Links checked 2026-10-14
Self-hosting NocoDB
The self-hosted route instead of Airtable.
A documented compose stack, but with a database and a queue in it. Fine for someone who has run that shape before; not a one-container install.
What it is
A spreadsheet-database that puts a grid, gallery, kanban and form interface on top of an ordinary database, with APIs generated from the tables. It is positioned as a self-hostable alternative to hosted base tools, and its own quickstart runs a stack rather than a single container.
What you actually need
This is the reader's own hardware and configuration, not a price. We describe what a job needs; we do not put a figure on what self-hosting costs, because that depends on the provider, the term and the disk you choose.
- The server
- A VPS running several containers: the application, a worker, PostgreSQL and Redis, per the project's quickstart.
- How it installs
- Docker Compose through the documented quickstart, or the single-server and custom infrastructure paths the docs also cover.
- Data store
- PostgreSQL in the documented stack; other databases are covered in the same docs section.
- What grows
- Attachments and the database grow together, and attachments are the part that surprises people: a base full of files is a storage and backup problem twice over.
Before it is safe to expose
- PostgreSQL and Redis to back up, in that order of importance
- A public URL with TLS
- A read of the licence pages before migrating anything you care about into it
The trade-offs, specifically for NocoDB
- The documentation includes pages for purchasing, activating and white-labelling a licence, so check which capabilities the free install includes before you move a base into it.
- The documented quickstart is four containers, which means four things to keep updated.
- Attachments push the database and the storage volume up together, and both need backing up.
- You are running PostgreSQL for real now, and version upgrades of that database are your responsibility.
And the six things you own from now on
These are true of every tool in this section, including NocoDB. They are also the reason to decide against self-hosting, which is a legitimate decision.
- You own the updates. Security releases have to be applied by you, on your schedule, and a project that stops publishing releases becomes your problem to notice.
- You own the backups, and a backup is not a backup until you have restored from it once.
- You own the uptime. There is no status page to watch and no support line to call when it stops answering.
- You own the security patches, the TLS certificate, the reverse proxy and the firewall in front of it.
- You are the on-call rota. The failure mode nobody plans for is being the only person who knows how the thing was set up.
- The hardware has a running cost and a lifetime. Disks fail, and the replacement is on you.
What you give up
- The hosted product's managed upgrades, sharing and support
- The licence-gated features, unless you buy them
What you gain
- The data sits in a database you can query with ordinary tools, not a proprietary store
- No per-seat subscription for the core install
Elsewhere in the index
The box it runs on
A VPS running several containers: the application, a worker, PostgreSQL and Redis, per the project's quickstart. That machine is the purchase this page is really about, and it is the one number we will not invent for you: the right size depends on the provider, the term and the disk, so check it on the provider's own page.
Hostinger
Hostinger's VPS product is the closest fit to a self-hosted application: its own page advertises root access, Docker and NVMe storage, with data centres in several regions.
See Hostinger's plansRead Hostinger's published pricing ↗DigitalOcean
Virtual machines billed as you use them, with separate volumes, snapshots and object storage for the parts you want to keep outside the server.
See DigitalOcean's plansRead DigitalOcean's published pricing ↗Hetzner
Cloud instances and dedicated servers with rates published per instance size, so the cost of a bigger box is visible before you move.
See Hetzner's plansRead Hetzner's published pricing ↗What to check before you buy
- A virtual machine you have root on, not a website plan with a control panel bolted on top.
- Snapshots or automated backups, and where those backups are stored.
- Block storage or object storage for the data that will outgrow the server's own disk.
- What the monthly rate renews at, rather than the first-term rate on the signup page.
- Where the data centre is, if the data has a jurisdiction attached to it.
The “See plans” links go through our own /go/ redirect and some are affiliate links, which pay us if you sign up. The descriptions and trade-offs on this page are written from the project's own documentation and are unaffected. The plain pricing link under each provider is not an affiliate link. See our disclosure.
Frequently asked questions about self-hosting NocoDB
Answers restate the notes on this page or point at the project's own documentation. Self-hosting moves work to you rather than removing it, and these answers say so.
What is NocoDB?
A spreadsheet-database that puts a grid, gallery, kanban and form interface on top of an ordinary database, with APIs generated from the tables. We cover it as a replacement for Airtable.
What do you need to run NocoDB yourself?
Docker Compose through the documented quickstart, or the single-server and custom infrastructure paths the docs also cover. The requirements table on this page lists the server, the data store, what grows and what else to arrange first. Setup steps are at NocoDB's self-hosting quickstart.
How hard is NocoDB to run yourself?
We rate it Moderate. A documented compose stack, but with a database and a queue in it. Fine for someone who has run that shape before; not a one-container install.
What are the trade-offs of self-hosting NocoDB?
Our notes list these costs. The documentation includes pages for purchasing, activating and white-labelling a licence, so check which capabilities the free install includes before you move a base into it. The documented quickstart is four containers, which means four things to keep updated.
What do you give up by running NocoDB yourself?
You take on what Airtable used to do for you. The hosted product's managed upgrades, sharing and support. The licence-gated features, unless you buy them. Self-hosting moves that work to you rather than removing it.
What do you gain by running NocoDB yourself?
Our notes list these. The data sits in a database you can query with ordinary tools, not a proprietary store. No per-seat subscription for the core install.