Four ways to get a mobile app, compared by category rather than by product, because products change every month and categories do not. Where a category varies a lot, the table says what to check instead of pretending it does not.
| No-code builder | AI chat builder | Hiring a developer | opointo | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suits | People who never want to see code | Trying an idea quickly | Unusual apps, teams with budget | Developers and technical founders |
| How you build | Drag and drop | Describe it in a prompt | A brief, then reviews | Drag and drop, then your coding agent builds it |
| What you get | An app, often hosted by the builder | Often a web app; mobile output varies | Whatever you agree | A normal Expo project in your repo |
| Native feel | Varies; check the tab bar on both platforms | Often one look on both platforms | As good as the developer | Apple’s controls on iOS, Material 3 Expressive on Android |
| When you stop paying | Check whether the app keeps working | Check what you can export | You own it | Every app you generated keeps working |
| Needs a Mac | Usually not | Usually not | The developer’s problem | Yes for iOS, with Xcode 26 |
| Who writes code | Nobody | The builder, mostly hidden | The developer | Your agent, in code you can read and change |
| Cost | A monthly plan | A monthly plan | The most of the four | Free to design; $15 a seat a month, or $12 billed yearly, at the beta price (usually $25 and $20) to generate code |
Pick by who will maintain the app
The first version is the cheap part. The question that decides the right tool is who changes the app in month six.
- Nobody technical, ever: a no-code builder. Accept its limits and check its export before you build on it.
- You, with a coding agent: opointo, or your agent on its own. The code is yours either way.
- A team you are paying: a developer, who can also use opointo to skip the UI layer.
Where opointo is weaker
- It is not for people who never want to see code. Not yet: you need a coding agent and a build on your own machine.
- iOS needs a Mac. You need a Mac with Xcode 26 to build the iOS app. Android needs only the Android SDK.
- Phone apps only. No web app and no tablet layouts.
- It is in beta, built by a small team. Verified on iOS 26 and on Android 16 with Material 3 Expressive. iOS 27 support is in progress.
Where opointo is stronger
- Native on both platforms: Liquid Glass on iOS, Material 3 Expressive on Android, from one codebase.
- You own the code, forever. No runtime from us, no licence check, nothing that calls home.
- The navigation you draw works. Each arrow becomes a tab, a pushed screen or a pop-up, inside an app shell tested on real devices on both platforms.
- Free to design. You pay only to generate code, with a full refund within 30 days of your first payment.
Open the App Builder and see a starter app on both platforms before you decide.