The developer-first Inline Manual alternative
Flows is the Inline Manual alternative for product teams who want full component control, transparent pricing, and a platform built for both developers and PMs.
No credit card required. No commitment. Quick setup.
TL;DR comparison summary
Inline Manual is a user onboarding platform for creating interactive walkthroughs, tooltips, and in-app messages to improve product adoption and reduce support tickets. It provides a visual editor for non-technical users and works by injecting its own overlay UI into your product. While it covers the basics of guided onboarding, it uses its own widget components rather than integrating with your design system, and pricing requires a conversation with sales.
Flows is a modern alternative to Inline Manual for teams who want full control over their in-app experiences. With Flows, you build workflows using your own UI components and design system—no widget overlays, no templated UI. Flows gives both developers and product managers the tools they need, with transparent pricing and a free plan to get started.
Flows vs Inline Manual: Key differences
Key features | Inline Manual | Flows |
|---|---|---|
Onboarding basicsBoth services support interactive walkthroughs, tooltips, and in-app messages for guiding users through your product. | ||
Embeddable componentsFlows lets you embed components directly within your app's layout. Inline Manual uses overlay-style tooltips and modals on top of your product. | ||
Custom componentsFlows lets you plug in components from your own codebase and design system. Inline Manual uses its own widget UI. | ||
Workflow logicFlows supports branching workflows and conditional logic. Inline Manual walkthroughs are primarily linear. | ||
AnalyticsBoth provide analytics on walkthrough performance and user engagement. | ||
TargetingBoth support user targeting and segmentation for showing specific guides to specific audiences. | ||
LocalizationBoth support localization for serving a global user base. | ||
Resilient against ad blockersFlows is bundled with your product, making it resilient against script blockers. Inline Manual loads as an external script, which can be blocked. | ||
Free planFlows offers a free plan with 250 monthly tracked users. Inline Manual requires a paid plan. | ||
Transparent pricingFlows uses transparent, usage-based pricing. Inline Manual pricing page shows limited information. | ||
SurveysFlows includes built-in NPS, CSAT, PMF, and custom surveys for collecting user feedback. Inline Manual does not offer native survey capabilities. |
Other differences
Your components, not theirs
Inline Manual injects its own widget UI into your product. The look and feel of walkthroughs is constrained to Inline Manual's component templates, which may not match your design system.
Flows meets you where you are. You use your own UI components and technologies, giving you full control to build adoption experiences that feel native to your product and meet your quality bar.
Built for developers and PMs
Inline Manual's visual editor is aimed at non-technical users, but developer-facing control is limited. Complex workflow changes still require workarounds or support.
Flows is built for both developers and non-developers. Developers own the components and integration; product managers control workflow logic and content without writing code.
From walkthroughs to workflows
Inline Manual is built for step-by-step walkthroughs. Branching logic, conditional journeys, and multi-session flows require significant workarounds.
Flows supports full workflows with branching logic, inline components, and long-running journeys that persist across sessions.
Pricing
Inline Manual pricing for Standard Pro plan is public, but Enterprise plan pricing requires a conversation with sales. Costs can scale significantly as you grow.
Flows offers transparent usage-based pricing with no hidden fees. Start for free with 250 monthly tracked users and upgrade only when you need to.
Switch from Inline Manual to Flows today
Build product-native adoption workflows with your own components. Start for free with Flows.
No credit card required. Free forever.