Appwrite is a complete backend for your web and mobile apps, the closest thing to Supabase you will find in open source. All in one console: user accounts, a PostgreSQL database, file storage, functions in Node, Python, PHP or Go, email, SMS and push notifications, realtime and hosting for your site. A wizard imports your Supabase or Firebase project, and Claude Code can create your tables through its MCP server. On your own server it is free and unlimited, under a BSD licence: one Docker command, at least 2 cores and 4 GB of memory. On Appwrite Cloud, the free plan goes up to 75,000 monthly active users and 2 projects, and the Pro plan costs about €21 a month. Careful: on the free plan, your projects are paused after a week without activity.
Versus Supabase: the match
Price
Appwrite
€0 on your server
Supabase
€22/month (Pro)
Database
Appwrite
PostgreSQL by default, or MariaDB, MongoDB
Supabase
PostgreSQL
Users
Appwrite
Unlimited on your server
Supabase
100,000 active a month, then usage based
| VS | Appwrite | Supabase ↗ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | €0 on your server | €22/month (Pro) |
| Database | PostgreSQL by default, or MariaDB, MongoDB | PostgreSQL |
| Users | Unlimited on your server | 100,000 active a month, then usage based |
| Functions | Node, Python, PHP, Go and more | Edge Functions in TypeScript |
| Email, SMS, push | Included, with your sending provider | Sign in emails only |
| Hosting your site | Included | No, you need Vercel or another host |
| What you need | A 4 GB server, or their free cloud | An account |
How to install it (even from zero)
Two routes: Appwrite's free cloud to try it without installing anything, or your own server to never pay again. The prompt starts from scratch and installs the self hosted version.
- 1
Paste this prompt into Claude (Code or Desktop)
It checks your server, installs Appwrite from the official repo, locks down the console and connects Claude to your project:
Installe Appwrite sur mon serveur : c'est le backend open source qui remplace Supabase et Firebase (dépôt GitHub appwrite/appwrite, site appwrite.io). Vérifie d'abord que le serveur a au moins 2 cœurs, 4 Go de mémoire et 2 Go de swap, et que Docker est installé (installe-le sinon). Lance ensuite l'installateur officiel avec la commande docker run de la documentation, sur la dernière version stable de l'image appwrite/appwrite, garde PostgreSQL comme base de données et configure mon nom de domaine avec un certificat HTTPS. Si j'utilise déjà Dokploy, suis plutôt le guide Dokploy de la documentation d'Appwrite. Crée mon compte administrateur et vérifie que personne d'autre ne peut créer de compte sur la console. Configure l'envoi d'e-mails avec mon serveur SMTP pour que les e-mails de connexion partent de mon domaine. Si j'ai un projet sur Supabase ou Firebase, montre-moi l'assistant d'import de la console. Branche ensuite le serveur MCP d'Appwrite dans Claude Code pour que tu puisses créer mes tables et mes fonctions, et montre-moi comment sauvegarder la base et les fichiers, puis comment faire les mises à jour. Explique chaque étape simplement, je débute. Review the GitHub repository and check whether it is safe to install given my machine and my infrastructure. Ask me as many questions as possible, using widgets, to clarify my request and be as precise as you can.
- 2
No server? Start on the free cloud
An account on cloud.appwrite.io is enough: up to 75,000 monthly active users and 2 projects, paused after a week without activity. You can move to your own server later.
- 3
Update with the built in tool
Appwrite updates through its migration command, not by just changing the image version. Back up the database and files before every update.
Paste this prompt into Claude (Code or Desktop)What you actually do with it
Your app's backend, with no subscription
Accounts, database, files and functions on your server: no more 25 dollars a month for Supabase Pro, and no usage fees beyond the quotas.
Claude builds inside your project
With the MCP server, Claude Code creates your tables, access rules and functions straight in Appwrite, while it codes your app.
One console instead of three tools
Sign in, email, SMS and push notifications, site hosting: what you pieced together between Supabase and Vercel is run from one place.
Project health, at a glance
Before installing an open-source tool, one question matters: is the project alive? These scores are computed from public GitHub data. They are not made up.
99/100
ExcellentVery active, well-maintained project: go ahead with confidence.
- Activity
- 100
Is the code moving? (commits in the last 30 days)
- Maintenance
- 100
How fresh is the latest update? Fresher is better.
- Community
- 96
Stars and contributors: people around means help and fixes.
- Maturity
- 100
Project age. Old enough to be solid, still alive.
- Momentum
- 100
Current pace versus its usual pace: speeding up or dozing off?
The repo in numbers
- GitHub stars
- 57.9k
- Forks
- 5.8k
- Contributors
- 357
- Commits
- 60.6k
- Project age
- 7.6 yrs
- Last commit
- 4 d ago
- Size
- 1152.6 MB
- License
- BSD-3-Clause
Built with
- TypeScript 61%
- PHP 29.2%
- C 6.7%
- Rust 2.7%
Scores computed automatically from the GitHub API (last-30-days activity, update freshness, community size, project age). Refreshed daily.
Loucash’s take
8/10
If you are leaving Supabase, this is the most complete alternative I have seen. Since version 2, Appwrite runs on PostgreSQL by default, and it goes further than Supabase on one point: email, SMS, push notifications and site hosting live in the same console. What I like: the MCP server. Claude Code creates the tables and functions while it codes the app, without me going through the interface. And the free cloud lets you test before setting up a server. Why 8 and not more: it is heavy. You need a server with at least 4 GB of memory, and 19 containers run behind the console. Updates go through a migration tool, not something to do lightly. And if your project fits in a small database, PocketBase does the job with a single file.
It’s for you if: You have a web or mobile app on Supabase or Firebase, a server with at least 4 GB, and you want to stop paying for the plan and the usage. For a first backend or a small project, start with PocketBase, it is simpler.
Also worth a look in the library
OpenSEO
Data & analytics€134/moThe open source SEO tool that does the job of Semrush and Ahrefs: keyword research, backlinks, rank tracking, site audit, visibility in AI answers. The software is free and self-hosted; the SEO data is pay as you go, a few cents per request, no subscription.
View details →
Casdoor
Data & analytics€31/moThe open source sign in server that replaces Auth0: a login page in your colours, sign in with Google and about a hundred others, two factor authentication, enterprise SSO. Your user accounts stay on your server, with no bill that grows with them.
View details →
PocketBase
Data & analytics€22/moA complete backend in a single file: SQLite database, user accounts, files, realtime and an admin dashboard. You run it on your server and get the equivalent of Supabase or Firebase, with no subscription.
View details →
One email a week that saves you money
Every Tuesday: the open source alternatives that just entered the library, what they replace and what they save you. One email, nothing more.
Free. One email on Tuesdays. Unsubscribe in one click. Your data
Join the Tuesday readers
