Glide vs Stacker (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Glide grades higher than Stacker: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Glide grades higher on features and ease of use. Stacker grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Glide
AI builder that turns spreadsheets into internal business apps
Stacker
No-code customer portals and internal tools built on Airtable data
Which one is for you
Pick Glide if
- Fits if your operations team runs on spreadsheets and wants an app on top
- Works for inventory, work order or vendor apps that share one set of live data
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're a team, since Basic covers 2 people, Plus 3, and Pro starts at $125 a month
- Not for you if you want to publish anything on the Free plan, because you can't, and its credits never renew
- Skip it if you're on Glide Classic and expect this included, as GlideOS is a separate subscription
- Tight if you need public apps or more than 1 workflow, since both start on Plus, from $50 a month
- Watch out: the apps run in browsers rather than as native apps, and single sign-on needs Enterprise
Pick Stacker if
- Fits if you want a client portal on top of a spreadsheet or database
- Works for small teams of up to 5 inside users and one app
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you grow: Starter is 1 app, 5 internal users, 50 external users
- Pricey if you want unlimited outside users and custom scripts, which need Plus at $149 a month
- Watch out: SQL and Salesforce connectors and SSO are Enterprise only
- Watch out: the AI agents are sold as a separate product
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as only a 30-day trial exists
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAGlideFair | 2.2GPAStackerFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DBasic is $25 a month, the line where the dearest quarter of builders here begins, and it's a thin plan: 100 credits, 2 team members, 2 published apps, 1 workflow. An app the public can open needs Plus at $50. Unlimited apps, premium integrations and MCP need Pro from $125, six times the $19 middle. | CStarter is $29 a month, just over the category's $25 dearer-quarter line, but it is capped at 1 app and 5 internal users. Plus is $149. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe Free plan's credits are limited and never reset, and with it you can't publish an app or switch on a single workflow. A trial in all but name, then, and the listing doesn't say whether a card is wanted. Two team members and 10 projects, for what that's worth. | CA 30-day free trial with every feature unlocked and no card needed. After that, nothing is free. |
| Features | BIt covers the whole job for internal apps: upload a spreadsheet and it reads the structure, then proposes screens and workflows; apps in a project share live tables; routines run on a schedule, a webhook or on demand; and the directory lists 1,000+ integrations. The apps run in browsers only, so no A. | CPortals, internal tools, two-way data sync, permission rules and a custom domain. SQL and Salesforce connectors are Enterprise only, and AI agents are a separate product. |
| Ease of use | BNo rating on record. You start from a spreadsheet you already have and ask for changes in chat. Highlight one component and you can prompt for a change to that alone. Modeling the tables behind it is the real work. | CNo store rating on record, and you build the app yourself and connect your data. |
| Platforms and integrations | BA web app, and what it builds runs in desktop and mobile browsers rather than as native apps. Nothing of its own on desktop or phone. It connects to Google Sheets, Excel, Airtable, Salesforce, Slack, QuickBooks, PostgreSQL and Snowflake, with an MCP server on Pro. | BWeb, with four data-source integrations listed. No phone or desktop app. |
| Best for | turning a spreadsheet into an internal app | client portals and internal tools on top of your data |
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: Glide and Stacker. How we grade
Price against what you get
Glide starts at $25 a month and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Stacker starts at $29 a month and scores 2.3.
Glide scores higher and starts $4 a month lower. Of the other AI app builders on the chart, 4 score higher than Glide for less, and 24 score higher than Stacker for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Glide also covers AI agents.
- Stacker also covers databases.
At a glance
| Glide | Stacker | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $25 per month (Basic) | $29 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | Free plan with a limited credit allowance that does not reset or renew; apps cannot be published on it | 30-day free trial with every feature unlocked, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Glide (typeguard, Inc.) | Stacker Software Ltd |
| Price read from | glideapps.com | stackerhq.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Glide
- Free plan credits do not renew, and apps cannot be published without a paid plan.
- GlideOS needs its own subscription and cannot be reached through Glide Classic, which has separate plans.
- Monthly credits reset each billing cycle; extra credits are sold on paid plans only and last 12 months.
- Basic covers 2 team members and Plus 3; public apps need Plus, and single sign-on needs Enterprise.
Stacker
- Starter is capped at 1 app, 5 internal users and 50 external users.
- Unlimited external users, 100,000 records per app and custom CSS and scripts need Plus at $149 a month.
- SQL and Salesforce connectors and enterprise SSO are Enterprise-only.
- Stacker's AI agents are sold as a separate product and are not part of these plans.
Key features
Glide
- Spreadsheet-to-app building
- Upload a spreadsheet or file and GlideOS reads its structure, data and logic, then proposes the screens and workflows for an app built on it.
- Chat-based editing
- Changes are requested in chat. You can highlight a page, a component or a piece of text and prompt for a change to that element alone.
- Shared project data
- Apps in a project read and write the same live tables, which can come from Google Sheets, uploaded Excel or CSV files, or tables GlideOS creates.
- Workflows
- Automated routines run on a schedule, from a webhook or on demand, using the same data as the apps. Basic allows 1 enabled workflow and Plus 5.
- Integrations
- The integrations directory lists more than 1,000 services, including Gmail, Slack, Airtable and Salesforce. Premium integrations need the Pro plan.
- Bring your own agent
- On Pro, an MCP server lets Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other clients build and deploy apps on Glide, which supplies hosting, data and permissions.
Stacker
- Customer portals
- Give customers, clients and partners a branded login where they see and edit only the records and columns you allow.
- Internal tools
- Build interfaces for your own team on top of an existing base or spreadsheet, without waiting on developers.
- Two-way data sync
- Stacker links to Airtable, Google Sheets and Stacker's own tables on every plan, and keeps the source and the app in sync both ways.
- Permission rules
- Row- and column-level access is set per role and enforced on the server; Plus allows 3 roles per app and Enterprise unlimited roles.
- Custom domain
- Starter includes one portal on a custom domain, and Plus adds custom CSS and scripts for finer control of the look.
Plans
Glide
Free$0
A limited, non-renewing credit allowance, 2 team members and 10 projects. No published apps and no enabled workflows.
Basic$25
per month
100 credits a month, 2 team members, 2 published apps, 1 enabled workflow and a choice of agent mode.
PlusFrom $50
per month
250 credits a month at the entry tier, with tiers up to 10,000. 3 team members, 5 published apps, 20 projects, 5 workflows and public apps.
ProFrom $125
per month
500 credits and 5 members at the entry tier, with 50 credits per added member. Unlimited published apps and workflows, premium integrations and MCP.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom team size, single sign-on, enterprise integrations, a choice of LLM provider, 30-day data backups and a dedicated success manager.
Stacker
Starter$29
per month, billed monthly
1 app, 50 external and 5 internal users, 10 tables, one portal with a custom domain.
Plus$149
per month, billed monthly
100,000 records per app, unlimited external users, 3 roles, 20 tables, custom CSS and scripts.
EnterpriseCustom
Enterprise SSO, SQL and Salesforce connectors, unlimited roles, tables and apps. Sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
Glide
No public discounts listed.
Stacker
- Nonprofit
Discounts for nonprofits and education
The pricing FAQ says non-profits and education organizations can get in touch to ask about discounts; no amount is published.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Glide or Stacker?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Glide is cheaper to start with: $25 a month, against $29 a month for Stacker. Glide starts at $25 per month (Basic), and Stacker starts at $29 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Glide or Stacker?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Glide nor Stacker has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.