Published 2026-03-26 · Reviewed 2026-09-28, corrections outstanding · Figures compiled 2026-03-26 · 14 of 14 figures in the “Other BaaS Alternatives” table come from our records for 1,574 developer tools
500 MB
Supabase DB
1 GiB
Firebase DB
$25/mo
Supabase Pro
Pay-as-you-go
Firebase Blaze
Quick verdict: Choose Supabase if you want PostgreSQL, open source, predictable pricing, and no vendor lock-in. Choose Firebase if you need a mature NoSQL ecosystem, unlimited free projects, and tight Google Cloud integration.
On free tiers: Firebase offers more raw storage (1 GiB vs 500 MB) and unlimited projects, but imposes daily read/write caps (50K reads, 20K writes). Supabase has no API request limits and includes 200 concurrent realtime connections, but limits you to 2 free projects that pause after 1 week of inactivity.
The big caveat: Firebase removed Cloud Storage from the free Spark plan in February 2026. If you need file storage on Firebase, you now need a Blaze (pay-as-you-go) account with a credit card — no hard spending caps. Supabase includes 1 GB file storage on the free tier.
Both support real-time sync. Supabase uses Postgres changes
API Requests
Unlimited API requests
50K reads + 20K writes/day (Firestore)
Supabase has no request caps. Firebase daily limits can be restrictive
Projects
2 free projects
Unlimited Spark projects
Firebase wins on project count. Supabase pauses inactive projects
Supabase verified data: Postgres development platform: database, Auth, Storage, Realtime and Edge Functions. The Free plan is $0: unlimited API requests, 50,000 monthly active users, a 500 MB database on a shared CPU with 500 MB RAM, 5 GB egress plus 5 GB cached egress, 1 GB file storage, 500,000 Edge Function invocations, and Realtime with 200 concurrent connections and 2 million messages a month. Free projects are paused after 1 week of inactivity, with a limit of 2 active projects. Pro starts at $25 a month for the first project and includes $10 a month of compute credits, enough for one Micro instance. Verified: 2026-08-17 · Full profile →
Firebase verified data: Spark plan, no payment method needed: Auth (50K MAU), Firestore (1 GiB stored, 50K reads/day, 20K writes/day, 20K deletes/day), Hosting (10 GB storage, 360 MB/day transfer), and no-cost Analytics, Crashlytics and Cloud Messaging. Cloud Functions and Cloud Storage need the Blaze plan. Verified: 2026-08-25 · Full profile →
2. Key Differences
Beyond the raw numbers, these architectural differences matter for your long-term stack choice.
Open Source vs. Proprietary
Supabase is fully open source (MIT license) — you can self-host and avoid vendor lock-in entirely. Firebase is proprietary to Google with no self-hosting option. If you leave Firebase, you rewrite your data layer.
SQL vs. NoSQL
Supabase runs PostgreSQL — full relational queries, joins, indexes, migrations. Firebase uses Firestore (document model) — great for simple reads but complex queries require denormalization. Choose based on your data model needs.
Pricing Model
Supabase Pro is $25/month with predictable limits. Firebase Blaze is pay-as-you-go with no hard caps — great for low usage, but unexpected traffic spikes can cause surprise bills. Supabase is 30-50% cheaper at scale for most workloads.
Ecosystem & Lock-in
Firebase deeply integrates with Google Cloud — great if you're already on GCP, but creates tight coupling. Supabase uses standard Postgres, compatible with any Postgres client, ORM, or hosting provider.
3. Cost at Scale
What happens when you outgrow the free tier? Supabase Pro ($25/mo) vs Firebase Blaze (pay-as-you-go).
Metric
Supabase
Firebase
Notes
Starter paid plan
$25/mo (Pro)
Pay-as-you-go (Blaze)
Supabase: predictable flat rate. Firebase: usage-based, no spending cap
Database at 10 GB
$25/mo (8 GB included)
$1.56/mo (Firestore)
Firebase cheaper for pure storage. Supabase includes more in base price
100K MAU auth
$25/mo (100K MAU included in Pro)
$0 (unlimited on Spark)
Both effectively free at this scale
1M function invocations
$25/mo (2M included in Pro)
$0 on Blaze (2M a month at no cost)
Firebase needs Blaze for any function.
50 GB storage
$25/mo + ~$2.50 overage
Blaze required, ~$1.30/mo
Firebase cheaper for raw storage on Blaze pay-as-you-go
Billing protection
Hard limits, spend caps available
No hard caps — set budget alerts only
Supabase safer for indie devs. Firebase can generate surprise bills
Bottom line on scaling: Supabase is typically 30-50% cheaper at scale for most BaaS workloads because of its predictable flat-rate pricing. Firebase's pay-as-you-go model can be cheaper for very low usage but offers no hard spending caps — a risk for indie developers and startups. Supabase Pro includes enough headroom ($25/mo) that most small apps never pay overage.
4. When to Choose Each
Decision Guide
Choose Supabase if:
You need relational data (SQL, joins, foreign keys), want open source with self-hosting options, prefer predictable billing, or are building a project that may need to migrate away from its backend later. Best for: SaaS apps, dashboards, APIs, projects where data relationships matter.
Choose Firebase if:
You're building mobile-first apps with Google ecosystem integration, need unlimited free projects for prototyping, prefer document-model databases for simple CRUD, or want built-in analytics and crash reporting. Best for: mobile apps, rapid prototypes, real-time chat, apps already using Google Cloud.
Consider both if:
Use Firebase for auth + analytics + crash reporting (these are genuinely best-in-class and free), then Supabase for your primary database and file storage. This "best of both" approach is increasingly common.
Consider neither if:
You need full control — try PocketBase (single binary, self-hosted, unlimited) or Appwrite (open-source BaaS with generous free tier). See alternatives below.
5. Other BaaS Alternatives
If neither Supabase nor Firebase fits, these Backend-as-a-Service platforms offer competitive free tiers.
Open-source BaaS — 75K MAU, 2 GB storage, 750K function executions/month, 5 GB bandwidth, 1 database, 1 bucket and 2 functions per project. Limit of 2 projects. Projects pause after 1 week of inactivity and are deleted after 90 days paused
Open-source backend with Postgres and Hasura GraphQL, plus Auth, Storage and Functions. The Starter plan is $0 a month: 1 GB database, 1 GB storage and 5 GB egress, with functions, realtime APIs and unlimited users. It is limited to 1 project, and the project is paused after 1 week of inactivity. Pro starts at $25 a month with $15 of compute credits, a 10 GB database, 50 GB storage and 50 GB egress.
Open-source backend in a single Go binary — SQLite database, real-time subscriptions, built-in auth (email, OAuth2), file storage (S3-compatible), REST API. Completely free and self-hosted, no vendor lock-in. Single executable, no dependenciesThe page we cite for this offer states no amount, tier or rate we can read when we last looked, on 2026-09-16, so we cannot confirm these terms today.
Notable mentions:Nhost combines Postgres + Hasura GraphQL (closest to Supabase). Convex offers a reactive backend with real-time sync (closest to Firebase's real-time model). PocketBase is completely free and self-hosted — single Go binary, no vendor dependency. See our full database comparison for 30+ options.
6. Recent Deal Changes
From our deal change tracker:
Supabase — 2026-02-01
Project pause policy tightened — inactive projects now pause after 1 week Source ↗
Cloud Storage for Firebase now requires the pay-as-you-go Blaze plan, in effect from February 3, 2026. Projects on the no-cost Spark plan lose access to all Cloud Storage buckets, including default buckets; console access redirects to an upgrade page and API calls return 402 or 403. Provisioning a new default bucket also requires Blaze. Source ↗
Google announced the sunset of Firebase Studio (formerly Project IDX) on 2026-03-19. New workspaces and signups stopped on 2026-06-22, and Firebase Studio shuts down on 2027-03-22, when remaining data is deleted. Other Firebase products are not affected. Source ↗
Methodology: 14 of 14 figures in the “Other BaaS Alternatives” table come from our records for 1,574 developer tools. Supabase data verified against supabase.com/pricing (2026-08-17). Firebase data verified against firebase.google.com/pricing (2026-08-25). Cost-at-scale analysis based on published pricing tiers. Deal changes tracked from official vendor announcements.
This comparison covers Supabase vs Firebase free tiers as of March 2026. For more database options, see our full database comparison with 30+ free options. Browse all 1,574 developer tools at /search.
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