
React Admin
Next.js
ToolJet
Appsmith
Budibase
Blitz.js
Retool
A React Framework for building internal tools, admin panels, dashboards & B2B apps with unmatched flexibilty.
Which is more popular?
Based on our record, Refine seems to be more popular. It has been mentioned 41 times since March 2021.
Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.
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| Website | refine.dev | shadowgit.com |
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| Company | 2021 | Startup from Germany · 1 - 9 employees · 2025 |
| Listed in |
In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.


Refine is a meta React framework that enables the rapid development of a wide range of web applications. From internal tools, admin panels, B2B apps and dashboards, it serves as a comprehensive solution for building any type of CRUD applications. It's internal hooks and components simplifies the...
Every change saved. Any version restorable. AI can search what changed to debug faster. Never lose work again. Cut debugging time by 80%. Save 50% on AI tokens. 100% local.
What each product offers, as listed by its team.


An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.


Overall verdict
Why this product is good
Recommended for
Overall verdict
Why this product is good
Recommended for
Walkthroughs and reviews on video.
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How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.


As answered by people managing Refine and ShadowGit.
Refine's answer
Refine's unparalleled flexibility with data providers makes it a unique choice. Whether you're integrating with REST, GraphQL, or any other data source, Refine streamlines the process.
Another defining feature is its built-in UI integrations. This means you can create polished and responsive user interfaces with ease. Plus, with a thriving community and extensive developer support, you're never alone when using Refine.
Refine simplifies data management and CRUD operations, allowing you to focus on building your application's core functionality. Its robust security features and authentication support ensure your data is protected.
What truly sets Refine apart is its headless architecture. This design philosophy empowers you to customize every aspect of your application, giving you complete control over its look and feel.
Real-time capabilities are another standout feature. This means you can easily incorporate live updates and collaboration features into your apps.
With comprehensive documentation and tutorials, getting started and mastering Refine is a straightforward process. The active open-source community ensures regular updates and improvements.
Refine is suitable for projects of enterprise-level solutions. Its scalability makes it a versatile choice for developers and organizations alike.
ShadowGit's answer:
ShadowGit is the only tool where AI assistants can directly search your code history to debug faster while using 50% fewer tokens. Auto-captures every change without touching your main git repo. Built specifically for AI-assisted development.
Refine's answer
It provides a headless architecture, giving developers complete freedom to customize the frontend using any UI library or framework, which is not always the case with other solutions.
Secondly, Refine's data provider support is extensive, with a wide range of options, making it easier to integrate with various backends. Additionally, it has a rapidly growing community and extensive documentation, ensuring excellent support and resources for users. The real-time features, along with built-in UI integration for popular libraries, simplify complex tasks.
Refine is backed by an active development team that regularly releases updates and improvements. In summary, Refine offers flexibility, comprehensive support, and a strong community, making it a compelling choice in the competitive landscape of web application development frameworks.
ShadowGit's answer:
ShadowGit is the only tool built specifically for developers using AI. Unlike generic backup tools, your AI can actually search the history to debug faster and use 50% fewer tokens. Separate shadow repo means your main git stays clean. 100% local.
Refine's answer
Refine's primary audience consists of developers and teams who are focused on building Enterprise web applications, particularly those in need of admin panels, internal tools, or dashboards. Refine can be use for any type of CRUD apps.
These developers typically have a background in Typescript and React and are looking for a framework that provides flexibility, extensibility, and efficiency in building data-centric applications.
Refine is popular among enterprises and businesses that require scalable and maintainable solutions for their data management needs.
ShadowGit's answer:
AI-Accelerated solo developers that use AI coding assistants daily (Claude, Cursor, Copilot), experienced enough to feel the pain (2-10 years of coding) and that want to move fast, ship often and experiment constantly.
ShadowGit's answer:
Electron is the primary technology being used.
ShadowGit's answer:
I built ShadowGit after losing 3 hours of work to a bad AI refactor. Started as a personal backup tool, but when I added MCP integration so AI could search the history, debugging time dropped 80%. Had to share it.
Share your experience with using Refine and ShadowGit. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.


Portal-template-default is a 574-file React scaffold: React 19 with TypeScript, Vite, Refine as the data layer, Tailwind CSS 4, shadcn/ui (about 60 components), lucide, vitest, Playwright. - Source: dev.to / 17 days ago
GitHub Https://github.com/refinedev/refine Website Https://refine.dev/ License MIT Stars 33.5k Forks 2.9k Issues 17 Pull Requests 11 Contributors 311 Last updated 2 days ago Documentation Https://ai.refine.dev/. - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
Refine – A low-code framework for React developers. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
Tracking ShadowGit since Sep 2025.
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