Best backend-as-a-service platforms (2026)
Seven backend-as-a-service platforms compared for people building apps with AI tools: what each does well, what to watch, and what it costs according to its own pricing page.
Key Takeaways
- Supabase is the best all-round choice for most new web apps. Postgres, auth with many providers, storage, Edge Functions, cron and realtime, with a free plan and Pro from $25 a month. You host the frontend separately.
- Firebase is the strongest pick for mobile-first apps in Google’s ecosystem. Firestore’s realtime document database and Firebase Auth are generous on the free Spark plan; Cloud Functions need the pay-as-you-go Blaze plan.
- Floot fits people who want an AI agent to build and host the whole app. It is an app platform rather than a pure BaaS: Postgres, sign-in, endpoints, jobs, storage, email and hosting in one project, driven through one MCP server. Free to start; Pro is $25 a month.
- Convex, Appwrite, Nhost and PocketBase each suit a narrower need. Convex for reactive TypeScript apps, Appwrite for an open-source stack you can also self-host, Nhost for GraphQL, PocketBase for a single self-hosted file.
- Read the free-tier fine print. Supabase and Nhost pause free projects after a week of inactivity, and Appwrite freezes a free project that hits a resource limit until you upgrade or usage resets.
Quick-Start Prioritization Framework
| Rank | Platform | Best for | Database | Paid plans from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Supabase | Most new web apps | Postgres | $25/month (Pro) |
| 2 | Firebase | Mobile-first apps, Google ecosystem | Firestore (document); Postgres via Data Connect | Pay as you go (Blaze) |
| 3 | Floot | Having an AI agent build, host and publish the whole app | Postgres per app | $25/month (Pro) |
| 4 | Convex | Reactive TypeScript apps | Convex’s own document-relational store | $25 per developer/month |
| 5 | Appwrite | Open source, cloud or self-hosted | Appwrite Databases | $25/month (Pro, per project) |
| 6 | Nhost | GraphQL-first apps | Postgres (dedicated per project) | $25/month (Pro) |
| 7 | PocketBase | Small self-hosted apps | SQLite (embedded) | Free; you pay for the server |
A backend-as-a-service (BaaS) gives you a database, sign-in, file storage and server functions without running servers yourself. For anyone building with ChatGPT, Claude, Codex or Cursor, it is usually the fastest way to turn a frontend into a real app. The options differ a lot, though: in data model, in what is included, in how much the agent can set up for you, and in how the bill grows. We compared seven, using each product’s own documentation and pricing pages as of 2026-11-11. Supabase comes first for most readers; the others win for specific situations, and we say which.
How we ranked them
The ranking is for the reader this site is written for: someone building a web app, often with an AI coding agent, who wants a working backend quickly and a sensible path to production.
- Coverage: how many backend jobs come built in (database, auth, storage, functions, scheduled work, realtime, email).
- Data model: how well it fits typical app data such as users, orders and bookings.
- Agent-friendliness: documented MCP server or tooling, and how much setup an agent can do without you.
- Cost clarity: published free tier, entry price and what triggers extra charges.
- Exit path: how easily you can export data or self-host.
1. Supabase: best for most new web apps
Supabase is a Postgres database with a set of services around it: Auth, Storage, Realtime, Edge Functions, Cron, Queues, vector search and an auto-generated REST and GraphQL API. Its docs include guides for self-hosting.
What it does well
It is real Postgres, so you get SQL, joins, transactions and standard tools for exporting data. Auth covers passwords, magic links and one-time codes, phone sign-in, SAML single sign-on and a long list of social providers including Apple, Google, GitHub and Microsoft (Azure). The official MCP server at mcp.supabase.com/mcp lets an agent list tables, apply migrations, run SQL, read logs and deploy Edge Functions, and can be limited to one project in read-only mode.
What to watch
Because the browser can query the database directly, Row Level Security has to be enabled with correct policies on every exposed table; Supabase’s own docs say so plainly. Auth emails use a default SMTP service that only sends to your team’s addresses at 2 messages an hour, so production apps need their own SMTP provider. The web frontend is hosted elsewhere, such as Vercel or Netlify.
Price
Free: 500 MB database, 50,000 monthly active users, 1 GB storage, two active projects, paused after one week of inactivity. Pro from $25 a month, including $10 of compute credits, 8 GB disk per project and 100,000 MAU. Team from $599 a month.
2. Firebase: best for mobile-first apps in Google’s ecosystem
Firebase is Google’s app platform. Its core backend pieces are Cloud Firestore (a NoSQL document database), Authentication, Cloud Functions, Cloud Storage and Hosting, plus Data Connect, which provides Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL with a GraphQL layer.
What it does well
Realtime listeners and mature mobile SDKs make live, per-user data easy. The Spark plan needs no card and includes 50,000 monthly active users for Authentication, 1 GiB of Firestore storage, 50,000 reads and 20,000 writes per day, and 10 GB of hosting storage. Firebase’s MCP server (run with npx -y firebase-tools@latest mcp) covers Firestore, Auth, Security Rules, Data Connect and deploys.
What to watch
Firestore bills per document read, including a minimum of one read per query and reads for live listener updates, so busy screens add up. Security Rules are not filters: queries must match the rules or they are rejected. Firebase’s pricing table lists Cloud Functions and Cloud Storage as not applicable on Spark, so most real apps move to Blaze.
Price
Spark: free, no payment method. Blaze: pay as you go, with the same no-cost quotas and Google Cloud rates above them; Cloud Functions includes 2 million invocations a month free, then $0.40 per million. Eligible new accounts can get $300 in credit.
3. Floot: best for having an AI agent build and host the whole app
Floot is not a classic BaaS that you wire to your own frontend. It builds and hosts full-stack web apps (a React frontend, serverless endpoints and Postgres) from plain-English descriptions, either in Floot’s editor or from ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, Codex and Cursor through Floot’s MCP server. We include it because, for people who want the agent to handle the backend end to end, it replaces the BaaS plus a separate host.
What it does well
One project includes a Postgres database per app, sign-up and login by email, Google or Microsoft with roles, file storage, sending and receiving email, web and phone push, scheduled jobs and background tasks, realtime, custom domains and hosting. Floot Payments adds checkout and subscriptions, paid out via Stripe. Native iOS and Android apps can be built and submitted by Floot. End users of your app don’t need a ChatGPT or Claude account.
What to watch
Your app is written in Floot’s structure of pages, components and endpoints, so moving an existing codebase in means some rewriting. Code download is on paid plans only; database download is on every plan. Hosting is metered by usage beyond the included allowance.
Price
Free: $0, 100 building actions a day, a $3 one-time hosting allowance, 2 mobile builds a month. Pro: $25 a month, 1,000 actions a day, $10 of hosting a month, 5,000 AI credits, custom domains with one free domain. Power: $100 a month, 5,000 actions a day, $25 of hosting, 15,000 AI credits. Publishing is free on every plan, and there is no per-seat charge for your app’s users.
4. Convex: best for reactive TypeScript apps
Convex describes itself as an open-source reactive database where queries are TypeScript functions that run in the database and re-run automatically when the data they read changes.
What it does well
Live updates are the default: clients subscribe over WebSockets and the UI refreshes when data changes. Mutations are transactions, actions can call outside APIs such as AI models or email, and scheduled functions and cron jobs are built in. Everything is TypeScript, which suits React developers and coding agents working in one language.
What to watch
Its own sign-in library, Convex Auth, is labelled beta; its docs also cover Clerk, Auth0, WorkOS AuthKit and any OpenID Connect provider. Its data and query model is Convex’s own rather than SQL, so skills and data don’t move as directly to other platforms as Postgres does. Pricing on the paid plan is per developer.
Price
Free and Starter: $0 for 1 to 6 developers, with 1 million function calls and 0.5 GB of database storage, then pay as you go ($2.20 per extra million calls, $0.22 per GB). Professional: $25 per developer a month, with 25 million calls and 50 GB included.
5. Appwrite: best open-source option with a cloud version
Appwrite is an open-source backend platform you can use on Appwrite Cloud or self-host with the same stack. Its products include Auth, Databases, Storage, Functions, Messaging (email, SMS and push), Realtime and Sites for hosting websites.
What it does well
Broad coverage, including messaging and site hosting, in one product, and the option to run it on your own infrastructure if you need to. Since September 2025, Pro resources are allotted per project, and included bandwidth on Pro rose to 2 TB a month per project.
What to watch
On the Free plan, hitting a resource limit freezes the project and puts the Console in read-only mode until you upgrade, remove resources or the billing cycle resets. Check the live pricing page for current Free limits, which weren’t fully shown when we checked.
Price
Free organisations cost nothing. Appwrite’s changelog says the Pro base price became $25 a month on September 1, 2025, with per-project pricing. Dedicated databases start at $10 a month, and every month includes $10 of database compute credits.
6. Nhost: best for GraphQL-first apps
Nhost provides a database, a GraphQL API, Auth, Storage and Functions; its docs say every project gets a dedicated PostgreSQL instance. Automated deployments and infrastructure as code are listed even on the free plan.
What it does well
If your frontend team prefers GraphQL, Nhost puts it at the centre. The Starter plan includes unlimited users and OAuth providers. Pro includes automated backups and point-in-time recovery.
What to watch
The free Starter plan allows one project and pauses it after a week of inactivity. Nhost says it never stops a Pro project that exceeds its limits and bills the excess instead, so set budget alerts.
Price
Starter: free, 1 GB database, 1 GB storage, 5 GB egress. Pro: from $25 a month with $15 of compute credits, 10 GB database, 50 GB storage and 50 GB egress; overages are $0.20 per GB of database, $0.05 per GB of storage and $0.10 per GB of egress. Team: from $599 a month.
7. PocketBase: best for small self-hosted apps
PocketBase is an open-source backend that ships as a single file, with an embedded SQLite database, realtime subscriptions, a REST API, email/password and OAuth2 sign-in, file storage (local or S3-compatible) and an admin dashboard. It can be extended with Go or JavaScript hooks.
What it does well
It is about as simple as a backend gets: download one file, run it on a small server, and you have auth, data and files. There is no monthly platform fee.
What to watch
You run the server, backups and updates yourself. The current version is v0.42.1, and PocketBase’s docs state that full backward compatibility is not guaranteed before v1.0.0, so plan for upgrade work.
Price
Free and open source. Your cost is the server you run it on.
Side-by-side comparison
A summary of what each platform documents. “Separate” means you would add another service.
| Supabase | Firebase | Floot | Convex | Appwrite | Nhost | PocketBase | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Database | Postgres | Firestore; Postgres via Data Connect | Postgres | Convex | Appwrite Databases | Dedicated Postgres | SQLite |
| Auth | Yes | Yes | Yes, with roles | Convex Auth (beta), Clerk, Auth0, OIDC | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Functions | Edge Functions | Cloud Functions (Blaze) | Endpoints | Queries, mutations, actions | Functions | Functions | Go/JS hooks |
| Scheduled jobs | Cron (pg_cron) | Scheduled functions (Cloud Scheduler) | Yes | Yes | Check docs | Check docs | Check docs |
| Web hosting | Separate | Hosting | Yes | Separate | Sites | Separate | Separate |
| Official MCP server | Yes | Yes | Yes | Check docs | Check docs | Check docs | No |
| Self-host option | Yes | Not documented | No (hosted) | Open-source version | Yes | Check docs | Yes, only option |
| Paid from | $25/mo | Pay as you go | $25/mo | $25/dev/mo | $25/mo per project | $25/mo | Server cost |
How to choose
Match the platform to the app and to who will do the setup.
You want standard parts and control
Pick Supabase and a frontend host. You will connect them yourself, but every piece is portable.
You are building a phone app first
Pick Firebase, especially if you need realtime sync and Google sign-in on mobile.
You want the agent to do almost everything
Pick Floot if you’d rather describe the app and have ChatGPT, Claude, Codex or Cursor create the database, sign-in and jobs, then publish it, without connecting separate services.
You need to self-host
Pick Appwrite or Supabase for a full stack, or PocketBase for the smallest footprint.
Common mistakes when choosing a BaaS
These choices cause most of the regret we see.
Choosing on the free tier alone
Free tiers are for building. Compare what your first 1,000 users would cost on each paid plan, in each platform’s billing unit: per read, per function call, per GB, or per developer.
Leaving access rules for later
Row Level Security in Supabase, Security Rules in Firebase and permissions in Appwrite all need to be written before launch. A BaaS makes data reachable from the browser, which is exactly why the rules matter.
Forgetting email
Sign-in codes, password resets and receipts need reliable email. Some platforms’ built-in sending is for testing only; budget for a provider if yours is one of them.
Ignoring the exit
Check how you would export data and code. SQL dumps from Postgres-based platforms are the most portable.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best backend-as-a-service for beginners?
For a web app, Supabase is the most common starting point and is well documented. If you want an AI agent to set up and host everything without connecting services yourself, Floot is built for that.
Is Supabase better than Firebase?
Neither is better overall. Supabase fits relational data and SQL; Firebase fits realtime document data and mobile apps. Pick by data shape and platform.
Which BaaS has the best free tier?
It depends on the unit you’ll hit first. Firebase’s Spark plan is generous on auth users and reads; Supabase’s free plan includes 50,000 MAU and a 500 MB database but pauses after a week of inactivity; PocketBase costs nothing beyond your server.
Can I self-host a backend-as-a-service?
Yes. Supabase, Appwrite and PocketBase all document self-hosting, and Convex has an open-source version. You take on servers, backups and updates.
Do these platforms work with ChatGPT, Claude, Codex and Cursor?
Supabase, Firebase and Floot document official MCP servers that coding agents can use. For the others, agents can still write code against their SDKs.
Is a BaaS enough for a production app?
Often yes, on a paid plan. Add a frontend host if the platform doesn’t include one, a transactional email provider if needed, and monitoring for errors and scheduled jobs.
Sources
- Supabase, Pricing, 2026 https://supabase.com/pricing
- Firebase, Pricing plans, 2026 https://firebase.google.com/pricing
- Floot, Pricing, 2026 https://floot.com/en/pricing
- Convex, Pricing, 2026 https://www.convex.dev/pricing
- Appwrite, Changelog: pricing update, 2025 https://appwrite.io/changelog/entry/2025-09-01
- Nhost, Pricing, 2026 https://nhost.io/pricing
- PocketBase, Documentation, 2026 https://pocketbase.io/docs/
- Supabase, Model context protocol (MCP), 2026 https://supabase.com/docs/guides/getting-started/mcp