AlternativesUpdated

Best Knack Alternatives in 2026

Knack builds online databases, portals and internal tools, priced by records rather than users: Starter is $59 a month for 20,000 records and 3 apps, at the regular monthly price. If you need more records for less, an app built from a description, or its code, here are six alternatives.

By the Fabricate teamWe make Fabricate5 min readPrices checked
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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

  • Knack prices by records, not users: Starter is $59 a month for 20,000 records and 3 apps at the regular price.
  • Softr and Glide build portals and team apps; Airtable suits teams in the records; Quickbase large operations teams; AppSheet Google Workspace teams.
  • Fabricate builds the app from a description, with its own database, and gives you the code on Pro and Max. Building and previewing are free; publishing is on Pro and Max.

Why Are People Looking for Knack Alternatives?

  • Priced by Records

    Starter holds 20,000 records and Pro 50,000; Corporate starts at $300 a month for more.

  • The Regular Price After an Offer

    The page showed 66% off the first 3 months for new customers; after that Starter is $59 a month and Pro $130, billed monthly.

  • Three Apps on Starter

    Starter allows 3 apps and 1 shared builder; more apps start on Pro.

  • No Code to Take With You

    Knack hosts the apps it builds and describes them as applications, not source code. Fabricate gives you the code on Pro and Max.

    Fits: Fabricate

Compare at a glance

Fabricate beside Knack, feature by feature.

  • Builds From a Description
    Fabricate
    Yes
    Knack
    AI app building and a no-code editor
  • People Who Sign In
    Fabricate
    Not counted
    Knack
    Not counted
  • Records
    Fabricate
    The app's own SQLite database
    Knack
    20,000 on Starter, 50,000 on Pro
  • The Code
    Fabricate
    On Pro and Max
    Knack
    Hosted by Knack
  • Paid Plans From
    Fabricate
    $25 a month
    Knack
    $59 a month
Number 1

Fabricate

We make this

Best for: Apps people sign in to, not priced per user

Builds a web app from a description, for your team or your customers: the screens, the app's own SQLite database, sign-in and the server code. The people who sign in to a published app are not counted as users or seats. Building and previewing are free; publishing is on Pro and Max.

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

  • Apps for customers or staff
  • The app's own database
  • 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

How to Move a Knack App to Fabricate

  1. 1

    Export your tables

    Save each table from Knack as a CSV file, and list the screens, roles and rules the app has.

  2. 2

    Describe the app

    The screens, who signs in, who can see and change what, and the steps each record goes through.

  3. 3

    Ask for an import page

    Ask for a page, behind your own sign-in, that adds the rows of each CSV file to the app's own database.

  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.

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 Knack alternatives

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

  1. Number 2

    Softr

    Best for: Client portals and internal tools

    Builds client portals and internal tools from a description or in its editor, on Softr's own databases or on Airtable and Google Sheets. Free covers 5 app users; Basic is $25 a month for 10, and Pro $119 for 60, billed monthly.

    • Client portals
    • Its own database or Airtable
    • Workflows built in

    Where Softr beats Fabricate

    If the data should stay in Airtable or Google Sheets, a Softr app can sit on it directly, with workflows and user roles built in.

    From $25 a monthSoftr alternatives

    Sources: softr.io/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked ; Softr docs: AI Co-Builder (opens in a new tab), checked

  2. Number 3

    Airtable

    Best for: Teams that work in the records

    A database that looks like a spreadsheet, with interfaces, forms and automations on top. Free covers up to 5 editors and 1,000 records per base; Team is $24 per seat a month, billed monthly, and read-only collaborators are free.

    • Grids, boards and calendars
    • Interfaces and forms
    • Free read-only collaborators

    Where Airtable beats Fabricate

    If your team mostly works in the records themselves, sorting, filtering and editing in grids, Airtable is built for that, and read-only collaborators cost nothing.

    From $24 per seat a monthAirtable alternatives

    Sources: airtable.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked ; Airtable support: Airtable plans (opens in a new tab), checked

  3. Number 4

    Quickbase

    Best for: Operations teams with many users

    A platform for operations apps and workflows. Team starts at $35 per user a month and Business at $55, both priced yearly and before a platform minimum; a 30-day trial includes the Business features.

    • Operations workflows
    • Reports and dashboards
    • Security controls

    Where Quickbase beats Fabricate

    If a large operations team needs workflows, reports and security controls in one platform with sales support, Quickbase is built for that.

    From $35 per user a month, yearlyQuickbase alternatives

    Source: quickbase.com/plans-and-pricing (opens in a new tab), checked

  4. Number 5

    Glide

    Best for: Team apps from a spreadsheet

    Builds business apps for your team with an AI agent, from a prompt, a spreadsheet, a document or an image, on one database per project. The free plan builds but publishes no apps; Basic, at $25 a month, publishes 2.

    • Starts from a spreadsheet
    • An AI agent builds the app
    • Apps for your team

    Where Glide beats Fabricate

    If the app is for your own team and starts from a spreadsheet, Glide is built around that, and it shows a mockup on sample data to approve first.

    From $25 a monthGlide alternatives

    Sources: glideapps.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked ; Glide docs: what is GlideOS? (opens in a new tab), checked ; Glide docs: data (opens in a new tab), checked

  5. Number 6

    AppSheet

    Best for: Google Workspace teams

    Google's no-code platform for apps and automations over Google Sheets and other data. Starter is $5 per user a month, Core $10 and Enterprise Plus $20, and every person who signs in needs a license.

    • Google Workspace
    • Automations
    • Desktop and mobile

    Where AppSheet beats Fabricate

    If your team works in Google Sheets and Workspace, AppSheet turns those sheets into apps where the data already is.

    From $5 per user a monthAppSheet alternatives

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

Knack and its alternatives: a hosted database app, or an app with its own code

Knack builds database apps: tables, forms, portals and internal tools that many people sign in to, hosted by Knack. It does not count app users, which suits an app with many members, and prices by records, storage and apps instead.

Starter holds 20,000 records across 3 apps for $59 a month at the regular price. A larger database moves to Pro, at $130, or Corporate, from $300.

Softr and Glide build portals and team apps and count app users. Airtable is for teams that work in the records themselves. Quickbase suits large operations teams, and AppSheet teams on Google Workspace.

Fabricate builds the app you describe, with its own database and sign-in, and the people who sign in are not counted. On Pro and Max, see, edit and download the code, or send it to GitHub.

Frequently asked questions

How much does Knack cost?
At the regular price, Starter is $59 a month and Pro $130, billed monthly, or $49 and $110 a month billed yearly; Corporate starts at $300 a month. When we read the page it showed 66% off the first 3 months for new customers.
Does Knack charge per user?
No. App users are not counted on any plan; Knack prices by records, storage and apps instead.
Does Fabricate charge for each person who signs in?
No. The people who sign in to a published app are not counted as users, seats or licenses. Fabricate's plans price the credits that build the app and, on Pro and Max, the AI inside it; Pro is $25 a month.
Can I get the code of a Knack app?
Knack hosts the apps it builds, and its page describes them as applications, not source code. Fabricate writes each app as React and TypeScript. On Pro and Max, see, edit and download the code, or send it to GitHub.
Can I bring my data across?
Export your tables as CSV files, then ask Fabricate for an import page, behind your own sign-in, that adds the rows to the app's own database. Views, forms and rules are rebuilt from your description, not copied.

Sources

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

  1. knack.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  2. knack.com (opens in a new tab), checked
  3. softr.io/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  4. Softr docs: AI Co-Builder (opens in a new tab), checked
  5. airtable.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  6. Airtable support: Airtable plans (opens in a new tab), checked
  7. quickbase.com/plans-and-pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  8. glideapps.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  9. Glide docs: what is GlideOS? (opens in a new tab), checked
  10. Glide docs: data (opens in a new tab), checked
  11. about.appsheet.com/pricing (opens in a new tab), checked
  12. 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". Each tool, ours or not, says who it suits best.

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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