The short answer
- For 20 editors on one stable approval workflow, a typed database with a purpose-built app is modeled to save $2,900 in year one against Airtable Team. the math
- Small bases may fit Airtable Free: 1,000 records per base, 1 GB attachments per base, 1,000 API calls/month per workspace, 2 weeks of revision history, up to 5 editors/creators. Modeled first-year saving per seat: $276. the math
- Baserow Advanced keeps the spreadsheet-database feel with role-based permissions, but for 20 users it's modeled to cost $320 more in year one once migration time counts. the math
- Stay on Airtable if you use it as a general app builder across many bases, or depend on its formulas, cross-base sync or extensions. recipe
Four ways to stop paying for Airtable
A cheaper vendor
Cheaper plan Airtable (free tier): saves $276 in year one (+3 more below)
Open source
NocoDB: costs $1,172 more in year one (+1 more below)
An agent skill
Nothing in the catalog fits this job yet.
Replace with AI
The best option of each kind, modeled, not measured: each figure links its math. Keeping Airtable is a valid answer too.
Who should switch, and who shouldn't
Switch if
- One stable workflow runs your operations: records, views, roles, approvals and import/export. recipe
- You pay for many editing seats: the build path's running cost is flat, not per seat. the math
- Your bases fit the Free limits of 1,000 records per base and up to 5 editors. support.airtable.com
What Airtable costs today
List prices from the vendor's pricing page, as stored in the Stackcut catalog. Each price links its source.
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly (per month) | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airtable Team | $24/user/mo | $20/user/mo | 50,000 records per base, 20 GB attachments per base, 100,000 API calls/month, 1-year history |
| Airtable Business | $54/user/mo | $45/user/mo | 125,000 records per base, 100 GB attachments per base, unlimited API calls, 1-year history; requires a private email domain |
The alternatives, ranked
7 ways out, ranked by modeled saving in the first year after setup and upkeep (7 priced). Modeled, not measured: each figure links the math on the recipe page.
- The build and Baserow Advanced paths are modeled for 20 editors on Airtable Team at $20/user/mo billed yearly; the other paths for 1 seat at the monthly Team price. recipe
Compare a specific alternative
Considering a specific destination? Read its checked comparison before deciding what to move.
- Airtable vs Baserow Checked comparison evidence, migration details.
- Airtable vs NocoDB Checked comparison evidence, migration details, public switching accounts.
What a team database costs at 1, 5 and 20 editors
Airtable and Baserow charge per editor. Free plans cap editors or records; self-hosting has no seat price but you run the server.
| Option | List price | 1 editor | 5 editors | 20 editors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airtable Team today | $24/editor/mobilled monthly | $24 | $120 | $480 |
| Airtable Business today | $54/editor/mobilled monthly | $54 | $270 | $1,080 |
| Airtable Free1,000 records per base | $0free plan | $0free tier | $0free tier | up to 5 users |
| Baserow Premium (cloud) | $12/editor/mobilled monthly | $12 | $60 | $240 |
| Baserow Advanced (cloud)role-based permissions | $22/editor/mobilled monthly | $22 | $110 | $440 |
| NocoDB Free (cloud) | $0free plan | $0free tier | up to 3 users | up to 3 users |
| NocoDB or Baserow (self-hosted) | $0 licenseopen source; check paid-edition terms | $0+ your server | $0+ your server | $0+ your server |
How people actually left Airtable
3 public accounts of leaving Airtable: 2 switching, 1 switched. Summaries are ours; each links the original, and each was checked against its page before it appeared here.
(2023 account) After importing a 16-table, 18-relation Airtable base, every linked-record relation had become many-to-many with no in-UI fix, making relinking records by hand a lot of work. GitHub
(2023 account) After Airtable moved from API keys to personal access tokens, this user reported that importing with a personal access token brought over table structure but not the row data itself. GitHub
(2023 account) When Airtable changed its shareable-base URL format, this user's import into NocoDB broke with an error, and they asked publicly for a workaround. GitHub
How to leave Airtable
Export first, then cancel. Every step links the vendor's own help page, checked on the date shown.
How to leave Airtable
Export first
- Records in a view: Down arrow next to the view name → Download CSV (web and desktop apps) (CSV). Attachments export as file names and URLs that expire after a few hours, so download the files separately. Comments and field descriptions aren't included. support.airtable.com
Cancel
- Download a CSV of every view you need, and the attachment files separately (see export).
- Account overview → Workspace settings → the workspace → Change plan → Choose free. Owner permissions are required.
- Sales-led Business and Enterprise Scale plans go through your sales contact.
- Takes effect
- At the end of the current billing cycle; nothing changes before then.
- Refunds
- Refunds only for accidental upgrades or added collaborators: within 7 days of the invoice on monthly plans, 14 days on annual.
- After you cancel
- Bases over the Free record limit can't add new records, including through forms and the API. Existing records stay accessible.
Not covered by the paths above, per the recipe: General no-code application builder, Full formula engine, Arbitrary cross-base sync, Every extension. If you rely on one of these, keep the incumbent or check the path closely.
Moving your data, destination by destination
What each destination's importer carries over, what it leaves behind, and any help it offers switchers.
To Baserow
Official guide baserow.io · Tools: Baserow Airtable Importer
Moves: Records/data (full); Views (full); Filters and groupings (full); Table/base structure (full). baserow.io
Watch out for:
- Baserow's own migration page does not state what happens to field types, attachments, formulas or linked-record structure during import. baserow.io
- Airtable Automations and Interfaces have no stated equivalent in Baserow and would need to be rebuilt by hand. baserow.io
- No separate Airtable-side export step: the importer reads Airtable directly via the share link rather than a CSV export. baserow.io
Switching help: Built-in one-click importer: paste an Airtable share-base link and Baserow recreates the base's data, views, filters and groups; a sales-assisted "Migration Support" link is offered for more complex moves. baserow.io
To NocoDB
Official guide nocodb.com · Tools: NocoDB Airtable Import
Moves: Tables and records (full). nocodb.com
Watch out for:
- This vendor page is a marketing/stats page, not a spec: it doesn't itself document field-type or attachment fidelity (see the companion community migration_guide for that). nocodb.com
Community guide github.com · Tools: NocoDB native Airtable importer (v0.91+)
Moves: Tables and records (full); Rollup fields (partial); Linked records (partial); Rich text fields (partial); Phone, percent and duration fields (partial). github.com
Doesn't move: Formula fields (not imported at all per the original 2022 report; a May 2024 comment on this thread still asks how to import formula-heavy bases, with no fix noted); Filters/sorts that reference a field type the importer converted or skipped. github.com
Watch out for:
- A personal-access-token import can bring over table structure while skipping row content, per one 2023 report. github.com
- Airtable changing its share-link URL format in 2023 broke the importer's link parser for at least one user. github.com
- Airtable Interfaces and Automations have no import path here either; only base data, views and (partial) structure move. github.com
Switching help: Built-in importer: enter an Airtable personal access token (or API key) and NocoDB imports the base's tables and records directly, described as usually finishing within minutes. nocodb.com
From each destination's own migration docs and switching pages, plus community write-ups where no official guide exists, each checked against its page. Confirm terms on the linked page before you rely on an offer.
Open-source and forkable options
- NocoDB: Open-source; free for up to 3 users hosted or self-host. License: open_source
- Baserow: Open-source; free self-hosted, Premium $10/user annual. License: open_source
Open source means no license fee, not free to run: the server, backups and upgrades are yours. Read the license before you fork or resell; several of these are open-core or source-available.
Replace with AI, or hand it to an agent skill
Replace with AI Replace with AI: operations app: 20 editing users; one stable approval workflow. First year: saves $2,900 (modeled, not measured).
- The spec replaces one stable base with a typed database and a purpose-built UI, keeping relationships and access; it doesn't try to copy the formula engine or every extension. recipe
FAQ
How do I get my data out of Airtable?
Download a CSV from each view: the down arrow next to the view name, then Download CSV. Attachments come out as URLs that expire after a few hours, so save the files separately. support.airtable.com
What happens when I downgrade Airtable to Free?
The downgrade takes effect at the end of the billing cycle. Bases over the Free record limit can't add new records, including through forms and the API, but existing records stay accessible. support.airtable.com
Can I get a refund from Airtable?
Only for accidental upgrades or added collaborators: within 7 days of the invoice on monthly plans, or 14 days on annual plans. support.airtable.com
Is Baserow open source?
The core is MIT-licensed per its official repository; premium and enterprise editions have separate terms, so check which features you need before self-hosting. the math
Keep reading
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Or ask your agent
Connect the Stackcut MCP server (https://stackcut.io/mcp, no API key) and ask: “We pay for 20 Airtable Team seats to run one approval workflow. What would it cost to replace it?”
find_alternatives({"vendor": "Airtable", "seats": 20,
"features_used": ["Structured records", "Views", "Roles", "Approvals"]})