Airtable vs Grist
We give Airtable and Grist the same GPA: 3.4 out of 4.0. Airtable grades higher on ease of use and platforms. Grist grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Airtable
Relational database platform for building team workflows and apps
Grist
Open-source relational spreadsheet with Python formulas
How we grade them
| 3.4GPAAirtableVery good | 3.4GPAGristVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CTeam is $20 a seat a month billed annually, or $24 monthly. That's about double the dear end of this category, where plans start around $10. Two-way sync and the admin panel wait on Business, at $45 a seat. | BPro is $8 a user a month billed annually, or $10 monthly, a touch under the $9.99 this category typically starts at. It lifts you to 100,000 records a document and 3 years of snapshot history. Automations and priority email support need Business, at $24 with a 5-user minimum. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree for up to 5 editors, with 500 AI credits each a month. But it's 1,000 records and 1 GB of attachments per base, with 2 weeks of revision history. Fine for a small tracker, tight for one that grows. No timeline or Gantt view either. | AUnlimited documents with up to 5,000 records each, 10 team members and 30 days of snapshot history. A small team could live here. The AI Assistant is the stingy part, at 100 one-time credits. And the self-hosted Community edition is free too. |
| Features | ALinked tables you can see as a grid, form, calendar, gallery, kanban, timeline, list or Gantt. Then custom interfaces, automations, portals for outside guests, and Omni, which builds an app from a plain description. Deep, and yours to shape. | ASeveral linked tables in one document, formulas in multi-line Python or Excel-style functions, and access rules for tables, columns, records and single cells. Pages are laid out from tables, cards, charts and forms, and summary tables do the job of pivot tables. |
| Ease of use | A4.8 from about 25,000 App Store ratings. Worth knowing you're building your own tracker here, not opening a ready-made one, so there's some design work before there's anything to tick off. | BNo App Store rating on record, so a B is as high as we go. The hosted service means no server to run, and most Excel-like functions are supported. It does suit people who are comfortable with a bit of Python. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWeb, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android. It connects to Slack, Google Drive, Salesforce, Jira, Zendesk and GitHub, and there's a public API for everything else. | BWeb, plus a separate open-source desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux that works on spreadsheets stored locally. No phone apps are listed. It connects through Zapier, Make and n8n, and there's an API. |
| Best for | building your own tracker from a database | a spreadsheet with linked tables and Python formulas |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Airtable and Grist. How we grade
Where they differ
- Airtable starts at $20 per seat / month, billed annually ($24 billed monthly). Grist starts at $8 per user / month, billed annually.
- Only Airtable lists iOS and Android apps.
- Only Grist lists a Linux app.
- Grist is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Airtable also covers calendar, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and workflow automation.
- Grist also covers spreadsheets.
At a glance
| Airtable | Grist | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $20 per seat / month, billed annually ($24 billed monthly) | $8 per user / month, billed annually |
| Free plan | 1,000 records and 1 GB of attachments per base, up to 5 editors, 500 AI credits per editor a month and 2 weeks of revision history. | Unlimited documents with up to 5,000 records each, 10 team members, 30 days of snapshot history and 100 one-time AI Assistant credits. The self-hosted Community edition is also free. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of the Team plan when a new account is created | 30-day trial of the Pro and Business plans |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Airtable (Formagrid Inc) | Grist Labs |
| Price read from | airtable.com | getgrist.com |
| Checked | Oct 4, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Airtable
- Teams that want to shape a database into their own project tracker
- Operations and marketing teams building internal apps without code
- Nonprofits and educators, who can get 50% off the Team plan
Grist
- Spreadsheet users who have outgrown a single sheet and need linked tables
- Teams that must limit what each collaborator can see in one document
- Organizations that want to self-host open-source software
- People comfortable writing Python in formulas
Worth knowing
Airtable
- The Free plan is capped at 1,000 records per base and 5 editors.
- Record limits apply per base on paid plans too: 50,000 on Team and 125,000 on Business.
- Timeline and Gantt views and extensions are not part of the Free plan.
- Two-way sync and the admin panel need the Business plan at $45 per seat / month.
Grist
- Records per document are capped at 5,000 on Free, 100,000 on Pro and 150,000 on Business.
- Business has a 5-user minimum, and Automations and priority email support start on that plan.
- On Grist's own servers, custom SSO, a custom domain and audit log streaming are listed under Enterprise only.
- The desktop app is a separate open-source build for Windows, macOS and Linux that works on spreadsheets stored locally.
Key features
Airtable
- Relational bases
- Data lives in bases of linked tables. Record limits per base rise from 1,000 on Free to 50,000 on Team and 125,000 on Business.
- Eight view types
- A table can be shown as a grid, form, calendar, gallery, kanban, timeline, list or Gantt view. Timeline and Gantt views need the Team plan.
- Interfaces
- Custom interfaces can be built from base data, giving each team a tailored app on top of the same records.
- Automations and sync
- Automations handle repetitive steps inside a base. Two-way sync with outside tools is included from the Business plan.
- Omni and field agents
- Omni builds apps from a plain-language description and field agents run AI across records. Both draw on monthly AI credits: 500 per editor on Free and 15,000 per seat on Team.
- Portals
- Portals let guest users from outside the organization collaborate on selected data.
Grist
- Relational spreadsheet documents
- A Grist document is a relational spreadsheet-database with multiple tables, stored in SQLite format. Linked widgets pull up the details and related records of a selected row.
- Python and Excel-style formulas
- Formulas can be single or multi-line Python with the full standard library available, and most Excel-like spreadsheet functions are supported as well.
- Granular access rules
- Rules decide who can see or edit individual tables, columns, records and cells, so one document can be shared in part with team members, guests or public links.
- Custom layouts, charts and widgets
- Pages are arranged by dragging tables, cards and charts into place. Summary tables work as pivot tables, and custom widgets show data on a map or calendar.
- Forms
- Forms and surveys are built from a table and shared with a link, and the responses are analyzed in the same document as they arrive.
- AI Assistant
- Answers questions about data and formulas in plain language and can create or modify records and formulas. Usage is metered in credits, with extra packs from $10 a month on paid plans.
Plans
Airtable
Free$0
1,000 records and 1 GB of attachments per base, up to 5 editors and 2 weeks of revision history.
Team$20
per seat / month, billed annually ($24 billed monthly)
50,000 records and 20 GB of attachments per base, Gantt and timeline views, extensions and 15,000 AI credits per seat a month.
Business$45
per seat / month, billed annually ($54 billed monthly)
125,000 records and 100 GB of attachments per base, two-way sync, an admin panel and 20,000 AI credits per seat a month.
Enterprise ScaleCustom
Sold through sales, with pricing based on the organization's needs and 25,000 AI credits per paid user a month.
Grist
Free$0
Unlimited documents with up to 5,000 records each, 10 team members, 30 days of snapshot history and 100 one-time AI Assistant credits.
Grist Community edition$0
Free and open-source edition hosted on your own server, with community support, custom domain and custom branding.
Pro$8
per user / month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly)
Up to 100,000 records per document, snapshot history going back 3 years and AI Assistant credits starting at 100 a month.
Business$24
per user / month, billed annually ($30 monthly); min. 5 users
Up to 150,000 records per document, 5 years of snapshot history, 2,000 AI Assistant credits a month, Automations and priority email support.
Grist (self-hosted)$24
per user / month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly)
Self-hosted edition with admin controls, the AI Assistant, Automations, custom SSO and audit log streaming, sold without support.
EnterpriseCustom
A dedicated server in a chosen region, or a supported self-hosted installation, with custom SSO, custom domain and audit log streaming.
Ways to pay less
Airtable
- Annual discount
Lower per-seat price with annual billing
Team is $20 per seat / month billed annually against $24 monthly, and Business is $45 against $54, about 17% less in both cases.
- Nonprofit
50% off the Team plan for nonprofits
Registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits, or accredited equivalents outside the US, can apply for 50% off Team seats. Airtable AI is excluded from the discount.
- Education
50% off Team for educators, free for students
Employees of accredited educational institutions can get 50% off Team, and students get 6 to 24 months of free access depending on graduation date.
Grist
- Annual discount
Save 20% by paying annually
Pro is $8 per user a month billed annually against $10 billed monthly, and Business is $24 against $30.
- Nonprofit
50% off Pro for nonprofits
Non- and not-for-profit organizations are eligible for a 50% discount on the Pro plan, requested by emailing a Letter of Determination before the free trial ends.
- Other savings
Free activation key for small self-hosters
Individuals and organizations with less than $1 million in total annual income may request a free activation key for self-hosted Grist.
