5 Best Airtable Alternatives in 2025
Last updated: February 2026 • 17 min read
Airtable is a popular tool for teams needing flexible database-style project tracking. While it offers a free tier (1,000 records per base), its paid plans start at $20/user/mo. Whether you're looking for a cheaper option, better features, or an open-source solution, we've compiled the 5 best Airtable alternatives to help you find the right fit.
📋 Quick Summary
- Total alternatives: 5
- Free alternatives: 5 (Smartsheet, Notion, Coda)
- Open-source options: NocoDB, Baserow
- Best overall: Smartsheet
- Best free: Smartsheet
Why Look for Airtable Alternatives?
People commonly look for Airtable alternatives for several reasons:
- Cost: While Airtable has a free tier, its paid plans starting at $20/user/mo can add up quickly for growing teams.
- Feature gaps: Expensive at scale and limited free records are common complaints.
- Simplicity: Some users find Airtable overly complex for their needs and prefer simpler solutions.
- Data ownership: Organizations wanting data sovereignty prefer open-source, self-hosted alternatives.
- Better fit: Different tools excel at different use cases — you may find a tool that's specifically built for your workflow.
📊 Quick Comparison Table
| Tool | Free Tier | Starting Price | Rating | Open Source | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airtable | ✓ 1,000 records per base | $20/user/mo | ⭐ 4.5 | No | Teams needing flexible database-style project tracking |
| Smartsheet | ✓ 1 user, 2 sheets | $9/user/mo | ⭐ 4.1 | No | Teams comfortable with spreadsheets |
| Notion | ✓ Personal use, unlimited blocks | $10/user/mo | ⭐ 4.5 | No | Teams and individuals wanting a flexible all-in-one workspace |
| Coda | ✓ Free for small teams | $10/user/mo | ⭐ 4.2 | No | Teams wanting flexible doc-database hybrid |
| NocoDB | ✓ Free (self-hosted) | Free | ⭐ 4.1 | ✓ Yes | Developers wanting an open-source Airtable |
| Baserow | ✓ Free (self-hosted/cloud) | $5/user/mo | ⭐ 4 | ✓ Yes | Teams wanting open-source no-code database |
Detailed Reviews of Each Alternative
Smartsheet
Platform for managing work through a spreadsheet-like interface.
Smartsheet brings spreadsheet-like familiarity to project management, making it popular with teams transitioning from Excel. It offers powerful automation, reporting, and resource management features while maintaining an interface that feels comfortable to spreadsheet users.
Pros
- ✓ Familiar spreadsheet UI
- ✓ Powerful automation
- ✓ Great for data-heavy projects
- ✓ Strong integrations
Cons
- ✗ Expensive for full features
- ✗ Can be slow
- ✗ Complex formula syntax
- ✗ Limited mobile app
Notion
All-in-one workspace for notes, docs, project management, and wikis.
Notion has become one of the most popular productivity tools by combining notes, databases, kanban boards, wikis, calendars, and reminders into a single flexible workspace. Its block-based editor and powerful database features make it incredibly versatile. Notion is used by individuals, startups, and enterprises alike for everything from personal notes to company-wide knowledge bases.
Pros
- ✓ Incredibly flexible
- ✓ Beautiful design
- ✓ Great free tier
- ✓ Powerful databases
- ✓ Active template community
Cons
- ✗ Slow with large databases
- ✗ Offline mode limited
- ✗ Complex for simple needs
- ✗ No built-in chat
Coda
All-in-one doc that brings words, data, and teams together.
Coda combines documents, spreadsheets, and applications into a single powerful tool. It allows teams to build custom workflows, databases, and automations without code. Coda's building-block approach makes it incredibly flexible for different use cases.
Pros
- ✓ Very flexible
- ✓ Powerful formulas
- ✓ Good integrations
- ✓ Free tier available
Cons
- ✗ Complex for simple needs
- ✗ Performance issues
- ✗ Learning curve
- ✗ Limited offline
NocoDB
Open-source Airtable alternative.
NocoDB turns any database into a smart spreadsheet, serving as an open-source alternative to Airtable. It connects to MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, SQLite, and MariaDB, providing a spreadsheet-like interface for database management. NocoDB can be self-hosted for complete data ownership.
Pros
- ✓ Open source
- ✓ Self-hostable
- ✓ Database-backed
- ✓ Free
Cons
- ✗ Less polished than Airtable
- ✗ Fewer templates
- ✗ Complex setup
- ✗ Limited support
Baserow
Open-source no-code database platform.
Baserow is an open-source no-code database platform that provides a user-friendly interface for creating and managing databases. Like Airtable, it allows non-technical users to create custom databases while offering the flexibility of self-hosting.
Pros
- ✓ Open source
- ✓ Self-hostable
- ✓ Good free plan
- ✓ Active development
Cons
- ✗ Fewer features
- ✗ Limited templates
- ✗ Smaller ecosystem
- ✗ Performance issues
🏆 Our Recommendations
Best Overall Alternative:
Smartsheet — Teams comfortable with spreadsheets
Best Free Alternative:
Smartsheet — 1 user, 2 sheets
Best Open-Source Alternative:
NocoDB — Developers wanting an open-source Airtable
❓ FAQ
What is the best free alternative to Airtable?
The best free alternative to Airtable is Smartsheet, which offers 1 user, 2 sheets.
Is there an open-source alternative to Airtable?
Yes! NocoDB, Baserow are open-source alternatives to Airtable that you can self-host for free.
What is the cheapest alternative to Airtable?
The cheapest alternatives are the free options: Smartsheet, Notion, Coda. For paid alternatives, prices start from as low as $5/mo.
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