Anticode vs Softr: portals and internal tools, or public sites and self-contained apps
Softr builds business apps on top of your data, such as client portals, intranets and internal tools, with user logins, groups and permissions on every record. Anticode builds public websites and self-contained apps that nobody signs in to, designed and checked before they're published. If the people using it need accounts and their own view of your data, Softr is built for that; if it's for the public, Anticode is.
The short answer
Pick Softr when the audience is known people: clients checking project status, staff using an intranet, members reading a knowledge base, each seeing only what their group is allowed to see. Pick Anticode when the audience is anyone: a business website, a launch page, a portfolio, or an interactive tool such as a calculator or quiz whose data stays in the visitor's browser.
What each one builds
Softr's AI app builder page says you enter a prompt and Softr generates the pages, database, permissions and workflows for a business app, then you refine it with AI or edit it visually using prebuilt blocks such as lists, grids, charts, calendars and forms, with a vibe-coding block for anything custom. The page states there's no generated code to manage. Apps can sit on Softr's own databases or on Airtable, Notion, Google Sheets, HubSpot and other sources.
Anticode builds two kinds of thing. Pages come from its design engine as plain HTML and CSS with no scripts, held to one of seven design systems, with forms for contact, bookings and newsletters. Apps, such as a quote calculator, a habit tracker or a quiz, are written by the model as one HTML document that runs in a sandbox with no network access; they can save to the visitor's own browser, and anything that would need a server is simulated with labelled sample data. Neither kind has visitor accounts.
Side by side
| Anticode | Softr | |
|---|---|---|
| Design approach | Seven design systems, nineteen design checks and a design gate | Prebuilt blocks arranged into pages, styled to your brand |
| How you build | A sentence, up to three questions, a plan, then a build | A prompt that generates pages, data and permissions, then visual editing |
| Users and data | No visitor accounts; form submissions stored for the owner | Sign-in, user groups and record-level permissions over your data |
| Code ownership and export | One HTML file or a Next.js project; push to GitHub | No generated code; the app runs on Softr |
| Hosting and custom domains | anticode.dev address free; own domain on paid plans | Hosted by Softr; custom domain from Basic |
| Security checks | Twelve checks on the shipped HTML; failing pages can't be published | SOC 2 Type II, GDPR and audit logging, with server-side access rules |
| Pricing model | Daily and weekly build allowance, a quote before each build | Monthly plans by builders, app users, records and workflow actions |
| Best for | Public sites and tools anyone can open | Portals and internal tools for signed-in people |
Logins and permissions
This is the deciding question. Softr's documentation on user authentication describes a login switch: with it on, the app works as a web app where people create accounts and sign in; with it off, it works more like a landing page. Its guide to user groups and permissions explains restricting pages or blocks to groups, and controlling which records each user can read, edit, create or delete. The AI app builder page lists email and password, magic link, Google and single sign-on.
Anticode's published sites have no visitor accounts or member areas; the "account sign-up" option on a page is an invite-request form. If you need real accounts later, Anticode's Next.js export includes email sign-in, customer and staff roles, an audit log and Postgres row-level security, but you host and run that project yourself.
How you pay
As of 24 October 2026, with yearly billing selected (two months off), Softr's pricing page lists a free plan with 5 AI credits a month; Basic at $19 a month with a custom domain and 10 AI credits; Pro at $99 a month, which removes Softr branding and adds one-time-password and Google sign-in for app users, granular permissions and custom code; and Business at $329 a month, adding two-factor authentication, an installable mobile app and push notifications. Each plan sets limits on builders, app users, database records and workflow actions, and extra custom domains cost $15 a month, or $13 billed annually.
Anticode's plans are measured by building, not by users or records: a daily and a weekly allowance by what each build actually cost, with a quote first. Every published site can also be installed as an app on phones and desktops. Prices are on the pricing page.
Where Softr is the better choice
- Client portals. Clients sign in and see their own projects, invoices or files.
- Internal tools. Staff work on shared records with permissions and workflows.
- Your data stays where it is. Build on Airtable, Notion, Google Sheets or HubSpot rather than copying it.
- Compliance requirements. Softr lists SOC 2 Type II, GDPR and audit logging.
Where Anticode is the better choice
- A public website. Designed pages with checks before publishing, rather than app blocks.
- Interactive tools with no backend. Calculators, quizzes and trackers that need no accounts; see internal tool builder for where that stops.
- Forms into your tools. Submissions are sealed at rest and sent to Airtable, Notion, Google Sheets, HubSpot or Slack.
- Code to keep. HTML or Next.js export and a GitHub push.
Anticode's limits
No visitor accounts, member areas or per-user data on published sites; no server-side database inside apps; no live third-party data; and no multiplayer. Apps can read the project's CMS collections but not write to them. The builder is in English only. If your project needs signed-in users today, Softr or another app builder is the right tool; Softr alternatives lists more. Softr facts above are from its own pages on 24 October 2026.
Questions people ask
Can Anticode build a client portal?
Not on a published Anticode site, which has no visitor accounts. The Next.js export includes sign-in and roles, but you'd host and maintain it yourself. Softr is built for portals.
Does Softr generate code I can export?
Softr's AI app builder page says there's no generated code: apps are built from its blocks and run on Softr.
Can I use both?
Yes. One split is a public website on Anticode and a signed-in portal on Softr, linked from the site's navigation.
Sources
- Softr AI app builder, checked
- Softr pricing, checked
- Softr Docs: User authentication, checked
- Softr Docs: User groups and permissions, checked