Retool vs Render
The low-code platform for internal tools, workflows, and AI agents
vs. Unified cloud for apps, databases, and static sites
Pricing tiers
Retool
Free
$0. Up to 5 users. Unlimited apps + mobile. 500 workflow runs/month. 5GB DB + storage. 20 hrs/mo Agents.
Free
Team
$10/builder/mo + $5/internal user/mo. 5k workflow runs. Staging env. App releases.
$10/mo
Business
$50/builder/mo + $15/internal user/mo. Audit logs, rich permissions, portals, embedded apps, external user pricing.
$50/mo
Enterprise
Custom. SAML/OIDC SSO, source control, error monitoring, full white-labeling, volume discounts.
Custom
Render
Postgres — Free
30-day limit. 256 MB RAM, 0.1 CPU, 1 GB storage. Rotates.
Free
Hobby (Free)
Free workspace. 1 project, 2 envs, 100 GB bandwidth. Includes free Web Services + static sites + dev DB.
Free
Key Value (Redis) — Free
25 MB. Ephemeral.
Free
Web Service — Free
Free (spins down with idle). 512 MB RAM, 0.1 CPU.
Free
Postgres — Basic
256 MB RAM, 0.1 CPU. Always-on.
$6/mo
Web Service — Starter
Always-on. 512 MB RAM, 0.5 CPU.
$7/mo
Key Value — Starter
256 MB RAM.
$10/mo
Professional
$19/user/month. Unlimited projects, 500 GB bandwidth, up to 10 team members.
$19/mo
Web Service — Standard
Always-on. 2 GB RAM, 1 CPU.
$25/mo
Organization
$29/user/month. Unlimited members, 1 TB bandwidth, compliance certs.
$29/mo
Postgres — Pro
4 GB RAM, 1 CPU.
$55/mo
Web Service — Pro
Always-on. 4 GB RAM, 2 CPU.
$85/mo
Web Service — Pro Plus
Always-on. 8 GB RAM, 4 CPU.
$175/mo
Enterprise
Custom. Centralized team management, dedicated support.
Custom
Free-tier quotas head-to-head
Comparing free on Retool vs hobby on Render.
| Metric | Retool | Render |
|---|---|---|
| No overlapping quota metrics for these tiers. | ||
Features
Retool · 14 features
- Apps (Web + Mobile) — Drag-drop UI builder with 100+ components.
- Audit Logs — Track every user action.
- Custom JavaScript — Write JS anywhere in app logic.
- MCP Support — Expose Retool workflows to AI agents.
- Modules — Reusable component bundles.
- Retool Agents — AI agents that use Retool queries + apps as tools.
- Retool Database — Managed Postgres with GUI + collab.
- Retool Embed — Embed apps into your SaaS.
- Retool Forms — Public forms that write to DBs.
- Retool Portals — External-facing apps for customers.
- SAML/OIDC SSO (Ent) — Enterprise auth.
- Source Control (Ent) — Git-backed version control for apps.
- White-labeling (Ent) — Full brand customization.
- Workflows — Cron + webhook-triggered automations with branching.
Render · 13 features
- Autoscaling — Metric-based autoscale of instances.
- Background Workers — Process queue workers. No HTTP entrypoint.
- Blueprints (render.yaml) — Infrastructure-as-code config for all services.
- Cron Jobs — Scheduled Docker jobs.
- Custom Domains — Free SSL, automatic cert renewal.
- DDoS Protection — Built-in.
- Persistent Disks — Attach persistent SSD to services.
- Preview Environments — Per-PR preview envs with their own DB and services.
- Private Services — Internal services not exposed to the public internet.
- Render Key Value (Redis) — Managed Redis-compatible key-value store.
- Render Postgres — Managed PostgreSQL with automated backups.
- Static Sites — Git-backed static hosting with global CDN, free SSL.
- Web Services — Long-running HTTP services with auto-scale + health checks.
Developer interfaces
| Kind | Retool | Render |
|---|---|---|
| CLI | — | Render CLI |
| REST | Retool REST API (Workflows) | Render REST API |
| MCP | Retool MCP | Render MCP |
| OTHER | Retool Database, Retool Editor, Self-Hosted (on-prem) | — |
Staxly is an independent catalog of developer platforms. Outbound links to Retool and Render are plain references to their official websites. Pricing is verified against vendor pages at publication time — reconfirm before buying.
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