Nhost

What is Nhost?

Nhost is an open source backend-as-a-service that bundles the server side of an app into one stack: a PostgreSQL database, an instant GraphQL API generated by Hasura, authentication, file storage, and serverless functions. It’s a Firebase alternative for developers who want a SQL database and GraphQL instead of a proprietary NoSQL backend.

What is Nhost best for?

Nhost fits frontend and full-stack developers building GraphQL-first or JAMstack apps who want a ready-made backend without wiring Postgres, Hasura, auth, and storage together by hand. It’s a strong pick when you’d rather own your data in real SQL and query it over GraphQL than lock into Firebase’s NoSQL model.

What can Nhost do?

• Provision a dedicated PostgreSQL database with full SQL access
• Generate a real-time GraphQL API automatically via Hasura, including subscriptions
• Handle sign-up, sign-in, and user management with built-in authentication
• Store and serve files with an integrated CDN
• Run backend logic as JavaScript/TypeScript serverless functions
• Deploy services in any language as custom containers
• Develop locally with the Nhost CLI, then deploy with a Git push

Where does Nhost fall short?

• It’s GraphQL-first through Hasura, so if your team prefers REST or is coming from a REST-only background, expect a learning curve — a REST-centric backend like Supabase may fit better.
• Its integration ecosystem and community are smaller than Firebase’s or Supabase’s, so you’ll find fewer third-party guides and prebuilt connectors.
• The managed free tier pauses a project after one week of inactivity and is limited to a single project, so it’s meant for prototypes, not always-on side projects.

Is Nhost free?

Yes — Nhost is MIT-licensed and fully self-hostable, so you can run the entire stack for free on your own infrastructure and only pay for the server. Nhost Cloud is the managed option: a free Starter tier (1 project, paused after a week idle), Pro from $25/month, Team from $599/month, and custom Enterprise pricing, with compute billed separately.

What does Nhost replace?

Nhost is a self-hostable alternative to Firebase and AWS Amplify. It covers the same database, auth, storage, and functions that those managed backends provide, but on an open Postgres + GraphQL stack you can export and run anywhere instead of a proprietary cloud.

FAQ

Is Nhost open source? Yes. The core stack is released under the MIT license — one of the most permissive open source licenses — and the whole platform is self-hostable.

Can I self-host Nhost for free? Yes. You can run the full stack (Postgres, Hasura, auth, storage, functions) on your own server with the Nhost CLI and Docker; you only pay for the hosting. Nhost Cloud is the paid, managed alternative.

Is Nhost a good Firebase alternative? For teams that want a SQL database and GraphQL, yes — you get relational Postgres and portable data instead of Firebase’s proprietary NoSQL. If you rely on Firebase’s mobile SDKs and large integration ecosystem, that ecosystem is still bigger.

How is Nhost different from Supabase? Both are open source, Postgres-based Firebase alternatives. Nhost exposes its API through Hasura’s GraphQL layer, while Supabase leans REST-first with a broader integration ecosystem.

What do I need to run Nhost? For self-hosting, a server with Docker; the Nhost CLI runs the full stack locally for development. Managed Nhost Cloud needs no infrastructure of your own.