Anvil vs Spyder

Anvil is an online IDE for building and deploying full-stack web apps with Python. It pairs a drag-and-drop interface designer with client-side and server-side Python, and includes Data Tables, a built-in database backed by Postgres. Apps can be published to Anvil hosting or exported to run on the open-source Anvil App Server. Developers can create HTTP APIs and connect external Python code through Uplink. Built-in user authentication and app email support cover sending and receiving messages. Anvil documentation lists integrations for Google, Microsoft Entra ID, Facebook, Stripe and Tableau, and says Python SDKs can connect other services. Apps adapt to phones and tablets; the FAQ describes them as installable Progressive Web Apps for Android, iPhone and Chromebook, with offline operation. The Free plan includes unlimited apps and cloud hosting, but provides 50,000 Data Table rows and 100 MB of Data Table storage. Anvil says its hosted infrastructure is in London on AWS eu-west-2. It also says its API removes common flaws such as injection, XSS and CSRF.

Spyder is a free, open-source scientific Python environment for scientists, engineers, and data analysts. Its multi-language editor offers code completion, real-time analysis, syntax highlighting, and split panels. Users can run whole files, selected lines, or code cells in an IPython Console, which includes function calltips, debugger integration, a Variable Explorer, and plots. Standalone installers for Windows, macOS, and Linux include common scientific libraries such as NumPy, SciPy, Pandas, and Matplotlib. Spyder can connect to existing local or remote Python kernels. It supports third-party plugins, though its documentation recommends Conda-based installation for plugin use and says standalone plugin installation is under development. For browser access, Binder provides a functional session without installation; code and data are lost when the tab is closed or left. Spyder's documentation points users to its FAQ, troubleshooting guide, GitHub issue tracker, and Google Group for help, and states that anyone can contribute.