AlternativesUpdated

The best Airtable alternatives in 2026

Why people leave Airtable, which tool fits each reason, and how to move a base. Fabricate is ours, so we also say when it is not the right pick.

The short answer: to keep a spreadsheet-database, Baserow, NocoDB or Grist, each of which you can also run on your own server; to keep the base and put a portal on it, Softr; when the base has become an app people sign in to, Fabricate. Every price below was read on the tool's own pricing page on October 26, 2026.

By the Fabricate teamWe make Fabricate10 min readPrices checked
Try Fabricate freePublish on Pro
Fabricate CloudFabricate
Fabricate Cloud for one app: its database, form responses, keys and secrets, and accounts for its visitors
An app's database, form responses, keys and visitor accounts in Fabricate Cloud. Real Fabricate screens, shown with sample data.

Key takeaways

  • Airtable's free plan holds 1,000 records a base and Team 50,000; at the limit you keep your data but cannot add records until you upgrade.
  • Team is $24 a seat a month billed monthly, so every editor adds to the bill.
  • Baserow, NocoDB and Grist are the closest switches: each imports an Airtable base and has a free edition you run yourself.
  • Softr keeps the base and puts a portal on it; Notion suits docs with tables; Microsoft Lists suits teams on Microsoft 365.
  • Fabricate fits a base that has become an app: it builds the screens, sign-in and the app's own database as code. Building and previewing are free; publishing is on Pro and Max.

Why people look for an Airtable alternative

Each reason points to a different tool. Find yours, then jump to the pick that fits it.

  • The record limit stops new records

    Airtable's free plan holds 1,000 records a base and Team 50,000. At the limit you can still use your bases and nothing is removed, but you cannot add records until you upgrade.

    Fits: Baserow

  • Every editor is a paid seat

    Team is $24 a seat a month billed monthly, so ten editors pay $240 a month. Some tools price the whole team, not each person in it.

    Fits: NocoDB

  • The base has become an app

    Orders that move through stages, bookings with rules, requests that need approval, clients who should see only their own records: that is an app, with screens, sign-in and rules of its own.

    Fits: Fabricate

  • People outside your team need a way in

    Airtable's Portals add-on lets guests in from $120 a month for 15 of them on Team. Some tools put a portal on the base you already have.

    Fits: Softr

  • Formulas, on your own server

    Airtable's pricing page has no plan you run on your own server. Grist's Community edition runs on yours, free and open source, and its formulas are Python.

    Fits: Grist

  • Your team lives in Microsoft 365

    If your company already pays for Microsoft 365, a tracking app inside Teams may be one you already have.

    Fits: Microsoft Lists

Compare at a glance

What each tool is best for, how many records it holds, whether you can run it yourself, and the cheapest paid plan.

  • FabricateWe make this
    Best for
    A base that has become an app
    Records
    Not counted by the plan; each app has its own SQLite database
    Run it yourself
    Download the code on Pro and Max
    Paid plans from
    $25 a month
  • AirtableThe tool you have now
    Best for
    Shared bases for a team
    Records
    1,000 a base free; 50,000 on Team
    Run it yourself
    No plan to run yourself
    Paid plans from
    $24 a seat a month
  • Baserow
    Best for
    A like-for-like switch
    Records
    3,000 a workspace free; 50,000 on Premium; no limit on your own server
    Run it yourself
    Free, with an open-source core
    Paid plans from
    $12 a user a month
  • NocoDB
    Best for
    Big teams on a budget
    Records
    1,000 free; 50,000 on Plus; no limit on your own server
    Run it yourself
    Free, under a fair-code license
    Paid plans from
    $15 a seat, or $135 for any number
  • Grist
    Best for
    Spreadsheet people
    Records
    5,000 a document free; 100,000 on Pro
    Run it yourself
    Free and open source (Apache 2.0)
    Paid plans from
    $10 a user a month
  • Softr
    Best for
    A portal on your base
    Records
    Your Airtable base, or Softr Databases
    Run it yourself
    No plan to run yourself
    Paid plans from
    $25 a month
  • Notion
    Best for
    Docs with tables
    Records
    Blocks limited on Free for 2 or more members
    Run it yourself
    No plan to run yourself
    Paid plans from
    $12 a member a month
  • Microsoft Lists
    Best for
    Microsoft 365 teams
    Records
    Lists you share in Microsoft 365
    Run it yourself
    Runs in Microsoft 365
    Paid plans from
    Comes with Microsoft 365 business plans

The cheapest paid plan billed monthly, read on each tool's own pricing page on October 26, 2026; most cost less billed yearly. Fabricate's figures come from our live plans.

Number 1

Fabricate

We make this

Best for: A base that has become an app

Fabricate builds a web app from a description: the screens, server routes, sign-in and the app's own SQLite database, written as code. Describe what a base holds, who signs in and what each person may see or change, and the app keeps to it; bring the records over as CSV. Building and previewing are free; publishing is on Pro and Max.

What moves where

  • Tables and records
    On Airtable
    Bases, with a record limit on each plan
    On Fabricate
    The app's own SQLite tables, imported from CSV
  • Views
    On Airtable
    Grid and other views of a table
    On Fabricate
    Screens with the lists, filters and boards you ask for
  • Forms
    On Airtable
    Airtable forms
    On Fabricate
    Forms whose answers land in the app's Responses
  • Interfaces and portals
    On Airtable
    Interface Designer, and Portals for guests
    On Fabricate
    Pages behind sign-in, with roles
  • Automations
    On Airtable
    Automation runs, capped by plan
    On Fabricate
    Rules in the app's server code; Slack, Zapier, Make or a webhook on Pro and Max
  • Who pays
    On Airtable
    Each editor, by the seat
    On Fabricate
    The plan: Pro includes 3 team seats, and the app's users are not billed

Checks before you publish

Fabricate's security check on an app: one problem to fix and two quality warnings, each with a Fix in chat button
Each finding comes with a Fix in chat button. A real Fabricate screen, shown with sample data.

What it does well

  • Its own database and sign-in
  • Rules and roles in the code
  • No price per person who signs in
Paid plans from
$25 a month
350 credits a month on Pro
Free plan
60 credits
A month, to build and preview
A live app
Pro and Max
Publishing is on paid plans

See the plans

Moving a base to Fabricate in six steps

Fabricate rebuilds what the base does as an app, and you bring the records over as CSV.

  1. 1

    Download each table

    In each table's grid view, remove the filters, click the down arrow beside the view's name and choose Download CSV.

  2. 2

    Describe the app

    Say what the base is for, who signs in and what each person may see or change. Attach a CSV, or a few rows of one, so Fabricate sees the fields.

  3. 3

    Ask for an import screen

    Ask for a screen, behind your own sign-in, where you upload a CSV file and the app adds its rows. Try it with one of your files.

  4. 4

    Test it in the preview

    Sign up, save and edit data, and check who can see what, before anyone else does.

  5. 5

    Put it online

    On Pro, one press of Publish gives it its own address to share, after the same browser check.

  6. 6

    Bring the records in

    The published app starts with a fresh database of its own, without your test records, so import your CSV files there.

Chat

Fabricate's chat on a phone: the owner asks for opening hours and a note about cardamom buns, and Fabricate says what it changed and that it used 5 credits

Your app

The same bakery app in Fabricate's Your app view on a phone, now showing Open today 7am - 3pm above its menu
Asking for a change in chat, then trying the app. Real Fabricate screens on a phone, shown with sample data.

The other Airtable alternatives

What each one does well, and the kind of project it suits best.

  1. Number 2

    Baserow

    Best for: A like-for-like switch

    Baserow is the closest like-for-like switch: a spreadsheet-database with grid, form and gallery views and an application builder. Cloud Free holds 3,000 rows a workspace and Premium is $12 a user a month billed monthly; on your own server, its pricing page lists no row limit.

    • Imports a base from its share link
    • Free to run yourself
    • An application builder

    Where Baserow beats Fabricate

    If you want Airtable's way of working without its limits, Baserow imports a base's tables, field types, links between tables and attachments from a share link, and its features outside Premium are open source under the MIT License.

    From $12 a user a month

    Sources: baserow.io/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked ; Baserow docs: import from Airtable (opens in a new tab), checked ; Baserow on GitHub (opens in a new tab), checked

  2. Number 3

    NocoDB

    Best for: Big teams on a budget

    NocoDB puts a spreadsheet interface on a database, in its cloud or on your own server. Cloud Plus is $15 a seat a month billed monthly, or $135 a month for any number of seats, and the self-hosted Community edition is free under NocoDB's Sustainable Use License, which it calls fair-code.

    • One price for any number of seats
    • Free to run yourself
    • Imports from Airtable

    Where NocoDB beats Fabricate

    For a big team, NocoDB's Plus plan is $135 a month for any number of seats, where Airtable Team charges $24 for each editor. Its Airtable import works from a shared base or view link, with a personal access token for a shared base's records, and leaves formula fields behind.

    From $15 a seat a month

    Sources: nocodb.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked ; NocoDB docs: import from Airtable (opens in a new tab), checked ; NocoDB on GitHub (opens in a new tab), checked

  3. Number 4

    Grist

    Best for: Spreadsheet people

    Grist is a spreadsheet-database whose formulas are Python. Free holds 5,000 records a document and Pro 100,000 at $10 a user a month billed monthly, and the Community edition is open source under the Apache 2.0 license, free to run on your own server.

    • Python formulas
    • Open source under Apache 2.0
    • Imports Airtable with attachments

    Where Grist beats Fabricate

    If your base is mostly formulas, Grist's are Python on every plan, and its import copies a whole Airtable base with its attachments, though not its views, interfaces or forms.

    From $10 a user a month

    Sources: getgrist.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked ; Grist help: importing data (opens in a new tab), checked ; Grist on GitHub (opens in a new tab), checked

  4. Number 5

    Softr

    Best for: A portal on your base

    Softr builds client portals and member dashboards on top of your data, Airtable included: it reads, creates and updates Airtable records, so the base stays where it is. Basic is $25 a month billed monthly, for 1 builder and 10 app users.

    • Keeps Airtable as the data
    • Portals your users sign in to
    • Its own database too

    Where Softr beats Fabricate

    If the base works and only people outside your team need a way in, Softr puts a portal on it without moving any data: in its words, Airtable acts as your single source of truth.

    From $25 a monthSoftr pricing, explained

    Sources: Softr: Airtable integration (opens in a new tab), checked ; softr.io/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked

  5. Number 6

    Notion

    Best for: Docs with tables

    Notion keeps databases inside documents, with views, forms and sites. Plus is $12 a member a month billed monthly; on the free plan, a workspace with two or more members has a limit on blocks.

    • Databases inside docs
    • Forms and sites
    • Wikis and notes too

    Where Notion beats Fabricate

    If your base is mostly plans, notes and lists that people read and edit together, Notion puts the tables inside the documents.

    From $12 a member a monthNotion alternatives

    Source: notion.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked

  6. Number 7

    Microsoft Lists

    Best for: Microsoft 365 teams

    Microsoft calls Lists your smart information-tracking app in Microsoft 365: lists started from templates, shared with your team, shown in Microsoft Teams and automated with Power Platform. It comes with Microsoft 365 business and enterprise plans.

    • Inside Microsoft Teams
    • Templates to start from
    • Power Platform automations

    Where Microsoft Lists beats Fabricate

    If your company already pays for Microsoft 365, Lists comes with it and sits inside Teams, so there is no new tool to buy or sign in to.

    Source: Microsoft Lists (opens in a new tab), checked

Where Airtable fits, and where Fabricate differs

Airtable is a spreadsheet-database: tables with typed fields, linked records and views, with forms, automations, interfaces and AI on top. Its plans count editors, records a base, automation runs and API calls, and its Portals add-on lets people outside your team in, from $120 a month for 15 guests on Team.

Many bases start as a list and become a process: orders that move through stages, bookings with rules, requests that need approval, clients who should see only their own records. At that point the base is an app, and the limits that bite are seats, records and guest access.

Fabricate builds that app as code. You describe the tables, who signs in and what each person may see or change, and it writes the screens, the server routes that enforce those rules and the app's own SQLite database. The people who sign in are not billed per person, and serving the published app is part of the plan, not a meter.

What it does not do is behave like a spreadsheet. There is no grid anyone can add a column to; a new field is a change you ask for in the chat. If your team edits a shared table freely, Baserow, NocoDB or Grist keep that way of working.

Where Fabricate and Airtable differ

  • Where the data lives

    Fabricate

    Fabricate generates the backend as code in your project: server routes in a Durable Object on Cloudflare Workers, with the app's data in that Durable Object's built-in SQLite database. When the app needs accounts, sign-in is built in, with PBKDF2 password hashing and opaque HttpOnly cookie sessions.

    Airtable

    Airtable keeps records in bases, with a limit a base on each plan: 1,000 records on Free, 50,000 on Team, 125,000 on Business and 500,000 on Enterprise Scale.

    In short: Airtable is a shared table first. Fabricate is an app first, with the tables inside it.

  • People outside your team

    Fabricate

    Each app has its own sign-in, with roles and owner-only or invite-code access, and its server code decides what each person may see or change. The people who sign in are not billed.

    Airtable

    Airtable's Portals add-on lets people outside your team in, from $120 a month for 15 guests on Team and $150 on Business.

    In short: For a few guests on a base you keep, Portals or Softr are the quick route. For many customers or clients who each see their own records, an app with its own sign-in fits better.

  • Moving your data

    Fabricate

    Records come over as CSV files, through an import screen you ask for. Views, forms and rules are rebuilt from your description, not copied.

    Airtable

    Airtable downloads a grid view as CSV from the menu beside the view's name, in its web and desktop apps. Baserow, NocoDB and Grist each import a base directly.

    In short: To carry a base over as it is, a tool with an Airtable import is less work. Fabricate rebuilds what the base does and takes its records as CSV.

Airtable: what it does well, and what to watch for

What it does well

  • Typed fields, linked records and many views of one table
  • Automations and Interface Designer on the free plan
  • Up to 5 editors on the free plan
  • Two-way sync, an admin panel and SAML SSO on Business

Watch out for

  • 1,000 records a base on the free plan and 50,000 on Team
  • Every editor is a paid seat: $24 a month on Team, billed monthly
  • Guests outside your team need the Portals add-on, from $120 a month
  • Automation runs and API calls stop at the plan's limit

Try it with one prompt

Fabricate builds this as one app: an orders table in the app's own database, a staff view with every order, a customer view with only their own, the status steps, and a screen that imports the orders you download from Airtable.

Change any word first

Build free. No card needed.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best free Airtable alternative?
For a spreadsheet-database, Baserow, NocoDB and Grist each have a free cloud plan and a free edition you run yourself: Baserow's cloud Free holds 3,000 rows a workspace, NocoDB's 1,000 records and Grist's 5,000 records a document. Fabricate's Free plan builds and previews an app, with no card needed; publishing is on Pro and Max.
Is there an open-source Airtable alternative?
Yes. Grist's Community edition is open source under the Apache 2.0 license, and Baserow's features outside Premium are under the MIT License; both run free on your own server. NocoDB's self-hosted Community edition is free too, under its Sustainable Use License, which NocoDB calls fair-code.
Can I import my Airtable base into another tool?
Baserow imports a base from its share link: tables, records, field types, links between tables, attachments and grid views, but not automations, interfaces or comments. NocoDB imports from a shared base or view link, with a personal access token for a shared base's records, and leaves formula fields behind. Grist copies a whole base with its attachments, but not views, interfaces or forms. For Fabricate, download each table as CSV and ask for an import screen.
How do I export my data from Airtable?
In a grid view, click the down arrow beside the view's name and choose Download CSV. It works in Airtable's web and desktop apps, and to get every record in a table, export a view with no filters.
What happens when I hit Airtable's record limit?
Airtable's pricing page says you can still use your bases and it never removes your data, but you cannot add more records or attachments until you upgrade; automation runs and API calls stop at the plan's limit. The free plan holds 1,000 records a base, Team 50,000 and Business 125,000.
Can Fabricate replace Airtable?
For a base that runs a process, such as orders, bookings or approvals, yes: Fabricate builds it as a web app with its own database, sign-in and roles, and you bring the records over as CSV. For a shared table your team edits freely, a spreadsheet-database such as Baserow, NocoDB or Grist is the closer fit.
How much does Airtable cost compared with Fabricate?
Airtable Team is $24 a seat a month billed monthly, or $20 billed yearly, so five editors pay $120 a month; Business is $54 a seat billed monthly. Fabricate Pro is $25 a month for the plan, with 3 team seats, and the people who sign in to your app are not billed.

Sources

The pages this guide quotes, each with the day it was read.

  1. airtable.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  2. Airtable help: getting started with views (opens in a new tab), checked
  3. baserow.io/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  4. Baserow docs: import from Airtable (opens in a new tab), checked
  5. Baserow on GitHub (opens in a new tab), checked
  6. nocodb.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  7. NocoDB docs: import from Airtable (opens in a new tab), checked
  8. NocoDB on GitHub (opens in a new tab), checked
  9. getgrist.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  10. Grist help: importing data (opens in a new tab), checked
  11. Grist on GitHub (opens in a new tab), checked
  12. Softr: Airtable integration (opens in a new tab), checked
  13. softr.io/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  14. notion.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  15. Microsoft Lists (opens in a new tab), checked
  16. fabricate.build/pricing, from our live plans

About this guide

Written by the Fabricate team. Fabricate is our product, so it is first on this page and marked "We make this". Where a reason to switch fits another tool better, the reason says which.

Each tool's card lists the pages we read about it and the day we read them. We compared the tools from their own pricing pages and documentation, not by signing up for them. Spotted something out of date? Write to info@fabricate.build.

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