Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Local by Flywheel VS Devilbox

Compare Local by Flywheel VS Devilbox and see what are their differences

Local by Flywheel logo Local by Flywheel

Provides a simple, local development environment with a friendly GUI.

Devilbox logo Devilbox

Cross-platform, Docker-based alternative to XAMPP.
  • Local by Flywheel Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-17
  • Devilbox Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-05-04

Local by Flywheel features and specs

  • Easy setup
    Local by Flywheel offers a simple and user-friendly interface, making it easy to download, set up, and configure WordPress sites locally.
  • Pre-configured environments
    It provides pre-configured server environments which can save time on configurations and ensure consistency across projects.
  • One-click WordPress installation
    Local by Flywheel allows for quick WordPress installations with a single click, streamlining the development process.
  • SSL support
    It supports SSL certificates out of the box, making it easier to work with HTTPS locally.
  • Live Link
    The Live Link feature enables developers to share their local sites with others via a temporary, publicly accessible URL.
  • Database management
    It includes built-in database management tools like Adminer and phpMyAdmin, simplifying the handling of databases.
  • Integration with WP-CLI
    Local by Flywheel supports WP-CLI, allowing developers to run WordPress commands directly from the terminal.
  • Automatic backups
    It enables automatic site backups, providing a safety net in case something goes wrong during development.
  • Developer tools
    Includes various developer tools and add-ons such as Xdebug to aid with debugging and performance optimization.

Possible disadvantages of Local by Flywheel

  • Resource Intensive
    Local by Flywheel can be heavy on system resources, especially on older or less powerful machines.
  • Windows-specific Issues
    Some users have reported occasional glitches and performance issues when using it on Windows OS.
  • Dependency on Virtualization
    Local relies on virtual environments which can sometimes cause conflicts or issues with other software.
  • Limited to WordPress
    The tool is specifically tailored for WordPress development, which may not be suitable for developers working on other CMS or projects.
  • Complex Advanced Features
    While great for beginners, some advanced features and customizations may be complex for novice users to implement.
  • Internet Required for Some Features
    Features like Live Link require an active internet connection, which may not always be available.

Devilbox features and specs

  • Versatile Environment
    Devilbox provides a highly flexible and modular LAMP/LEMP stack environment that supports a variety of programming languages and databases, catering to diverse project needs.
  • Dockerized
    Being Docker-based, Devilbox ensures consistency across different environments and makes it easy to set up and tear down development environments without conflicts or contamination.
  • Multi-version Support
    It allows users to switch between different versions of PHP, MySQL, and other components effortlessly, facilitating testing across different system configurations.
  • Comprehensive Toolset
    Includes a wealth of tools and applications such as MailHog for SMTP testing, phpMyAdmin, and more, providing an all-in-one package for web development and testing.
  • Active Community
    Supported by a vibrant community, users can access documentation, tutorials, and forums that can help troubleshoot issues and optimize their setup.

Possible disadvantages of Devilbox

  • Complex Setup
    Initial configuration and understanding of the environment can be daunting for beginners or those unfamiliar with Docker, requiring a learning curve.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running a Docker-based environment with multiple services can be resource-heavy, potentially impacting performance on lower-spec machines.
  • Limited GUI
    While offering comprehensive functionality, Devilbox’s reliance on command-line operations might be less intuitive for users who prefer graphical interfaces.
  • Documentation Gaps
    Despite having extensive documentation, certain advanced configurations might lack detailed guidance, requiring users to seek community support or experiment independently.
  • Dependence on Docker
    As Devilbox relies on Docker, any issues or limitations with Docker can directly impact its functionality and usability, posing dependency concerns for users.

Analysis of Local by Flywheel

Overall verdict

  • Local by Flywheel is generally well-regarded in the WordPress community, particularly for its simplicity and efficiency in setting up local environments. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced developer, it offers valuable tools that can enhance your workflow. However, users might run into performance issues depending on their system configurations.

Why this product is good

  • Local by Flywheel is considered good due to its user-friendly interface, robust feature set targeted at WordPress developers, and seamless integration with various WordPress tools. It allows developers to create a local development environment quickly, test plugins and themes, and make modifications before deploying to a live server, thus streamlining the development workflow.

Recommended for

  • WordPress developers
  • Web designers who frequently test themes and plugins
  • Agencies managing multiple WordPress sites
  • Freelancers looking for an easy way to set up local environments
  • Beginners wanting to learn WordPress development in a controlled environment

Local by Flywheel videos

Local By Flywheel WordPress Setup + Cool Features Review

More videos:

  • Tutorial - Local By Flywheel for WordPress Development - Review & Tutorial

Devilbox videos

devilbox - setup and workflow

More videos:

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Local by Flywheel and Devilbox)
Web And Application Servers
CMS
100 100%
0% 0
Web Servers
60 60%
40% 40
Development Tools
63 63%
37% 37

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Local by Flywheel and Devilbox

Local by Flywheel Reviews

Best XAMPP Alternatives for Website Development in 2024
LocalWP, powered by Flywheel, is another offline XAMPP alternative for developing WordPress sites. With LocalWP, users can choose between Apache and NGINX server environments, allowing for comprehensive testing to ensure compatibility.
Source: instawp.com
12 XAMPP Alternatives – Install WordPress On Windows And macOS Laptop
One-click WordPress Installation – Local by Flywheel makes creating a local WordPress site a light breeze, so you don’t have to bother with setting it up yourself!

Devilbox Reviews

12 XAMPP Alternatives – Install WordPress On Windows And macOS Laptop
The Devilbox is a modern and highly customisable dockerized PHP stack supporting full LAMP and MEAN and running on all major platforms. The main goal is to easily switch and combine any version required for local development.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Local by Flywheel seems to be a lot more popular than Devilbox. While we know about 231 links to Local by Flywheel, we've tracked only 16 mentions of Devilbox. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Local by Flywheel mentions (231)

  • How to Create a Custom WordPress Plugin From Scratch: A Developer's Guide
    Local WordPress Installation: Use tools like Local by Flywheel, XAMPP, or MAMP. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • Struggling to Manage Multiple PHP Versions and Frameworks? Here's the Perfect Solution!
    Visit https://localwp.com to download Local. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • WP Engine is not WordPress
    It’s probably worth mentioning that WP Engine author the _Local_ app https://localwp.com/ which is far and away the best tool to build WP sites errr on your local machine. Then just upload to WP Engine and your are live. This valuable innovation is fueling the growth of WP Engine and makes this a bit of a honey trap. Personally I’m not convinced that keeping a 100% audit trail for reconstruction of old states is... - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • WordPress next, and beyond: breaking the technical enclosure
    Yeah -- though I think VVV has been thoroughly supplanted by Local: https://localwp.com Which almost every serious WP developer I know uses. (I personally use my own simplified Vagrant package management scripts with some ssh_config integration hooks because I work on more than WP and value standardisation across VM environments more than I value the features Local adds). - Source: Hacker News / 12 months ago
  • Introducing WP Setup
    Developing WordPress plugins and themes often requires a reliable development environment. Current we have good solutions as wp-env from Autommatic, Local WP from WP Engine, Docker, XAMPP (for old ones) and so on. All this can be good suits for a development environment, specially Local WP that is probably the easiest one to get up and running and wp-env that leverages Docker as a development environment in a very... - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
View more

Devilbox mentions (16)

  • What are currently the best, simplest and/or cheapest MAMP and WAMP stacks in 2023?
    Https://devilbox.org if you're ok with the command line. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • devs, how do you run a test web server?
    Use http://devilbox.org/ Comes out of the box ready and is close to your prod env then (php version, ..). Source: about 2 years ago
  • delboy1978uk/lamp v1.5.1 released. A docker LAMP stack comprising of an Apache webserver with self-signed cert, PHP 8.1 with Xdebug, Mariadb, and Mailhog. Comes with CLI scripts to simplify docker usage. Please have a play with it! :-D
    When we have giants like ddev and devilbox in our midst it's surprising to still see these pop-up. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Magento 2.4.5 Docker Setup
    Try devilbox, it works great, have everything you need for development, and kept updated: http://devilbox.org/. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Status of xampp in webdevelopment
    Try Devilbox, it's a good Docker-based alternative for XAMPP. Source: about 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Local by Flywheel and Devilbox, you can also consider the following products

Laragon - All in one web server.

XAMPP - XAMPP is a free and open-source cross-platform web server that is primarily used when locally developing web applications.

WordPress - WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. We like to say that WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.

WordPress.com - Create a free website or build a blog with ease on WordPress.com. Dozens of free, customizable, mobile-ready designs and themes. Free hosting and support.

MAMP - MAMP is the abbreviation for Macintosh, Apache, MySQL, and PHP. It is a reliable application with its four components that allows you to access the local PHP server as well as the database server (SQL).

AMPPS - MAMP and WAMP stack with Latest PHP, Apache, MySQL and Softaculous. Install and manage apps like PHP, WordPress and much more with just one click.