Supabase
Postgres database with built-in auth, storage, and real-time — the open-source Firebase alternative
Supabase gives you a real Postgres database with the convenience of Firebase. Set up a project, and you immediately get a database, auth system, file storage, edge functions, and real-time subscriptions. No piecing together separate services.
The free tier is enough to build and test a real product. The Pro tier at $25/month gives you a production-ready setup. The key advantage over Firebase: it is Postgres under the hood. Your queries are standard SQL, and you can migrate your data to any Postgres host if you ever want to leave. That data portability is worth a lot for a solo founder building something long-term.
What's good
- Full Postgres database, not a proprietary system — your data, your queries
- Auth, file storage, edge functions, and real-time included at no extra cost
- Free tier includes 500MB database and 1GB file storage
Watch out for
- Some features (like edge functions) are still maturing compared to Firebase
- Free tier pauses inactive projects after 7 days
- Less hand-holding than Firebase — you need to know some SQL
Alternatives
More in Databases
CockroachDB
Distributed SQL database that survives outages — Postgres-compatible with a generous free tier
MongoDB Atlas
Managed MongoDB in the cloud — document database with flexible schemas and a massive ecosystem
Neon
Serverless Postgres that scales to zero — you only pay when your database is actually being used