Softwr

Accounting · head to head

ADP vs Supabase

ADP logo

ADP

Accounting

Always Designing for People

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Supabase logo

Supabase

Technology

The open source Firebase alternative

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Supabase has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ADP no pricing is published; every quote is custom and driven by employee count and which services are taken; Supabase free tier projects auto-pause after 1 week of inactivity
  • They diverge on capability: ADP covers Payroll, Supabase covers PostgreSQL database.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ADP and Supabase actually diverge.

Attributes where ADP and Supabase differ
AttributeADPSupabase
Starting price$29/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
CategoryAccountingTechnology
Founded19492020

Identical on both: platforms (Web, Ios, Android), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in ADP

  • Payroll
  • Tax services
  • HR management
  • Time & attendance
  • Benefits administration
  • QuickBooks
  • Sage
  • Oracle

Only in Supabase

  • PostgreSQL database
  • Auto-generated APIs
  • Authentication & authorization
  • Real-time subscriptions
  • Storage
  • Edge functions
  • Vector embeddings
  • Database migrations

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ADP

  • Payroll processing and tax filingnot Supabase
  • HR administration and employee recordsnot Supabase
  • Time and attendance trackingnot Supabase
  • Benefits administrationnot Supabase
  • Talent management on the mid-market and enterprise productsnot Supabase

Supabase

  • Web application backends using Postgres plus auto-generated REST/GraphQL APIsnot ADP
  • Mobile app backends via Flutter/Swift/Kotlin client librariesnot ADP
  • AI applications using vector/embeddings storagenot ADP
  • Authentication with 20+ social providers plus email/passwordnot ADP
  • File and media storage (S3-compatible with CDN) and realtime sync over WebSocketsnot ADP

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

ADP

  • No pricing is published; every quote is custom and driven by employee count and which services are taken
  • Split into three separate products by company size, RUN for 1 to 49 employees, Workforce Now for 50 and above, and Lyric HCM for enterprise, so growing across a threshold means changing product rather than plan

Supabase

  • Free tier projects auto-pause after 1 week of inactivity
  • Free tier hard caps: 500 MB database, 1 GB file storage, 5 GB egress/month, 50,000 monthly active users, max 2 active free projects per organization
  • Pro plan charges usage overages beyond included quotas, e.g. $0.00325 per MAU above 100,000 and $0.125/GB disk above 8 GB
  • SOC2/ISO 27001 certification and HIPAA (add-on) compliance require the $599/month Team plan; not available on the $25/month Pro plan

Pricing, plan by plan

ADP

$29/month
  • Essential$79/month
    • Payroll
    • Tax filing
    • Direct deposit
  • Enhanced$139/month
    • HR tools
    • Background checks
    • Job posting

Supabase

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 50,000 MAU
    • 500MB database
    • 5GB egress
  • Pro$25/month
    • 100,000 MAU
    • 8GB disk
    • 250GB egress
  • Team$599/month
    • SOC2 and ISO 27001
    • HIPAA add-on
    • 28-day log / 14-day backup retention
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom limits
    • Dedicated support manager
    • 24/7/365 support

Which should you pick?

Choose ADP if

  • You need payroll.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want tax services.
ADP review

Choose Supabase if

  • You need postgresql database.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want auto-generated apis.
Supabase review

Questions people ask

Is ADP or Supabase better?
Neither clearly leads. ADP starts at $29/month and Supabase at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ADP or Supabase?
Supabase has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $29/month for ADP and Free for Supabase.
Does ADP or Supabase run on more platforms?
ADP runs on Web, Ios, Android. Supabase runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Supabase for free?
Yes. Supabase has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. ADP starts at $29/month.
What is ADP best used for?
ADP is most often used for payroll processing and tax filing, hr administration and employee records, time and attendance tracking, benefits administration. Of those, payroll processing and tax filing and hr administration and employee records are not what Supabase is typically brought in for.
What can ADP do that Supabase cannot?
ADP covers Payroll, Tax services, HR management, Time & attendance. Supabase covers PostgreSQL database, Auto-generated APIs, Authentication & authorization, Real-time subscriptions.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ADP: How is ADP pricing organized?

ADP organizes pricing by business size: Small Business (1-49 employees), Midsized (50-999 employees), and Enterprise (1,000+ employees). Each segment receives customized pricing tailored to specific business needs.

Source
Supabase: How much does Supabase cost?

Supabase offers a free tier and three paid plans. Pro starts at $25 per month, Team at $599 per month, and Enterprise requires a custom quote. All pricing is in USD charged monthly.

Source
ADP: Is there a current promotional offer for ADP payroll?

ADP currently offers 3 months free when signing up for small business payroll (promotion ends 9/24). Contact sales at 800-225-5237 for details and to request pricing based on your employee count.

Source
Supabase: What are Supabase's usage overage fees?

Pro plan users pay $0.00325 per monthly active user over the 100,000 included, and $0.125 per GB for database storage exceeding 8 GB per project. Compute instances cost $10 to $3,730+ per month.

Source
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