Baserow vs. Smartsheet (2026 Pricing & Feature Comparison)

A practical, evidence-based comparison for teams reassessing Smartsheet

Why many Smartsheet users are actively reassessing their setup

Most teams do not start looking for Smartsheet alternatives because Smartsheet lacks features. They do so because the economics and friction of collaboration at scale have changed.

Over the past year, Smartsheet introduced licensing and pricing model changes that significantly increased costs for teams with broader collaboration feature needs. In particular, more users now require paid licenses to perform even minimal actions—such as updating a date, editing a single field, or contributing to a shared report.

For organisations working across departments or with external contributors, this has resulted in unexpected cost increases at renewal, often triggering internal reviews by IT, operations, and finance teams.

Across customer reviews and community discussions, several recurring concerns appear consistently:

• Costs increase rapidly as more collaborators are added
• Users performing trivial actions still require full licenses
• Advanced features and functionality is increasingly sold as add-ons
• Pricing is difficult to predict beyond the first contract year
• Performance slows in large or complex sheets
• Permissions and governance are limited for multi-team setups

As a result, many teams reassess Smartsheet because scaling collaboration has become difficult to justify financially.

This is where Baserow typically enters the evaluation as a cost effective and flexible solution. Especially when teams want to keep a spreadsheet experience, combined with application building and automations capabilities, Baserow is surprisingly versatile compared to Smartsheet.

What teams are really comparing when switching from Smartsheet

When Smartsheet users compare alternatives, they are usually not asking for “more features.” They are asking:

1. Can we keep a spreadsheet-like interface our teams already understand and collaborate in real time?

2. Can we model real work processes, not just task lists?

3. Can collaboration and automation scale without costs exploding?

Baserow was designed specifically around these questions.

Baserow combines a familiar spreadsheet-style grid (rows, columns, filters, views) with a structured database underneath. On top of that database, teams can build workflows, forms, automations, internal and external web applications, and AI-assisted processes—all without needing developers skills as the platform is fully no code.

This comparison focuses on how Baserow and Smartsheet differ in pricing, scalability, automation and AI capabilities.

Quick Snapshot: Baserow vs. Smartsheet

Smartsheet

Smartsheet is best suited for organisations that want a structured, spreadsheet-style project management tool with predefined templates.

It works particularly well for:

• Task- and timeline-driven projects
• PMOs running standardized project cycles and resource management
• Teams that rely heavily on Gantt charts and dashboards
• Environments where fast onboarding matters more than customization

Smartsheet was built for structured project execution, but collaboration, advanced capabilities, and automation are closely tied to licensing and add-ons.

Baserow

Baserow is best suited for teams that want project management solutions with spreadsheet experience that can grow into full workflows and internal applications.

Teams typically choose Baserow when they want:

• A spreadsheet UI or an application-style UI on the same data
• More than task tracking (requests, approvals, assets, dependencies)
• A workflow automation builder that adapts to their processes
• Custom applications without technical development skills needed
• AI-assisted setup and automation
• MCP server support to expose Baserow data and actions to AI tools and agents
• Strong data security and ownership required with option to self host.
• Predictable and affordable costs as tool adoption by more teams members increases.
• Designed for consistent performance as data grows

Baserow is commonly adopted when spreadsheet-first tools become restrictive, slow, or expensive as usage expands.

Core Product Philosophy

Smartsheet: Structured Project Management

Smartsheet is built around spreadsheet-style grids enhanced with project management features and views such as Gantt charts, calendars, and cards. It supports task dependencies, dashboards, and reporting, making it effective for predictable, template-driven project execution.

However, customer feedback frequently highlights limitations when Smartsheet is used beyond classic project tracking—particularly around permissions, automation depth, performance at scale, and pricing predictability.

Baserow: Spreadsheet UI + Database + Applications

Baserow starts with a spreadsheet-like grid but extends it with a true relational database model.

Teams can:

• Use structured field types (single select, multi select, relations, formulas, and many more)
• Link records across tables (projects ↔ requests ↔ assets ↔ approvals)
• Create role-specific views for different teams
• Build forms instead of using forms
• Switch between spreadsheet views and application-style interfaces
• Build internal tools directly on top of operational data

This allows teams to manage processes, not just tasks.

Workflow Automation

Smartsheet

• Rule-based automations (alerts, reminders, approvals)
• Best suited for fixed, linear workflows
• Limited branching or conditional logic

Baserow

• Event-based and conditional workflows
• Triggers based on data changes, time, or external events
• Multi-step logic across tables
• Tight integration with APIs and automation tools

This makes Baserow suitable for real operational and automated workflows, not just notifications.

AI Capabilities Comparison

AI is becoming increasingly important for teams managing large volumes of operational and project data. Both Smartsheet and Baserow offer similar AI-powered features, but they focus on different layers of the workflow.

Smartsheet AI Capabilities

Smartsheet includes AI features primarily focused on assisting users inside individual sheets. These capabilities are designed to help teams work faster within existing project structures.

Smartsheet AI is commonly used for:

• Generating and editing formulas
• Analyzing data within a sheet
• Creating text summaries and descriptions
• Assisting with written content in cells or comments

These key features are helpful for improving productivity at the sheet level, especially for users working heavily with formulas, reports, or written updates.

However, Smartsheet’s AI capabilities are generally assistive rather than autonomous. They do not operate across multiple sheets as agents, do not trigger workflows independently, and are not designed to act as a decision-making layer across processes. Furthermore, Smartsheet’s cloud offering is limited to Azure OpenAI and Amazon Bedrock for LLM support and does not allow customers to bring their own models, whereas Baserow offers significantly more flexibility by supporting a wider range of LLMs.

Baserow AI Assistant

Baserow includes an AI Assistant focused on building and operating systems, not just assisting with content.

The AI Assistant helps users:

• Create tables, fields, and relationships from natural language
• Generate views, filters, and forms automatically
• Design workflows and automations
• Understand and query structured data across tables

This allows non-technical users to design complete workflows and internal systems faster, rather than only accelerating individual tasks.

AI Fields (Structured, Database-Level AI)

Baserow supports AI-powered fields that operate directly inside the database layer.

AI fields can:

• Generate or enrich structured data
• Categorize, classify, or summarize records
• Extract structured information from text
• Automatically update when source data changes

Because these AI fields are part of the data model itself, they can be reused across views, automations, and applications—something that sheet-level AI assistance cannot provide.

AI Agents (Process-Level Automation)

Baserow allows teams to define AI agents that act on data changes and workflow events.

AI agents can:

• Monitor data changes across tables
• Make decisions based on predefined logic
• Trigger actions, workflows, or integrations automatically
• Operate continuously without manual prompts

This enables autonomous process steps, such as intelligent routing, enrichment, or validation—without custom code.

Smartsheet does not currently offer AI agents that operate at this process level.

How this matters in practice

• Smartsheet AI improves productivity inside existing sheets
• Baserow AI helps teams build, operate, and automate entire workflows and internal systems

This distinction is especially important for teams moving beyond task tracking into process automation, internal tooling, and scalable operations.

Internal Tools & Application Builder

What Smartsheet Offers

• Limited to Sheets and dashboards
• Limited customization beyond standard templates

What Baserow Enables

Baserow allows teams to build internal tools and applications directly on top of their data, including:

• Request and intake portals
• Approval and review systems
• Asset and inventory management
• Task management systems
• Custom business apps built by non technical users.

These tools share the same underlying data and allow for fine grained user permissions and workflow management to build custom solutions in days instead of month of development work.

Integrations & Data Synchronization

Smartsheet

• Relies primarily on predefined enterprise connectors
• Limited flexibility for custom integrations

Baserow

• API-first architecture
• REST API and webhooks
• 2 -way synch and native integrations with Enterprise tools like Jira, SalesForce, PostgreSQL, etc…
• Automation-based sync via Make, n8n, Zapier
• Designed to act as a central operational data layer (hot data)

This enables continuous synchronization across internal systems.

Pricing, Limitations, and Scalability in Practice

At first glance, Smartsheet’s pricing can look competitive, especially for small teams running standard project management workflows. However, most teams reassess pricing not at signup, but once collaboration expands, more contributors are added, or workflows grow in complexity.

This is where the practical differences between Smartsheet and Baserow become clear.

Smartsheet Pricing Reality and Practical Constraints

Smartsheet uses a per-member pricing model combined with tiered plans and add-on functionality.

Based on current publicly listed pricing:

• Pro – $11 per member / month

Designed for small teams. Includes core views (Gantt, table, board, calendar), formulas, unlimited sheets, forms, and reports, with a limited number of automations per month.

• Business – $22 per member / month

Unlocks additional capabilities such as timeline view, team workload tracking, expanded admin controls, unlimited automations, and higher attachment storage.

• Enterprise / Advanced Work Management – custom pricing

Required for advanced capabilities such as AI formulas and analysis, enhanced governance, portfolio management, cross-system data tools, and enterprise integrations.

Where teams commonly encounter limitations in practice:

• Costs scale with people, not usage

As soon as more collaborators need edit access — even for simple actions like updating a date or field — additional paid licenses are required.

• Advanced functionality is plan-gated

AI capabilities, advanced governance, portfolio tooling, and cross-system data features are only available in higher tiers or enterprise plans.

• Pricing predictability decreases as usage grows

Reviews and customer feedback frequently mention that add-ons, tier upgrades, and renewals make long-term cost forecasting difficult as teams expand.

• Performance can degrade at scale

In large or complex sheets, users report slower load times and search performance, especially when Smartsheet is used beyond classic task tracking.

Smartsheet tends to work best when:

• the number of paid contributors is stable
• workflows fit predefined project templates
• do not involve complex projects spanning multiple departments
• data volumes remain relatively contained

When teams push Smartsheet into broader operational or cross-department use cases, cost, performance, and flexibility often become limiting factors.

For a detailed breakdown of Smartsheet’s plans, add-ons, and cost drivers, read our dedicated guide here:

👉 Read the full Smartsheet pricing breakdown

Baserow Pricing, Capabilities, and Scalability Advantage

Baserow is designed with a different assumption: users, data, and workflows will grow over time.

It follows a free-version, pay-as-you-grow model and supports both cloud-hosted and self-hosted deployments.

Capabilities available across all Baserow plans (including Free)

Unlike many SaaS tools that restrict advanced functionality to higher tiers, Baserow makes several core capabilities available from the very first plan:

• Database builder with spreadsheet like experience
• Form builder
• AI Assistant to help create tables, fields, project views, and workflows
• Workflow automations for event-based and conditional processes
• Application / internal tools builder to create forms, portals, dashboards, and lightweight apps

This allows teams to design and test complete workflows without needing to upgrade plans just to access core functionality.

Free plan ($0)

Includes:

• Unlimited databases
• 3,000 rows per workspace
• 2 GB storage per workspace
• Grid, Form, and Gallery views
• Access to AI assistant, automations, and application building

This makes it possible to prototype real operational systems before committing budget.

Premium and Advanced plans

As teams grow, Baserow primarily scales on:

• row volume
• storage
• advanced permissions
• AI Fields become available
• XML, JSON, & Excel exports
• Kanban board, Survey & Calendar views

In practice:

• The Advanced plan includes free read/comment users, reducing the number of paid seats required in stakeholder-heavy workflows.
• Pricing scales predictably as teams grow, avoiding the cost volatility common in rigid per-editor licensing models.

Performance and Architecture

Baserow is built on a database-first architecture, not a spreadsheet engine stretched beyond its original purpose. This typically results in:

• More consistent performance as datasets grow
• Faster filtering and querying on large tables
• Better handling of complex, multi-table workflows
• Fewer performance issues as usage scales

Optional Self-Hosting

Baserow can be fully self-hosted for teams that want full control of their data.

Self-hosting allows organisations to:

• Scale users without per-user SaaS pricing pressure
• Avoid API rate caps, record ceilings, or storage limits imposed by hosted plans
• Control performance by scaling infrastructure directly

For many teams, this creates a clearer and more controllable long-term cost and performance model.

How to Interpret the Difference as a Buyer

Smartsheet often feels cost-effective early, when:

• teams are relatively small
• workflows are standard
• collaboration is limited

Baserow tends to win later, when:

• more people need access
• workflows evolve beyond task tracking
• data volumes increase
• performance and cost predictability matter
• advanced capabilities should not be locked behind higher plans

The question many teams eventually ask is not “Which tool has more features?” but:

“Which platform lets us build and scale workflows without hitting cost or performance walls?”

Baserow vs Smartsheet: Comparison Chart (2026)

Category	Baserow	Smartsheet
Core concept	Database-first platform with spreadsheet-style grid	Spreadsheet-style work management platform
Primary UI	Spreadsheet-style grid and application-style interfaces	Spreadsheet-style grid
Best for	Building custom workflow systems (projects + processes + operational data)	Structured project tracking with templates and timelines
Data structure	Relational database (tables + linked records)	Sheet-based structure
Spreadsheet experience	Grid, filters, sorting, formulas, views	Grid, filters, formulas, views
Views	Grid, Form, Kanban, Gallery, Timeline (with dependencies)	Grid, Card, Calendar, Gantt/timeline views
Dependencies	Timeline view with dependencies	Project dependencies in Gantt/timeline
Forms / intake	Forms for structured intake	Forms available for intake
Automations	Workflow automation builder (event-based, conditional)	Rule-based automations (alerts, reminders, approvals)
Internal tools / app building	Build internal tools and applications on top of tables (portals, dashboards, lightweight apps)	Dashboards and reports; customization mainly at sheet/dashboard level
AI assistant	AI Assistant to help create tables, fields, views, and workflows	AI assistance for formulas, summaries, and analysis (plan-dependent)
AI fields	AI-powered fields embedded in the data model	No native AI field concept
AI agents / workflow AI	AI-driven workflows and agents reacting to data changes	No autonomous AI agents
MCP server (AI tool integration)	Yes – MCP server available to expose Baserow data and actions to AI tools (e.g. LLMs, agents)	No MCP server or equivalent AI protocol
API & extensibility	API-first; designed for custom integrations and automation-based sync	Integrations and connectors; API access depends on plan
Data sync approach	data synch + webhooks/API + automation platforms (e.g. Make, n8n, Zapier)	Connectors and integrations with common business tools
Permissions	Role-based permissions (granular access control) at database and application level.	Permissions and sharing controls
Security	Built-in security features such as 2FA; optional self-hosting	Enterprise security features; cloud-only deployment
Self-hosting	Yes (self-hosted option available)	No (SaaS only)
Scalability model	Scales via database architecture and optional self-hosting	Scales well for PM use cases; licensing and performance may become limiting at scale
Pricing model	Free plan available; paid tiers; optional self-hosting	Paid tiers with per-member pricing and enterprise add-ons
Cost sensitivity to collaboration	Free plan + options like free read/comment users; self-hosting reduces SaaS constraints	Collaboration typically increases costs as more licensed editors are added

Final Overview

Smartsheet is well suited for structured, template-based project management with stable team sizes.

Baserow is the stronger choice for teams that:

• expect growth in users, data, or workflow complexity
• want AI, automations, and internal tools available from day one
• need better performance at scale
• want predictable costs over time
• prefer a spreadsheet UI that can evolve into a full operational system

Try Baserow

If you’re reassessing Smartsheet due to rising collaboration costs, performance concerns, or plan limitations, you can explore Baserow for free and see how a spreadsheet-first platform can grow into a scalable workflow system.

Explore Baserow