Top 10 Salesforce Development Tools Every Developer Should Know

Salesforce dominates the CRM market with around 25% global market share as of 2024. Millions of developers worldwide use its platform to create apps and automate business processes. A Salesforce Development Company delivering quality solutions depends heavily on the right tools to build, test, and deploy efficiently.

Choosing the right Salesforce development tools boosts productivity and reduces errors. Developers working in Salesforce Development Services should understand these tools’ capabilities to navigate the platform’s complexities effectively.

This article presents the top 10 essential Salesforce development tools that every developer should master.

1. Salesforce CLI (SFDX)

What It Is

Salesforce CLI is a command-line interface designed to work with Salesforce’s modern development model called Salesforce DX. It lets developers control their orgs, automate builds, and perform deployments directly from the command line.

Key Features

• Create and manage scratch orgs.
  

• Automate deployments and metadata retrieval.
  

• Run Apex tests and view results.

Why It Matters

Salesforce CLI supports the creation and management of scratch orgs — temporary Salesforce environments for development and testing. Developers use commands like sfdx force:org:create to quickly spin up a scratch org, sfdx force:source:push to push local changes to the org, and sfdx force:apex:test:run to run Apex tests.

This tool’s main strength is automation. It fits perfectly into continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, enabling teams to validate code and metadata changes automatically before deployment. For example, when a developer pushes code to a shared repository, Salesforce CLI scripts can trigger automated testing and deploy changes only if tests pass. This reduces human errors during manual deployments.

In summary, Salesforce CLI offers developers precise, repeatable control over the entire development lifecycle.

2. Visual Studio Code with Salesforce Extensions

What It Is

Visual Studio Code (VS Code) is a free, open-source IDE from Microsoft. It becomes a powerful Salesforce development environment when combined with Salesforce Extensions.

Key Features

• Syntax highlighting and autocomplete for Apex, Lightning Web Components (LWC), Visualforce, and metadata files.
  

• Integration with Salesforce CLI commands.
  

• Debugging capabilities for Apex and LWC code.

Why It Matters

VS Code is lightweight, highly customizable, and free, making it accessible for developers at all levels. Salesforce provides official extensions for VS Code that add Salesforce-specific functionality. These extensions enable syntax highlighting and autocomplete for Apex (Salesforce’s proprietary language), Lightning Web Components (LWC), Visualforce, and metadata files. They also integrate Salesforce CLI commands into the IDE, so developers can create or manage orgs without leaving their code editor.

VS Code allows developers to debug Apex code by setting breakpoints and inspecting variables during runtime, a feature critical for finding complex issues.

The IDE’s “Org Browser” extension simplifies metadata navigation. Developers can browse and retrieve objects, fields, and components directly from an org, speeding up development.

Using VS Code with Salesforce extensions results in more efficient coding, fewer errors, and faster delivery cycles, crucial for teams offering Salesforce Development Services.

3. Developer Console

What It Is

The Salesforce Developer Console is a lightweight, browser-based tool that allows developers to write, test, and debug Apex code within a Salesforce org.

Key Features

• Run SOQL and SOSL queries.
  

• Debug logs and real-time log viewer.
  

• Execute anonymous Apex code.

Why It Matters

The Developer Console is handy for quick debugging, simple scripts, and log inspection. It’s directly integrated into the Salesforce org, so developers don’t need to install or configure additional software.

Developers use the Developer Console to run SOQL (Salesforce Object Query Language) queries and view results instantly. It also provides a real-time log viewer, which captures system debug logs whenever Apex code executes. These logs help trace errors or performance bottlenecks.

Although not as robust as other IDEs like VS Code, the Developer Console is an excellent tool for troubleshooting and performing quick fixes within the Salesforce environment.

4. Workbench

What It Is

Workbench is a web-based application that allows direct interaction with Salesforce’s APIs, such as REST and SOAP. Unlike point-and-click interfaces, Workbench provides developers low-level access to Salesforce data and metadata.

Key Features

• Execute complex SOQL and SOSL queries.
  

• Insert, update, delete, or export records in bulk.
  

• Perform metadata deployments and retrievals.

Why It Matters

Workbench is essential for Salesforce developers who need to perform backend operations or data manipulation. Developers use it to run complex queries, test APIs, and perform bulk data actions without writing custom code.

Workbench is also handy for metadata deployment tasks. Developers can retrieve metadata from Salesforce orgs and deploy changes across multiple orgs using the Metadata API.

Since it’s browser-based, there’s no need to install any software, making it ideal for quick operations and troubleshooting.

5. Salesforce Inspector

What It Is

Salesforce Inspector is a popular Chrome extension designed to streamline data management tasks within Salesforce. It allows developers to interact directly with Salesforce data and metadata from the browser.

Key Features

• Inline data editing and exporting.
  

• Run SOQL queries in a user-friendly popup.
  

• Metadata viewing (fields, objects, etc.).

Why It Matters

Salesforce Inspector enhances the Salesforce UI by adding inline editing and export options for object records. For example, a developer or admin can export account records to CSV directly from a list view without navigating to reports.

The extension also allows running SOQL queries in a popup window, making it faster to retrieve and inspect data without leaving the page.

Due to its simplicity and direct integration into the Salesforce UI, Salesforce Inspector is a daily-use tool for many developers and admins.

6. Gearset

What It Is

Gearset is a third-party release management platform built specifically for Salesforce. It helps automate deployment, compare orgs, and integrate version control systems into Salesforce development workflows.

Key Features

• Visual diff comparison of orgs.
  

• Automated deployments and rollback.
  

• Git and CI/CD pipeline integration.

Why It Matters

Gearset simplifies complex metadata deployments, reducing errors and ensuring that deployments are faster and more reliable. With visual diff tools, developers can quickly see the differences between orgs before initiating deployments, preventing accidental overwrites.

For teams handling multiple Salesforce environments, Gearset provides a unified platform to deploy, manage, and test changes. The integration with Git and CI/CD pipelines ensures smooth collaboration and automated testing, critical for teams providing Salesforce Development Services.

7. Ant Migration Tool

What It Is

The Ant Migration Tool is a Java-based utility that leverages Salesforce’s Metadata API to move metadata between orgs. It uses Apache Ant, a widely-used build automation tool, to perform deployments and retrieve metadata.

Key Features

• Retrieve and deploy metadata.
  

• Command-line operations.
  

• Customize deployment settings with XML configuration files.

Why It Matters

Although Salesforce CLI and Gearset have largely replaced the Ant Migration Tool for most teams, it remains a go-to tool for developers who need granular control over deployments. The tool is highly scriptable, making it a good choice for automated deployment tasks.

Ant Migration Tool is ideal for teams that require precise control over metadata migration, especially when working with unmanaged orgs or older Salesforce projects.

8. Illuminated Cloud

What It Is

Illuminated Cloud is a plugin for JetBrains IDEs like IntelliJ IDEA, tailored to Salesforce development. It provides a rich, integrated environment for coding, debugging, and testing Salesforce applications.

Key Features

• Apex and LWC support.
  

• Full-featured code coverage and debugging tools.
  

• Easy integration with Salesforce orgs.

Why It Matters

For developers coming from a Java background, Illuminated Cloud offers a familiar environment with robust features like code completion, refactoring tools, and easy debugging. It supports both Apex and Lightning Web Components (LWC), making it ideal for developers working in hybrid Salesforce environments.

While it may not be as popular as VS Code, Illuminated Cloud is preferred by enterprises or developers who need a full-featured IDE.

9. DX Scanner (Static Code Analysis Tool)

What It Is

DX Scanner is a static code analysis tool that inspects Apex and Lightning components for potential issues before they are deployed.

Key Features

• Security vulnerability checks.
  

• Code smell detection.
  

• Test coverage analysis and custom rule sets.

Why It Matters

For organizations offering Salesforce Development Services, ensuring code quality and security is paramount. DX Scanner helps maintain a high standard of code by flagging issues early in the development cycle. This reduces the risk of introducing bugs or vulnerabilities that could compromise the platform’s integrity.

The tool integrates seamlessly into CI/CD pipelines and is highly customizable to fit team standards.

10. Postman

What It Is

Postman is an API testing tool that simplifies the process of interacting with Salesforce’s REST and Bulk APIs. It enables developers to send API requests and inspect responses in an intuitive user interface.

Key Features

• Authenticate using OAuth 2.0.
  

• Test and document API endpoints.
  

• Automate API tests using collections.
  

Why It Matters

Postman is a must-have tool for developers working on integrations between Salesforce and other platforms. It makes testing REST APIs quick and simple, providing a streamlined way to ensure external systems interact correctly with Salesforce.

For example, developers building middleware solutions or third-party integrations can use Postman to test APIs, check response codes, and debug errors before full implementation.

Conclusion

Salesforce development is complex, and choosing the right tools is essential for success. A Salesforce Development Company should equip its developers with a solid toolkit to streamline the development, testing, and deployment process. The tools discussed in this article — from Salesforce CLI to Postman — cover the full spectrum of development tasks, from simple data retrieval to complex API integrations.

Mastering these tools helps Salesforce developers deliver high-quality applications faster and more efficiently. By staying informed about the latest tools and best practices, teams can ensure they are delivering robust solutions to their clients in a timely manner.