The best Firebase alternatives in 2023

Are you looking for alternatives to Firebase for app development? In this tutorial, you will learn about multiple Firebase alternatives. This article will cover competitors like Back4App, Parse, Backendless, Supabase, Appwrite, Nhost, etc.

Firebase Overview

Firebase is Google’s app development platform. It will help you to build, improve, and grow your application in a smooth and standardized way. 

It offers a robust feature set that focuses on three main pillars:

• Helping you to build apps faster
• Releasing apps with confidence, performance, and stability
• Increasing user engagement after releasing the app 

The platform works well for mobile and web applications, and Google designed it to increase the general productivity of creating digital products. 

The core features of Firebase include NoSQL databases, real-time queries, scalable hosting, data storage, file storage, REST APIs, authentication, machine learning, and analytics. 

The main problems Firebase solves are allowing you to build apps faster, shifting your focus from infrastructure to creating more robust user experiences, and scaling applications without managing infrastructure. 

Why look for Firebase Alternatives? 

While Firebase offers an increasingly sophisticated array of services that takes care of various development requirements, it’s not always the easiest, fastest, or most affordable option. The article “Reasons Not to Use Firebase” also enlightened me about the risks of using Firebase.

Some users look for Firebase alternatives because the free tier is not available to all Firebase services, the service does not work in China, complex queries may be slow in some situations, and the platform lacks flexibility. Let’s explore more below:

It’s not open-source and has vendor lock-in

Firebase is a Google-backed closed source platform with many excellent features that allow developers to create an MVP quickly.

However, vendor lock-in is one of its biggest concerns among developers and the main shortcoming of Firebase.

You won’t want to invest time and money developing an app and have no control over the source code. It’s not an intelligent decision.

An astute venture capitalist or angel investor would be reluctant to fund your startup if you cannot access your app’s source code. Using a closed source platform may undermine the chances of scaling your app.

Pricing model is complex and hard to predict

If you are using Firebase, you should remember that server costs can increase significantly as your app begins to scale. Although Firebase offers a free plan, the free tier’s limitations make it suitable for small apps only.

Once your app starts scaling, you need to upgrade to the Blaze plan, which does not have a fixed pricing structure. Blaze is a pay-as-you-go service plan that bills you based on your app’s server resources.

In essence, you cannot fix the maximum monthly budget for your app. Consequently, you may get unpleasant surprises by the end of the billing cycle.

Until January 2020, Firebase offered the Flame Plan. It was a fixed price plan for $25/month, but this option is no longer available.

Some users were heavily affected by this change, and you can learn more by reading the article Firebase Costs Increased 7,000%.

It’s not self-hosted it only supports the GCP hosting option

Firebase offers only one type of cloud hosting setup on the Google Cloud Platform. So, you have to use Firebase cloud infrastructure and share resources with other applications.

This approach is not the best option for complex applications that require customized server settings for optimal performance.

Since Firebase does not offer Dedicated Server or Enterprise contracts, you may face several limitations once your app begins to scale.

Privacy & Data Storage

According to item 1.5 of Firebase’s Terms of Service, users may select the data location for certain paid services. For paid services that data location is not available, Firebase can store data in any Google facility. Please find below the paragraph:

1.5: Data Location. For certain Paid Services, Customer may select the region(s) Customer Data will be stored (“Data Location Selection”), and Google will store that Customer Data at rest in the selected region(s). The Data Location Selection does not limit the locations from which Customer or Customer End Users may access Customer Data or to which they may move Customer Data and may not apply to Customer Data used with other Google products or services. For purposes of this section, Customer Data does not include resource identifiers, attributes, or other data labels. If a Data Location Selection is not available for the Paid Services (or a Data Location Selection is not made by Customer with respect to any Customer Data), Google may process and store the Customer Data anywhere Google or its agents maintain facilities.

Firebase Privacy and Security documentation revealed that the platform satisfies GDPR requirements. The document also revealed that the data storage and processing locations might vary by service.

Google may use Firebase Service Data to improve non-Firebase Google services. Firebase offers users the option to disable this control and avoid data collection.

Both databases are NoSQL, and there is no SQL option 

Firebase works with a closed-source NoSQL database for Firestore and the Real-Time database. It imposes users the restrictions of a NoSQL database, including very limited querying and indexing.

GraphQL APIs are not available on the regular setup

One weakness of Firebase is the lack of support for GraphQL APIs. It works perfectly with REST and has extensive documentation for developers. However, Firebase does not support GraphQL at this time.

Top Firebase Hosting Alternatives

Here is an infographic with the best Firebase alternatives, and below is a detailed description of each provider’s features and pricing.

Here are ten of the best alternatives to Firebase and keep reading to learn more about these Firebase like solutions:

Back4App

Back4app is a reliable Firebase alternative that works with an amalgamation of open-source technologies. The platform is straightforward to use, has a low learning curve, and offers reliable cloud services.

For instance, it offers features like a relational data model, scalable hosting, REST and GraphQL APIs, notifications, authentication, and storage. You can build relational data models and run deep queries using a robust serverless environment. 

Back4app is a great option to build web and mobile apps super fast, scale without the complexity of managing server-side infrastructure, focus on the user interface, and it’s a similar to Firebase in many aspects. The pricing is affordable and easy to understand. 

It offers a fully managed service, and the support team is available 24/07. The company has been operating since 2015, and it has customers like Accenture, Fight List, 1001 Apps, etc. 

According to G2, the platform has 4.8 out of 5 stars and is highly rated for its ease of use, setup, and quality support. 

Pricing

Back4app’s pricing is easy to understand and predictable. 

• The services are free to start
• Serverless hosting starts at $25/month
• Dedicated hosting starts at $500/month

Core Features

• Data model
• GraphQL and REST APIs
• Serverless functions
• Notifications
• Authentication

Why use Back4app as a Firebase alternative? 

Some developers consider Back4App better than Firebase for the following reasons:

• It’s an amalgamation of open-source tools
• No vendor lock-in
• Multi-cloud deployment options
• It’s a Firebase self-hosted alternative
• Allow you to perform complex relational queries
• Dedicated hosting and Enterprise plans
• It’s a Firebase alternative in China

Read the article Back4App vs. Firebase to better understand the differences between both platforms.

Keep reading to discover more Firebase similar platforms. 

Parse

Parse is a comprehensive application stack that will help you build applications faster and it’s another Firebase competitor. It is an open-source backend framework that uses the Apache-2.0 license and is free to use and download. It is a terrific free Firebase alternative.

For example, the core features of Parse include an easy-to-use dashboard, graphical database interface, APIs, and object storage adapters to multiple services like S3, etc. 

Another advantage of Parse is the multi-cloud deployment options. Considering that the entire framework is open-source, you can download the repositories on Github and self-host your application in any major cloud like AWS, Digital Ocean, Google Cloud, etc. 

Parse has been running for a long time, and a large and engaged developer community supports it. It has more than 35k Github stars, and it is a thoroughly tested framework for developing applications faster.

Pricing

Parse is free to download, and there is no license cost.

Core Features

• Spreadsheet like database
• REST and GraphQL APIs
• Authentication
• Storage Adapters
• Push-Notifications

Why use Parse as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• No vendor lock-in
• Multi-cloud deployment options
• Large developer community supporting it
• Thoroughly tested framework

Keep reading to discover more Firebase competitors. 

AWS Amplify

AWS Amplify allows web and mobile developers to create full-stack applications with a set o fit-to-purpose tools and features. 

Using AWS Amplify, it is possible to configure a backend in minutes, ship faster, and scale effortlessly. The platform integrates with other AWS services like Dynamo DB, Lambda, S3, Cognito, AppSync, etc. 

Building an application using AWS Amplify is easy and involves steps like creating the backend, connecting it to the application, managing users, and creating the UI. 

For example, the most common use cases include building data models, hosting progressive web applications, hosting static sites, and user authentication. 

According to G2, the platform has 4.1 out of 5 stars and is favorably rated for helping users to build serverless applications on the AWS environment and being a stable solution.

Pricing

AWS Amplify pricing charges per variable, like builds per minute, files stored, and data transferred. 

• Free tier to start
• Pay as you go model above the free threshold 
• $0.01 per build per minute
• $0.023/GB per month
• $0.15/GB served

Core Features

• Data Store
• Authentication
• Analytics
• APIs
• Notifications

Why use AWS Amplify as a Firebase alternative? 

• Backed by AWS
• Ready to use integrations with AWS services
• Frontend UI elements

Backendless

Backendless is a visual application development platform. It has been operating since 2012, and it is one of the first Backend as a Service solutions launched. 

Using Backendless, it is possible to create realtime applications, location-aware apps, and mobile and web apps. The visual app builder makes the experience of developing apps intuitive, easy to manage, and fast. 

Backendless supports customers over Slack, forums, and documentation. The company also offers professional services for custom development projects. The client showcase includes Bettercast, Bank al Ethiad, BTC Market Ticker, and Second Warehouse.

According to G2, the platform is highly praised for its user-friendliness, simple setup process, and exceptional support.

Pricing

Backendless offers three different pricing categories. 

• Backendless Cloud – Free tier and paid plans start at $15/month
• Backendless Pro – Under quotation 
• Managed Backendless – Under quotation

Core Features

• Visual app builder
• APIs
• Real time databases
• Authentication
• Notifications

Why use Backendless as a Firebase alternative? 

• It offers a visual development tool kit
• It provides several integrations with tools like Bubble, Zapier, AppGyver, etc
• It offers on-premise deployment 
• It offers dedicated plans
• It provides a spreadsheet-like database

Kuzzle

Kuzzle recently updated its website and now offers three different products. The first one is an IoT suite designed to streamline the deployment of IoT applications. The second one is a backend to facilitate the development of web and mobile applications.  The third one is a Platform as a Service focused on IoT deployment.

Both products are open-source and are great options for data management and IoT development. Using Kuzzle, you can create projects for Smart Cities, Smart Logistics, Smart Buildings, etc. 

The application stack is free to download, and you can self-host an application or use Kuzzle’s cloud to host it. The platform offers multiple SDKs options, including Javascript, C#, Dart, and Golang.

The company has operated since 2015 and has customers like Biogen, La Poste, Veolia, and SNCF on its portfolio.

Pricing

• Free to download
• Support plans of €500, €1,000, and Premium under quotation
• Professional Services, Training, PoC under quotation

Features

• Multiple solutions including a Backend, IoT Platform, and a PaaS
• Open Source
• It’s a great option for internet of things projects
• Streamline the deployment of modern applications

Why use Kuzzle as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• It has fit-to-purpose IoT features
• No vendor lock-in
• It offers professional services and training
• It offers tailor-made support plans

Supabase

Supabase allows developers to build a backend in less than 2 minutes. It is an excellent Firebase alternative that works with open-source technologies and enables you to host an app on a self-host environment or directly with Supabase cloud.

The platform allows you to build realtime chat apps, SaaS products, web crawlers, ToDo lists, Kamban boards, website builders, etc. It supports multiple technologies, including Flutter, Angular, React, Vue, etc. 

Supabase is quite a young company and has been running since 2020. Although it is a new player in this market, it has a large and engaged developer community to support the open-source repository. It has more than 55k stars and 4.4k forks on Github.

As of the date of this writing, according to Product Hunt, the platform has 4.8 out of 5 stars and is highly rated for its developer experience and excellent documentation.

Pricing

• Free Tier
• Pro Plan – Starting at $25 per month
• Team Plan – Starting at $599 per month

Features

• Database
• Dashboard
• Authentication
• Storage
• Instant APIs

Why use Supabase as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• A growing community of developers 
• It works with Postgres relational database
• It offers multiple deployment options
• No vendor lock-in

appwrite

Appwrite is a backend server for Flutter, Mobile, and Web developers. It is open-source, secure, and provides a self-hosting solution that is easy to use. It is a great open source Firebase alternative.

Appwrite supports multiple SDKs, including Flutter, Web, Apple, and Android. It recently launched Pink, an open-source design system to build reusable interfaces.

Even though it is a young company that launched in 2019, it has grown its open-source repository massively and has more than 28k Github stars. 

As of the date of this writing, according to Product Hunt, the platform has 4.9 out of 5 stars and is positively rated as an intuitive backend and ease of setup. 

Pricing

• Starter – Free
• Pro – $15 per member per month
• Scale – $685 per organization per month

Features

• Database
• Storage
• Geo & Localization
• Functions
• Console

Why use appwrite as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• A growing community of developers 
• Focus on Flutter developers
• Simplicity
• Verbose documentation

Hasura

Hasura is another excellent open-source alternative to Firebase. It provides a GraphQL engine that allows the creation of apps and APIs up to ten times faster than traditional development. 

The way the platform operates is slightly different from Firebase. Rather than delivering a database-centric suite of products, it offers a best-in-class GraphQL instant API and allows users to connect it to external databases.

It supports multiple database options, including Postgres, SQL Server, Amazon Aurora, and Google Big Query. Hasura offers you a free-to-download version or hosted cloud option. 

The company has operated since 2017, and the client showcase includes names like Netlify, BBVA, Walmart, and Atlassian. 

Pricing

• Hasura Cloud
  • Free tier
  • Professional – Starts at $1.5/active hour
  • Enteprise – Custom pricing
• Self-Hosted
  • Community edition – Free
  • Enterprise edition – Under quotation

Features

• GraphQL API
• Caching
• Security
• Monitoring
• CLI

Why use Hasura as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• It supports NoSQL and SQL databases
• It works with external databases
• It offers Enterprise plans
• Low-latency

Nhost

NHost is another open-source option for Firebase. The platform works with an amalgamation of open-source technologies, including GraphQL, Postgres, and Hasura.

NHost is a serverless backend and helps you build web and mobile applications. It makes developing a backend an easy task and removes the complexities of managing infrastructure. 

The company started operations in 2019 and currently supports clients like HyperLab, Servehub, NautaCapital, and Terminator.

As of the date of this writing, according to Product Hunt, the platform has 5 out of 5 stars and is positively rated for fast responses to questions, listening to developer’s requirements, and smooth functioning. 

Pricing

• Free tier
• Pro plan for $25/month
• Enterprise plan under quotation

Features

• Realtime database
• GraphQL API
• Authentication
• File Storage
• Emails

Why use Nhost as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• It supports GraphQL
• SQL Database
• No vendor lock-in

Pubnub

Pubnub is a real-time communication platform. It offers In-App chats, push notifications, location tracking, etc.

Apart from its core services, which are Publish/Subscribe, Pubnub Functions, and ChatEngine, Pubnub offers a collection of “building-block” services for any real-time application.

The benefits of Pubnub include its simple pricing model, a separate API for managing accounts, flexible integration with custom applications, and client API availability in many technologies and programming languages.

As of the date of this writing, according to G2, the platform has 4.4 out of 5 stars and is highly rated for its ease of use and quality support. 

Pricing plans

• Free tier
• Starter plan for $49/mo
• Pro plan under quotation

Core features

• Realtime communication platform
• In app chat
• Alerts and notifications

Kinsta

Kinsta is a cloud provider that enables companies and development teams to ship and manage their software projects quicker and more efficiently.

As of the date of this writing, according to G2, the platform has 4.8 out of 5 stars and is positively rated as a great combination of customer support, reliability, and performance. 

Pricing

The pricing model is transparent and usage-based, and the company offers a free trial limited to $20 in infrastructure resources. The paid plans for application hosting start at $7/month, for managed databases at $18/month, and Word Press hosting at $35/month.

Features

The company offers several products, including managed databases, Word Press, and application hosting. It supports multiple programming languages and database types. The list includes PHP, Node, Ruby, Python, Postgres, Redis, etc.

Heroku

Heroku is a cloud-based Platform as a Service that allows developers and companies to build, deploy, manage, improve, and scale their applications more efficiently.

Heroku’s complete service range is effective, fast, flexible, and highly reliable for development purposes. These features make the tasks of creating applications less stressful for developers.

Furthermore, developers can reduce the stress of app management by using run-time application services with Heroku.

According to G2, the platform has 4.3 out of 5 stars and is approvingly rated for being a concise way to create minimum viable products and scale projects. 

Pricing

• The free version is not available since the end of 2022.
• The Eco Plan is available at $5 monthly, which can be effective for anyone owning a small business or wanting to work on any personal project.
• If you need Heroku services for any project with professional standards, the Production standard package starts from $25 monthly.
• The Advanced package starting from $250, is impressive to consider for those who want to build applications with high traffic and require more space.
• The Enterprise package is available under quotation

Features

• Smart containers
• Continuous integration
• Scalable hosting
• Support NoSQL database like Firebase

To explore more PaaS options for Heroku, please read the article Alternatives to Heroku.

Deployd

Deployd is an effective open-source deployment and API design platform that empowers you to build web and mobile applications without hassles.

Getting your idea to production is as easy as a four-step process using Deployd. You can get an API up and running with one command, deploy using plug-and-play resources, and manage your APIs using a friendly dashboard.  

Pricing

Deployd is free to download and self-host.

Features

• API Engine
• CRUD operations
• Dashboard
• Realtime functionality 

Why use Deployd as a Firebase alternative? 

• It’s open-source
• No vendor lock-in
• Best in class API Engine

Other Firebase Alternatives

Additional Firebase Alternatives are:

• Azure Mobile App Service – Microsoft’s backend service
• Game Sparks – Game backend that AWS will retired in 2022
• Playfab – Game backend supported by Microsoft 
• 8Base – Low-code JavaScript framework
• Firehose – Pub/Sub server to build realtime web apps
• Atmosphere – Framework for building Asynchronous web applications 
• Couchbase – NoSQL cloud database. It’s a database like Firebase.
• NativeScript – JavaScript empowered with native APIs
• RxDB – JavaScript database for realtime applications
• LoopBack4 – Framework for building APIs and Microservices

Please refer to our BaaS Comparison Tool for additional details about Google Firebase alternatives. 

Firebase Alternatives Comparison

Conclusion

Firebase is a robust app development platform from Google. It supports you in developing an application fast and improving it during the entire development and production cycle. 

Although it offers excellent benefits, its limitations rely on not being open-source, vendor lock-in, lack of SQL databases, and unavailable in multiple countries like China. 

This article explored multiple Firebase alternatives, provided an overview of each solution, and highlighted the core features, pricing structure, and advantages over Firebase. 

General FAQ