Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. The largest vendors in no-code database software
cannot hold places 1 to 3. Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category,
wherever the category has them; the established names follow from place 4 in their ranked order. How it works: placement disclosure ·
editorial process.
The 12 tools, reviewed
#1 SeaTable
Spreadsheet-style database from Germany with an on-premises edition · Germany · seatable.com
european self-hostable spreadsheet-style
SeaTable earns first place because the arithmetic is kind to a small team. The free plan admits up to 25 users, the paid tiers are priced in euros without a sales call, and the same product can be installed on your own server when a client or regulator wants data kept in-house.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Free for up to 25 users and 10,000 rows. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: European teams replacing spreadsheets
- Strengths: Grid, kanban, gallery and calendar views; Linked records; Forms.
Where it falls short
The interface designer is less polished than Airtable's, and the template library is smaller. Row caps per team and per base bite sooner than the free-plan headline suggests: 10,000 rows free, 50,000 on Plus.
Wrong for
A buyer who needs customer-facing portals with custom branding and pixel-level layout control.
Visit SeaTable →
#2 Baserow
Open-source no-code database from Amsterdam · Netherlands · baserow.io
open-source dutch self-hostable
Baserow gets second place for a simple reason: the data does not depend on one company's goodwill. The code is open source, the cloud product is run from the Netherlands, and the self-hosted route is a normal purchase rather than an afterthought.
- Pricing: Open source + paid tiers. Free with 3,000 rows per workspace. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Teams wanting open source and migration help
- Strengths: Grid, form and gallery views; Kanban and calendar views; Automations.
Where it falls short
The free plan stops at 3,000 rows per workspace, which most real projects pass quickly. The ecosystem of templates and integrations is thinner than Airtable's, and the advanced interface options sit on higher tiers.
Wrong for
A non-technical team that wants ready-made vertical templates and polished dashboards out of the box.
Visit Baserow →
#3 SmartSuite
Connected work platform with governance-style templates · United States · smartsuite.com
workflow grc-templates per-seat
SmartSuite ranks third because it behaves like a database but ships answers for processes. Its own pages list solutions for compliance, IT service requests, projects, procurement and legal intake, so a team can start from a pattern instead of a blank grid.
- Pricing: Per seat / month. Team is $15 per seat per month billed annually ($20 monthly, minimum 3 users) and Professional $32 ($36 monthly, minimum 5 users). Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Process-heavy teams outgrowing Airtable
- Strengths: Solutions with linked records; Automations; SmartSuite AI.
Where it falls short
Record limits apply per solution: 5,000 on Team and 100,000 on Professional. Minimum seat counts (three and five) raise the entry cost for tiny teams.
Wrong for
A solo user or two-person shop that only needs a lightweight tracker.
Visit SmartSuite →
#4 Airtable
The reference spreadsheet-database hybrid · United States · airtable.com
incumbent interfaces templates
Airtable defined the category, and the product still shows it. Linking tables, switching a sheet between grid, board and calendar, and building an interface for people who should not see the raw base all feel finished.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Free plan; Team is $20 per user per month billed annually, Business $45, and Enterprise Scale is quoted by sales. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Teams wanting polished interfaces
- Strengths: Grid, kanban, calendar and gallery views; Interface Designer; Automations.
Where it falls short
Every editor is a paid seat, and record limits per base on lower tiers push growing teams toward Business. Pricing has changed several times over the years, and the AI features sit behind plan limits.
Wrong for
A team that needs unlimited record volume on a flat price, or data kept on its own servers.
Visit Airtable →
#5 NocoDB
Self-hostable Airtable-style layer over your own database · United States · nocodb.com
fair-code unlimited-seats self-hostable
NocoDB sits fifth because its pricing logic is different. Plus offers either $12 per seat on annual billing or a flat $108 per month with unlimited free commenter seats after nine paid users, which suits a company with a large audience of casual readers. It can also be pointed at an existing database, so spreadsheet-style views sit over data you already own.
- Pricing: Open source + paid tiers. Free for up to 3 users and 1,000 records. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Developers and cost-conscious teams
- Strengths: Grid, form, kanban and gallery views; Connect to existing databases; Automations.
Where it falls short
The company is a US entity with a small public footprint, and the cloud free plan is limited to 1,000 records. Polish and template depth trail Airtable.
Wrong for
A business team without anyone who can manage a server or database, wanting ready-made process templates.
Visit NocoDB →
#6 Ragic
Form-driven database builder for back-office records · United States · ragic.com
forms back-office on-premises
Ragic is the odd one in this list, and in a good way for the right buyer. You build a database by laying out a form, which mirrors how clerks, warehouses and service desks already work, then view the same data as a sheet, calendar or report.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Free with 3 custom sheets of 1,000 records each. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Back-office teams that think in forms
- Strengths: Form-style data entry; Sheet and report views; Linked sheets.
Where it falls short
The interface looks dated beside Airtable and SmartSuite, and the form-first model takes some getting used to. Free use is limited to three sheets. Modern board-style collaboration, comment threads and slick dashboards are not its strength.
Wrong for
A design-led team that wants a polished app or board interface for clients.
Visit Ragic →
#7 Stackby
Spreadsheet-database hybrid with connected API columns · India · stackby.com
low-cost api-columns spreadsheets
Stackby is the budget option with a twist: columns can pull live data from services through APIs, so a marketing sheet can refresh itself without a script. The free plan allows five editors and fifty read-only guests, and the Economy tier is cheap enough for a three-person team to try. For lightweight trackers, content calendars and simple CRMs it is perfectly adequate.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Free for up to 5 users. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Small teams pulling in live data
- Strengths: Grid, kanban, calendar and form views; API-connected columns; Rollups and lookups.
Where it falls short
Row limits are low (1,500 per stack on Free, 7,000 on Economy), interface building is basic, and the vendor discloses little about its company or addresses.
Wrong for
A company with a large data estate or strict procurement checks on vendor identity and hosting.
Visit Stackby →
#8 Knack
Database plus web-app builder priced by records · United States · knack.com
portals record-based unlimited-users
Knack takes a different approach to money and to the product. Pricing is a flat monthly tier by record count, with unlimited users, tables, fields and pages, so a directory or client portal that thousands of people log in to does not multiply the bill. The builder is closer to a web-app designer than a spreadsheet, with pages, forms and login roles.
- Pricing: Flat monthly. Starter is $59 per month ($49 annual) with 20,000 records, Pro $130 with 50,000, Corporate from $300. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Portals with many external users
- Strengths: Online database; Page and portal designer; Unlimited users and roles.
Where it falls short
Record limits are strict: 20,000 on Starter and 50,000 on Pro, which small data-heavy projects pass fast. Branding removal, custom domains and payments need Pro. The grid-style editing experience is weaker than in spreadsheet-like rivals.
Wrong for
A team that mostly wants a collaborative spreadsheet with comments and boards for itself.
Visit Knack →
#9 Quickbase
Operations app platform for complex projects and compliance · United States · quickbase.com
operations enterprise projects
Quickbase aims at departments in construction, manufacturing and government that manage projects, field work and compliance records. It has audit logs, a sandbox, single sign-on and compliance options for regulated work on the Business plan, which small-team tools rarely offer.
- Pricing: Per user / month. A 30-day free trial includes all Business plan features. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Operations teams running complex projects
- Strengths: Dashboards and 13+ report types; Workflow automation; Audit logs.
Where it falls short
The platform minimum makes small deployments expensive. The product is built around governed applications, so quick personal trackers feel over-engineered. The 'Pave' app-building brand and the older Quickbase interface overlap, which can confuse new buyers.
Wrong for
A team of under ten people that needs a simple tracker this week.
Visit Quickbase →
#10 Kintone
One-plan no-code platform from Cybozu · Japan · kintone.com
japan single-plan process
Kintone's pitch is simplicity in packaging: one plan, every feature, $24 per user per month, with a five-user minimum that works out to $120 per month. Applications are built from spreadsheets or templates, and process management and collaboration spaces sit beside the database rather than behind an upsell. A 30-day trial is offered.
- Pricing: Per user / month. One plan with all features at $24 per user per month, minimum five users ($120 per month); a 30-day free trial is available. Free plan: free trial.
- Best for: Teams wanting one all-in plan
- Strengths: No-code application building; Process management; Spreadsheet conversion.
Where it falls short
Western documentation and partner coverage are thinner than for US rivals. The single plan has no free tier, and the flat per-user price runs above SeaTable, Baserow and Ragic. Users who only view data still count as seats.
Wrong for
A team wanting a free plan, a self-hosted deployment or record-count pricing with unlimited users.
Visit Kintone →
#11 Notion
Docs and databases in one workspace · United States · notion.com
docs-plus-databases wiki views
Notion is the right answer when the database is only part of the job. Tables with board, calendar and gallery views, relations and rollups live next to meeting notes, specs and wikis, and the workspace is free to start. Plus costs €9.50 per member per month on the euro page.
- Pricing: Per user / month. Free plan. Free plan: free plan.
- Best for: Teams mixing notes with light tables
- Strengths: Databases with table, board, calendar and gallery views; Relations and rollups; Formulas.
Where it falls short
Large databases slow down, relational modeling is looser than in true database tools, and automation and permission controls per field are limited. There is no self-hosted edition, and external-facing portals are not a native strength.
Wrong for
A team building operational apps with heavy automation, portals or hundreds of thousands of records.
Visit Notion →
#12 Microsoft Lists
List tracker bundled with Microsoft 365 · United States · microsoft.com
microsoft-365 lists bundled
Microsoft Lists is last on the page, and the reason is scope rather than quality. It gives a Microsoft 365 customer a tracker for issues, assets, onboarding steps or event plans, with several views, templates and rules, using the sign-in and permissions already in place. There is no separate vendor to buy from, which is its real advantage.
- Pricing: Bundled with Microsoft 365. Included with Microsoft 365 subscriptions rather than sold separately; check your own licence for limits and Power Platform add-ons. Free plan: none.
- Best for: Microsoft 365 shops needing simple trackers
- Strengths: Grid, calendar, gallery and board views; Templates; Forms.
Where it falls short
Relational modeling is shallower than in dedicated database tools, and interface building is limited. Anything more advanced pulls in Power Automate or Power Apps, which carry their own licensing and learning curve.
Wrong for
A company outside the Microsoft ecosystem, or a team that needs customer portals and a rich app builder.
Visit Microsoft Lists →
Questions and answers
What is the best no-code database software in 2026?
SeaTable ranks first of 12, best for european teams replacing spreadsheets. Baserow is second (teams wanting open source and migration help) and SmartSuite third (process-heavy teams outgrowing Airtable). Places 1 to 3 go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands, wherever the category has them.
What is the difference between a no-code database and a spreadsheet?
A spreadsheet stores values in cells, while a no-code database stores typed records in tables that link to each other.
Which no-code database has a genuinely usable free plan?
SeaTable allows up to 25 users and 10,000 rows on its free plan, which is the most generous team limit on this list. Baserow's free plan offers 3,000 rows per workspace, Airtable and NocoDB keep their free tiers small, and Ragic gives three custom sheets with 1,000 records each.
Can I self-host a no-code database?
Yes. Baserow and NocoDB publish self-hostable editions, and SeaTable sells an on-premises server edition with a free tier for three users. Self-hosting gives you control over location and backups, and it removes per-seat charges on the open-source tiers.
Is Airtable still the right default?
It is still the product most people compare against, with a free plan, a Team plan at $20 per user per month on annual billing and a Business plan at $45.
How do I compare pricing when vendors count different things?
Convert every quote into the same scenario: rows after two years, editors, read-only users, outside portal users and automation runs per month.
When is a no-code database the wrong tool?
Avoid it when a single table passes several hundred thousand rows, when transactions must be atomic, or when the application needs heavy custom logic.
What happens to my automations and views if I switch tools?
Tables export as CSV, but automations, formulas, interface designs and permission rules do not travel. You rebuild them in the new product, so the switching cost scales with how much logic you added.
Which tools are best for approvals and audit-style workflows?
SmartSuite and Quickbase are the two on this list most clearly aimed at structured business processes. SmartSuite ships solution templates for governance, IT requests and project work, with record limits per solution.
Do I need a no-code database if I already use Microsoft 365?
Maybe not. Microsoft Lists gives you tracker-style tables with views, forms and rules inside the subscription you already pay for, and it inherits your existing sign-in and permissions.
How long does it take to move off spreadsheets?
For a single sheet, import takes minutes and a working base with a form and one automation takes an afternoon.
