Baserow, NocoDB, and Grist are free Airtable alternatives to consider for a shared business database. Baserow offers a hosted workspace with a larger row allowance than NocoDB’s free cloud plan. NocoDB separates its small hosted plan from a self-hosted Community edition. Grist is a candidate when your work involves related tables, calculations, and rules about which records people can see.
The comparison below uses official documentation checked October 14, 2026. It covers ongoing free plans and self-hosted editions, rather than counting a temporary trial as free software. These are documented capabilities, not results from hands-on testing. Permute publishes this article and sells connected business data and custom applications; it is discussed separately from the free shortlist.
Keep Airtable if the existing relationships and access controls work and the proposed saving does not cover rebuilding them. If you are deciding between paid tools instead, the Airtable vs Smartsheet comparison prices the same ten editing users and follows one project through both products.
Start with the records and access that must move
Open the base you would replace and follow one record through its linked tables, formulas, attachments, and automations. A vendor directory is a different migration from a purchasing app that uses that directory to route requests. Write down who edits each table and who should only see an assigned subset. A successful import does not establish that those relationships or restrictions survived.
Count records across the scope the vendor bills or limits. A workspace allowance and a per-document allowance are different measures. Include the rows you retain for history, then check attachment storage and API usage separately. If another application polls the database, a small record count can still generate substantial API traffic.
If the base mainly tracks task owners and due dates, evaluate whether you need linked database tables at all. The free Smartsheet alternatives comparison covers spreadsheet and task-based options for that narrower job.
Three free plans and their published limits
| Tool | Free hosted allowance | Reason to evaluate | Check before moving |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baserow | 3,000 rows and 2 GB per workspace | A shared database with grid, form, and gallery views | Paid tier for role-based permissions and audit logs |
| NocoDB | 3 editors, 1,000 records, and 1 GB storage | A small cloud database or separately evaluated self-hosting | Cloud API limits and the edition needed for external databases |
| Grist | 5,000 records per document and 10 team members | Related tables with calculation and access-rule requirements | Guest allowances, attachment limits, and API capacity |
Baserow for a shared operational database
Baserow’s pricing page lists grid, form, and gallery views on Free, with 14 days of row change history. Its Advanced plan lists role-based permissions and audit logs. The distinction matters if the same workspace would hold both a public-facing intake form and internal supplier information.
Try a vendor directory with separate tables for companies and contacts. Import a sample containing two contacts at one company, then correct the company name and inspect every linked reference. Afterward, ask a colleague to submit a form and check what they can read. Keep any sensitive fields out of the evaluation until the intended sharing arrangement has been verified.
NocoDB for a small cloud workspace or self-hosting
NocoDB’s published cloud Free plan includes 10 commenter seats, 100 automation runs, and 1,000 API calls per month alongside its editor and record limits. The same page lists a separate free, self-deployed Community edition. Cloud external database connections belong to Business or above; do not assume the free cloud plan connects to an existing production database.
Choose the deployment before designing the move. For the cloud plan, estimate calls from the actual integration schedule and confirm who needs editing access. For self-hosting, assign responsibility for installation, updates, backups, and recovery. A database that only one person knows how to restore is a weak place to keep records the office needs every day.
Grist for calculations and record-level sharing
Grist’s free hosted plan includes unlimited documents, with the record allowance applied across all tables in each document. It lists 30 days of snapshot history and two guests per document. Grist’s access-rule documentation describes rules for tables, columns, and records, which makes it a useful candidate when a shared spreadsheet needs more selective access.
Test a calculation against a result you already know, including a blank value and a corrected entry. Then log in as each intended reader. A filtered page can look private to its designer without proving that the underlying records are protected. Include exports and linked tables in that access check, and retain the test cases so you can repeat them after changing a rule.
Rebuild one workflow before exporting everything
Consider a hypothetical supplier base with company records, contacts, and open requests. Keep the original supplier ID in the trial import. Link requests using that ID rather than the displayed company name, since two suppliers might share a name and one supplier might appear under several spellings. Leave ambiguous matches unresolved until someone who owns the records checks them.
- Relationships: does a request still point to the right supplier after its display name changes?
- Files: can a reader open an attachment after access to the original base is removed?
- Calculations: does a blank date remain unknown rather than becoming a misleading deadline?
- Access: can a guest export or follow a link to records that were supposed to be hidden?
- Exit: can you export IDs and relationships in a form another application can reconstruct?
Keep a copy of the original exports and record which formulas, views, and automations were rebuilt. Agree on when editing stops in the old base and how late changes reach the new one. The ERP migration article covers mapping and validation in a larger system move; the same ownership questions apply to a smaller database.
Where Permute fits with a shared database
Permute sells connected business data and custom applications. We help scope work that combines supported sources and supplied records, including the rules for deciding when different supplier references mean the same company. A database migration may expose those disagreements without resolving them.
Your team defines which source owns each field and what an open request means. Those rules can support a recurring report or custom app with source evidence and access controls. An operations manager can review unmatched supplier records before using the combined data. The enterprise app development article explains the broader application decision.
Explore the records behind one workflow
Start with an available source and inspect the fields and evidence a shared report would need.
What this comparison does not establish
Permute is a separate commercial option, not one of the free Airtable replacements listed above. The example does not promise a native connector to every tool listed, automatic migration of an Airtable app, or writes back to its source. Confirm extraction, hosting, permissions, and operating costs for the proposed scope. Review how Permute handles data before supplying sensitive records.
Choose with a working sample
Baserow, NocoDB, and Grist give you different ways to start without a software subscription. Compare the free edition you will use against the records, collaborators, and access rules your workflow needs. Move a representative sample and check its relationships before committing the full base. Keep the migration reversible until the people using it can retrieve their records and explain the results.
Discuss a database move with connected reporting
Bring one workflow, its source tables, and the access requirements your replacement must preserve.
Questions about moving an Airtable database
Will a CSV export preserve the whole Airtable app?
Treat a CSV as a table of values. Inventory linked records, formulas, files, automations, and interfaces separately, then verify how each will be transferred or rebuilt. Keep the old base available until the replacement passes those checks.
Does self-hosting mean the workflow costs nothing?
It can remove a software subscription for the eligible edition, but someone still operates the server and handles updates, recovery, and support. Include that work in the decision and check the edition’s license and paid features before installing it.
Should I split a database to stay below a free limit?
Only if the separated records can be maintained without breaking the workflow. Splitting requests from suppliers may create duplicate updates or manual joins. Compare that ongoing work with the cost of a plan that keeps the relationships together.
When should I keep the existing Airtable setup?
Keep it in the comparison if it already supports the required workflow and the replacement would require extensive rebuilding. Price the migration work alongside the subscription difference. A free plan is useful when its limits fit the job after the trial import, not just before it.