No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Knack vs Oracle Application Express (APEX) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Knack
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
35th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
No-Code Development Platforms (8th)
Oracle Application Express ...
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
63
Ranking in other categories
Development Platforms (1st), Low-Code Development Platforms (6th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of Knack is 0.9%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Application Express (APEX) is 5.0%, down from 7.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Oracle Application Express (APEX)5.0%
Knack0.9%
Other94.1%
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

it_user1460940 - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Director at ITdirector.ie
Flexible and granular security options, good filtering, and the pricing model is cost-effective
The vendor does a really poor job of marketing this software because it should be more popular. This is something that I have pointed out to them. It's a super piece of software, but very few people are aware of it. I am an EX-IT director and I've worked in big systems, and I'm amazed this solution isn't more popular. The "native" integration with other products could be improved. The user interface for the systems that you build can use some improvement because as it is now, you may have to use HTML and CSS to make it look more modern or to match a clients existing look. The documentation is amazing, although they don't do videos and their YouTube channel is very poor. They could create some training videos.
Dominik Grabiński - PeerSpot reviewer
Oracle APEX Developer at Pretius
Fast low-code web development has transformed how I build complex data-driven business apps
Oracle Application Express (APEX) is a very great tool that is easy to learn but hard to master. The level of entry is very low, but the longer I work with this platform, the more I understand how it works and the great things I can create. For example, I can create report graphs and handle a lot of data across many levels. It's a great application to start with, and when I have experience in Oracle databases, I can utilize Oracle Application Express (APEX) as a front-end tool for the Oracle database. Oracle Application Express (APEX) helps me create reports and graphs by providing a plethora of out-of-the-box solutions that I can use. For example, I can upload data to and from the database, upload photos, create maps, and create various report types such as Interactive Report and Interactive Grid where I can manage, edit, and delete data. I have many solutions that are very helpful and ready to use right away from Oracle Application Express (APEX). My favorite feature of Oracle Application Express (APEX) is the Interactive Report because it's a straightforward report that I can create using a simple query or by selecting a particular table from the database. In the action button behind it, I have many great features that I can use out of the box, including graphs and download options for Excel files. There are many sorting functionalities and accounting features. The Interactive Report is a very great tool for quickly displaying interesting data to clients. Oracle Application Express (APEX) has positively impacted my organization by being very fast compared to other languages and products. For example, I don't have to build a site from the ground up, nor do I have to create tons of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript because Oracle Application Express (APEX) offers many built-in solutions. When I want to create a button, in another language, I would need to create it from scratch. In Oracle Application Express (APEX), I can simply use what's available out of the box. It's a very fast platform with many built-in components that I can utilize right away.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Overall, I am a big fan of Knack."
"The security is the most valuable feature, in particular, the way I can give different access to different areas to different people, so you can really fine-tune access for different users."
"You can customize the solution to create a console where only business users can access and download files if they want to extract the data."
"The valuable feature is simplicity."
"The most valuable feature is how fast you can do applications compared to other frameworks, like Java and PHP."
"Intuitive with a user-friendly UI."
"Personally, I would say that Oracle Application Express (APEX) is a powerful tool...Stability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten."
"Building dashboards with the solution is easy and quick."
"Oracle is always adding very important updates"
"It's stable and reliable for the most part."
 

Cons

"The user interface for the systems that you build can use some improvement because as it is now, you have to do a lot of HTML and CSS to make it look modern."
"I've experienced some difficulties when using Oracle Application Express (APEX), particularly when I'm designing forms. For example, when I design a form, I add buttons and controls, but I'm unable to visualize how it'll look unless I run it. You want to design and do things your way, but if you don't have much experience, then you'll find that designing in Oracle Application Express (APEX) is a little complicated. This won't be a problem with anyone more experienced, though. If I wanted to create my design, for example, a different table format or some background images, it becomes a problem, and this is an area for improvement in Oracle Application Express (APEX). Designing should be easier, even for less experienced users. An additional feature I'd like to see in Oracle Application Express (APEX) is more plugins, particularly a repository that contains a lot of plugins, so you can go to that repository and download whichever you like and use it or add it to your project. Right now, I create my plugins, so it would be helpful if Oracle Application Express (APEX) has a repository of plugins people can use, download from anywhere in the world, and integrate into projects."
"I would like to see more flexibility and productivity."
"Oracle Application Express (APEX) is not very stable."
"There is a bit of a learning curve involved when first using the solution."
"You also need an APEX specialist for deployment because not many people use it."
"Occasionally when trying to un a page, I would be faced with an error number; however, not much information would be provided on the error itself outside of the programming language. It would be nice if more information could be provided."
"I would like to see easier integration into active directory authentication. Also, maybe integration of JavaScript frameworks would resolve some issues."
"The solution’s pricing is high if you use it on the OCA platform. It’s also a little bit costly. However, if we use it on an on-premises Oracle database, the pricing is cheaper."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This product has really good value, as it doesn't have a per-user cost, there's a flat fee."
"We have a full Oracle E-Business Suite license, and we use that license to develop applications. There's no license required for developing Oracle applications."
"The tool is free with the Oracle Database license."
"Oracle Application Express (APEX) comes with Oracle. The Oracle price itself. I do not know the exact cost. Oracle is flexible on its price. If you overspend on your hardware, then I don't think you will overpay. I heard that Oracle is more expensive than other databases, but when you consider Oracle is the best traditional relational database out there. You get what you pay for."
"To my understanding, my organization is using the free version of Oracle Application Express (APEX), but I'm unsure because I haven't checked the pricing or licensing cost for it."
"The solution is moderately priced, where it is neither cheap nor expensive."
"It is expensive, but I don't know what the licensing cost is."
"The product is completely free of cost."
"Oracle Application Express (APEX) is free, so this is another magic of the solution. You just get charged for the database license, which I don't need."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Rapid Application Development Software solutions are best for your needs.
908,834 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
13%
Construction Company
12%
University
12%
Educational Organization
7%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Government
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise28
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing has been that Oracle Application Express (APEX) is free, so we do not have to buy anything besides the database.
What needs improvement with Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
I see room for improvement in Oracle Application Express (APEX), specifically in the customer-facing UI, which could be better or more adjustable; you can do everything you want, but at a certain p...
What is your primary use case for Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
My main use case for Oracle Application Express (APEX) is building software platforms for our customers.A specific example of a platform I have built for a customer using Oracle Application Express...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Oracle APEX
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Siemens Kaiser Permanente VMware SunChemical C.R. England Philips The Salvation Army United Way U.S. Green Building Council Cambridge University Press
Hepart AG, pharmasol, SATLOG, Collège Bois-de-Boulogne
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, ServiceNow, Oracle and others in Rapid Application Development Software. Updated: August 2026.
908,834 professionals have used our research since 2012.