Appwrite vs Firebase (2026)
Head-to-head comparison for vibe coders: scores, free tiers, pricing and best-for, using the same evidence-based methodology. Rankings are never for sale.
Side-by-side comparison
| Criterion | Appwrite | Firebase |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 80/100 | 77/100 |
| Free tier | Yes: 75K MAU, 2 GB storage, 5 GB bandwidth, 750K executions; 2 projects, paused after 1 week idle | Yes: Spark plan with no-cost quotas (e.g. Firestore 1 GiB, 50K reads/day) |
| Open source | Yes | No |
| Pricing | Pro from $25/mo per project (+$15/extra project); 200K MAU included, then $3 per 1,000 | Blaze: pay as you go above free quotas |
| Best for | An open-source, self-hostable Firebase alternative | Mobile and realtime apps that want a Google-managed backend |
| Category | Databases & backends | Databases & backends |
Score breakdown
| Criterion | Appwrite | Firebase |
|---|---|---|
| Fit for the use case /25 | 20 | 20 |
| Vibe-coder friendliness /15 | 11 | 13 |
| Output quality & reliability /15 | 12 | 13 |
| Pricing & free tier /15 | 12 | 12 |
| Ecosystem & integrations /10 | 8 | 9 |
| Momentum /10 | 7 | 7 |
| Code ownership & lock-in /10 | 10 | 3 |
Based on desk research of official pricing pages and docs; see methodology.
How they differ
Both give you sign-in, a database, file storage, functions and realtime in one backend with client SDKs. Appwrite (80) is open source and can be self-hosted, and its hosted cloud has flat plans: Free, then Pro from $25/mo per project. Firebase (77) is Google’s proprietary platform built around the Firestore NoSQL database, with deep Google Cloud integration, Analytics, Crashlytics and Cloud Messaging for mobile apps, and it bills pay-as-you-go on the Blaze plan once you leave the free Spark quotas.
Free plans
Appwrite Free: 75,000 monthly active users (MAU), 2 GB storage, 5 GB bandwidth, 750,000 function executions and 2 projects, and free projects pause after 1 week of inactivity. Firebase Spark needs no card: Firestore gives 1 GiB stored, 10 GiB/month egress, 50,000 reads, 20,000 writes and 20,000 deletes a day, and Authentication covers 50,000 MAU. Cloud Functions and Cloud Storage for new *.firebasestorage.app buckets are Blaze-only, so a Firebase app that stores files or runs server code needs a billing account even at zero traffic.
What you pay after the free plan
Appwrite Pro is from $25/mo per project (+$15 per extra project) with 200,000 MAU, 150 GB storage, 2 TB bandwidth and 3.5 million executions included, then $3 per 1,000 extra MAU. Firebase Blaze keeps the Spark quotas free and bills usage above them at Google Cloud rates: Cloud Functions are free up to 2 million invocations a month, then $0.40 per million; Cloud Storage is free up to 5 GB-months stored and 100 GB downloaded a month (in us-central1, us-west1 or us-east1); App Hosting egress is free to 10 GiB/month, then $0.20/GiB uncached. With auth upgraded to Identity Platform, users past 50,000 MAU cost $0.0055 each up to 100,000 and $0.0046 each up to 1 million.
The math by users
At 300,000 MAU, Appwrite Pro is about $325/mo ($25 plus 100 × $3) with storage and bandwidth inside generous limits. Firebase Authentication with Identity Platform at 300,000 MAU is about $1,195/mo for sign-in alone (50,000 × $0.0055 plus 200,000 × $0.0046), before Firestore reads and writes. A small Firebase app that stays under the daily Firestore quotas can cost close to nothing; the catch is that its bill moves with reads, writes and egress rather than a flat plan.
Which to pick
Pick Appwrite if you want open source, the option to self-host, a flat monthly price, or expect a large user count. Pick Firebase for mobile apps that lean on Crashlytics, Cloud Messaging and Analytics, if you are already on Google Cloud, or if your app fits inside the no-card Spark quotas. Moving off Firebase later means mapping Firestore documents into a new data model, so decide early if lock-in matters to you.
Who wins: Appwrite or Firebase?
By score, Appwrite wins Appwrite vs Firebase at 80/100 vs 77/100. Appwrite: Fully open source and self-hostable with a real free tier. Smaller AI-builder ecosystem than Supabase. Firebase: Mature, generous free tier, strong for mobile. Proprietary NoSQL creates lock-in. Appwrite is best for An open-source, self-hostable Firebase alternative. Firebase is best for Mobile and realtime apps that want a Google-managed backend.
FAQ
- Which is better, Appwrite or Firebase?
- By our score, Appwrite (80/100) ranks above Firebase (77/100). Appwrite is best for An open-source, self-hostable Firebase alternative. The right pick still depends on your workflow; see the side-by-side table.
- What is the Appwrite vs Firebase score?
- Appwrite scores 80/100 and Firebase scores 77/100 on PromptToProd's evidence-based ranking. Scores are never for sale.
- Is Appwrite cheaper than Firebase?
- For apps with many users, usually yes. Appwrite Pro is from $25/mo with 200,000 MAU included, while Firebase Authentication with Identity Platform charges $0.0055 per MAU past 50,000. For a tiny app inside Firebase’s free Spark quotas, Firebase can cost $0.
- Does Firebase need a credit card?
- Not on Spark. But Cloud Functions and Cloud Storage for new default buckets need the pay-as-you-go Blaze plan, which requires a billing account; Blaze still includes the Spark free quotas.
- Can I migrate from Firebase to Appwrite?
- Yes. Appwrite’s docs describe a Firebase migration run from the Appwrite Console wizard using a Google Cloud service account. OAuth sessions don’t carry over, so those users sign in again, and functions are not migrated automatically.