Database structure, spreadsheet interface
Take a quick tour of the Grist interface, customizable widgets, and relational capabilities.
Lightweight CRM Example
comparison for modern no-code platforms
Grist vs NocoDB
Compare Grist and NocoDB – both no-code, self-hostable data tools – and see why businesses that need more flexibility, familiarity, and security choose Grist.
| NocoDB | Grist | |
|---|---|---|
| Relational data | ✔ | ✔ |
| Self-hostable | ✔ | ✔ |
| Data visualizations | ✔ | ✔ |
| Real-time collaboration | ✔ | ✔ |
| Automations | ✔ | ✔ |
| Data types / structured data | ✔ | ✔ |
| REST API / webhooks | ✔ | ✔ |
| Forms | ✔ | ✔ |
| Integrations | ✔ | ✔ |
| App building | ✔ | ✔ |
| AI assistant | X | ✔ |
| Custom and user-created views | X | ✔ |
| Spreadsheet formulas | X | Most Excel/Google Sheets formulas supported. |
| Python support | X | Native Python support for advanced calculations and data manipulation. |
| Granular access controls | Limited high-level permissions. | Access controls down to the individual cell. |
| Solutions | Third-party solution building available. | In-house and third-party solution building. |
NocoDB vs Grist
Both Grist and NocoDB offer self-hostable, no-code, spreadsheet-database hybrids.
Grist stands out for spreadsheet-loving teams. Its interface, keyboard shortcuts, and formula language feel familiar, making adoption easy across wider teams.
For building secure, tailored workflows, Grist offers deeper flexibility. Python support unlocks advanced analysis, and custom views let you read and write to your data, your way.
While NocoDB supports table and field-level permissions, Grist goes further, with fine-grained rules down to each row and cell.
How NocoDB compares to Grist
Users looking to create dashboards or applications from their data choose Grist and NocoDB for their relational structure, integrations, and self-hostability.
NocoDB users recommend the platform for its spreadsheet UI, data interoperability, and its ability to be self-hosted.
However, businesses looking for a spreadsheet-like relational experience with full-featured no-code app building find that NocoDB falls short against Grist as a collaborative data management solution.
Why businesses choose NocoDB
User experience and interface
- User praise the simple interface and user experience as standing out from database-focused solutions.
- Responsive mobile view.
- Comprehensive database modification functions and workflows.
Interoperability & integrations
- Well-documented and fully-featured APIs.
- Extensive third-party integrations and automations.
- Users report that NocoDB works well with other databases.
- Detailed documentation and learning resources.
Self-hosting
- Many users define this as the main reason for choosing NocoDB.
- Source code available on GitHub (Grist’s source code is also available on GitHub).
- Businesses are able to be confident that their data remains on their own servers.
Cost
- NocoDB Cloud and its paid plans are currently free in technical preview, though it’s unclear on how long that will last.
- The advertised paid plans, even once the technical preview period ends, are lower than many competitors.
What are the disadvantages of NocoDB?
Lack of customer support: Consulting available at an additional cost for Business plans.
Limited formula power: technical users may find they need more robust calculation capabilities, such as native Python support.
Limited advanced permissions: High-level user permissions limit collaboration potential.
Feature inconsistency: Some users report issues with certain features not behaving as expected.
Lack of templates: Getting started with NocoDB can be tricky. Grist has many pre-built templates).
Pricing uncertainty: Though NocoDB Cloud is free in technical preview, it’s unclear on how long that will last.
Why businesses choose Grist
Spreadsheet interface
A relational backend with a familiar and user-friendly spreadsheet frontend. Everyone can work from the same data regardless of database/SQL expertise.
Data manipulation
Full Python support + Excel-like functions. Built-in drag-and-drop dashboards and custom-coded views — all in an SQLite file. Trigger formulas for automation and data integrity.
Granular access control
Evolved from traditional CRUD permissions, users can define who can view and edit specifics parts of a document — down to the individual cell level.
Flexibility + customization
Custom widgets, column customizations, conditional styles, and integrations allow SMBs and technical users to build exactly what they need.
Data ownership
Businesses with data privacy concerns or who would prefer not to host their data on US servers can fully self-manage Grist (requires Enterprise plan).
Dynamic dashboards
Create custom views, and then organize and link them together to have dynamic data visualizations that show you the right information at all times.
“I love Grist. It’s crazy powerful. I still can’t believe what we’ve been able to achieve in it. It’s the dream that low-code was sold as for years – we can do incredible things in each column with Python and we can build our own widgets to run on those! Wild!”
Elliot Lee
User Researcher
“The more I use Grist, the more I LOVE it. I have been surveying self-hosted database GUI tools, and I was consistently disappointed with their shortcomings or bugginess. Grist is the first to have tilted the balance the other way.”
Stephen S.
Publications, Personal City Guides
“Grist has given us incredible flexibility to solve data problems and find solutions, whether it is for a small team at the district, or at scale with the entire district staff. We’re really excited about the different ways we can use it going forward.”
Director of Product
EdTech Company
“What I like about Grist the most is its focus. It appears simple, but it’s very powerful in a focused way. Grist has really improved our workflow and communication.”
Chris Scott
Co-founder in Digital Marketing
“If people spend some time learning a new tool they’ll have more power to do their work and research. I said to one of my students, ‘You will be very very happy using Grist because you are miserable using Excel!'”
Eduardo Dalcin, Ph.D.
Biodiversity Informatics Expert
“Most CRMs don’t work the way Grist works. Grist’s layouts are simple and do exactly what we need.”
Jennifer Bledsoe
IT Tech at Law Firm
“I recently discovered Grist after becoming frustrated with the limitations of traditional spreadsheets like Excel and Google Sheets. Grist has been a breath of fresh air, especially with its ability to handle structured data in a way that feels familiar to anyone with experience in relational databases, but with the added flexibility of Python.”
Will Bailey
Small Business Manager
How businesses can get started with Grist
Easily import existing XLSX and CSV files to start using Grist right away.
Grist’s incremental imports feature allows users to import new activity to existing data and Grist intelligently combines it without creating duplicates or needing manual cleanup.
Pre-built templates
Jump right into Grist’s spreadsheet-like interface with these pre-built templates:
The evolution of spreadsheets
Databases aren’t going anywhere, but they aren’t the most accessible ways to work with and collaborate on data. NocoDB and Grist are both evolving the category.
But NocoDB’s shortcomings in spreadsheet functionality, feature and pricing uncertainty, and limited data manipulation cause issues in business workflows.
For users looking for more than a database-like platform, Grist’s flexible and customizable solution provides a familiar interface with the power of a purpose-built, modern, no-code app builder.
