Backend-as-a-Service providers are Firebase (Google’s NoSQL + auth + storage), Supabase (Postgres + auth + storage + real-time, the open-source Firebase alternative), Appwrite (self-hosted alternative to Firebase), and AWS Amplify (AWS’s BaaS, deep in the AWS ecosystem). The right answer is Supabase for a team that wants Postgres + auth + storage + real-time, Firebase for a team on Google Cloud, Appwrite for a self-hosted alternative, AWS Amplify for a team deep in the AWS ecosystem. The mistake every team makes: the team picks Firebase for the NoSQL story, the team needs JOINs a year later, the team migrates to Postgres and Supabase.
Table of contents
- Firebase — the Google-backed, NoSQL option
- Supabase — the open-source, Postgres option
- Appwrite — the self-hosted alternative
- AWS Amplify — the deep-in-AWS option
- The lock-in story — the team that picks the wrong one
- The cost — the per-user-per-month and the egress
- The one that fits a 5-person team
- How this fits the rest of the stack
- FAQ
Firebase — the Google-backed, NoSQL option
Firebase is Google’s BaaS. The data layer is Firestore (a NoSQL document database), the auth is Firebase Auth, the storage is Firebase Storage, the functions are Cloud Functions. The right answer is Firebase for a team on Google Cloud, a team that does not need SQL, a team that values the Google ecosystem.
The gotcha: Firestore is NoSQL, the team’s JOINs are denormalized into the documents, the team’s data is in Google’s proprietary format. The team that needs to migrate to Postgres a year later has a hard time — the data model is fundamentally different.
Supabase — the open-source, Postgres option
Supabase is the open-source Firebase alternative. The data layer is Postgres, the auth is Supabase Auth, the storage is Supabase Storage, the real-time is Postgres LISTEN/NOTIFY + WebSocket. The right answer is Supabase for a team that wants Postgres + auth + storage + real-time, a team that values open-source, a team that wants to self-host later.
The gotcha: Supabase’s free tier is limited (500MB database, 1GB storage, 50K monthly active users). The right answer for a team that needs more is the Pro plan ($25/month) or the self-hosted option.
Appwrite — the self-hosted alternative
Appwrite is the self-hosted Firebase alternative. The data layer is MariaDB (or Postgres in 1.5+), the auth is Appwrite Auth, the storage is Appwrite Storage, the functions are Appwrite Functions. The right answer is Appwrite for a team that wants a self-hosted BaaS, a team that has strict data residency requirements, a team that does not want to depend on a third-party provider.
AWS Amplify — the deep-in-AWS option
AWS Amplify is AWS’s BaaS. The data layer is DynamoDB (or AppSync for GraphQL), the auth is Cognito, the storage is S3, the functions are Lambda. The right answer is Amplify for a team that is deep in the AWS ecosystem, a team that wants the AWS-specific services, a team that needs the AWS SLAs.
The gotcha: Amplify’s pricing is per-service (DynamoDB, Cognito, S3, Lambda) and the total can add up. The right answer is to model the cost at the team’s actual usage, not the headline price.
The lock-in story — the team that picks the wrong one
The lock-in: the team’s data is in the provider’s format, the team’s auth is in the provider’s SDK, the team’s storage is in the provider’s bucket. The team that needs to migrate spends months rewriting the client. The right answer is to pick the provider that has the least lock-in (Supabase’s data is Postgres, the team can self-host or migrate to a different Postgres provider), the wrong answer is to pick the provider that has the most features (the team is locked in for years).
The cost — the per-user-per-month and the egress
The cost of a BaaS is per-user-per-month (for the auth and the storage), the egress (for the data and the storage), and the compute (for the functions). The right answer is to model the cost at the team’s actual usage, not the headline price. The right answer for a small team is the free tier, the right answer for a high-traffic team is the paid plan, the right answer for a team that needs more is the self-hosted option.
The one that fits a 5-person team
The right answer for a 5-person team is Supabase. The data is Postgres, the team can self-host later, the auth and storage are first-class, the free tier is enough for the team’s first product, the pricing scales with the team’s usage. The wrong answer is Firebase for a 5-person team that needs SQL — the team is paying for the NoSQL data model without needing it.
How this fits the rest of the stack
The infrastructure question is a small piece of a larger pattern: the team’s runtime, storage, database, secret store, logs, and deployment platform are all parts of the same platform. The right answer is to model the full stack before the project ships, not after. The RunxBuild hosting calculator is the right place to do that exercise — pick the runtime, the memory tier, the storage, the secret store, and the egress, and the calculator shows what the deploy actually costs at the team’s actual usage.
Useful related references:
FAQ
What is the best BaaS in 2026?
Supabase for Postgres + auth + storage + real-time, Firebase for Google Cloud, Appwrite for self-hosted, AWS Amplify for AWS ecosystem.
Is Supabase better than Firebase?
For a team that wants Postgres, yes. For a team that wants NoSQL, no. The right answer is Supabase for SQL, Firebase for NoSQL.
Can I self-host Supabase?
Yes — Supabase is open-source and self-hostable. The right answer is the self-hosted option for a team with strict data residency requirements.
What is the cost of Firebase?
Pay-as-you-go: Firestore reads/writes, Auth users, Storage GB, Cloud Functions invocations.
What is the cost of Supabase?
Free tier (500MB database), Pro $25/month (8GB database), Team $599/month (unlimited).
Can I migrate from Firebase to Supabase?
Yes — there are migration tools and the data model is different (NoSQL to SQL). Plan the migration in advance.
What is AWS Amplify?
AWS’s BaaS — DynamoDB, Cognito, S3, Lambda, all integrated. The right answer is Amplify for a team deep in the AWS ecosystem.
What is Appwrite?
A self-hosted BaaS alternative to Firebase.