Introduction
In this Replit review, we are taking a look at their browser-based IDE product. Replit is a platform created to simplify coding for developers and students. It offers a large selection of features to help users concentrate on coding. This platform makes collaboration on projects, coding, and building applications much easier in a user-friendly environment.
TL;DR: REPLIT REVIEW
- Browser-based IDE simplifies the dev environment setup process
- Enables collaborative coding among developers
- AI-powered Ghostwriter feature is powerful
- Pricing ranges from free to $15/user/month
WHAT PROBLEM IS REPLIT SOLVING?
The Replit browser-based IDE solution addresses the following problems in traditional solutions.
Problem 1: Complexity of development environment setup
The browser-based Replit solution has been specifically designed to eliminate environment setup issues. Instead of manually installing IDE software and code libraries, the Replit solution automates that work. A user can create a new workspace with a few clicks that contain the required tools, frameworks, and libraries. The developer is ready to code in minutes instead of hours. Remembering when I first started developing, this setup step can be very frustrating for a user dev.
Problem 2: Real-time collaboration is hard
With the multiplayer features, developers can leverage a Google Docs-like editing experience. Multiple developers can be in the same code simultaneously. Replit's collaboration capabilities include live chat and code snippet sharing. This functionality is perfect for pair programming, mentoring, and teaching. This is one of the best developer collaboration solutions I've seen.
WEBSITE STATISTICS
12.8M
Total Monthly Visits
-2%
Monthly Traffic Increase
#3,696
Global Website Rank
Website traffic for a SaaS solution is a good proxy for the overall popularity of the solution. With 12.8 million visits last month, Replit sees excellent usage and interest. The recent three months have shown a slight decrease in traffic, but this was after a very strong rise in the prior 12 months. It looks like Replit is reaching a plateau with users.
Product Features
- Ghostwriter AI streamlines coding by automating tasks like code generation, explanation, and optimization.
- Collaborate in real-time with other users, and use the code editor's syntax highlighting, auto-complete, and user-friendly interface.
- This platform supports over 50 popular languages like Java, Python, and JavaScript.
- Debugging is quick and straightforward, with real-time error detection and resolution.
- Store your code securely with cloud storage, and quickly deploy applications in the cloud.
- User data is protected with robust security features.
- Extensive documentation is available with 24/7 customer support.
- Work from anywhere with mobile accessibility.
Real World Results
- Reviews: 9
- Rating: 3.9 out of 5
- Reviews: 26
- Rating: 4.4 out of 5
Overall, feedback from publically available reviews is very positive. The reviews offer two major themes.
- Theme 1: the solution is an excellent solution for less experienced developers.
- Theme 2: the solution should be considered for smaller teams that have remote developers on the team.
Alternatives
Github Copilot
- AI-powered pair programmer
- Well-rated for larger, more complex projects
- More complex
Others
- JSFiddle
- CodePen
- Glitch
- Codeanywhere
CONCLUSION
In this Replit review, we covered a lot of ground. The Replit product is an excellent solution for less experienced and/or smaller teams. The team at Replit has done an admirable job at creating a solution that helps less experienced developers overcome their learning curve at quickly as possible. The intuitive user interface and user experience never get in the way of the developer.
However, larger enterprise teams will likely find the product's limitations frustrating. The Ghostwriter AI feature is interesting, and I found it helpful while testing the solution. I think AI-assisted code creation can play a massive role in developer productivity. Take a look at Github's Copilot AI pair programmer solution as an alternative.
Drop a comment below if you have any questions or feedback.
FAQ
Absolutely yes. The Replit solution was built to help a less experienced developer get started successfully. The platform's multiplayer functionality allows other developers to assist and pair program with a developer in real-time.
No, Replit doesn't support C# and .NET. They do support over 50 other languages though.
Replit has set the cost of Ghostwriter to 1000 cycles per month. That equates to $10/month USD.
These are Replit's digital tokens. They can be used to buy feature add-ons inside your Replit environment. Each cycle costs $0.01 USD.
