Background
A few days ago, I came across this post on Reddit:
“I’m looking for a low/no-code platform for project management that supports many-to-many relationships between contacts, projects, and tasks. AppSheet feels clunky when viewing data. I’ve tried Bubble and Clappia, but they don’t seem to support many-to-many relationships.”
Here’s a summary of the user’s core requirements:
- Many-to-Many Relationships: One contact can be part of multiple projects; each project may involve multiple contacts and tasks.
- Project & Task Management: Ability to track task status, assign team members, and set up automation workflows.
- File Upload & Visual Interface: Needs a more intuitive and visual way to view related data—not just spreadsheet-style tables.
Since none of the platforms this user tried could fully meet these needs, they reached out to the community for help.
Why Most No-Code Platforms Struggle with Complex Data Relationships?
Most no-code tools like AppSheet, Bubble, Clappia, Airtable, or NocoDB rely on a spreadsheet-like data structure, where data is stored in single tables or form-based views. This works well for simple applications, but when it comes to managing complex relationships, things start to break down.
Common limitations include:
❌ Hard to Model Complex Relationships
Most platforms only support single-direction references or nested lists. To create a many-to-many structure (e.g., contacts ↔ projects), users must manually set up intermediate tables, which adds complexity.
❌ Complicated Queries and Filtering
Platforms like Bubble and Clappia require manual configuration of list fields and complex filtering logic just to reflect real-world many-to-many relationships.
❌ Limited Automation
Automations in tools like AppSheet are typically triggered by form submissions and can’t easily span multiple tables or conditional workflows.
❌ Lack of Visual Context
Many no-code platforms rely on static table views. Viewing a project’s full context—including related contacts, tasks, and documents—often requires navigating between multiple pages or setting up custom reports.
That’s why many users (like the one from Reddit) eventually look for a more flexible alternative—especially when managing many-to-many data models and process automation.
How to Solve These Problems?
Let’s walk through how to build this kind of system using NocoBase, an open-source no-code platform that supports structured data modeling, many-to-many relationships, and automation workflows—all without writing a line of code.
1. Build Many-to-Many Relationships: Linking Contacts and Projects
With NocoBase, you can define many-to-many relationships directly in the data model, no extra join tables or complex logic needed.
Step 1: Create two tables: Contacts and Projects.
Step 2: Add a many-to-many field in the Projects table that links to Contacts.
Step 3: On the UI, add a block to display this relation—your users can now view related contacts directly on the project page, no page-hopping required.
2. Automate Workflows: Status Updates & Notifications
Unlike most platforms where automation is limited to form actions, NocoBase allows event-based triggers across different tables.
Example: When a team member completes a task, update the task status and notify the relevant project owner.
- Trigger: Task status changes to “Completed”
- Action: Send a notification and update the view accordingly
Workflow Configuration Interface:
Realization effect demonstration:
This is a simple but common workflow. With NocoBase, you can customize far more complex automations without code.
3. Rich Visual Display & File Uploads
NocoBase offers multiple ways to display data visually:
Table View: Like Excel, but fully supports relationships.
Kanban View: Manage tasks by status, like Trello.
Gantt Chart: Visualize project timelines and dependencies.
Need to manage documents? Just add a custom file field and upload any attachment.
Front-end preview of the attachment:
Ready to Try?
If you’re looking for a more flexible alternative to AppSheet, especially one that supports many-to-many relationships and process automation out of the box—give NocoBase a try:
FAQ
Q: Is it hard to build many-to-many relationships? Do I need SQL?
A: Not at all. NocoBase allows you to define one-to-many and many-to-many fields visually—no SQL required.
Q: Is NocoBase free?
A: Yes. NocoBase is open-source and free to use under the AGPL license. We also offer commercial plans and premium plugins for advanced features.
Q: Does it work on mobile?
A: Yes. NocoBase is web-based and mobile-responsive. You can also build custom mobile pages with our mobile client support.
Q: Do I have to self-host it?
A: You can host it locally, on your own server, or via cloud. A Docker-based deployment makes it easy to get started.
Q: Can non-developers use it?
A: Absolutely. NocoBase is built for visual editing and logic flows. For more advanced integrations, developers can extend it as needed.
Q: Can I import my existing data?
A: Yes. NocoBase supports CSV/Excel import and integration with databases like MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MongoDB through plugins.
Q: Can NocoBase really replace AppSheet?
A: If your needs go beyond form-based automation and require structured data models, granular permissions, and advanced automation, NocoBase is a solid AppSheet alternative—especially when working with many-to-many data.
😄I hope this article will help you find the tool that really fits. If you also want to try NocoBase, welcome to join our community to participate in the exchange and share your experience with more developers.
Related reading:
- Top 4 Open Source Products to Help You Avoid Hidden Costs in Low-Code Platforms
- Best No-Code Tools in 2025: How to Choose the Right One
- Why Do Developers Struggle with Low-Code? (6 Tools That Actually Help)
- Choosing and Deploying Low-Code Tools: A Developer’s Guide
- Best ERP Solutions for Small Businesses: 4 Tools to Improve Efficiency
- Top 8 Open-Source Projects (Rated) to Build Your Own Task Management System