GRID vs Univer (2026): which should you pick?

Pick GRID if

• Fits if you are a developer who needs spreadsheet calculations inside an AI agent
• Makes sense if your product must open and edit Excel files in code

Look elsewhere if

• Not for you if you want a spreadsheet to open and use, since it is a toolkit for developers
• Tight if you ship a product, as the free licence covers development, testing and personal use only
• Watch out: no prices are published and commercial licences go through a contact form
• Watch out: early-stage companies are told to get in touch for pricing

Pick Univer if

• Fits if you build a product that needs a spreadsheet editor inside it
• Makes sense if you need an Apache-2.0 core you can host yourself

Look elsewhere if

• Not for you if you want a spreadsheet to use, as it is a developer toolkit
• Pricey if you are small, since a production licence starts at $99 a month
• Tight if you stay on Freemium, as it adds watermarks and feature limits
• Watch out: a Business licence covers one main domain and its subdomains
• Watch out: licences run 1 to 12 months with no automatic renewal

GRID

• No published prices: commercial licenses are scoped to the use case and quoted through a contact form.
• The evaluation license is for development, testing and personal use only; shipping a product or running an internal workflow needs a commercial license.
• It is a developer toolkit rather than a spreadsheet app for end users.
• Early-stage companies are told to get in touch for matching pricing.

Univer

• It is a developer SDK, not a ready-made spreadsheet app for end users.
• Production use requires Business or Enterprise; the Freemium tier adds watermarks and feature limits.
• A Business license covers one main domain and its subdomains; other domains need separate licenses.
• Model services and infrastructure costs are not included in the license fee.

GRID

Spreadsheet engine

Runs spreadsheet logic and calculations natively inside an application, headless, and is described as compatible with Excel and Google Sheets.

Agent tools

Gives AI agents structured operations to read cells, apply changes and recalculate, offered as an MCP server and as skills.

Spreadsheet viewer and editor

A themeable viewer and a scoped editor component for showing and changing workbooks inside a product.

Excel add-in

Custom Excel add-ins built on the engine, as in a case the site describes for an investment-banking AI platform.

Univer

Spreadsheets, docs and slides SDK

Web SDK embeds Office-style editing in a product; Business adds charts, pivot tables, printing and an advanced formula engine.

Server SDK

Handles real-time collaboration, history and Office file import and export in your own environment.

AI SDK

Lets agents read and edit Office content and collaborate with people. It includes no model; you connect your own.

File formats

Sheets import XLS, XLSX, CSV and TSV and export XLSX, CSV and TSV; the vendor warns unsupported elements may be dropped in conversion.

Customizable interface

A plugin architecture for toolbars, menus and components written in React, Vue 3 or Web Components.

GRID

Pricing could not be confirmed. See grid.is.

Univer

• Freemium$0

  Watermarks and feature limits; meant for development and testing, with 10 exports a month.

• Business$99

  per month and up, or from $1,000 per year billed annually

  Self-hosted Office SDK for production: 25+ editing connections, 5,000+ exports a month, one main domain and its subdomains. Licenses run 1 to 12 months with no automatic renewal.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Unlimited editing connections and exports, distributed deployment and advanced support.

GRID

• Startups

  Startup pricing on request

  The license page says early-stage companies get pricing to match and should contact the team.

Univer

• Annual discount

  Annual license from $1,000

  The pricing page lists Business from $99 a month, or from $1,000 a year billed annually.