which is a nice read for official legal matters on what Retool can and can't be used for 