Supabase
FreemiumThe Postgres development platform.
Published 29 May 2026 · Last updated 27 September 2026
Scores
Popularity4/5
One of the most popular open-source BaaS platforms; rapidly growing developer community.
Learning Curve3/5
SQL and REST are familiar; realtime subscriptions and RLS policies need dedicated study.
Flexibility4/5
PostgreSQL underneath supports any SQL; the Supabase client SDK nudges toward specific patterns.
Performance4/5
PostgreSQL query performance is solid; edge functions are fast; realtime runs via Postgres LISTEN/NOTIFY.
Portability3/5
PostgreSQL underneath is open, but the Supabase SDK and realtime layer create meaningful lock-in.
About Supabase
Supabase is an open-source Backend-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform built on top of PostgreSQL. It gives developers a dedicated Postgres database along with auto-generated REST and GraphQL APIs, built-in authentication (OAuth providers, magic links, SSO), real-time subscriptions via websockets, S3-compatible file storage with a CDN, and serverless Edge Functions, all secured with Postgres Row Level Security (RLS).
Because the database is plain Postgres, Supabase inherits ACID transactions, the pgvector extension for AI embeddings, and the wider Postgres extension ecosystem, and a project's data can be dumped and moved with standard Postgres tools. The Supabase CLI runs the full stack locally in Docker and manages schema changes as migrations, and branching can create separate preview databases for pull requests.
The platform is open source (Apache-2.0) and can be self-hosted with Docker. The managed Supabase Cloud handles infrastructure, scaling, and backups, with a free tier for small projects and paid plans billed as a monthly base fee plus usage. It is often chosen as an open-source alternative to Firebase by teams that prefer a relational database and SQL over a document store.
Key Features
- Dedicated PostgreSQL database per project
- Auto-generated REST and GraphQL APIs
- Built-in authentication (OAuth, magic links, SSO, MFA)
- Real-time subscriptions via websockets
- S3-compatible file storage with CDN
- Serverless Edge Functions (Deno runtime)
- Row Level Security (RLS) for fine-grained access control
- pgvector support for AI/vector embeddings
Pros
- Generous free tier suitable for small projects and prototyping
- Built on battle-tested PostgreSQL with full SQL support
- Open source and self-hostable — no vendor lock-in
- Predictable, flat-rate pricing (vs Firebase's operation-based billing)
- Excellent developer experience with good SDKs and dashboard
- Active community and frequent releases
Cons
- Free projects pause after 1 week of inactivity
- Requires SQL knowledge — not beginner-friendly compared to Firebase
- Can slow down with very large datasets or heavy real-time workloads
- No built-in analytics dashboard or native queue system
- Auth and storage systems feel less mature than core database features
- Unexpected compute charges reported at scale
Supabase Pricing
Freemium- · 500 MB database storage
- · 1 GB file storage
- · 50,000 monthly active users (MAUs)
- · 5 GB database egress
- · 8 GB disk per project included
- · 100 GB file storage included
- · 100,000 MAUs included
- · 250 GB egress included
- · Everything in Pro
- · SSO for the Supabase dashboard
- · SOC 2 Type II reports
- · 14-day backups
- · Everything in Team
- · HIPAA compliance
- · Private VPC deployment
- · Bring Your Own Cloud (BYO cloud)
Tech Stacks with Supabase
Supabase + Next.js
ProjectThe fastest way to launch a modern web app. Next.js handles the frontend and API routes; Supabase provides Postgres, auth, realtime, and storage out of the box.
React Native + Supabase
ProjectCross-platform mobile app built with Expo's managed workflow and backed by Supabase. Ships to iOS and Android from a single JavaScript codebase.
Browser Extension Starter
ProjectA beginner-friendly stack for building cross-browser extensions. WXT handles the Manifest V3 boilerplate and cross-browser packaging; a component framework (React by default, with Vue.js and Svelte also available) and TypeScript provide a familiar UI layer; Supabase adds cloud storage and auth if the extension needs a backend.
Learning Resources
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Tools Related to Supabase
Works well with Supabase(6)
Supabase + React is a popular full-stack combo — the @supabase/supabase-js client integrates naturally with React hooks for real-time subscriptions, auth state, and data fetching.
Supabase and SvelteKit are a natural full-stack pairing — Supabase provides database, auth, and real-time features while SvelteKit handles the Svelte SSR layer. Supabase ships a JavaScript client used directly in SvelteKit load functions.
Supabase works with Expo via the @supabase/supabase-js client — provides Postgres, auth, and storage for React Native apps built with Expo.
Supabase is a growing backend choice for Bolt-generated apps — Supabase handles database and auth while Bolt scaffolds the React frontend.
Supabase can serve as an external database and auth layer for Adalo-built mobile apps when the built-in Collections database is insufficient — accessed through Adalo's REST API Custom Actions feature on Professional and Team plans.
Supabase Edge Functions commonly call Resend's API to send transactional email, with official setup guides published by both Resend and Supabase.
Integrates with Supabase(6)
Supabase + Next.js is one of the most popular full-stack combos in the modern web stack — Supabase provides database, auth, and storage as backend; Next.js handles the UI and SSR.
Supabase is a popular backend for Flutter apps — supabase-flutter package provides Postgres queries, realtime subscriptions, storage, and auth for mobile apps.
Supabase is the primary backend and auth integration for Rork-generated mobile apps, connectable via one-click setup within the Rork platform.
FlutterFlow added Supabase as a native backend option for database, auth, and storage.
Supabase Auth (GoTrue) is Supabase's first-party auth service, included in every Supabase project and tied into Postgres Row Level Security policies. It is also open source and self-hostable on its own, so it can back other Postgres-based stacks.
Supabase Edge Functions handle Stripe webhooks — the standard pattern for Stripe + Supabase billing.
Tools that enforce Supabase(1)
Lovable AI scaffolds projects with Supabase as the default backend — Supabase handles auth, database, and storage while Lovable generates the React frontend; the two are tightly coupled in the Lovable stack.
Alternatives to Supabase(11)
Express is a Node.js framework; Supabase is a managed Postgres BaaS — build-your-own vs managed.
FastAPI is a Python framework; Supabase is a managed Postgres BaaS — build-your-own vs managed.
Django is a Python backend framework; Supabase is a managed Postgres BaaS — build-your-own vs managed.
Axum is a custom Rust server framework; Supabase is a managed Postgres BaaS — build-your-own vs managed.
NestJS is a custom Node.js backend framework; Supabase is a managed Postgres BaaS — build-your-own vs managed.
Most direct BaaS alternatives; Supabase is open-source and Postgres-based, Firebase is Google's proprietary real-time NoSQL platform.
Vendor
Supabase
Website →Tags
Details
- Maintained
- Yes
- DB model
- Relational
- Query language
- SQL
- Hosting
- Cloud & Self-hosted
- ACID compliant
- Yes
- Replication
- Yes
- GitHub stars
- 111k
- Stars updated
- 2026-09-23