GAPTEQ Open Source Alternative

The low-code platform for everyone who wants to build web-based business applications, like GAPTEQ but OpenXava is open source.

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@Entity @Getter @Setter
@View(members=
    "year, number, date;" +
    "customer;" +
    "details { details }"
)
public class Invoice extends Identifiable {

    @Required int year;
    @Required int number;
    @Required LocalDate date;

    @ManyToOne(optional=false)
    Customer customer;

    @ElementCollection @OrderColumn
    @ListProperties("product.number, " +
        "product.description, unitPrice, " +
        "quantity, amount")
    List<InvoiceDetail> details;

    @ReadOnly @Money
    @Calculation("sum(details.amount) + vat")
    BigDecimal total;
}

From a few Java classes to a complete application — no frontend code needed.

Features

Minimal code, minimal cost

With OpenXava you only define the data structure and the business logic in simple Java classes; the user interface and persistence are provided by the framework. An invoicing application is 4 Java classes, not dozens of files spread across controllers, DTOs, frontend components, CSS and SQL. If you code with an AI assistant, less code means fewer tokens: the application is generated faster and at a much lower cost. And since the bottleneck is now reviewing code, not writing it, it also means less to review, fewer bugs and less technical debt.

Spring Boot and Jakarta EE, with modern Java

OpenXava applications are Spring Boot 4.1 applications based on Jakarta EE 11, with Hibernate 7 and Java 17, 21 or 25. You will feel at home: configuration in application.properties, dependencies aligned with Spring Boot and the whole Spring ecosystem at your fingertips. The generated WAR runs directly with java -jar or deploys to a standard Tomcat 11.

AI gets it right the first time

The declarative model of OpenXava, Java with annotations, leaves very little room for mistakes: the AI does not have to decide how to build the user interface or the persistence, it just describes your entities and your logic, always following the same patterns. In addition, OpenXava projects include an AGENTS.md so that agents like Claude, Cursor or Copilot generate correct OpenXava code on the first try. And unlike visual low-code tools, everything is Java code that you version with Git and review in a pull request.

Limitless flexibility

View annotations cover most cases at a high level of abstraction, but you never get stuck. You can define your own actions and controllers for a part of the application, or replace the standard behavior of the whole application. You can create your own editors for any type or property, changing how any part of the user interface is generated. And if you need to, you can generate your own HTML and JavaScript for any module.

Complete applications from day one

Smooth, production-ready web applications: no page reloads, only the necessary HTML fragments are updated. Editable list mode with pagination, sorting, filtering, configurable columns, PDF reports, Excel export and import, card view and charts. Detail mode with tabs, frames, dialogs, editors for references and collections, responsive layout, maps, discussion threads, photo gallery, file upload and dashboards. Available in 14 languages, plus a mobile user interface with XavaPro.

Modern architecture, no frontend to maintain

Under the hood, OpenXava is a state-of-the-art HTML Over The Wire engine: the user interface is generated in pure Java on the server and updated from the browser with fetch(). No React, no Angular, no node_modules, no JavaScript build. A single language, Java, from the database to the screen.

Applications with built-in AI chat

OpenXava applications come with a built-in AI chat that lets users query data, modify records and interact with the application in natural language. Instead of navigating through screens and menus, they simply ask the application for what they need. The chat is part of the OpenXava core, is based on LangChain4J and works alongside the traditional user interface.

Hot code reload

Modify entities, actions, configuration files or i18n messages and see the change instantly, without restarting the application. Hot reload built into the framework and free, with no paid external tools. Perfect for working with AI: the assistant modifies the code and you see the result in the browser within seconds, in a very fast iteration loop.

See all features

What people say

"OpenXava is one of the best frameworks to pair with vibe coding. The security, auditing, field-level authorization and everything else is already done, which makes me feel comfortable trusting that the AI won't break things and won't make my app vulnerable. ... OpenXava is the solid foundation everyone needs."

"I think OpenXava is an extraordinary tool, it makes reality a fantasy, that is MDD and at the same time works like a RAD, all this using Java."

"I've been developing software for close to 40 years and I am very impressed with OpenXava, not only with the ease in which I have rapidly developed a functional app, but with the extensive customizations that can be applied to achieve more complex behavior and desired look."

"I have worked before on Low-Code platforms like Mendix, Pega, OutSystems, etc. It seems easier to work without code only drag and drop and set properties, but still it is easier to work with OpenXava."

"The real catch about our experience while developing with OpenXava was the speed of development without compromising the quality."

"I must say: my compliments! ... I have actually quite a lot of experience in UI automation. So it takes a lot to impress me. And I am impressed."

"We built a customizable and scalable ERP with OpenXava that rivals SAP. In fact, we even turned it into a hub for connecting ecommerce platforms. The implementations have been successful, and companies are satisfied thanks to its high stability and excellent performance, even with clients who have years of data and large volumes."

"I have been looking for a logical, understandable, simple approach to web tools for years now and OpenXava is the first thing I have found that fits that bill. Most tools like VisualStudio Web App are so extremely confusing and so many moving part that the learning curve is insurmountable."

"OpenXava for me is an exceptional tool, saving us time, made it standard interfaces, imposed a criterion of unique development in the organization."

Create your first OpenXava project

mvn archetype:generate -DarchetypeGroupId=org.openxava -DarchetypeArtifactId=openxava-master-detail-archetype -DarchetypeVersion=RELEASE -DgroupId=com.yourcompany -DartifactId=yourapp -DinteractiveMode=false
cd yourapp
mvn spring-boot:run

Then open http://localhost:8080/yourapp — your application is already running.

Ready to try it?

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Latest on the blog: XavaPro 8.0 released — September 30, 2026