Supabase

Supabase is an open source backend platform built on PostgreSQL. It gives you a real Postgres database plus authentication, file storage, serverless functions, realtime sync, and auto-generated APIs, all connected in one project. If you've ever wired up a backend from scratch, you know the pain: separate services for logins, uploads, and database calls, each with its own bill and config. Supabase bundles those pieces so you start with a working backend instead of assembling one.

The pitch is closest to Firebase, except the data layer is plain Postgres. That matters for a few reasons. Postgres is a standard. You can move your data somewhere else whenever you want, so there's no lock-in. You can also connect with any Postgres client or ORM, including psql, Prisma, and Drizzle, using a normal connection string. And because it's open source, you can self-host the whole stack on your own machines if you'd rather not pay a cloud provider.

The tradeoff is that Supabase expects you to be comfortable with developer concepts. This isn't a no-code builder. You'll be writing SQL, managing schemas, and setting row-level security policies to keep data safe. Beginners can get a project running quickly, but the platform rewards people who already understand how databases and APIs work. It's a developer tool through and through. Think twice if that sounds like too much.

Getting Started

1. Create a free account at supabase.com and start a new project. Pick a region close to your users and set a database password.
2. Open the Table Editor to create tables visually, or write SQL in the SQL Editor to define your schema.
3. Turn on Auth and choose your login methods, such as email and password, magic links, or social providers.
4. Call the auto-generated REST or GraphQL APIs from your app using the project URL and anon key, and add row-level security policies before going live.
5. Add Storage buckets, Edge Functions, or Realtime as your app grows. Unused products cost nothing.