No code tools — will designers replace developers?
Figma as a no-code tool? Creating a real product as a designer? Revolutionary prototyping? A gateway to making huge money? $200k/year? I was shocked and couldn’t believe it, but times have changed.
“Low quality, constraints, development issues… these tools are bad.”
If this is your opinion about no-code, then you should update your knowledge. You may be basing your opinion on tools that you used in 2015/2016, but nowadays, it’s a whole different world.
By 2024, low-code application development will be responsible for more than 65% of application development activity. (estimated values by Gartner)
Credits to Paweł Płowiec (CEO of Personit — a no code agency) who shared his experience with me to help me create this article).
1. Prototyping with no code
Imagine you’re creating a prototype where a user or client can sign up, receive a notification, and publish a post with a photo. A real experience, without compromises or workarounds.
This is already happening — remember the last Figma update with variables? It was a significant step for designers because it allowed them to create much more advanced prototypes that were easier to manage.
By learning this feature, you’re slowly gaining an understanding of how to think like a developer. People went crazy about it and have started creating prototypes of calculators and games in Figma!
What’s funny? ProtoPie as a prototyping tool had variables already in 2019–5 years ago. (example video)
I believe this trend won’t stop, and Figma will continue to evolve. Connecting with a database or having the ability to add an API could be the next big thing in prototyping, so there’s a big question…
Will Figma become a no-code tool? Frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised.
One workspace where you can design a product and make it functional. Why is it highly likely? Over the next 5 years, as tools like FlutterFlow (a no-code tool for apps) become more popular, designers may shift their design process there, reducing their time spent in Figma. Another reason is the growing popularity of Figma plugins that allow designers to export code directly from their designs. Without a doubt, this is something that people are interested in.
2. Is it hard for a product designer to learn to create products with no code?
You might not like to hear this, but I’ll say it anyway: ‘It depends.’ Let’s consider a scenario where we’re just designers who have never coded. In almost every no-code tool, three fundamental elements exist:
- Variables
- Conditions
- Databases
These elements are present whether you’re using Framer or FlutterFlow; you can’t escape them.
To create ‘simple things,’ you need to understand these fundamental concepts. For example, to implement a feature for publishing photos, the product must have a place to store them, and you need to be able to handle scenarios like displaying an error message when a photo is too large. Without these concepts, achieving such options would be challenging.
My point of view
As a designer who used to dislike anything related to coding and always focused more on the visual side, I decided to learn it, and you know what? It’s not that scary! Nowadays, you can understand variables and conditions right within Figma, without having to download any extra software. (You might even feel like a developer for a brief moment while doing this!)
Sadly, learning to use a database can be challenging. But trust me, the feeling of joy I got from publishing something and seeing it on different devices, all done by myself, was incredible. I learned about databases in Flutter Flow while working on my first project.
After watching a few YouTube tutorials and spending a couple of hours, I created a feature that lets people share photos. (By the way, I’m not a database expert; I can only make simple things.)
To sum it up, learning how to create no-code products might take some effort, but it’s not too difficult. The key is practice.
Here’s a simplified path for you:
- Start with Figma and begin small by making a simple element using variables, like a slider that shows what the user selects.
- Move on to building a calculator in Figma to understand how conditions work.
- Take a step further by making a dashboard where users can upload photos and see them right away, like on Instagram.
3. Will designers replace developers? No, and there are some of the reasons.
Magic stage
Even in products created with no-code tools, there’s a magical stage where diving into the code becomes necessary to complete something. If we’re just designers who’ve learned to use a tool, we may face a dilemma. What’s next? Will you try to acquire some knowledge and figure it out on your own? Don’t you think this path might gradually turn you into a real developer?
Replacement, but what kind of developers?
While a designer can attempt to replace a frontend developer, it’s unfortunately more challenging to replace a backend developer. I can bet that the majority of designers would prefer to stay on the visual side rather than delving into servers and databases.
Time
Strong, unbeatable enemy that you can’t avoid. Imagine having a full-stack designer, a true all-in-one expert in backend, frontend, and design. How could such a master divide their time for everything? Maybe 2 hours daily for design, 3 hours for frontend, and 3 hours for backend? It could take an eternity to finish a bigger project.
Btw… If all designers would started building products, then who would design these products?
Cool, but who likes it?
One more thing that everyone forgets about, but it’s most important. Would designers actually enjoy this? Would they find it interesting? It’s a big problem when we have to work on something we don’t like, and it can lead to frustration.
Moving from designing screens, making attractive UI, doing analysis, and testing with users to diving into app development is such a huge change that it might discourage many people from making the switch.
4. Full stack designer — a gateway for huge money.
Startups as a great market for no-code products
No-code is a huge opportunity. It means you can become a one-person agency that handles both design and product development. As I mentioned a few sentences ago, creating big projects alone can take too much time, but the real money isn’t limited to big projects.
Let’s talk about MVPs. Take a moment to think about how many startups there are in the US or Europe that need a simple MVP to gain traction or attract investors. The market is infinite, allowing you to choose an industry you’re passionate about, whether it’s animal health or cars.
Pivot
If you’re already a skilled designer, your salary is likely great. However, when you pivot to a no-code developer who can handle research, design, product development, and testing — doubling or even tripling your income becomes a real possibility. Hiring such a specialist is a win-win situation because, in the end, they save the budget compared to the traditional approach of hiring multiple people or working with software agencies.
Based on Paweł Płowiec's experience (CEO of Personit — no code agency) the difference in time required to create a product using no-code tools is truly remarkable.
“2 months — the time needed to create a specific product with low-code/no-code tools, while other software agencies estimated it would take 6–8 months of work”
Be aware — huge salary, but not for sitting.
As this scenario sounds like a receipt to make $200k/year, remember it’s not easy. Becoming a proficient no-code developer, finding clients, and being the bridge between the product and stakeholders. It requires an investment of significant time and effort. Such profits are the result of dedication and hard work.
