Softr vs Glide: Which Is Better?
No-code portal builders for Airtable and Google Sheets compared.
Tom Bradley
2026-02-27
Softr and Glide are both capable no-code platforms for building client portals and internal tools, but they diverge meaningfully in data philosophy, pricing structure, and target audience.
Quick Comparison
| Softr | Glide | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free; paid from $59/mo | Free; paid from $199/mo |
| Primary data sources | Airtable, Google Sheets, Notion, HubSpot, SQL, Supabase | Google Sheets, Airtable, Excel, SQL |
| Built-in database | Yes (Softr Database) | Yes (Glide Tables / Big Tables) |
| User limits (entry paid) | 20 users ($59/mo) | 30 users included ($199/mo) |
| App limits | 3 apps on Basic | Unlimited on Business |
| SSO | Enterprise only | Enterprise only |
| SOC 2 Type II | Yes | Yes |
| AI features | Built-in (AI credits per plan) | Built-in AI agents and automations |
| Best for | Client portals, multi-app agencies, Airtable power users | Spreadsheet-to-app workflows, field teams, operations |
Softr
Softr positions itself as a portal and internal tool builder that wraps around your existing data sources. The core experience is a drag-and-drop interface with over 100 pre-built blocks — lists, tables, kanbans, calendars, charts, forms — that you assemble into apps without touching code.
Data connectivity is a genuine strength. Softr connects in real-time to Airtable, Google Sheets, Notion, HubSpot, monday.com, SQL databases, Supabase, and BigQuery. For teams already living in Airtable or Notion, Softr can surface that data to clients or staff without duplicating it. There's also a native Softr Database with relational tables and linked records for teams that want to consolidate everything on one platform.
Permissions and user groups are a central feature. You can control exactly which data each user sees and what actions they can take — useful for multi-tenant client portals where different clients should see only their own records. Custom user groups are gated to the Professional tier ($167/mo) and above; the Basic plan ($59/mo) only offers default groups.
Pricing tiers: - Free — 1 app, 10 users, 5,000 database records, 500 workflow actions - Basic — $59/mo: 3 apps, 20 users, 50,000 records, 2,500 workflow actions - Professional — $167/mo: unlimited apps, 100 users (+$10 per additional 10), 3 custom user groups, 500,000 records, 10,000 workflow actions - Business — $323/mo: 500 users, unlimited user groups, 1M records, 25,000 workflow actions - Enterprise — custom: SSO (SAML/OpenID), SOC 2 reporting, IP blocking, SLAs, dedicated success manager
The user pricing on Professional is a notable limitation: 100 users is the included ceiling, and you pay $10 for every additional 10 users beyond that. At scale, this adds up fast. SSO is enterprise-only, which is a friction point for businesses that need it at the mid-market level.
Softr offers 24/7 chat support across all plans, including free — a meaningful differentiator for teams that can't afford downtime.
Limitations: Workflow automations are capped by plan and relatively basic compared to dedicated automation tools. Custom user groups — essential for real multi-tenant portals — require upgrading past the Basic plan. The free tier is genuinely functional for testing, but real client-facing work quickly bumps you to Professional.
Glide
Glide's pitch is turning spreadsheets into polished, AI-powered apps. The experience starts from a familiar spreadsheet-like data editor, making it approachable for operations teams already fluent in Google Sheets or Excel. It connects to Google Sheets, Airtable, Excel, SQL databases, and its own Glide Tables (which support up to 10 million rows via Big Tables).
Workflow automation is more mature in Glide. The workflow editor supports conditional logic, loops, nested conditions, webhook triggers, scheduled runs, and email-based triggers. AI is baked directly into workflows — you can automatically extract data from invoices, draft emails, transcribe audio, and generate content without leaving the platform. Glide also lets you build custom UI components through a chat interface, including interactive cards, progress bars, and sliders.
Integrations include HubSpot, Stripe, QuickBooks, Intercom, PostgreSQL, and 100+ additional sources, making it a stronger option for businesses running established SaaS stacks.
Pricing tiers: - Free — limited functionality (exact user/row caps not published, but sufficient for prototyping) - Business — $199/mo billed annually: unlimited apps, 30 users included ($5/additional user), 5,000 updates (+$0.02 per update), up to 100,000 rows - Enterprise — custom: SSO, data backups, enterprise integrations, account manager, SLA
Glide's pricing model is harder to predict than Softr's. The "updates" meter — every write action to your data — charges $0.02 beyond 5,000/month on the Business plan. For portals with heavy user activity (form submissions, record updates), this can meaningfully increase costs. The $5/user overage charge for users beyond 30 is straightforward, but adds up for larger teams.
The entry point of $199/mo is significantly higher than Softr's $59/mo Basic tier, though Glide includes unlimited apps and 30 users at that price. There's a 14-day free trial on Business.
Limitations: No mid-tier plan between free and $199/mo means smaller teams either use the free version or make a substantial jump. Update-based billing introduces unpredictability for write-heavy apps. SSO is enterprise-only.
When to Choose Softr
Softr makes the most sense if you're building client-facing portals where granular permissions matter, working heavily in Airtable or Notion and want to expose that data cleanly to external users, running an agency managing multiple client apps, or operating on a tighter budget where starting at $59/mo provides real functionality. The free tier and lower entry price also make it practical for solopreneurs and small teams testing the waters before committing.
When to Choose Glide
Glide is the better fit for operations-heavy teams who need sophisticated workflow automation, businesses with complex data pipelines involving SQL or large datasets (Big Tables handles 10M rows), field teams needing polished mobile apps with offline-friendly design, or companies that want AI embedded directly into their automations. If you're starting from Google Sheets and want to evolve without rebuilding, Glide's data editor makes the transition natural.
Bottom Line
These tools overlap significantly — both build attractive, functional no-code apps with decent data connectivity and AI features. The deciding factors come down to budget and complexity.
Softr wins on price accessibility and multi-tenant portal use cases. Its permission system, Airtable/Notion integrations, and lower starting price make it the pragmatic choice for agencies and client portal builders working at small-to-medium scale.
Glide wins on workflow sophistication, raw data scale, and AI automation depth. But its $199/mo minimum and update-based billing mean you need to stress-test the cost model against your actual usage before committing.
If your primary use case is a branded client portal with role-based access to structured data, Softr is probably the faster, cheaper path. If you're replacing internal operations software with complex automations and large datasets, Glide's more powerful workflow engine justifies the premium.