Side-by-side comparison · Databases & Backend

Firebase vs Supabase

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Firebase

4.1

From Pay as you go

Details Visit

Best overall

Supabase

4.3

From From $25/mo

Details Visit

Comparing 2 tools. Add one more if you like.

At a glance

Firebase4.1

Pick it if: Teams building mobile or real-time apps, especially if you already live in Google's world.

Supabase4.3

Best overallBest valueEasiest to use

Pick it if: Anyone building an app with AI tools who needs somewhere real to keep user accounts and data.

Overview

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
In one line	Google's backend for mobile and web apps, with logins, data and hosting in one.	A ready-made database, logins and file storage for apps you build with AI tools.
Pricing model	Freemium	Open source
Starting price	Pay as you go	From $25/mo
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Works with Claude Code	Yes	Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
Overall rating	4.1	4.3Winner
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.	3.5	4.0
FeaturesHow completely it covers the job it's built for, and how well the pieces fit together.	4.5	4.5
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.	4.0	4.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.	4.0	4.5
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.	4.5	4.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
Access & platform
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Mobile app	No	No
Desktop app	No	No
Browser extension	No	No
API access	Yes	Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace	Yes	Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO	Yes	Yes
Connects to other apps	Yes	Yes
Open source or self-hosted	No	Yes
AI abilities
Works with your files	Yes	Yes
Understands images	Yes	No
Makes images	Yes	No
Makes video	No	No
Writes code	Yes	Yes
Runs agents or automations	Yes	Yes
Learns your brand or style	No	No
Works in many languages	–	–
Capabilities score	10/ 17	9/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
Plans	SparkOur pick Free Early projects and apps with a small audience.	Free Free Prototypes, side projects and seeing if it suits you.
	Blaze Pay as you go, no monthly fee Anything that might grow past the free quotas.	ProOur pick From $25/mo Anything real people will use.
		Team From $599/mo Companies that need SSO and compliance paperwork.
		Enterprise Custom Large products with uptime guarantees.
Which plan to pick	Spark is enough until real users arrive. Move to Blaze when you need Cloud Functions or you're close to a quota, and set a budget alert the moment you do. There's no middle tier, so your bill goes straight from nothing to usage based.	Build on Free. Switch to Pro the day you share the app with anyone outside your team, mostly so the project stops pausing. Team is a big jump that only makes sense once a client or auditor asks for SSO or a SOC 2 report.

Key features

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
Standout features	Firestore Authentication Hosting Cloud Functions Messaging and analytics Firebase MCP server	Postgres database Auth Storage Edge Functions Realtime Official MCP server

Pros and cons

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
Pros	Battle-tested at huge scale for over a decade The best mobile tooling in this category Live sync and offline support built in Generous free plan with no card required Push notifications, analytics and hosting in one place	Standard Postgres underneath, so you can leave any time Logins, storage, functions and live updates in one dashboard The widest support across AI app builders and Claude Code Generous free plan for trying things out Open source, with self-hosting if you ever need it
Cons	Document storage makes reporting and complex queries awkward Usage-based costs can spike with traffic Hard to move off, since nothing else speaks Firestore Google has retired products before, most recently Firebase Studio	Free projects pause after a week of inactivity Usage charges on Pro can be hard to predict as traffic grows Access rules and SQL still take some learning for non-technical people The jump from Pro to Team is steep

Who each one is for

Attribute	Firebase	Supabase
Best for	Mobile app backends Live-updating data and chat Sign in with Google or Apple Push notifications	Backend for AI-built apps User logins and permissions File and image storage Apps that need a real database
You'll find it used by	Mobile developers Startups Google shops Hobbyists	Indie builders Startups Developers Agencies

Questions people ask

Which is better, Firebase or Supabase?

Supabase scores highest overall in our ratings (Firebase 4.1/5 and Supabase 4.3/5). Firebase is best for mobile app backends and live-updating data and chat. Supabase is best for backend for AI-built apps and user logins and permissions.

Which is cheaper, Firebase or Supabase?

Firebase: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at Pay as you go. Supabase: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at From $25/mo.

Which is easier to use, Firebase or Supabase?

Supabase rates highest for ease of use in our scores. Anyone building an app with AI tools who needs somewhere real to keep user accounts and data.

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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