# PlanetScale vs Supabase (2026)

By Noah — last updated & pricing verified September 14, 2026.

> **Verdict:** Choose PlanetScale if you need a horizontally-shardable MySQL-compatible (Vitess) database with Git-style branching and zero-downtime schema changes, and don't need a free tier. Choose Supabase if you want a full backend bundling Postgres, auth, storage, realtime sync, and auto-generated APIs with a genuine free tier. Free-tier availability is the deciding factor: Supabase offers a free plan for up to 2 projects, while PlanetScale eliminated its free Hobby tier in April 2024, making every database, including tiny side projects, cost at least $5/month.

**Choose PlanetScale if:** You need horizontally-shardable, MySQL-compatible database infrastructure (Vitess) for large-scale workloads; You want zero-downtime, non-blocking schema changes across both Postgres and MySQL-compatible product lines; You want database branching for testing schema migrations on an isolated copy before merging to production; You don't need a free tier and want multi-cloud deployment across AWS and GCP

**Choose Supabase if:** You want a genuine free tier to start a project without paying anything; You need auth, storage, realtime sync, and auto-generated APIs bundled with your database; You want a Postgres-only stack without also considering a MySQL-compatible (Vitess) option; You want Row Level Security enforcing per-row authorization at the database layer instead of in application code; You're building a project too small to justify PlanetScale's $5/month minimum

## At a glance

|  | PlanetScale | Supabase |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pricing | From $5/mo | Free tier · paid from $25/mo |
| License | Paid | Open core |
| Best for | teams needing a managed, horizontally-scalable MySQL (Vitess) or Postgres database with Git-style branching workflows, who don't need a permanent free tier | developers who want a Postgres-based backend (auth, storage, realtime, auto-generated APIs) they can self-host later, rather than committing to a proprietary NoSQL platform like Firebase |
| Ratings | Capterra 4/5 (1 reviews) | Product Hunt 5/5 (861 reviews) |

## Feature comparison

| Feature | PlanetScale | Supabase |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Starting price | Yes (from $5/mo (Postgres, single-node)) | Yes (from $0/mo (Free)) |
| Free tier | No (eliminated in April 2024, $5/mo minimum for any database) | Yes (2 active projects, 500MB database, 50,000 MAU) |
| Platforms | Yes (web only) | Yes (web, Windows, macOS, Linux) |
| License | No (closed-source, paid) | Partial (open-core (Apache 2.0 core, proprietary hosted dashboard)) |
| Database branching | Yes (copy-on-write schema and data branches) | No (not a listed feature) |
| Zero-downtime schema changes | Yes (non-blocking on both Postgres and Vitess) | Unknown |
| MySQL-compatible option (Vitess) | Yes (horizontally-shardable Vitess from $39/mo) | No (Postgres only) |
| Built-in auth | No | Yes (20+ social providers plus Row Level Security) |
| Built-in file storage | No | Yes (S3-compatible storage, 1GB free, 100GB on Pro) |
| Realtime sync | No | Yes (WebSocket-based realtime sync) |
| Auto-generated APIs | No | Yes (REST, GraphQL, and Realtime APIs from schema) |
| Multi-cloud deployment | Yes (AWS and GCP) | Unknown |
| High-availability tier | Yes (from $15/mo (Postgres, 3-node HA)) | Unknown (not itemized separately from Pro tier) |
| External rating (Capterra/Product Hunt) | Yes (4.0/5 from 1 review (Capterra)) | Yes (5.0/5 from 861 reviews (Product Hunt)) |

## PlanetScale vs Supabase pricing: which costs less?

Supabase costs less to start, since it has a genuine free tier, while PlanetScale requires at least $5/month for any database after eliminating its free Hobby tier in April 2024.

PlanetScale's cheapest option is a $5/month single-node, non-HA Postgres development database, with production-grade high-availability tiers starting higher and metal tiers running into the thousands per month. Supabase's Free tier covers 2 active projects with 500MB database and 50,000 monthly active users at no cost, and its first paid tier (Pro) is $25/month, though usage-based overages can push costs higher for accounts with multiple projects.

## Which is easier to use, PlanetScale or Supabase?

PlanetScale has a lower learning curve rating (moderate) compared to Supabase (also moderate), though PlanetScale's Vitess sharding concepts add complexity the data notes explicitly.

Both products carry a moderate learning curve rating. PlanetScale's own listed weakness notes that Vitess-specific concepts like sharding add operational complexity compared to a plain managed Postgres instance. Supabase's own listed weakness notes Row Level Security has a steeper learning curve than simpler client-side security rules for teams new to SQL.

## Which offers database branching, PlanetScale or Supabase?

PlanetScale offers database branching as a signature feature; it is not a listed Supabase feature.

PlanetScale's branching lets developers create copy-on-write branches of a production database's schema and data, test migrations on the branch, and merge them back without downtime. This Git-style workflow is central to PlanetScale's positioning and is not described in the Supabase bundle data.

## Can Supabase replace PlanetScale?

Partially — Supabase provides a full Postgres backend with auth, storage, and realtime features, but it doesn't offer PlanetScale's MySQL-compatible Vitess option or database branching.

Supabase covers general-purpose Postgres database needs plus auth, storage, realtime sync, and auto-generated APIs that PlanetScale doesn't provide at all. However, teams that specifically need PlanetScale's horizontally-shardable Vitess product for MySQL-compatible workloads, or its copy-on-write branching for schema migration testing, won't find an equivalent in Supabase.

## Strengths and weaknesses

### PlanetScale

- Pro: Database branching lets developers test schema migrations on an isolated copy before merging to production.
- Pro: Zero-downtime, non-blocking schema changes on both the Vitess and Postgres product lines.
- Pro: Offers both a MySQL-compatible (Vitess) and a native Postgres option under one platform.
- Pro: Multi-cloud support across AWS and GCP with multi-region deployment options.
- Con: No free tier since April 2024; every database, including tiny side projects, costs at least $5/month.
- Con: Pricing scales into thousands of dollars per month for high-availability metal tiers with meaningful storage.
- Con: Vitess-specific concepts like sharding add operational complexity compared to a plain managed Postgres instance.

### Supabase

- Pro: Full Postgres database rather than a proprietary NoSQL store, so existing SQL skills and extensions like pgvector and PostGIS carry over directly.
- Pro: Auto-generates REST, GraphQL, and Realtime APIs from the schema, with Row Level Security for per-row authorization.
- Pro: Apache-2.0-licensed core stack is self-hostable, avoiding hard vendor lock-in.
- Pro: Free tier includes unlimited API requests, 50,000 monthly active users, and a 500MB database with no time limit on the account.
- Con: Compute is billed per project, so accounts running several projects stack recurring charges beyond the flat $25/month Pro fee.
- Con: MAU overage ($0.00325/user past 100,000) and egress overage ($0.09/GB past 250GB) can produce unpredictable invoices at scale.
- Con: Free-tier projects pause automatically after 1 week of inactivity.
- Con: Row Level Security has a steeper learning curve than Firebase's simpler client-side security rules for teams new to SQL.

## Which fits your use case?

| Use case | Pick | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Team needing a horizontally-shardable, MySQL-compatible database for large-scale workloads | PlanetScale | PlanetScale's Vitess product line is built specifically for horizontal sharding at scale; Supabase is Postgres-only. |
| Small project or prototype that needs to start on a genuinely free plan | Supabase | Supabase offers a free tier for up to 2 projects, while PlanetScale requires at least $5/month for any database since eliminating its free Hobby tier. |
| Team wanting to test schema migrations on an isolated branch before merging to production | PlanetScale | PlanetScale's copy-on-write database branching is its signature feature; branching isn't a listed Supabase capability. |
| Team building a full app backend without assembling auth, storage, and realtime separately | Supabase | Supabase bundles auth, storage, realtime sync, and auto-generated APIs on top of Postgres; PlanetScale is database-only. |
| Team wanting zero-downtime schema changes across both MySQL-compatible and Postgres options | PlanetScale | PlanetScale offers non-blocking schema changes on both its Vitess and Postgres product lines; this specific dual-engine option isn't available from Supabase. |

## Migration FAQ

### Should I use PlanetScale or Supabase?

Use PlanetScale if you need a horizontally-shardable MySQL-compatible database with Git-style branching; use Supabase if you want a full backend with auth, storage, and realtime features on a genuine free tier.

### Is PlanetScale cheaper than Supabase?

No — PlanetScale requires at least $5/month for any database since eliminating its free Hobby tier in April 2024, while Supabase offers a free tier for up to 2 projects.

### Can Supabase replace PlanetScale?

Partially — Supabase covers general Postgres database needs plus bundled auth, storage, and realtime features, but it doesn't offer PlanetScale's MySQL-compatible Vitess sharding or database branching.

### Is there a free alternative to PlanetScale?

Yes — Supabase offers a free tier covering 2 active projects with a 500MB database and 50,000 monthly active users, unlike PlanetScale, which requires at least $5/month for any database.

### Which supports MySQL, PlanetScale or Supabase?

PlanetScale supports MySQL-compatible workloads through its Vitess product line, starting at $39/month; Supabase is Postgres-only and doesn't offer a MySQL-compatible option.

## Neither a match?

- 3 alternatives to PlanetScale: https://findalternative.to/planetscale
- 4 alternatives to Supabase: https://findalternative.to/supabase

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