How to Use Retool

Retool is a low-code platform for building internal tools — admin panels, dashboards, CRUD apps — by dragging components onto a canvas and wiring them to data you already have.

Step 1: Connect a resource

Link a database (Postgres, MySQL), a REST API, or a service like Stripe or Slack under Resources. This is the data source every query on your app will pull from.

Step 2: Drag components onto the canvas

Tables, buttons, forms, and charts come from Retool's component library — you place them visually rather than hand-coding a layout.

Step 3: Write a query

Each connected resource lets you write a query — raw SQL against a database, or a configured REST call — that a component can trigger or display results from.

Step 4: Bind components together

Retool's {{ }} templating lets one component reference another's value — for example, a table row's selected ID feeding directly into a "delete" button's query parameters.

Step 5: Add interactivity with JavaScript

Event handlers like onClick or onRowSelect can run queries or transform data using inline JavaScript, for logic that goes beyond simple binding.

Where it bites

Paid plans bill per active editor/user, which is cost-effective for internal tools used by a handful of ops or support staff, but scales awkwardly if you try to expose a Retool app to a large external user base.