Baserow

An open-source, self-hostable database with a spreadsheet-like interface and AI fields that classify or summarise rows for you automatically.

Records & databases Apps

Checked 25 Sep 2026

Open baserow.io

What you'd use it for

Running a relational database with a spreadsheet-like interface while keeping the option to host the data yourself instead of on someone else's servers.

Build a relational database with grid, gallery, kanban, calendar and form views, no developer required
Add an AI field that classifies, summarises, extracts or drafts text from another field in the same row
Generate AI field values one row at a time or in bulk across the whole table
Self-host on your own server via Docker to remove the row, storage and automation-credit caps entirely
Import an existing Airtable base or spreadsheet to move over without re-entering data

The verdict

Baserow does the Airtable job — grid, form, gallery and kanban views over a relational database — without requiring the data to sit on someone else's servers. The AI field is a genuinely useful per-row tool for classification and summarisation, but it's gated behind the Premium plan and, if self-hosted, your own API key, so it isn't a reason to choose Baserow on its own. Free-tier row and automation-credit limits bite quickly on a real CRM, which pushes most hosted users to Premium within months. It suits a team with a real data-residency need or a taste for running its own infrastructure more than one chasing the biggest AI feature set.

What it costs

Tier	Price	For	Includes
Free	$0	A small team trying a first database before paying anything.	3,000 rows per workspace, 2GB storage, 2,000 automation credits, 500 external app users, grid/form/gallery views.
Premium	$10/user/month billed yearly, or $12/user/month billed monthly	A team that has outgrown the free row and storage limits.	50,000 rows per workspace, 20GB storage, 100,000 automation credits, all view types, AI features.
Advanced	$18/user/month billed yearly, or $22/user/month billed monthly	A team that needs to restrict who can see or edit what.	250,000 rows per workspace, 100GB storage, 500,000 automation credits, role-based permissions, audit logs.
Enterprise	Custom pricing, arranged with sales	Organisations that need to pay by invoice and get implementation help.	1,000,000 rows per workspace, 1TB storage, 2,000,000 automation credits, unlimited external app users, implementation support.

Read from Baserow's own pricing page on 25 Sep 2026. Vendors change prices without notice.

What you need to start

A free Baserow account to start, no credit card
A Premium plan or higher to use the AI field
Docker 19.03 or later if self-hosting
Your own API key from OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral or OpenRouter to use AI fields on a self-hosted instance

A few minutes to a free hosted account and a working table; self-hosting adds a single Docker command for a basic instance, with SSL and an external database extending that for a production setup.

Your first run Signing up on the hosted plan is free and needs no credit card; import a spreadsheet or start from a template and you have a working table with views running within minutes. Self-hosting instead means one Docker run command for a basic instance, with SSL and an external database adding more setup time.

Where it breaks

Cloud-hosted, or self-hosted via Docker — the self-host route is free of the row caps above, which is the main reason a data-sensitive team picks Baserow over a hosted-only competitor.

First entry in this reference. There is no previous check to compare it against.

When not to use it

Not for a team chasing the deepest AI features or the largest template and integration library — Airtable still has more of both. Not worth the trouble either if nobody on the team is willing to run and maintain a Docker container, since owning the infrastructure is the whole reason to pick Baserow over a hosted-only rival.

Baserow is the answer for a business that likes what Airtable does but doesn’t like where Airtable keeps the data. It’s open source, it can be self-hosted on your own server, and functionally it covers the same ground: grid, form, gallery and kanban views over a relational database that non-developers can actually use.

The AI layer is additive rather than central — you can add a field that classifies, summarises or extracts information from another field in the same row using a connected model, which is useful for tagging support tickets or categorising leads without writing a script. It’s not a conversational assistant sitting over your whole base; it operates one field at a time.

Pricing is per-user on the hosted plans, with row counts and storage that scale with the tier — 3,000 rows on Free will not survive a real CRM for long, and most small businesses land on Premium once they’re past the prototype stage. The number that actually matters for a growing team is automation credits, since those get consumed by any automated action (not just AI ones), and they run out faster than the row limit does.

The self-hosted option changes the calculus entirely: run it on your own infrastructure and the row and storage caps in the table above don’t apply, which is why a team with a genuine data-residency requirement will look at Baserow before Airtable or NocoDB. The honest trade is a smaller template and integration ecosystem than Airtable’s, in exchange for owning where the rows physically live.

Alternatives

Records & databasesApps

Airtable

A database that looks like a spreadsheet, with an API, forms, views and AI fields on top — the place most small businesses end up keeping the records an automation needs to read and write.

Checked 15 Sep 2026

Records & databasesApps

NocoDB

A spreadsheet-style interface laid over any database — your own Postgres, MySQL or a hosted table — so a non-technical team can view, filter and edit records without touching SQL.

Checked 25 Sep 2026