Administrate
Better knownA Rails admin dashboard framework you own and override
No ratings yet# Gemfile
gem "administrate"Administrate vs Rails DB
Both replace Retool. Administrate is the better-known of the two (5,800 stars), while Rails DB also stands in for Airtable.
A database viewer and SQL runner mounted at /rails/db
No ratings yet# Gemfile
gem "rails_db"
# config/routes.rb
mount RailsDb::Engine, at: "/rails/db"What Administrate does
Administrate generates admin controllers and views that you then edit like any other Rails code. The generated code is yours. A dashboard class per model describing fields and their types Index, show, new and edit screens Search and filtering Every view overridable, because they are generated into your app Administrate generates code into your repository; Madmin keeps more of itself inside the gem. Pick generated-and-editable, or configured-and-compact.
Read the full Administrate listing →
Why you might pick it
- It also replaces Forest Admin.
- It has substantially more adoption — 5,800 stars against 1,500.
What Rails DB does
A database browser for Rails that works against PostgreSQL, MySQL and SQLite. Table content and schema, browsable A SQL editor with autocomplete CSV and Excel export HTTP basic auth built in, if you have no better gate
Read the full Rails DB listing →
Why you might pick it
- It also replaces Airtable.
Side by side
Rows where the two differ are marked.
| Administrate | Rails DB | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Admin and internal tools | Admin and internal tools |
| Replaces (differs) | Forest Admin, Retool | Airtable, Retool |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars (differs) | 5800 | 1500 |
| Gem (differs) | administrate | rails_db |
| Mounts at (differs) | /admin | /rails/db |
| Member rating | — | — |
What each one gets off your invoice
Questions
- What is the difference between Administrate and Rails DB?
- Both replace Retool. Administrate is the better-known of the two (5,800 stars), while Rails DB also stands in for Airtable.
- Can I mount both Administrate and Rails DB in the same Rails app?
- Technically yes — engines mount at different paths — but they overlap, so running both usually means two sets of tables doing one job. Pick one.
- Do Administrate and Rails DB replace the same SaaS product?
- Both are listed as replacements for Retool.